In our last Dirt we shared some tips on Creating Photography That Pops, with suggestions for tricks to use when taking pictures. This week we wanted to share some of our favorite online tools for editing those pictures to help take them to the next level of interest and intrigue. Check out these tools to easily add filters & text to any photo, and to size them appropriately for social media posts.

Canva: One of our favorite new tools to use this year has been Canva. It provides several options for different types of layout templates for you to choose to start from.  Whether you’re creating social posts, blog article graphics or presentations, Canva allows you to choose from a variety of free or very low cost layout templates, that are already sized appropriately for the type of project you’re working on.  From there, you upload your photo, and then have fun changing text, backgrounds, borders, shapes and colors. It’s a great way to take an ordinary image and turn it into a call to action in your social posts. Check it out here: https://www.canva.com/

 

 

Pixlr: For a more advanced option you can check out Pixlr, for tools very similar to Photoshop. This is a great resource for resizing images, eliminating red eye, correcting blemishes in the photo, adding text and many other items. If you have some experience with Photoshop but no longer have access to Photoshop, you’ll feel very comfortable navigating around this tool. But beware, it’s not quite as sophisticated as Photoshop so adding many layers to the image can start to make the image look a bit distorted. Check it out here: http://pixlr.com/

 

For mobile photo editing, we’ve bit the bullet and spent that coveted $0.99 on a few great apps, but there are some Free options as well.

Afterlight ($0.99): We used this great tool in a recent campaign as we counted down the days to Opening Day of the Fair. With their easy-to-use overlay options we were able to spark a fun series of posts for social media. Check it out in the iTunes App Store.

 

Pic Stitch (Free): This app helps you build fun collages of pictures helping to add a little interest to normal snapshots. We like to use this app as we’re visiting our clients to capture the feel of the whole day. Check it out in the iTunes App Store.

A Beautiful Mess ($0.99):  For a hand drawn touch, this app allows you to add doodles, borders and fun phrases to your images that are hand-drawn by Elsie and Emma, creators of the award-winning lifestyle blog, “A Beautiful Mess.” We like to use this tool for adding a personal touch to some of our “behind-the-scenes of Saffire” photos. Check it out in the iTunes App Store.

The popularity of sharing photos on the web makes photography one of your most important online marketing tools. But, if you’ve ever been to an event or venue, you might have noticed that shooting photos can be tricky because there is so much going on that you want to capture it all! Fortunately, there are simple things you can do that will allow you to capture all of the excitement without sacrificing the quality of your photos. Here are some of our favorite tips and tricks to help you take photos that pop:

 

Rule of Thirds. Picture a tic-tac-toe board on the lens of your camera and then put the subject of your shot along those lines. This is especially true when you’re shooting with one singular subject such as a person, a monument, or a skyline. This is a basic composition tip that will make your photos look more visually appealing than when your subject is dead center.

 

Keep it simple. A common photography mistake is trying to capture too many things in the lens at once. Unless you’re going for a shot of the landscape, you should focus on one major element because too many elements can be distracting from the main point of your photo. If you can find a cute kid or a cute animal and capture just that, you’ll be off to a great start!

 

Light it up. Pay attention to the lighting around you before you take a shot, because bad lighting can make your photos look grainy or blurry. Unless you’re going for a silhouette effect, it’s usually best to shoot your subject with the sun behind you (the photographer). The sun emphasizes shadows, and this can help to create some really awesome dramatic effects to your photos!

 

Get close to the action. Elbow your way in if you have to, but try and get up close and personal with the subject of your shot. You don’t want to miss out on awesome photo opportunities by accidentally capturing distracting elements in your shot because you were too far away. Putting in a little extra effort to get closer can open up the possibility of getting an unbelievable photo!

 

Consider using angles. Think outside of the box when it comes to the angle that you’re shooting from. Choosing a different point of view can help add an interesting perspective or extra drama to the subject of your shot. But of course, use discretion with this tip because the beauty of it is that it’s not used too often—consider it your smoking gun!

Maximizing the quality of your photos is a major way that you can improve your online presence, and these five tips can help to get you on the right track. People are always going to be sharing photos on the web and on social media, so you definitely want those photos to represent your event in the best way possible!