Have you ever wondered how Instagrammers edit their photos? Well, you’re in luck! I’m giving you the full tutorial to use VSCO recipes in this post and my exact VSCO recipe so you can edit your Instagram photos like me!
You don’t have to be a professional photographer to get a professional-looking Instagram feed. There are many apps that Instagrammers use but my current favorites are VSCO for editing and Tailwind for scheduling. Today, I’m showing you how to edit quickly and easily! Let’s get started…
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STEP 1 – DOWNLOAD VSCO
I currently use VSCO to edit all of my Instagram photos. It’s very user-friendly (even if you aren’t a photographer!) which makes it perfect for editing Instagram photos quickly and easily.
Go ahead and download VSCO on your phone for free so you can get started editing your amazing Instagram photos!
STEP 2 – PICK VSCO RECIPES (AKA: EDITS)
Open Pinterest on your phone and search for VSCO recipes. This will pull up many different vsco edits and photos so you can see what they look like. You can choose a vsco recipe that fits the aesthetic for your feed or…
If you want to edit photos like me, I’m giving you my exact VSCO recipe so you can use it to edit your photos. Save it, pin it to Pinterest (by hovering over the photo below), & share it so you’ll have it for reference later! Don’t skip this step because you’ll need it in the next steps. 😉
Pin this for later ↙
STEP 3 – IMPORT A PHOTO AND INPUT YOUR RECIPE
Once you’ve picked a recipe or have mine handy, log into the VSCO app. Go to Studio on the bottom middle. Then tap the large plus button in the lower right corner. This will allow you to import a photo from your camera roll. Choose a photo and tap Import.


Now, select your photo and tap the sliders button in the lower right corner to edit your photo. Choose the base filter from your recipe. For my recipe its G3/Portraits. Once you select it, use the slider to choose how much of that filter you want to use on your photo. For mine its +9.5.
Next, choose the slide icon at the bottom and start manually inputting each setting such as exposure, sharpen, saturation, etc. Each vsco recipe will have its own settings. If you’re using mine go back and put in each of the settings I have listed. See the slideshow below for the full editing process I use for my photos.
STEP 4 – SAVE YOUR RECIPE
Once you’re happy with your vsco edits, tap the circle button at the bottom, and then the plus sign that says create a recipe from your current edits. This will save your vsco recipe so the next time you import a photo all you have to do is go straight to the circle button and tap on your recipe. So easy right?!


If you want to make your life even easier try the Tailwind Instagram scheduling app for FREE! (no credit card required.) Tailwind has been a real game-changer for me. Tailwind allows you to:
- Save time by scheduling your Instagram photos & videos with Auto Post.
- Multiply your reach with 1-Click hashtag suggestions for perfect-fit hashtags for every post.
- Have SmartSchedule pick the times when your audience is most engaged so you can always post at the best times!
I always use Tailwind to pick my hashtags and times to post – Try it for FREE here!
ALSO READ: How to Use Tailwind For Instagram to Optimize Hashtags & Schedule Posts
I hope you found this vsco edits tutorial useful! If you did please share it with your friends using the buttons below and pin the recipe image by hovering over it so you can reference it later. Happy editing! 🙂
Pin this for later ↙

Ali
Monday 20th of January 2020
I've never heard of VSCO before! I'm going to check it out - I can use all the help I can get on my images :) Thanks for sharing!
Jes Lyn
Tuesday 21st of January 2020
You're welcome! It's super easy to use. :)