Tag: Clairemont Team interns

Take an Instagram-worthy Photo

Clairemont InternBlog, Public Relations, Social Media + Influencer Engagement, , , ,

“No one’s life is as perfect as his or her Instagram feed.”

Have you ever scrolled past a photo of food or clothing on Instagram and instantly been awed? Without even realizing it, more than just the item on display caught your eye. The photo you loved was staged, filtered and carefully planned by its publisher. You might be surprised to learn just how much planning goes into an Instagram photo! (Those who rock their Instagram feeds can even make a career out of it!)

Here are our tips to becoming a rockstar at Instagram-worthy photos:


Use the best camera that you know how to use. Not all of the best photos Instagram has to offer are taken with a professional HDR camera. An iPhone equips you to take a clear and precise image. Focus on the object by tapping on your screen; turn off HDR to promote clarity. If you do know how to use a more professional camera, absolutely use it, as it offers a variety of manual settings and functionalities.

Leverage natural lighting. Lighting plays a vital role in the quality of the image. Using natural outdoor lighting, whether outside or through a window, will produce life-like images. Be sure not to take photos in direct sunlight, as it will overexpose the image. Aim to photograph in a setting with shade, overcast light and at sunrise or sunset to produce the best quality.

Stage it. First, select a background that expertly showcases your subject. For example, a white backdrop will showcase a complex item or product. A background with a pattern or specific colors will complement your product or person while adding interest and dimension. Keep in mind that photo size restrictions might apply. For example, shooting a photo in square mo
de via your iPhone is always a safe move to match Instagram’s feed. According to Colorlib, the maximum upload for a vertical image without cropping is 1080px in width by 1350px in height and 1080px in width by 566px in height for horizontal images. Finally, employ the rule of thirds, mentally dividing your image with two horizontal and two vertical lines. Note where the horizontal and vertical lines meet, like demonstrated in the graphic, and position the most important elements at the points of intersection. Using the rule of thirds is easy by turning on your iPhone’s grid feature.

Angle it. Explore changing the angles of your photo for widely varied outcomes. For example, stand high above to shoot directly over your product or get on ground level with the object to capture a profile view.

Edit it. Few Instagram-worthy photos are uploaded without a filter or two. To create a coherent feed, apply the same filters to your photos. Of course, you might need to lighten an image more so than another, but if you’re sharpening images to add clarity, sharpen them all. If you’re removing the highlights, remove them all. The app VSCO provides multiple tools to achieve the perfect edit. You can add or remove exposure, contrast, saturation and skin tone — just to name a few. The app Color Story supplies hundreds of additional filters. Need to smooth a specific part of a photo or swap two different pieces of the photo altogether? Check out Facetune.

Follow these steps, and you’re ready to post. We bet it’s your best Instagram photo yet! In the meantime, check out how to use “Instagram ‘Highlights’ for Business” to continue to grow your company’s Insta presence.

Written by Clairemont intern, Kennedy Norton, a junior at North Carolina State University.

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Meet Jessica, Clairemont Intern

Clairemont InternBlog, Public Relations, The Clairemont Team, ,

I am an extrovert. That word tends to get misused quite a bit, but the bottom line is this: I love to help people thrive.

Meet Jessica

My name is Jessica Winesette, and I’m excited to be one of Clairemont’s newest interns! I’m a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Go Heels!) majoring in public relations at the School of Media and Journalism. I am also minoring in philosophy, politics and economics.

So what does a typical day look like for me in the “Southern Part of Heaven” (aka Chapel Hill)?

Quick answer: there’s no such thing as a typical day!

What I love about my time at UNC is that every day holds different opportunities to seize and different people to meet. I am a student leader with Cru Campus Ministry and have been lucky enough to lead a Bible study with some sophomores that have become like family. I live with seven of my best friends, and, needless to say, there is never a dull moment. I have also danced with Blank Canvas Dance Company since my second semester at UNC. Finally, I’ve participated in multiple special campaigns at UNC, such as Carolina Justice Week, International Friends and Electionland. In summary, I stay pretty busy!

Making Magic

As incredible as my time in Chapel Hill has been, there is one time in my college career that stands out above the rest. Last spring, I took a semester off of school to participate in the Disney College Program at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida! It was such a great character-building experience, and as you can imagine, also a blast. I did work in Disney World, after all!

My job as a Vacation Planner allowed me to have constant guest interaction and definitely helped with my conflict resolution skills. They might call it the Happiest Place on Earth, but I assure you, not everyone there is happy. Nevertheless, this gave me a perfect opportunity to address guest complaints and handle a variety of difficult situations with tact.

Why PR?

Public relations is something that I don’t think I fully understood until I was an upperclassman. I actually declared PR as my major during my freshman year but only started to truly appreciate and become excited about it during my junior year. As I learned more about the diverse functions of PR from my incredible professors, I became enthralled with the dynamic and ever-changing field.

I am excited to spend my career building mutually beneficial relationships with clients and their publics. Ultimately, my passion for working with people and building them up naturally pointed to a life in public relations.

Why Clairemont?

The incredible creative energy that flows throughout the Clairemont House is undeniable. I am inspired by all of the women that I work with and their dedication to taking care of their clients. I also appreciate the smaller size of Clairemont, as it makes me feel like an integral part of the team and allows me to have my hands in a little bit of everything. Just like my time at UNC, no two days at Clairemont are the same, and I’m eager to see what each new day is going to bring!

Written by Clairemont intern Jessica Winesette, a senior at UNC-Chapel Hill.

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Meet Kennedy, Clairemont Intern

Clairemont InternBlog, Fashion, The Clairemont Team, , , ,

Sprite and Hewlett Packard have a couple of things in common. One, they are global companies, and two, they asked me to partner with them on campaigns this past summer.

Meet Kennedy          

My name is Kennedy Norton, and I’m a junior at NC State University studying communications with a concentration in public relations, as well as minoring in design studies.

You will probably find that I am not your typical college student. In addition to being a full-time student, I am the marketing/PR coordinator for a planner company based in Charlotte, Kahootie Co. I’m also a blogger! I have a fashion and beauty based blog named Enticingly Haute. I have crafted campaigns with Sephora and Neutrogena, taken over T.J. Maxx’s Instagram story for the day and will complete a campaign with Ulta Beauty at the end of this month. Last but not least, I’m Clairemont Communication’s newest PR intern.

 

Social Media Savvy

My favorite class assignment to date was giving a speech on why I believe that Instagram is the best social media platform. I adore social media and the communication it affords me. I started a blog to share outfit ideas and beauty tips with my friends and family. Enticingly Haute took off in ways I could have only imagined. Kahootie Co. loved my Instagram presence of 20,000+ followers at the time and reached out wanting me to work on its social media and communicate with its buyers. I love people and building relationships with them. It’s what made me choose my major and easily share so much of myself through my blog; it’s also why I think I’ve had success in creating meaningful and impactful social media content.

Why Clairemont

As the PR director for the NC State PRSSA chapter, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet Clairemont’s own Tracy Lathan. Tracy is passionate about what she does, and after hearing her speak multiple times at PRSSA events in Raleigh, I needed to find out more about Clairemont.

This agency could not be more perfect. The women here are driven and excited about what they do. The less than 10-person team is a homey and hands-on experience. I truly feel a part of the team here at Clairemont; you can’t walk around this house without feeling inspired to think up a new idea or to create something. This agency makes me that much more excited about my major and will give me an outlet to continually grow my love for social media and people while offering opportunities to develop knowledge for a lifetime.

Written by Clairemont intern, Kennedy Norton, a junior at North Carolina State University.

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Meet Lindsey, Clairemont Intern

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Fashion has been something that has always captured my attention. From the time my mom gave me a purse that read “I Love Shoes” for Christmas to my very first designer anything, I’ve been obsessed and completely infatuated with the culture and creativity behind the fashion industry.

As I grew up, I soon realized that I, unfortunately, didn’t inherit the artist gene that basically every other member of my family had. So I quickly had to consider and learn other areas of the fashion industry that I could pursue.

Having moved to Asheville, North Carolina from New Jersey made me realize some key changes in the culture around me, especially within fashion. It taught me a lot about how to pursue a dream and stay true to what you believe in although it may be challenging when faced with criticism from your peers.

Then, during my sophomore year of high school, I got the opportunity to tour Diane von Furstenberg’s corporate headquarters. I knew right then that I wanted nothing more than to work in the fashion industry and decided fashion journalism was the path I wanted to take.

A Change of Pace

After spending countless hours honing my reporting skills through high school and into my freshman year of college, I came to the conclusion that the journalism industry wasn’t a fit. I switched from studying reporting to PR and haven’t regretted a single second of pursuing a career in this industry.

This past summer I had the opportunity to intern and live in New York City, which has always been the city of my dreams. I’m pretty positive it took me all summer to even realize I was actually living out my dream in my dream city. It taught me an incredible amount about PR in general but, more importantly, about my own drive and work ethic. Diving right in to an industry in a brand new city is hard, but I can’t even begin to describe how valuable an experience like that is for a young professional.

Why I Love the PR Industry

I think that the PR industry has so much room for creativity, and how dependent it is on person-to-person interaction isn’t something you find in every career. It’s fun, it’s fulfilling, and most importantly, it’s important; after dipping my toes into my first internship, I took away the idea that really every brand or client relies on the work PR practitioners establish. Everything from social media to traditional news articles are intertwined and codependent, thanks to the work that goes in from the PR side.

Now after returning back to my second home at UNC-Chapel Hill, I have been able to understand so much more about why I love PR. I am so excited to continue working with it while interning at Clairemont Communications this semester.

Written by Lindsey Hoover, junior at UNC-Chapel Hill.

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Friday Five- The 5 P’s for Your Next job Interview

Jasmin SessomsBlog, Entry-Level PR Job, Fashion, , , , ,

Congratulations! You’ll be graduating from college before you know it, and you’ll have the chance to astound the world with your knowledge, talents and abilities.

As a recent grad, you will face the interview stage–the nerve-wrecking interview stage. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by job interviews and even a little intimidated. Here are my five interview tips on how to make your ideas shine while making sure that the importance of appearance and first impressions aren’t forgotten.

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