There are some truly amazing, super talented photographers out there who have yet to figure out the trick to gaining the social media following that they deserve (we should know, many of them are following our Instagram). As a photography feature page, we have seen some great methods that photographers use to gain followers - and we are going to share them with you.
1. Color counts
The colors you use in your photos matter. Studies have shown that bright colors tend to attract new followers, and photos with the color blue tend to get the most likes. This is not to say that you cannot have success with an all black and white feed; however, it will be much more difficult for you to gain new followers from hashtags and the explore page. If you are going to use color in your photos, try to stay consistent with the types of colors you are using. For example, if most of your photos have warm tones and lots of soft yellows, don’t suddenly post one photo with bright reds. This will disrupt the flow of your feed. Instead, make sure that all of your photos have a similar look and vibe. Dominate one particular niche and photography style so that potential followers can easily see what your account is all about. This will make potential followers more likely to commit to actually following you.
2. Use the Vertical Layout
We know many photographers aren't crazy about the way Instagram crops images, but photos using the vertical layout tend to get more likes and comments than photos with square or horizontal layouts. The vertical layout takes up more of the phone screen, allowing people to see your photo longer as they are scrolling through their feed. These extra few milliseconds could make all the difference in the world. Ultimately, you want to make sure that your followers are seeing your photo long enough to really take it in and appreciate it - this will lead to more engagement on your photos.
3. Keep it Simple
One of the most important factors in becoming Instagram famous is maintaining a clean, aesthetically pleasing feed. The way you organize your photos will influence people who are considering following your account. Our advice: keep it simple. Photos with a crisp, clean feel are often the best to keep your feed looking nice. One way to accomplish this is to make sure that for every photo with a busy background, you post two photos with a simple background. Other feature pages that do a fantastic job of this are @bleachfilm and @quietthechaos - you can check them out for inspiration.
4. Location, Location, Location
One of the easiest ways to get discovered by new people is to tag the location in which your photo was taken. Many people browse photos from a particular location they are planning to visit, and they may just stumble across your account and decide to follow you. Be as specific as possible - you want to make sure that your photo is what people are looking for. For example, if you took a photo in a particular city, street, trail, or park, tag your photo there. Don’t tag a state or country - there are just way too many photos under those locations and yours will likely never be seen.
5. model citizen
It seems obvious that the quality of a portrait highly depends on the model, but many photographers do not invest the time in finding talented models to shoot with. While it is easy to take photos of your friends and family, you want to make sure that your feed also include some professional models. This is important for two reasons. One, working with professional models will enhance the quality of your photos and make your feed more desirable to potential followers. Everyone wants to follow accounts with pretty models and high quality photography, plain and simple. The second reason is that professional models often have a large Instagram following on their own accounts, and tagging them will result in some additional exposure. Encourage your models to post your photos on their accounts and give you credit. If you don’t have the funds to hire professional models, reach out to the so called “Instagram models” or “freelance models.” There are many aspiring models on Instagram that will do shoots for free to expand their portfolios and gain more exposure - it’s a win-win for both of you!
Do you have any tips to add?
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