We get it, your succulents are lookin’ hella cute and you want to show them off on the ‘gram, but your photos are falling a little flat. It happens to the best of us! We asked our in-house photographer and social media manager for her top 5 tricks to creating the gorgeous succulent photos you see on our feed, and she delivered! Here are her top tips for getting your bbs to absolutely *shine* in photos, no matter what kind of camera you’re using.
Tip #1: Find some natural, diffused light.
Indoor lighting tends to cast harsh shadows or a yellow-y glow, making it less than ideal for highlighting your plant babes. Instead, find a bright window to shoot in front of, with no direct sun rays (direct sun leads to harsh shadows). You can also head outside and find some shade for a diffused light.
Tip #2: Avoid backlighting.
Window sills are the perfect home for your succulents, but trying to shoot succulents with bright light behind them leads to an underexposed subject. Instead of taking the shot straight on, put your phone or camera next to the window pane and angle it down toward the floor. You’ll get a great photograph of the tops of your succulents (birds-eye view!) with a nice glow.
Tip #3: Zoom in.
Get up close and personal with your succulent! These babes have so many beautiful details, why not highlight them? Zoom in and hold the focus on a small part of the succulent, like an individual leaf.
Tip #4: The Rule of Thirds.
This is a classic composition tip that everyone should have in their back pocket! Here’s how it works: when lining up your shot, think about the screen divided evenly into thirds, both horizontally and vertically, making a grid. The subject of the image (your succulent) should be placed at an intersection of those dividing lines or along one of the lines itself.
Tip #5: Color Theory.
Complementary colors are colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel, like red and green or blue and orange. If you really want your succulent to POP, shoot it against its complementary color! (This is why powdery blue succulents look so good in terracotta pots!)
And there you have it, a photographer’s top 5 tips to shooting succulents. Now it’s time to put them to work! Plan a photo session with your succulent babies and be sure to tag @sucstu in your photos so we can see your awesome work! Happy shootin’!
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