Feelin Your Feed:

• Photo Editing in Lightroom

  The first thing I do with any photo before I post it on Instagram is edit in Lightroom. I'm not a super heavy editor, and I avoid Photoshop, but I like to make some tweaks to the image including exposure, highlights and saturation when needed. I've also become a big fan of presets lately. Sometimes with a good preset, no edit is even necessary. You can find presets online for free and for sale.

• Final Touches with Snapseed

  Sometimes you edit on your computer, and when you look at the same image on your phone, it doesn't quite look like you thought it would. I love to use the Snapseed app on my phone for my last minute tweaks. Under "tools" and "tune image" there's an ambiance feature that usually gives my photos the extra boost that they need.

• Visual Planning with Planoly

  This tool lets you plan and schedule your posts. While I don't use the scheduling function, I do use it to plan which pictures I want to post. Simply upload the photos into the app and it will show you what they will look like in your feed. Drag and drop to rearrange and see what looks best!

• Fun Graphics to Announce a New Photo

  I use Adobe Illustrator for this, but I have consistently been making a graphic like the one pictured when I am ready to post a new photo. You can use other programs like Adobe Spark or Canva as well.

• ...On Your Instagram Story

  When you post your photo, your followers may not necessarily see it. Post the graphic you've made in your story to increase your reach. Jazz it up with some stickers or GIFs in IG to be extra attention-grabbing, and this will stay visible for 24 hours. If you're new to Instagram stories, read on for step-by-step instructions on how to use them!

• Quality Hashtags and Relevant Accounts for Repost Potential

  Putting hashtags in your post is the main way your photo is going to be found (if your profile is public, that is!) Do some research and see how many times a given hashtag has been used. If it's in the millions, your photo is going to be like a needle in a haystack. Try finding niche ones with smaller numbers. If you're posting a photo in a certain city, go check and see what the local hashtags are for that place. For example, I'm in Lisbon. Some great Lisbon hashtags are #visitlisbon and #toplisbonphoto. These are also great accounts to tag in the photo itself, and give you a chance at getting a repost! Keep in mind that the max amount of hashtags that you can use is 30, and the max accounts you can tag in a photo is 20.

• Engaging Captions

  I'll be honest, I've spent the better part of an hour trying to come up with a good caption before. Some days being clever or unique is a struggle. I tend to use a mix of wit, funny stories, fun facts, and questions to engage my followers. This one asking for Netflix suggestions really got the comments flowing!

• Vertical Over Horizontal

  Let's consider these images from England, posted before I had any idea what I was doing. These are screenshots of the posts, put side by side, as they would appear in an Instagram feed. As you can see, the more vertical the photo the more space it takes up. This means when your followers are mindlessly scrolling through their Instagram feed, the larger photo is going to be much more attention-grabbing than the smaller, simply because it takes up more space visually on a person's phone screen.

• Optimal Posting Times

  Research shows that there is in fact an optimal time for posting on Instagram. However, you need to consider your audience and location. If you have your Instagram tied to a Facebook page, you will have access to Insights. As pictured, I can see where the majority of my followers are and when they are most active. In theory, posting on a Thursday at 3:00 PM should be my best bet.

• Chronological Order

  When I post photos, I like to keep them chronological. People who are following my travels will be much more engaged if I'm posting from the place I'm currently in. Sometimes I get backlogged if I've taken a ton of great photos from one place, but I try to keep it current. This also gives me a higher chance of getting great recommendations!

• Algorithm Trends

  Ugh, the dreaded IG algorithm. While it constantly changes and baffles us all, you can do your best to keep up to date on the latest info. Here's how it's currently working in 2018.

• @girlgoneabroad on Instagram

  Check out my Instagram and see all of these tips in action!