Instagram is an easy way to stay connected with your friends, and get inspiration from your fave celebrities and influencers. The app’s sleek, clean interface and the uniformly square photos it allows you to post make for easy mobile viewing. In a span of just a few minutes, you get updates on the lives of everyone you care about.

Of course, half the fun is posting your photos for all the world to see. Forget about blurry, badly-lit pictures. Here’s a simple guide on how to take fantastic ones that are sure to get your friends to double tap!

(Illustration by Mike Dee; Gallery photos courtesy of Liz Lanuzo's Instagram account)