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How to post pic and video on instagram


How to Post on Instagram: A Step-by-Step Guide

With over 1 billion active users, Instagram is one of the best social media networks to advertise your business, reach new audiences, and grow brand awareness. So even if you aren’t active on the website yet, it’s never too late to adopt an Instagram strategy in your marketing plan.

If you're ready to start sharing content through this channel, we've got you covered. Here, we're sharing a quick-and-easy guide to posting on Instagram, to ensure you can begin attracting the attention of your audience with Instagram marketing.

How to Post on Instagram

  1. Tap the + icon at the top of your screen.
  2. Choose a photo or video from your library or shoot one in the app.
  3. Post multiple images on Instagram.
  4. Crop the image.
  5. Pick a filter.
  6. Edit your photo.
  7. Type your caption.
  8. Use hashtags for post optimization.
  9. Tag friends.
  10. Add your location.
  11. Play with emojis.
  12. Share the post on other social media platforms.
  13. Edit the post.

Posting to Instagram consistently can help businesses find resonance with their audience and grow better, but doing it right is just as important. Here's how to post to your Instagram account step-by-step.

Step 1. Tap the + icon at the top of your screen.


See that plus sign [+] in the image above? That's your starting point. Click that plus sign and you'll be ready for the next step, below.

Step 2. Choose a photo or video from your library or shoot one in the app.

Instagram will show you the photos already saved to your phone. Choose one of those to post. Alternatively, you can click on the camera icon to take a photo or video within the Instagram app itself, if you don't already have an image you want to use.

Once you select and crop an image (or carousel of multiple images), click the Next button in the top right corner of the app.

Step 3. Post multiple images on Instagram.

Do you have multiple photos and want to highlight them all? Instagram allows you to do this with its carousel feature.

As you go to tap a photo or video, first tap the icon just above your photos to the right that looks like stacked squares. Once you tap this, you'll see a number on the corner of every image or video you tap. This number notes where the content will show up in the carousel.

Step 4. Crop the image.

You aren't limited to just a square image on Instagram. You can actually share horizontal or vertical images as well. To get more of your image seen, pinch the screen of the photo you've selected on the Library screen (play the video below to see it in action).

However, while Instagram does allow vertical and horizontal options, the images still need to fit into some specific dimensions. So, you might still need to crop a tiny bit of your photo to get it to fit.

Step 5. Pick a filter.

Instagram offers a wide variety of filters — scroll to the right to peruse your options, and click on one to preview how it will look on your photo.

By default, the filter will be applied by full strength. However, if you want to scale back the intensity of the filter, double-click the filter tile once it's been applied, and a scale selector will appear, allowing you to downplay the effect.

You can also tap the magic wand at the top of the screen to adjust the photo further.

(Take a look at our Ultimate Guide to Instagram Filters to learn more).

Step 6. Edit your photo.

You can also click "Edit" at the bottom right to adjust the image to your specifications.

Here are the editing options that come built into Instagram for you:

  • Adjust : This helps subtly rotate the image along the center plane, giving it a tilt either to the left or right according to the linear scale at the bottom of the screen.
  • Brightness: This helps lighten or darken the image. All you have to do is pull the selector to the left to darken or to the right to lighten.
  • Contrast: This helps to increase or decrease the intensity of the image's colors. Pull the selector to the left for less contrast (a dulling effect) or to the right for more contrast (a higher intensity effect).
  • Structure: This helps to add an HD-like effect to the image, bringing out specific details in your photo. Drag the selector to the right to help the image "pop."
  • Warmth: This helps you adjust the temperature of the photo. Drag the selector to the left to increase cool tones in the image, or drag the selector to the right to increase the warm tones in the image.
  • Saturation: This helps you adjust the saturation of the colors in your image. Drag the selector to the left to desaturate the image (all the way to the left if you want a monochrome look), or drag the selector to the right for extremely saturated colors.
  • Color: This gives you a number of color options to overlay over your image for interesting color effects. Simply select your color choice and see how it changes the image in the preview box.
  • Fade: This softens the intensity of the blacks in your image to create an "aged" photo effect. Simply drag the selector to the right for a higher degree of fade.
  • Highlights: This helps you control the intensity of the highlights in your image. Dragging the selector to the left will darken the highlights in your image while dragging the selector to the right will lighten the highlights in your image.
  • Shadows: This helps you control the intensity of the shadows in your image. Dragging the selector to the left will darken the shadows in your image while dragging the selector to the right will lighten the shadows in your image.
  • Vignette: This darkens the corners of the image, leaving a circle shape in the center. Drag the selector all the way to the right for the most dramatic vignette.
  • Tilt Shift: This helps blur the edges of the image in a radial or linear way, drawing focus to the details in the center of the image.
  • Sharpen: This helps sharpen certain details of the image, bringing a more dramatic look to subtler elements in the photo.

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Step 7. Type your caption.

Get creative and write a nice, interesting Instagram caption to go with your photo. Since text can help optimize your post in Instagram's search, writing something can only benefit you.

Step 8. Use hashtags for post optimization.

With Instagram's search feature, users can search by hashtags. So, you should make sure to write relevant hashtags in your caption. If someone does a search of a hashtag you placed in your caption, they might find your post as well as others that included the same one.

Step 9. Tag friends.

Want your friend or their followers to see a photo that you posted of the two of you? Tag them!

On the new post page, you can click "Tag People" to tag other Instagram accounts in your post. Alternatively, you can include their handle (or their username beginning with an @ symbol) in your caption.

Step 10. Add your location.

If you're on a fun vacation or at a neat event and you don't feel like including that information in your caption, you can mark where you are in another way. On the new post page, tap "Add Location" to put a location on your image (which makes it easier for people to find your post).

When you post an image or video with a location, it will show up between your name and the block of content on the feed.

Step 11. Play with emojis.

Emojis are fun and can make your caption more eye-catching. If you know of a few relevant emojis that could fit with your post, stick them in the caption area. For example, if you're posting a vacation photo, you could include a palm tree 🌴 or a plane ✈️ to show you flew somewhere.

Here are the top Instagram emojis you can use:

  • ❤️
  • 😍
  • 😘
  • 😂
  • 😊
  • 😎
  • 💕
  • 😉
  • 💋
  • 👍

However, keep in mind that there's a multitude of choices to add flair to your posts, from keeping it real 💯 to the cringe face 😬.

Be sure not to go overboard and post emojis just for the sake of posting them. If you post a bowling emoji along with a photo of a beach, that obviously won't make sense to people. Similarly, if you post 20 emojis that loosely relate to a post, you might just annoy your followers or come off as desperate.

Step 12. Share the post on other social media platforms.

Finally, if you want to share your content on your other, connected social media sites (like Facebook or Twitter), simply toggle the button from the left to the right.

When you're ready to post, click "Share" in the top right.

Instagram Saved Drafts

If you're not ready to post right away, you can also save it to your Instagram Saved Drafts. Simply go back to the filtering and editing step, tap the back arrow in the top left, and select "Save Draft."

Step 13. Edit the post.

Typos happen to everyone! If you just posted something and notice a glaring spelling error, don't panic. Simply tap the three dots that appear on the right across from your name, then tap "Edit."

Make the adjustments you see fit and save them so it reflects on your Instagram. Otherwise, your post is complete and live for everyone to see.

Grow Your Audience on Instagram Today

Now that you know how to post to Instagram, you can begin creating content for the platform and connecting with your audience. If you're a business or brand, you'll want a solid strategy for earning engagement and awareness.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in November 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Topics: Instagram Marketing

Don't forget to share this post!

How to Post Videos on Instagram in 3 Different Ways

  • It's easy to post videos on Instagram in three different ways. 
  • You can post videos to your feed or your story, and you can also privately send videos through direct message. 
  • In each case, you will have the option to post an existing video from your library or record a new one using the Instagram app.  
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

While photos are a great way to capture a specific moment, videos are better at showing movement, the process of making something, or capturing events where sound plays a significant role.

In addition to photos, Instagram is well-suited to share video content.

You can post recorded moments to your feed and stories, and Instagram also allows you to privately send videos to friends through a direct message.

Here's how to do all three.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:
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How to post videos on Instagram as a post

1. Open the Instagram app on your iPhone or Android phone. 

2. Tap the "+" icon at the bottom center of your screen.

3. You can either select a pre-recorded video from your library or take a video in the moment to post. For the former, tap on "Library" at the bottom of your screen and then tap on the video you'd like to post. For the latter, tap on "Video" then press down on the circle toward the bottom of your screen to record.

Select an existing video from your Library or record a new one to post to your feed. Christina Liao/Business Insider

4. Tap "Next" at the top right corner of your screen.

5. You'll be brought to a screen where you can edit your video. Once you've made any desired changes, tap "Next" again. 

6. Now you'll be brought to a screen where you can add a caption, select a location, tag people, and simultaneously post the video to another social media network. Once you've completed the desired fields, tap "Share" to post your video to your feed.

How to post videos on Instagram to your story 

1. Open the Instagram app.

2. Swipe right from anywhere in the feed or tap on the camera icon at the top left corner of your screen.

3. Your screen will now show your camera's view. Press down on the white circle at the bottom of your screen to begin recording a video. Alternatively, swipe up on the screen to pull up your library where you can select a pre-recorded video to post.

Swipe up to choose a video from your library. Christina Liao/Business Insider

4. Once you've recorded a video directly from the app or selected one from your library, tap "Send To >" at the bottom right corner of your screen.

5. On the "Share" screen you'll have the option to post the video to your story for all of your followers to see — and if you have a public profile, for anyone who comes across your account. You can also choose to share it with a specified list of "Close Friends." Tap "Share" or "Send" to select where and who you'd like to send the video to.

6. Tap "Done" at the bottom of the screen.

How to send a video in a direct message on Instagram

1. Open the Instagram app.

2. To access your direct messages, swipe left from anywhere in your feed or tap the paper plane icon at the top right of your screen. 

3. Find the person you'd like to send a direct message to by tapping on the pencil icon at the top right of your screen, selecting them from your existing list of messages, or via the "Search" bar at the top of the screen.

4. A chat screen will open up. Tap the camera icon at the bottom left corner to begin recording a video directly from the app or the photo icon at the bottom right corner to select a pre-recorded video from your library.

You have the option to record a new video or send an existing one through direct message. Christina Liao/Business Insider

5. If you're taking a video directly from the app to send to someone, their profile photo will appear at the bottom of your screen above the words "Send" once you've finished recording. Tap on the person's profile photo. If you're selecting a video from your library, tap on the video(s) you'd like to send and then tap "Send. "

After you've finished recording a video, tap on the circle with the recipient's profile picture to send it to them. Christina Liao/Business Insider

 

  • How to save your Instagram stories in 3 different ways

  • How to go live on Instagram, to broadcast video in real time to your followers

  • How to repost a video on Instagram using the Repost app for iPhone or Android

  • How to get verified on Instagram, if your account meets these 4 standards for verification

  • How to save Instagram videos to your iPhone or Android phone

Christina Liao

Freelance writer

Christina Liao is a freelance contributor for Business Insider.

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Insider Inc. receives a commission when you buy through our links.

How to add a photo to Instagram from your phone

There are 3 main ways to add a photo to Instagram* from your phone: upload via the Instagram* mobile app, from your phone gallery, or via third-party apps. We will analyze separately how to publish a photo in a post and a story.

How to publish a post in the feed

Method 1: through the Instagram app*

Download the Instagram app* from the AppStore or Google Play. After registering or logging into your account, you will see the [+] icon in the upper right corner, click on it, and then in the menu that appears, click on the "Publish" button.

Interface for adding a new post to the feed

Next, you will open the interface for adding a post, you need to go through several steps:

  1. select media files;
  2. file editing: filters, light and color correction;
  3. adding text, geotagging, etc. ;
  4. publication.

Let's take a closer look at how to post photos on Instagram* from your phone.

Select media files. After pressing the "Publish" button, you will be taken to the gallery on your phone. Select the photos or videos you want to post. At this stage, you can also change the resolution or select multiple files for one post.

Basic buttons for setting up a future publication

Editing files. After selecting all the settings, click the "Next" button in the upper right corner and go to the editing interface - here you can apply filters, adjust contrast, add sharpness, level the horizon, and so on.

Photo and video editing tools

Add text and labels. Once you've finished editing your media, click the Next button again and the last settings will open: select other social networks for publication, add text, geotag, user tags. Read more in our article “Instagram tags*: how and why to use”.

Final settings for posting to the feed

Big text cannot be posted on Instagram*, the limit is 2200 characters. But if you really need it, we have an article with recommendations for the design of such publications.

Publication . When you're done with the settings, click "Share" in the upper right corner and the post will appear in your account feed and in the news feed of your followers. Hooray!

The process of loading a post and its display in the news feed

Method 2: through the phone gallery

This is a quick way when you just need to post one file with a caption, because this way you can not customize the display format, add multiple files to one post, edit media files, add geotags and tag other users.

How to post photos on Instagram* from your phone using the gallery:

  1. open the gallery on your phone;
  2. click on the desired photo;
  3. select "Share" from the menu;
  4. click on the Instagram icon*;
  5. click on the "Publish" button;
  6. write the text for the post and click "OK" in the upper right corner;
  7. then click "Share" in the same place.

That's it - the publication has been uploaded to your profile!

Step-by-step process of publishing a photo in the feed through the phone gallery

If you do not know what, why, why to publish and how to design, I recommend our free course "7 Steps of Content Marketing". In the course, we tell you what content marketing is, how to create, design and promote content on the Internet. All this will help you understand how content works, why publish posts and how to make them beautiful and interesting.

Method 3: Through other apps

You can upload photos to Instagram* from photo and video editing apps, feed maker, and so on. Almost all of these applications have the ability to automatically add media files to Instagram*.

For example, the Canva photo and video editor app has a Share button in the top right corner. In the additional menu, the Instagram icon appears *, when clicked, it transfers to the social network application with the option to select a placement: Stories or feed. After clicking on the "Feed" button, the standard Instagram interface * opens to add a post to the feed.

Algorithm for publishing a post in the feed from the Canva application

How to post a Story

You can upload a photo to Instagram stories* from your phone either directly from the Instagram application* or through third-party applications.

There are 3 ways to post a Story via the Instagram app*:

  • click on the blue [+] icon on your avatar in your feed or profile;
  • click on the [+] button in the upper right corner and select the "History" item;
  • in the news feed, swipe from left to right across the screen.
Ways to add a new Story: icon next to the avatar and icon on the right

After clicking, the interface for creating Stories will open. By default, the camera opens, and you can immediately take a picture or video for stories. If you want to add files from your phone's gallery, tap the button in the bottom left corner of the screen or swipe up from the bottom of the screen.

Stories interface when first opened with camera enabled

The story editing interface also has many useful features:

  • Text. Different fonts, colors, ways of writing, animation. To add, click once on the screen or on the “Aa” icon at the top right of the screen, the interface for adding text will appear with additional settings at the top of the screen.
  • Drawing. Brushes for painting on photo or video. Click on the ellipsis in the upper right corner and on the "Draw" button. The color and brush settings will also appear at the top of the screen.
  • Interactive Instagram stickers*. Questions, tests, polls, mentions, geolocation, music, hashtags and so on. To select stickers, click on the sticker icon in the upper right corner or swipe up from the bottom of the screen. Read more about them in our article with an overview of new stickers.
  • Masks. Filters and AR masks to decorate stories. There are masks both from Instagram* itself and from users. To get as many creative masks as possible, subscribe to major bloggers who create such masks. For example, bloggers ya.molli or georska.
Stories editing interface

Once you're done with your stories, select the publish option at the bottom of the screen:

  • Your Story. Stories are immediately published on your profile, and all users can see it.
  • Close friends. Stories will only be seen by users that you have added to your Close Friends list.
  • Right arrow. An additional menu will open, which has the function of sending stories in a private message.
Selecting a publishing location Stories

Stories, like posts, can be posted from other applications, only when choosing a placement, you need to click "Stories".

Check out the Instagram Stories* section of our blog for inspiration on how to use Stories on both your personal blog and brand account.

If you feel uncomfortable publishing posts and stories from your phone, use services for publishing from your computer, such as SMMplanner. With it, you can design and post posts and stories from your computer and specify the time at which they will be automatically published.

Scheduling a new post on Instagram* from a computer via SMMplanner

What is the convenience of delayed posting and how to post on Instagram* from SMMplanner, read in our article "Delayed posting services on Instagram*: why they are needed and how they work".

Briefly about the main

Universal algorithm of actions for posting photos on Instagram* from the phone:

  • download the Instagram application*, register or enter your profile;
  • click on [+] in the upper right corner and select "Publication" or "History";
  • edit media file, add interactive elements or labels;
  • click the "Publish" button.

Done! Your first story or post is already in the feed.

How to post multiple photos and videos on Instagram

.

Post-gallery can be posted on Instagram: several photos and/or videos at once in one post. In such a gallery, there can be up to 10 photos and videos in total. First, we will tell you how to make a post from several photos, and then how to use it to promote on Instagram.

How to post a gallery: multiple photos and videos in one Instagram post

.

  1. Click the plus sign to add a new post (as you usually add photos/videos). Choose one photo for the gallery. Frame it (stretch with your fingers). This is the format that all photos / videos in the gallery will have.
  2. Click the gallery icon as in the screenshot.
  3. Select the desired photos/videos. You can select a maximum of 10 photos/videos (you can both photos and videos at the same time, the main thing is not more than 10 in total).
  4. Next, the usual filter processing. You can touch any filter and all photos will be with it. Or click on the photo, process it with a filter, then go to the next photo, etc. That is, each photo will be with a different filter.
  5. To change the order of photos and videos in the gallery, touch the desired one and drag it forward or backward. Want to delete completely? Touch and drag to the trash icon.
  6. Post text and geotag will be common for all photos. But on each individual photo you can mark different people. To do this, click "Tag someone", and then scroll to the desired photo where you want to tag a person.
  7. Done! Click "Share"

When the first gallery post appears on your blog, there will be a few dots under the photo. These points mean that there are several photos in this publication. In your mosaic account, gallery posts will have a gallery icon in the upper right corner. To view the gallery, swipe from right to left.

You can comment and like a post with several photos and videos as usual. But these comments and likes will not be for each individual photo, but for the entire gallery.

How to edit a post from multiple photos

Edit like a normal post. Photos and videos, their order and tagged people cannot be changed. But you can geolocation and signature.

How to use a post of several photos and videos

For bloggers

Fitonies

  • training program
  • steps for performing exercise
  • healthy recipe step by step
  • grocery shopping
  • body from all sides (now you no longer need to suffer and choose which of 10 similar photos to upload - publish everything in one post!)
  • before/after
  • photo of sponsored item in box/in use

Beauty bloggers

  • makeup step by step
  • ready-made make-up from different angles, with closed/open eyes, with different light
  • before/after
  • "what's in my makeup bag"
  • etc.

    • Travelers

    • how to get there
    • hotel options
    • local cuisine
    • "one day"
    • all photos from one city
    • photos of the same place from different angles

    Business accounts

    Sale of goods (shops, needlewomen, etc.)

    • photo of one product from different angles
    • photo of the assortment of one product line
    • the process of creating a product (especially relevant if you do it yourself)
    • ways to use the item (e.g. how to wear a piece of clothing, pair it with other clothes, etc.)
    • promotions and discounts
    • order process

    Sale of services

    • instead of one, you can make several videos in a row (this will turn out ten in one post instead of one minute)
    • various cooperation options
    • customer reviews
    • multiple illustrations for one informative post to keep readers interested

    Posts with several photos and videos are a logical continuation of stories.

    Learn more