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In today's social media era, posting an unedited photo is nearly unheard of, especially among travel enthusiasts like us. We cherish capturing beautiful moments during our journeys, but enhancing our photos is essential. However, we must be cautious not to over-edit, risking the loss of natural beauty. Enhancing our pictures is simply part of the norm in this digital age. Social media is primarily for entertainment and admiring beauty. Thus, mastering the art of editing to make our photos 'trending' and appealing is crucial.
Renowned travel blogger and photographer Sơn Đoàn has long captivated online communities with his mesmerizing photos, leaving viewers in awe and wondering about his editing secrets. Today, you need not search far and wide because Sơn Đoàn is about to unveil the ultimate photo editing tips that are nothing short of exceptional. Read on for the insider scoop!
1. Identify Your Needs, Find the Right App!
Mastering the Art of Creating Stunning Photos: Understanding the Purpose of Each Editing App
2. How to Edit for a 'Youthful Glow'
One of the most common questions I get is: How do you achieve that 'youthful glow' in your photos? Well, replicating my exact colors can be tricky because most of my edits are done using Lightroom on my computer, with various intricate settings.
However, achieving that youthful glow on your phone is not impossible. Crafting a beautiful photo requires the harmonious use of multiple editing apps. Below are some apps that help achieve bright tones. There's no specific formula because I often forget the exact settings. Also, different devices, lighting, and scenes produce varying colors. So, with just the names of these apps combined, you can adjust the settings based on your own taste to achieve similar photo tones!
3. How to Insert Images into Photos
You've probably noticed weather overlays, music lyrics, and text messages added to photos in my feed. It's quite common and not too difficult to do. Before inserting, ensure the base photo is bright and vibrant, such as a sunny sky, a colorful wall, or sunlight. Photos with fewer details are easier to insert and highlight the added elements.
Most commonly inserted elements include:
- Weather: It's relatively easy to capture weather screens on an iPhone since it's integrated into the phone's display and looks better than on Android. However, the downside is that you can only insert it when you're actually checking in or present at that location.
- Music: There are various types like song lyrics or audio bars while playing music on your phone. Most commonly inserted from platforms like Soundcloud, NhacCuaTui, Zing MP3, or recently, music sheets from websites such as: khuyennhac.net, saotruc.vn, cungtapnha.com...
- Messages: Simply your favorite messages from Messenger or Instagram that catch your interest.
- Instagram Captions: Catchy captions on Instagram directly captured from other accounts' posts.
- Typography: Artistic texts or characters. These can be cut out from available typography on others' photos or from PNG template files downloaded from the internet (you can try this website: https://vi.pngtree.com/).
How to Insert Images into Photos?
The two most commonly used apps are Picsart and Snapseed. This insertion technique is often referred to as 'Double Exposure':
- First, capture the screen of the image you want to insert, then crop it to fit the frame you need (like weather, music, messages, etc.). The image for insertion should be bright and have minimal details.
- In Picsart: after uploading the original image, select 'Add Photo' and choose the cropped image for insertion. Then, under the 'Blend' section, adjust various modes as needed. Proceed to the 'Adjust' section to fine-tune parameters for a pleasing look (usually, increase clarity and contrast to 100%). Finally, move it to the desired position, click 'Apply,' and save the image.
- In Snapseed: after uploading the background image, select 'Double Exposure,' choose the image to insert, and adjust the available modes accordingly. Using Snapseed is much simpler and lacks the diverse editing parameters found in Picsart.
4. How to Add Effects to Photos
From famous travel bloggers to hot Instagrammers, everyone seems to enjoy adding effects like falling snow, bokeh, light streaks, etc., to make their photos sparkle. There's a magical mobile app for adding these effects called Lens Distortions.
This app is now available on both iOS and Android platforms. The effects in this app are stunning, including sunlight, bokeh, falling snow, and light streaks, among others. You can easily adjust brightness, darkness, and intensity.
You can purchase additional unique effects within this app, and it's quite affordable if you're willing to spend. Remember to experiment and insert sparingly because you can only add 3 effects to one photo at a time. If you want to add more, simply save the image and revisit the app to insert again. However, I advise you to insert sparingly because we are still the focal point of the photo, too many effects can have a negative impact!
Additionally, you can download the 'miraculous' Picsart, select the 'Makeup Brush' feature, choose effects, and then manually customize them onto the photo. Many people enjoy using the drawing tool for snow, sparkling effects, or rainbows because they look beautiful and natural.
5. How to Create Vintage Scratches on Photos
Many of you ask how to create scratches or film grains on photos using which app? Well, there are many apps nowadays with this feature, such as Afterlight, Picsart, Analog,... But today, I'll introduce an app that I think creates scratches and film grains beautifully and rarely distorts when saving photos, it's RNI Films.
Due to its frequent use, Sơn finds this app to be the most effective and realistic. Nowadays, it's become quite a phenomenon and is widely used by many other travel bloggers. In the app, click 'Load Image,' then select the editing section and choose 'Dust.' Users can also choose between two colors for the scratches: white or black. Oh, and the Grain feature of this app is quite unique too, it doesn't scatter grains like other apps but creates an old paper-like effect, which looks quite appealing. Give it a try and explore more!
6. How to Insert Stickers and Draw on Photos
Inserting stickers and drawing on photos will make your pictures more lively and cute amidst a forest of similar products on Facebook or Instagram. Photos used for inserting stickers or drawing should be bright and slightly clear for better suitability. Some recommended apps: Pitu, Picsart, Afterlight, Rakuga Cute, Studio, Paper By Wetransfer, Rookie Cam, Sketches,...
7. How to Blend Clouds and Sky
Lately, blending clouds and sky into photos has become quite popular, especially for images with dull, colorless skies. We can make them much more magical. Some commonly used effects include: adding clouds, changing sky colors, blending hot air balloons, birds flying, rainbows,... Some apps capable of this are: PICNIC, MIX, Quickshot,...
However, Sơn Đoàn doesn't encourage excessive use of these blending techniques because they're not authentic. Recently, they've been criticized a lot because some people overdo it, completely ruining the natural look of the photo to the point where viewers can't recognize the location anymore!
With the super-detailed tips from Sơn Đoàn, hopefully, you'll be able to make your travel photos shine like any 'superstar' or travel blogger on social media!
Source and Photo Credit: Sơn Đoàn
