A few days ago, I propose you a Q&A about Instagram, my work and editing… You were waiting for it and it’s here ! Read all the article to have all the answers.
PERSONAL
How old are you ?
I’m 25. I’m born in December 1992.
What did you study ?
I studied one year in fashion and design school after my high school. After this, when I understood it was absolutely not for me, I decided to go in a school of communication during 4 years. Finally, I finished with one year of Journalism in feminine press (travel, fashion, lifestyle, society…). I obtained my Second Master Degree (+5) in June 2016.
How I pay my travel ?
During my studies, I worked every summer and winter holidays to paid my personal expenses. I used my first salary to buy my first camera. And after this, I decided to travel. I made my first big trip in Thailand in 2013. I even worked during the week when I have some days off at school. Now, I’m travelling since one year and half. When I stay more than 2 months in a country, I’m working. Right now, I’m a communication and marketing partner for a big commercial center in Reunion Island. We will stay in the country until April, before travelling in Africa.
PHOTOGRAPHY
What equipment I use ?
I use a Lumix GX80 with two lenses : 25 mm, f/1.4 and 12-32mm. I also have a 18 mm (big angle) Pixter for my Iphone. I’m working with a tripod, without a big brand name I paid 30 euros in a store and it’s really cool. We are also planning to buy a drone : by the way… if you have some advices about it, I’m in ! Left a comment 🙂
How I edit my pictures ? Which settings for the light ?
I’m using Lightroom to edit my pictures. First, I was working with Lisa Homsy and Mel Vandersluis presets. Now, I build my base with Hilvees ones but I mostly change the colors as I like. For the light, it’s quite hard to answer because it’s never the same. Depends of the place, the picture and the natural light. Don’t forget, when you work on a picture, put down the highlights !
What do you think has been the most successful way to grow your organic following ? What’s my secret ?
First, travelling. After, commenting, liking and discussing with the girls in Instagram. Build relationship, left a lot of comments (when I said a lot, it’s really a lot but no more than 60 per hour!). Try to have a beautiful feed and matches the colors 🙂
How I collaborate with brands ?
There are 2 different ways. I contact them or they contact me. For the first one, when I saw a beautiful dress on Instagram, I click on the picture and I look where it come from. After this, I contact them with Instagram or by email with my media kit. All the collaborations are quite the same. You receive a product, you promote it with pictures, videos, stories or articles.
How did you take the leap ?
When I was in Italy last summer, I didn’t find a job. So, I begin to write as a freelancer and I also begin to take care about my Instagram. It was in July 2017 and I had 500 followers.
How do you make people shoutout your Instagram account ? And how can you get a shoutout on mine ?
For the both, there are 2 ways. Sometimes, I don’t ask for a shoutout, the Instagrammer makes it. And that’s so cool to wake up and saw some compliments like these ! And there is another way : with some friends on Instagram, you decide to make a share shoutouts. It’s a good way to promote your account.
FREELANCE AND JOURNALISM
How do you contact magazines in order to write paid articles ? How much can you earn ? Are they specifically travel related ?
When I saw or read a magazine I like, I look into it and there always is the name of the redactor in chief and the email address. So, I just try and see if it works. When I work for medias, it’s not usually travel related. Last, I e-cover a big sport event in Reunion Island for one of the biggest TV channel of France.
For the salary, it depends of the media. The web, on magazines, radio or television are all differents. I can’t give you the price because it’s not the same at all.
Just… When you write as a freelancer in some e-platforms (like GreatContent for example), you are paid 15 euros for 400 words. Yes… It’s nothing ! I was writing 10 articles per day to have a real salary at the end of the month.
Are you a full-time freelancer ?
No. As I said, when I’m travelling I try to have a real job and don’t stay at home all the day to write my articles. I prefer to mix the both at the end. If I don’t find any works, yes I will do it in full-time. More money you get, more you can travel right ?
I hope I answered all the questions. Don’t hesitate to left a comment if you have some others.
O. M-G
I love your work on Instagram! It’s so good to have this opportunity to know you better here. Best regards from Poland!
Thank you so much ! What’s your name in IG ? 🙂
Don’t hesitate if you want to know some other !
girl you living a dream!😍❤
@naaaaahh__
❤
<3
Yayyyy ! But you can live it too ! What’s your name in IG beauty?
Merci pour toutes ses réponses très inspirantes !
Derien 🙂 Quel est ton id Insta ?? 🙂
Hi! I love this article and your instagramfeed. I’m from dutch Belgium, and I like to travel as well! (insta @ontopotworld) I’ve been following you for a while now and you really inspire me! Just found your blog, I’m going to continue reading this! I love it!
Oh thank you so so much ! That’s so nice to hear !
great Infos 🙂 it‘s interesting to read!
@julfullife
Thanks Julia ! 🙂
Ophelie this is so insightful and helpful! I’m so glad you did a post about this, most instagrammers these days tend to be so secretive in how the whole thing works and just reading this instills so much faith that maybe one day I’ll get to do what other instagrammers like you do! So thank you! Lovely post and your feed is just amazing! Keep it up xx
Thank yo so much ! There is nothing to keep secret I think everybody need to know it 🙂 Never forget, fight for what you want and stay yourself 🙂
Love your content…following you on instagram just loveeeeee your pictures… Keep witing and your fans will keep reading
Ohhh thank you so so much !
That’s Great ! Thank u so much🖤
@sarah_ahmed_____
You’re welcome lovely!
Babe, I have been following you for a while and I must say that you work keeps getting better and better. So happy that I found you 🙂 Yours, @ajdasitar
OH THANK YOU SO SO MUCH!! this is lovely !
Love your content on IG! Please shout me out! @itsadafelipe 😊
Thanks beauty !!
I am 13 year old and have about 400 followers. Your tips really helped me so thanks a bunch!👍🏼🖤🖤
@sarah_ahmed_____ *please cheek my feed*
Oh you are so young beauty! Thank you so much !!
Interesting post Ophelie!
How much time do you usually spend per day on Instagram and photo editing to get such results and built your community of followers?
@8000px
I think it’s around 4 hours per day. I try to respond my comments before work in the morning (when I’m in the traffic sincerely). After during the lunch, I comment and answer and after work, I post my picture, comment and like. But still have a lot of time to do some other so that’s cool.
Oh wow thanks SO much for sharing Ophelie!! I love your instagram page and I can’t believe you had 500 followers in July!!! I started in July and now have leas than half your followers 😂 you have done amazing work and your job seems incredible! I can’t wait to see what you do next!! Big hug and thanks for sharing your travels with us.
Sol @themomentbehind
Oh thank you so so much ! I’m so happy to have a tribe like you !
This is so interesting! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thanks to you beauty !
Shoutout to parisienne84 please
Love ur blog girl
You are the best
petite beauté! <3 (on reste pro ici ok, j'évite de donner l'autre surnom haha)
Wow la chance ! Je crois qu’il est temps pour moi de télécharger Lightroom pour commencer a modifier mes photos haha 🙂 Est ce que les 2 preset de Mel et Lisa valent le coup?
Merci et bonne continuation!
@amelianazef
Sincèrement, les presets de Mel et Lisa se ressemblent. Tu en auras assez d’un pack. J’aime bien le Travel de Lisa, il est assez complet. Après tu as aussi ceux de The Blonde Abroad, mais je n’ai jamais tenté.
Nice tips! Work and travel :best life!! Thank you Ophelie for this article 🤗
Thanks a lot ! 🙂 Don’t hesitate if you need to know some others.
Thank you for the tips! They were really helpful❤️
You’re welcome 🙂
Thank you for this, Ophélie!! It was very helpful & interesting to read 🙂
Ohh thank you !! You’re welcome !
Thank you for this, Ophélie!! It was very helpful & interesting to read 🙂
Love it! Thank for the advices!
<3
Love your tips! But most of all we love the emotions in your photos 😉 and it’s a real pleasure to follow your journey ! @evaloha_blog
Oh thank you so much guys ! You are so cute really !
Ophelie,
Thanks so much for offering your tips on growing your instagram. It has been hard for me to grow it as so much has changed with the new algorithm. I feel like I have great pictures maybe just need to edit them or position them better so they could flow in a more story like way. You are inspiration and have grown your iG so quickly. Also, head over heels for all your Reunion pics, I would love to visit sometime this year. Wanted to ask you, don’t you need a working visa to work in certain countries? How has that worked for you? Or the companies just don’t care you are not from that country and have no working papers?
Thanks so much for writing and sharing…love following your journey!
xoxo,
Maurenice
IG- VillaBisono
Yes, the new algorithm in Instagram is a bit difficult but still possible to grow.
For the working visa yes. I was in Australia and the visa is really easy to buy on Internet. In Italy, it’s Europe so you just need the European ID. And Reunion is France, so I don’t need anything 🙂
Thank you so much for all your kind words !
Hey I follow you on insta and this post was supar helpful! I love learning about peoples back ground and how they got to where they are today! I’m trying to grow my insta right now so thank you so writing this blog post, it really helped to get more info!! @passportofmemories
Thank you so much for this comment ! Glad it’s helpful 🙂
Oh thank you so much ! Don’t hesitate if you need to know more !
This post is so informative ! Keep up the great work 😍 My instagram name is m_ankusha
Thanks a lot !
Thank you so much for this feedback ! I actually can see we have a very similar approach and experience ! I should probably do something similar on my blog regarding the number of similar questions I receive!!! 😀 thanks for sharing again <3
Yes, sometimes it’s cool to put all in one : )
Hello j’ai decouvert ton commt Instagram il n’ y’a pas longtemps et j’adore les photos ! C’est cool d’en savoir plus sur comment fonctionne le business autour !
Instagram : @my_little_road
Merci beaucoup ma belle !
Super article! They were questions I have been asking myself a lot when seeing you and other successful travel bloggers. Thank you for writing it! 🙂
Don’t hesitate if you need to know more !
Great Q&A, loved gettig to know more about you!
About your drone comment, we have had the dji mavic for almost a year now and love it. It’s hands down the best option for quality and compact size, ideal for travelling. Send us a DM on insta if you need more info.
Cheers
Sam & Yass
Thank yo so much ! Everybody is talking about this drone but it’s quite expensive right ?
@eh.lea 😉🙃
Petite beauté!
Thanks for sharing and being so honest! I hope you get a drone soon, Seeing Reunion from above sounds amazing. How did you come to live in Reunion?
With my boyfriend, we just wanted a hot place and a french one. So I said, “Do you know Reunion island”, he didn’t know it and I never been there so we just think it was a good opportunity to discover a new place !
Perfect post for an Instagram beginner like me! Hope to be like you one day
Thanks a lot babe !
Merci beaucoup Ophélie pour tous ces précieux conseils, j’en tiendrai compte! Continue comme cela, j’adore suivre tes aventures sur insta! A bientôt @meliwanderluster
Merci à toi !! Trop contente que tu sois là !
Ravie d’en savoir un peu plus sur toi et ton travail ! 😉
N’hésite pas si tu veux en savoir plus 🙂
Hey Ophélie !
Super ta réussite tu le mérites beaucoup !
Plein de belles choses pour la suite 🙂
Bises
Oh t’es une amour !! Merci beaucoup ! Alors, c’était comment les Seychelles?
C’etait vraiment top !
Hésites si tu veux en discuter j’ai vu que tu y allais bientôt !
Bisous ma belle 🙂
Thank you for all the tips. So happy to see you grow from 500 to 10k in so little time. Your acc has been a real inspo for me when I was in Reunion Island. @nia.rn
Oh thank you thank you thank you !!!
joli parcours! Une petite question, tu prends tes photos insta avec ton appareil ou avec ton telephone? 🙂 bonne continuation!
Non, je prends toutes mes photos Insta avec mon appareil photo. 🙂
Merci pour cet article très intéressant! C’est important que tu soulignes que tu as travaillé et travailles pour pouvoir voyager! Tellement hâte de voir tes photos et articles sur l’Afrique! 🙂
Oui ! Parce qu’au final, voyager sans argent ça n’est pas possible ! 🙂 Hâte de partager tout ça avec toi !
Thank you for sharing with us your experience on Instagram 🙂
Is it difficult for you to find balance between updating your Insta posts and stories, your blog, and keep up with your jobs?
Yes ! This is quite difficult but I manage it ! So you can do it too !
Super awesome!! Thanks for all the information! It’s my dream to just travel so much for the rest of my life.😊
My instagram is: @2kaylajones
Hahaha ! But if we travel too much, after I think we can loose the pleasure !
Building a relationship with other bloggers and having matching colors is so important! And funny, have the same starts as you do. I work, work, work and then spend, spend, spend 🙂 Let’s see what comes next!
Yes ! I think this is the best when you begin ! And we have to enjoy it !!!
I love the tip about engaging! Because it really does work! I’m also looking into writing so thanks for sharing babe!
Xx,
Ayda
@us.on.earth
Yes engaging is the best !!!
Love this article babe xx
It’s important to engage to grow on instagram. After all it’s a Social Media so let’s be social and connect with each other!!
@girlstravelingworld
Thanks a lot beauty !
Thanks for an awesome post ☺️ Do you tend to plan shots you’re going to take in advance or are most of them more spontaneous?? I love taking photos but my Instagram feed is verrrry uncoordinated as I’m terrible at planning ahead…just want to post things as soon as I take a picture as I can’t wait 😂
Most of the case it’s spontaneous because I love the natural pictures. But if I have some shots for brands I have to plan it and make the best. I choose the place in advance and try to think about the scenery.
After this, I plan all the text of my shots with Later. Like this I can be cool during the week and just have to post it everyday.
That’s really interesting thankyou! And well done on a beautiful account ☺️
My insta is @alexgettinglost if you ever feel like checking it out
Xx
http://www.alexgettinglost.com
Vie de rêve ! Merci de partager ça et Bravooo
Annnnh, merci à toiiii !!
Thanks for the info! Im just starting this year with mine. Because before was just a instagram for photography now im trying to change the topic. Choosing ythe theme of the pic and the lights has been the most difficult for me, because the photos has different lights and shadows 😫😫👏🏼 But im gonna try lightroom 🙂 Thanks for all the info. 🙂 iG: @wanderlust.pass
Yes Lightroom is the best. And if you choose a topic, try to stay in this one and it’s gonna work for sure !!
Trop bien ta reco pour les presets de Hilvees . Ils ont l’air canons !
Et ils sont vraiment canons !
J’adore ton bog et ton IG, il y a beaucoup de travaille et ça se voit. Je suivrai tes conseilles pour mon insta et mon projet.
Merci d’avoir partagé .
Lorena
Merci beaucoup Lorena !
Thank you for this really interesting article! I love how honest you are and not glamourising everything, like you’re saying you still work normal jobs when you’re running out of money. I really enjoyed reading 🙂
@ginamicina
Yes, money is important to travel and i’m not the kid of god so I have to work 🙂 ahhaha
Such a beautiful article
Thank you for sharing your thoughts
I hope you can look at my IG and give your suggestions
Lots of love
M
@tosomeplacenew
I’m gonna have a look at it ! 🙂
Je trouve ton Insta et ta vie passionnante 👌🏽😝
Un réel plaisir de te lire et voir que tout est possible.
bisous 😘
Oh merci beaucoup Déborah ! <3 J'espère que mes futures voyages vont t'inspirer encore plus 🙂
Hello, je te suis sur insta, j’adore ton compte! Et la je viens juste de découvrir ton blog qui est sincerement super bien fait! Quel est le theme de ton blog si t es sur wordpress? En tout cas merci pour tous ces tips 🙂
Hello ! Le thème c’est “Simple Mag” avec pas mal de personnalisation 🙂