Ever wonder how to take a great Instagram photo or TikTok videos on your iPhone? Syma and Elizabeth here – Aerie’s PR Manager and Videographer to share our tips and tricks to help you capture your best content. No Instagram partner required: you can do this all by yourself!
What You’ll Need:
• iPhone
• Tripod for iPhone
• Pro tip: a Bluetooth clicker & ring light if you like!
• Your #AerieREAL self!
Video Tips from Elizabeth, Aerie Videographer:
• Begin by changing video settings from the default HD 30 to 4K 60 in upper right corner when in video mode.
• Do your pose and once you do the action you want to transition on, mark where your feet are!
• Pro tip: smile with your teeth so that the expression is easier to imitate, the viewer will be naturally drawn to your face.
• Try to remember where your arms and legs were.
• Change outfits and go back to the spot you marked! Put markers away.
• Repeat action from beginning and do next pose!
• To shoot another take, you must start from the beginning, because you’ll now have a new transition point.
• When cutting the clips together, remove a few frames of the action (2 or 3 frames each clip). The viewer knows what a kick or your action looks like and their brain will fill in the blank automatically. This will result in a smoother cut!
• And most importantly… have fun!
Photo Tips from Syma, Aerie PR Manager:
• It’s all about setting up the shot! Make sure you’re in a clear area where you’re happy with the backdrop.
• Set up your tripod with your iPhone.
• In photo mode – click the top arrow button to pull up additional options, then click the timer button for self-timer function.
• You can choose 3 to 10 seconds. I prefer 10 seconds so you have enough time to get into place!
• If you’re connecting a Bluetooth clicker, you don’t need to use the timer and can take photos in real-time.
• Make your pose and snap as many photos as you like.
• If you want a little action in your shot, do the full motion and take a bunch of photos, rather than faking out the motion. This makes the shot look more natural.
• The best part of taking your own photos is that you can take as many as you want until you’re happy with the result!
• Have fun and be #AerieREAL!
Need some more pose inspo? Here are some of my faves from past ARL posts:
The Street Style from “‘90s Style Inspo: Oversized Sweatshirt & Bike Short Edition”
This pose is a go-to! First, a clean back-drop is key. You can never go wrong with a brick wall. Great texture and love the blue hues in this to compliment my neutral outfit. Fun fact: my Bluetooth clicker is behind my head, which not only gives some action to my shot, but I took this all by myself! Looking away from the camera or looking down is always an instant winner in my book.
The Mirror Selfie from “I Don’t Workout but I Love Workout Clothes”
The classic – you can’t go wrong with a mirror selfie. It’s a great way to show your full #OOTD. I love to play with the placement of your phone! You can show your face or even cover your face with your phone for some intrigue…
Go on Location from “Syma’s OFFLINE Starter Pack”
Try a fun location – I love the cool shots I’ve been seeing all over my Instagram feed on tennis and basketball courts. The court gives a great backdrop to any athletic look which is perfect to show-off our OFFLINE by Aerie collection! Try mixing up your poses like sitting on the court. This allows you to show different angels of your outfit, show-off your sneakers and get a wider shot. Taking a photo on a court also allows you bring in different backdrop colors. I also loved getting the full basketball net into the shot. You can have a lot of fun with it!
Set the Scene from “Our PR Manager’s Top 10 Gifts to Give This Season”
I had so much fun taking this holiday photos! I love the holiday season and it was so fun to decorate my patio for this. Get festive to set the scene – for this I already had lights and I added a tablescape and fun candles! Try to go with the theme of your outfit to create a backdrop. I’ve seen so many beautiful photos with draping a cloth for a clean backdrop, adding florals or creating a picnic in the park! The options are endless. For this shot, I set up my tripod and used a Bluetooth clicker. I mixed up my poses for this, but ultimately went for a cozy vibe so lounging on the couch was only natural!
Hope these tips help you create and inspire all your future content to come Aerie fam! We can’t wait to see!