Take a look around your house right now, do you see anything that could be used to take great pictures?
Flowers, fruits, kraft paper, and aluminum foil, are examples of items you can creatively use to add unique elements to your photos.
While it might take some time adapting your eye to pick common household items for great shots, with a little help, we hope to make that a lot easier for you.
Start by picking two or three items that have bright colors.
If you want red tones you can use fresh strawberries, ribbons, or party cups, be creative!
Pair those red tones with clothing that won’t overshadow them.
A blue jeans jacket paired with a white t-shirt would do nicely in this situation.
Preparing your environment
The first step is picking a room that has some sort natural light.
Portraits are great when you have soft light, and this can be achieved using a thin curtain or piece of fabric over your window.
Remember to stay close to the light source, the closer you are and the larger the source of light, the softer it will be.
Now that you have your location, you need a secondary source of light, a LED light is an excellent choice.
If you have the option to use RGB, play around with the colors until you find what you like the most.
If you’re into DIY, you can make your own RGB stick under 35 bucks and it’s just wonderful!
As a result, you should have a well-lit bedroom or living room, with soft light that will highlight you in the photo.
Make sure your background is simple, you don’t want a lot of information taking away the focus.
Don’t be afraid to leave some items, they will add to the end result.
Adding books, paintings, and mirrors to the background can get you that cozy home feel to the photo.
Shadows are your friends, use them
Playing with shadows is fairly easy and will add some cool patterns to your photo.
You can use foliage from branches and leaves found outside, just hold it against the light or tie it on a string and you’re good to go.
Got a window overflowing with light? Grab a piece of cardboard and carve shapes out, even a broomstick will cast a straight shadow over you for a nice touch.
Don’t expect your first shot to be perfect
Don’t get me wrong, you can definitely get a good result, but to take great pictures, keep trying different angles, lighting, and other elements, you’ll be surprised with how many amazing shots you’ll have.
If you’re shooting with your phone, try alternating between portrait and landscape orientation, sometimes that one shot you’re struggling with just needs a new perspective.
Now if you have a camera, go ham, also try different lenses, play with your settings as much as you want.
We recommend using an 85mm lens if you want less of the background to show up in your photo, and if you want more background, go for a 50mm.
Most of all, keep on trying new things. In the end, this is definitely a process of trial and error.
Get creative treating your photos
Finally, you should have a few ideas to take great pictures and selfies with what you have.
As a result, It’s time to treat your photos. we prefer Adobe Lightroom, but there are several other options, even free ones like GIMP.
Also, Lightroom has a free mobile application, so if you’re shooting with your phone, this could be a great option.
Try new things when treating your photos, mess around, break things and fix them.
And also remember to save your presets, as those can be used later on.
Final thoughts
Photography is a journey, and it has lots of ups and downs if you’re not sure about what you are looking for.
We hope to make things easier for you in the future
Expect technical articles and great advice to boost your social reach and engagement.
Did you find the tips listed in this article helpful?
What is your favorite software for photo editing? What items did you choose to include in your pictures?
If you have questions, or want a specific subject shown here, let us know!