10 Tips for a Better Blog Shoot!

Any blogger will tell you that shoot days are the best and worst part of blogging! There is nothing better than having a bunch of new content ready to post. I always feel so on top of things and ready for the week right after I've finished a successful blog shoot. BUT shoot days can also be a major pain. You have to smile and pretend you're not freezing (or burning up) no matter what the weather looks like, sometimes it gets crazy windy, sometimes the sun is too harsh, and nothing can ruin a shoot quite like a sudden rainstorm (Nashville problems, am I right?). And then there's the whole "where the heck am I supposed to change?" issue. I've been taking blog pictures for a bit over a year now, and I've rounded up a few of the most game changing tips I've found or come up with to make your lives a whole lot easier!

Tip #1: Curl your hair

My hair is naturally stick straight and super fine, so if I don't curl it, it looks so thin. I've also found that if I curl it, it sticks together a little bit better and doesn't go flying everywhere on a windy day! If it's curled, I have a better chance of getting that cute wind blown look, as opposed to it becoming a crazy disaster and flying everywhere. 

Tip #2: Partner up

One of the biggest things that changed my blogging game was partnering up with other bloggers and taking each others pictures. I used to try to have my boyfriend take my outfit pictures every day once I was done with classes and he was done with work, and that's always a struggle because you lose sunlight and feel super rushed. It's so much easier to shoot a bunch of pictures at once, that way you don't have to be looking picture perfect every single day (because let's be real, that's not going to happen. At least not for me!). I've also found that other bloggers are better at knowing what kind of shots you need (detail shots, shots that you can crop for Instagram, full body, etc.) so the shoots go a lot faster and you get much better pictures. Not to mention that it's always a great thing to make connections with other bloggers.

Tip #3: Get a portable changing tent

This is probably the biggest blogging hack I've ever discovered and has made shooting multiple outfits at once 100 times easier! My portable changing tent has been a total lifesaver! You just put a towel down on the ground, pop it open, hop in and change, and then fold it back up. It takes about 10 seconds to put up and take down and will save you so much time looking for coffee shop bathrooms to change in and will keep you from changing in your car. I have no idea why I didn't do this sooner. We usually just put it between our cars and one of us will hold it while the other changes and vice versa!

Tip #4: Always have a back-up plan

I can't tell you how many times I've gone to shoot and had the location be way too sunny and bright, or way too windy! Try to come up with multiple spots in the same general area if possible, that way if one spot doesn't work, you can just go to the other spot. For my Nashville ladies, Centennial Park is one of my go-to spots because there are so many different background possibilities and you can run underneath the parthenon and take some shots there if it's too bright, windy or rainy!

Tip # 5: Wear false lashes

This is by no means an absolute must do, and I've done plenty of shoots without them, but I always find that my pictures turn out better when I wear false lashes to shoot. They help to make your eyes look bigger and pop more, and it makes those looking down/looking away from the camera shots look absolutely gorgeous! 

Tip #6: Check the weather

I know, I know, this should go without saying and for some of you it probably does, but you'd be surprised how many times I completely forget to check and just show up hoping it will work out. A lot of the time when I try to plan a shoot I'm just like "this day works for both of us? cool!" and don't think about it again until we show up and it's raining. Do as I say, not as I do. Check the weather. 

Tip #7: Invest in a cute umbrella

Sometimes rain is just unavoidable, but you don't want to let it ruin your shoot! Invest in a cute umbrella like this one and always keep it in your car on shoot days, because sometimes the weather man is wrong! If it does rain, no big deal because your umbrella doubles as a cute accessory and gives you something to do with your hands!

Tip #8: Grab Coffee

I'm super awkward and never know what to do with my hands! Sometimes I like to grab coffee on my way to a shoot and use the coffee cup as a prop! Obviously, you couldn't do this for every outfit, but I've found that throwing in cute little props like a coffee mug or umbrella here and there make your pictures seem more natural and again, give you something to do with your hands! 

Tip #9: Walk on invisible heels

If you subscribe to Carly Cristman on YouTube, you've probably already heard this tip in this video, but I thought I'd throw it in in case you haven't because it's probably one of the best tips I've come across! Basically, if you go up on your toes a bit in every pictures, it will elongate your legs and also give your pictures more motion, especially in those close up shoe detail shots. I do this in pretty much every picture I take just because I feel like it makes my picture look less posed and more natural, and just makes me look better in general! 

Tip #10: Invest in a DSLR

I know this is a pretty big investment, and its definitely not something that everyone can do right away, but if you're serious about blogging, this will be the most important investment you will ever make. I have a Canon Rebel T5 and it has been the perfect starter camera! I use a 50mm 1.8 lens, and it's made such a difference in the quality of my pictures! I plan on doing a more in depth post later on how I take and edit all of my photos, so if you have any camera or photo specific questions let me know in the comments and I'll make sure to answer them in that post! 

XOXO,

Olivia