How to Add Glamour to Your Photographs
Instagram can be both a blessing and a curse for photographers. On the one hand, you have a huge database full of beautiful photos, helping to give you some inspiration and ‘goals’ to strive for. On the other hand, it’s easy to get lost in the quagmire of glamorous Insta photos and only come out thinking: why don’t mine look as good as that?
Even if you’re more focused on uploading your photos to an online photo album maker – in other words, taking them for yourself, rather than to impress other people – it can be easy to feel a little disenchanted with your output, especially when every photograph starts taking on a bland, almost lifeless tone.
It’s important to remember, in this case, that glamorous photographs aren’t reserved for the professionals. Anyone can insert some glamour into their photos, all it takes is a little know-how and patience. With this in mind, we’re going to walk you through our top tips on giving your photographs glamour and helping every picture you take shine.
What Does Adding Glamour Mean?
Before we do that, though, what exactly do we mean when we say ‘glamour’? There comes a point in every photographer's life when they look at their pictures – even very beautiful pictures, such as a burning red sunset or a carefully choreographed human subject – and start seeing them as flat.
There’s a distinct lack of impact – a flatness, almost – that robs the photograph of magic and memorability. Adding glamour, in this case, is about enhancing the aesthetic appeal, increasing the dimensions and leaving you with something a little more sophisticated, professional, and luxurious.
Start With the Lighting
The first thing you should do when trying to achieve a more glamorous photo is experiment with your lighting. In 99 cases out of 100, the reason some photographs come off as a little flat and lifeless is because the lighting is plain and uninteresting. You could be taking a superb photograph of a bald eagle soaring across the summit of Mount Rainier – if your lighting is off, the scene will lose its majesty.
By experimenting with different lighting techniques, you can compliment the specific atmosphere that you’re trying to create – adding dramatic, bright lighting for photos with depth and drama, or adding soft, diffused lighting for personal subjects with a story.
Create a Shallow Depth of Field
A shallow depth of field will also work to enhance your overall aesthetic – depending on what kind of photograph you’re looking to take. If you’re working with a single subject, and you’re positioning it fairly close to the camera, blurring the background and foreground can help to isolate that subject and draw attention toward its features.
In other words, you’re softening the distractions and creating a sense of emphasis and importance for the subject itself. As well as this, you’ll have the chance to instil what’s known as a ‘bokeh’ effect – a photography term that refers to the quality of the blur in the background, characterized by smooth and creamy textures that contribute to the luxury and refinement of the image.
Pay Attention to the Editing Process
We won’t sit here and tell you that you can make your photos more glamorous with the camera alone – a lot of the work needs to be done in the editing booth. When editing your photos, look at tweaking your colours to make them look richer and more lively, removing distractions with a healing brush tool and emphasising the details that instantly grab the attention. If you’re taking a photo of a human subject, you can also use editing software to sharpen their key features.
When a viewer looks at a portrait photo, for instance, their attention is immediately drawn to the eyes. With a sharpening tool, you can ensure that the eyes of your subject are in focus, using brushes and adjustments to amplify the whites and make the colour of the irises pop. We know a lot of people will think of the word ‘Photoshop’ and feel a little nauseated, but really, photoshop – and other editing software – can be crucial tools to add some artistic flair and provide the perfect finishing touches to your photos.
Glamour is Easy
Complete with interesting fashion choices and stunning locations, these are the best ways to insert some glamour into your photographs and get them to stand out compared to the rest of your portfolio. And you might have noticed, they’re not that difficult! Really, adding glamour is about paying close attention to the details and choosing elegance and sophistication over speed and convenience. The next photograph you take can be full of glamour. You just need to focus on the right things!
