Have you ever wondered how much time it takes to create ONE Instagram or blog photo? Even if it hasn’t crossed your mind, I’m here to educate you! Maybe it will make you stop scrolling so often and start hitting that like button. And just in time for Christmas, I’m giving you one last holiday outfit look that you definitely don’t want to miss.
How Long it Takes to Create ONE Instagram Photo or Blog Post
Why am I trying to educate you? Because engagement on social media is on a steady decline although time spent on each platform is the same. People love scrolling and looking, but they don’t like or comment on photos anymore. With almost 80,000 followers on Instagram, I feel this pain! The problem is that due to the algorithm on Facebook and Instagram, people that you don’t engage with, stop showing up in your feed! It stinks! So I thought maybe explaining how much work goes into one single photo, might sway you to shed a little more love for the bloggers you follow.
I created an IGTV video to help document this photoshoot. This is Instagram’s newest addition where people can post longer videos that don’t disappear after 24 hours, like Instagram Stories. If you want to watch, please head over to my Instagram and tag the IGTV icon, right under my bio or view the video directly below!
View this post on Instagram
The Styling: 90 Minutes
Prior to choosing a location, I have to style what I’ll be wearing. The clothes, accessories, and shoes all have to match. It takes a bit of planning to make sure that it all goes together. I ordered this dress from one of my husband’s Christmas parties this year and I LOVED wearing it. The satin is thick and the colour was rich! I honestly always love whatever I order from Chicwish, I have yet to be disappointed!
Grab the Spotlight Bowknot Satin Dress in Wine also in Navy/ Black Ankle Boots / Gold Sequin Clutch /
The Location: 45 Minutes
Once I have my outfit ready to go, I have to decide where would be the best place to compliment my look. I’ve passed by this vintage truck so many times on my way out of Calgary and I had it in mind for this shoot. Thankfully, I had a bit of time to myself to finally get out and photograph this dress while my youngest was at preschool this week. As much as I would have loved to have gotten some photos before the party last week, there just isn’t enough time in the day sometimes! Plus, it’s dark here by 4:30 every day so that also doesn’t help when you’re trying to play photographer.
The Photography: 45 Minutes
Setting up my tripod and getting the perfect shot all by myself is pretty time consuming as opposed to using a photographer. I set up quite a few angles and proximities during one photo shoot. In the winter, I’m usually risking frostbite in my fingers and get back in the car frequently to warm up. Blogger life in Canada.
The Editing: 30 Minutes
After I’m home, I upload my photos from my camera card into Adobe Lightroom. It’s my preferred editing software and does a really professional job of brightening my photos. I can easily have 100 from a single photo shoot and it’s time-consuming to go through and analyze each one! It takes anywhere from 30-60 minutes to edit everything and export it.
The Posting: 30 Minutes
Once I’m finished editing on my laptop, I then transfer the photo to my phone. I spend half an hour, editing the photo slightly again with my favourite Instagram settings. Then I pick out the best hashtags to use for this particular photo. After posting (finally!), I like to spend more time engaging with others that I follow. It’s a good give and take policy!
So all said and done, from start to finish, ONE Instagram photos takes 3-4 hours. Isn’t that crazy! So hopefully, you’ll have a new appreciation for bloggers and influencers and our creative process. We LOVE when you’re supportive, it’s how we succeed! So please, next time you’re on Facebook and Instagram, give a like or a comment to our posts. THANK YOU!
xoxo,
Kiki
Leave a Reply