Elevate Your Flat Lay Photos

I decided to switch gears today and write about something other than skincare, something a bit more simple and just an easy Sunday read. Flat lays! I don’t know about you, but I love a good flat lay whether it’s books, beauty products, shoes, purses, candles, etc…I LOVE THEM. Chances are, if you’re reading this then you love them too. I will say flat lays can get really intricate and if you’re trying to recreate them…pretty expensive. The cool thing is that you can actually come up with great flat lays on the cheap or even for free.

The best tip is probably just to use what you already have. You really don’t need one of those mirrored trays or brushed nickel wire baskets. Of course, if you have those…well you’re probably already using them. One of my favorite backgrounds to use is clothing. Clothes can have quite a bit of texture and when taking photos, that texture really pops. Next time you decide to do a flat lay, pull out your knit sweater or your leather skirt and see what you can come up with. For certain blog posts, I like to use colorful or floral garments because it’s different from the typical white, marble, and rose gold.

Going along with still using what you have, another favorite of mine is using plants and flowers. Not only does this work for flat lays, but it also works with full body photos. If you don’t have the greenest thumb, definitely try to get some fake plants if you can. One of my preferences for plants is Devil’s Ivy because it hangs which is perfect for the flat lays. Flowers can be a bit of a process, but you can press certain flowers and flower petals with books. I prefer to flatten the petals – usually those of roses. This basically creates paper or in this case, a pop of color for a flat lay.

Probably the most creative ways that I take my flatlay photos is with a sheet of tiles. I went to Home Depot one day to pick out tiles for my bathroom and really loved the hexagonal wall tiles as a backsplash. I ended up purchasing one sheet of the tiles and somehow started using them as a background for some of my photos. I find that those flat lays turn out the best in my opinion. Sheet tiles are pretty cheap ($5-12) so you wouldn’t be breaking the bank if you do go this route.

Get creative and find things around your house that make good backgrounds. You’d be surprised at how you can elevate your flat lays for super cheap. Don’t forget you can use beads, hair jewels, rings, colored tissue paper, and even hardened gummy bears to make your photos really pop. Hopefully, you all got some new or refreshed ideas to start taking more flat lays that are unique and different.