How to take better pics of your nails on Instagram
As a grown woman who still hasn’t mastered the art of being patient enough to let my nails dry, I’m very passionate about press-on nails.
But whenever I try and show my hundreds of followers how good my latest press-ons look, I can never get my nails look as good as they do in real life.
Sure, I could always just turn my boyfriend into an Instagram boyfriend for a few minutes, but as an independent woman I feel like I should be able to do it myself.
So I called up Alexis Irene, founder of the greatest press-on nail company of all time, Static Nails to get her expert opinion.
And if you think I’m exaggerating about her company’s GOAT status, I’m not. The last time I had on a pair of Static Nails, this pair to be exact, people would regularly stop me on the subway to ask me where I got my nails done. Even when I was on the escalator. That’s how good they looked.
So if anybody knew how to make press-on nails look good, it was Alexis.
READ ALSO: How to tell if a celebrity relationship is fake
Use natural lighting
In an ideal world, you should always take your nail pictures in natural lighting, like bright sunlight.
That way it’s easier for the camera to pick up on any colors and effects you might have on your nail, especially if they’re holographic or reflective in any way.
Take a video
Whether you want to post a picture or a video of your nails, Alexis recommends using the video app on your phone.
“I find that the video camera is so much more crisp than the camera by itself,” she explains. “A big tip is to select where you’re gonna focus your composition and focus it by holding down that area on the screen to enhance the brightness and blur out the background.”
If you have an iPhone, and who doesn’t, while the video is recording you can take as many photos as you want by pressing the little white circular button to the left.
Edit your cuticles because, let’s be real
Everybody edits their photos a little and when you’re posting pictures of your hands, there’s no shame in making your cuticles look a little less like, well, your cuticles.
“I’m totally not against a little editing because hands are not the prettiest things to begin with,” Alexis said. “So unless you have beautifully moisturized cuticles, it’s totally okay to use a blur tool very lightly on your cuticles or around your hands just to soften them up so you have gorgeous hands in the photo since it’s so up close and personal. And I like to use Airbrush for that actually. It’s a great app, and I think it’s free. Even PS Express, and it’s a dollar for the tool, but I think it’s totally worth it.”
And there you have it!
Hope you’re all ready to nail your next nail pic.
Yeah, I’ll just stop talking now.
