Joy the Baker

Six Ways To Make Instagram Both Beautiful and Bearable

by 44 Comments

Joy the Baker Instagram Tips

Hey friends!  Can we talk about Instagram?  Does it feel like it’s gotten out of our hands?  Like everyone is everywhere doing everything (with cocktails) and we’re… distinctly not?   Instagram has become a beautiful and nearly unbearable place.  Here are my tips to contributing and carrying on.  

•  First, we all owe one another an apology.  I’ll go first.  I’m sorry I make everything look perfect on Instagram.  In fact, nothing is perfect. Everyone is, in fact, doing the same thing.. hiding their pain and disguising their anxieties behind various overhead shots of coffee and doughnuts.  I’m sorry.  I’m guilty of the same.  Let’s forgive people in advance for their perceived perfection, see past it and love each other anyway.  

•  Let’s be generous with our likes.  I mean, why not? We follow each other for a reason and that reason is probably that we like each other, or you have cute kids, or a sweet looking cat, or go on excellent food adventures, or have a great sense of humor.  Double tap.  Like.  Or unfollow in which case… peace out, nothing personal. 

Joy the Baker Instagram Tips

•  There must be an element of beauty to Instagram.  We’re scrolling (with increasing speed) through visual images so our goal is to share our unique perception of beauty.  It’s about what you see, what speaks to you, and what you want to share…. and a proper amount of apps to edit and filter the beauty we see.  I love VSCO CAM for overall filters and white balance, sharpening, and general loveliness.  There’s a down and dirty VSCO food editing tutorial here for a few quick tips!  

•  Let’s talk about the nitty gritty of our food photography composition.  Here are a few tips I like to work within when photographing the food I make and eat.

Joy the Baker Instagram Tips

Tighten and clutter up the frame.  This is a ‘more is more’ approach.  Add layers of texture and ingredients to the frame and inch them atop and very close to each other.  We’re creating delicious chaos.  Don’t be scared.  

See:  Fresh Raspberry and Gin Slushies

Joy the Baker Instagram Tips

Opposite of the ‘more is more’ technique:  allow for some breathing room in your photograph.  Leaving empty space in a photograph is a nice rest for the eye.  Simplicity is best!   

Joy the Baker Instagram Tips

Remember the rule of thirds?  Same applies for (ooey gooey) food photography on Instagram.  It’s about placing a subject in the lower third, center, or upper third of a photograph frame creating concentration and tension in a picture.  Also, all sticky buns look delicious so… this was too easy.      

•  Here are some of my favorite food folks on Instagram.  

     •  Probably This  •  Minimalist Baker  •  Nicole Franzen  •  Tracy Shutterbean  •  The Candid Appetite (picture above)  •  DinexDesign  •  BelleAnnee  •  Kitchy Kitchen  •  LocalHaven

•  Last, it’s (just) Instagram.  More specifically it’s your Instagram.  Do what feels good to you.  Stand on a chair in a restaurant, style your friends hands just right.  Forget the photograph and just dig into those cheese fries.  Do what feels good to you. Perfection has it’s charm, but so does a real real life.  Ain’t no shame in the game.  

Oh also… all the cool kids are using Snapchat now so… what are we even doing? 

Instagram:  joythebaker.  Holla at your girl.  

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Brita

    My best way to keep Instagram real is in my caption. I’m still in a season of sorrow, and I’m not afraid to write about my grief in a caption for beautiful flowers or an ice cream sundae. I want my Instagram photos to be beautiful, but I never want my life to appear perfect.

    Reply

  2. Anand

    I love Instagram and my entire blog (www.magic-marinade.com) is based off pictures I’ve taken through it. All the things I shoot are shot in natural light on my window sill or bed, no fancy equipment at all. It is the democratisation of photography, making beautiful pictures accessible to anyone with a decent phone, without having to invest in a fancy expensive camera.
    Also, such a lovely post, Joy!

    Reply

  3. jaclyn

    I think it’s good practice for all of us to scroll through our OWN feeds every once in a while. You can’t have FOMO if you’re looking at photos of things that you experienced.

    For myself, I like having a record of all the GOOD in my life to use in the times when it feels like there is only BAD happening in my life.

    My husband isn’t on social media and he teases me about my instagram habits but I have definitely caught him on more than one occasion, scrolling my feed and reminiscing about fun things we did together or sights we saw.

    Reply

  7. gourmetgetaway

    What a great post!
    I think I’m a little more casual on my Instagram than I am on my blog with images… although sometimes I do use a blog pic on Instagram… My Instagram is more a direct look at what I’m doing NOW, what was delicious or where I am eating spending the day, so I don’t tend to fuss as much with photo editing.

    I haven’t managed to understand snapchat, perhaps I should try :0
    Julie
    Gourmet Getaways

    Reply

  15. aliborgas

    Thank you! Pretty sure I breathed a sigh of relief after reading that first paragraph! (by the way, I can no longer use Instagram, as I forgot my password! I’m not missing it.)

    Reply

  16. Joanna

    Love this post! I read recently that to encourage people to take interest in your instagram you should develop a ‘theme’ so I’ve tried to keep my ‘theme’ light and airy. I take loads of dark photos too, but save those for scrapbooking – a more tangible version of instagram :)

    ohhellojo.blogspot.com

    Reply

  21. Colleen

    So real, thank you. I wholeheartedly enjoy Instagram, but lately it has been more difficult than not to appreciate photos and scenes without having my head instantly compare or create or assume based on the fact that I am merely seeing “scenes of” and not a whole life. I especially liked the be generous with likes/comments part, which I will start doing. For me, my own Instagram is like my life photo album, I don’t mean it to be perfect, but if anything a series of photos to remind me who I am, what I’ve done (and that I’ve probably had too many cocktails).

    Reply

  25. cadylwhicker17

    I love the idea of being generous with your likes.. I’m often not, but seriously, why not? Show a little love! And the tips and tutorials are fantastic. Additionally your insta is amazing, Joy. When I insta, I seriously think, would Joy use this for a Let it Be Sunday? Yes? Post. Boom.

    Reply

  29. Tiffany

    “We all owe one another an apology.” Ummm…you are the BEST! This is true true true! I totally didn’t even need the tips you shared. The first part was ah-mazing! (Though I do need instagram tips so perhaps I’ll circle back!)

    Reply

  30. DessertForTwo

    Here’s the thing I love about instagram. I shared a photo of my tired new mama face, holding my baby when she was around 2 weeks old. It was an annoying bathroom selfie. The bathroom was a mess. My hair wasn’t combed, no make-up in sight. And best of all: my huge post-pregnancy belly was on display for all to see that I hadn’t lost my baby weight. And you know what? MOST LIKES EVER. Whenever I keep it real on instagram, people love it. They comment. We share. We connect. It’s truly the social media platform in which I am the most open and honest about my life. I can’t say the same for my blog. Is that weird? I think I should share more on my blog instead of being so sterile.
    Love ya,

    Reply

  31. alison

    Instagram has always been the club that won’t have me. If I’m not mistaken (I stopped checking a while ago), you have to have a device capable of having apps in order to have an account. That’s…not everyone.

    Reply

  33. popandbanter

    THANK YOU for saying all of these things. I couldn’t agree with you more. I’ve too been having a challenging time trying to keep up with all the beauty of the various social media platforms. Sometimes you just got to give yourself a break!

    Reply

  34. Becca | Spices and Spatulas

    I think it’s so rad that you post stuff like this in addition to your recipes. Like most bloggers, your insta-life looks too good to be true. I know I try to do the same with my own instagrams (yet, I post unedited/grainy shots on twitter with no apologies..wonder why that is.) I do think it’s great that with simple editing tricks, everyone’s cute dog/to-go coffee/new shoes picture can look stunning: we’re building our self confidence and learning how to express admiration for others, even if we don’t realize it. Definitely a good thing. You put it so well: “Let’s forgive people in advance for their perceived perfection, see past it and love each other anyway.” You’re just the best, Joy!

    Reply

  41. jaymymy

    These are wonderful tips! I find Instagram to be both a blessing and a curse: When I’m doing something exciting or new or beautiful, or I feel beautiful or refreshed, I instantly need to Instagram it! But at the same time, flipping through my friends’ pictures on a slower day makes me feel like I’m missing out.

    This quotation I’ve heard recently is something I try to remember: “Don’t compare your behind-the-scenes with someone else’s highlights reel.”

    And yes, be generous with the likes! That cannot be said enough. Like unto others as you would have them like unto you. ;)

    Jessica // http://www.jessicarmyers.com

    Reply

  42. steworastory

    I’ve been going through a bit of a hard time recently, so I decided to take a break from social media. It was just too much scrolling through other people’s seemingly perfect lives, which when contrasted with my own, made me feel bummed. I so appreciate your wisdom in this post, and I totally agree about being generous with our likes! (when I do eventually return to instagram!)

    Reply

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