Tips for taking the perfect photograph and the finer points of Instagram and other social media were the topics of discussion at this month’s Female Factor luncheon.

“We wanted to hitchhike on the … summer safety theme from last month. We are all going to take a lot of pictures of kids and grandkids during the summer, and focus on the best way to distribute to friends and preserve them,” organizer Dianna Lee told the group on Wednesday.

Beth Milton, owner of Beth Milton Milestones Photography and gifted specialist at Pike County schools, gave a presentation on how to take photos of friends and family to the next level, with simplified tips for improvement.

Tips included holding the camera at the eye level of the subject, using a plain background so that the subject stands out, and moving the subject from the center of the frame.

“Take time and experiment, play with it,” Milton said. “Don’t be afraid to move in close and keep the shutter on continuous, because little kids move so quickly.”

Milton also suggested taking photos in the morning and evening instead of midday, when the sun is the harshest.

The second speaker, Kathryn Kelley, is a Troy native and junior accounting major at Auburn University. She taught the participants about social media and how to best show off their photos.

Kelley encouraged the audience to try Instagram, an app with 30 million users. She explained the filter and sharing capabilities of the application and usefulness for phone photos.

Photo editing apps such as Pixlr, Photoshop Touch, and FaceTune were recommended for editing photos directly on phones and devices.

“FaceTune costs three dollars, but it is the best three dollars you will ever spend,” Kelley said. The app hides blemishes and whitens teeth.

Snapfish, PhotoBucket, and Shutterfly are photo storage websites that Kelley recommended for sharing photos with family and friends.

“You can make one account for your whole family and give everyone the login information,” Kelley said.

The Female Factor series is sponsored by Troy Regional Medical Center and its community partners. Next month will mark Female Factor’s third anniversary and will feature Stephanie Carter of Judith March clothing. The event is on August 13 at The Studio in downtown Troy.