So today (because this week has been a sadly dull week of black suits) I decided it was a good time to share my favorite new trick to getting better photos!!   

About three weeks ago I was listening to Hilary Rushford's free Instagram class and she shared a lot of AMAZING tips on how to gain followers and be intentional about your feed. (PSA: if you're interested in blogging, starting your own business, or basic awesomeness, she is your go-to gal.) She also suggested some great photo editing apps, and one of those is the subject of today's post. 

The app is called Afterlight, and I don't think I'm out of line when I say it has changed the face of my feed dramatically. Because better quality photos=a more cohesive feed, more likes, and more followers. Since using the app, I've seen my follower count jump by about forty five people in just three weeks (where I used to get about ten new followers a MONTH, if I was lucky). 

Let me show you a few before and afters as an example:

This photo on the left was taken with my approximately five year old digital camera. It is a shade shot, and as you can see, a lot of detail has gotten totally blacked out--the buckle on the shoe, the line of my right thigh, the wave of my hair. It's also just dark. Cute photo, but not great.

The photo on the right is post-Afterlight. Dramatic, right?? I want to be clear, and I hope it is evident-Afterlight does NOT give you Photoshop-like options to zap away belly fat or pimples. I wouldn't advocate it if it did-I'm all about looking like myself. It just improves the overall quality of the photograph. You can now see my boot buckle, the stretchy inserts on the shoe at the back of the calf, the line of my thigh, the wave of my hair. I'm not a professional photographer with a professional-grade camera, but this app at least makes me kinda look like one!

I now use the app to edit ALL of my blog and IG photos. Seriously. I like it that much! 

But I don't use it for camera photos only: it's also handy for iPhone photos, such as this before and after:

I took this photo using my iPhone and while it turned out okay, I wanted to improve it and make it more like what I'd actually seen when taking it. 

It even saves crappy lowlight photos (though this takes more work), like the one below:

The difference is crazy, right?! 

This is the type of tool you have to play around with. It has a lot of options as far as correction, filters, photo layering (so cool), and more, so it's going to take experimenting to get the look you want. But it is SO worth it. 

Traditional Photoshop software costs $80+ dollars (just for Elements, the starter set-the full Photoshop costs more). The Afterlight app? $1.99.

Enjoy, and happy weekend! 

xoxo

Carisa

*This review of Afterlight is NOT sponsored by Afterlight, its parent or affiliate companies. All opinions and photos are my own.