A Day In The Life Of A Full Time Blogger

*This post is sponsored by Specsavers.

One of the most commonly asked questions I get: so what do you really do all day?

I think a lot of people assume that working from home means you sleep all day and don’t do a whole lot of actual work. But it’s completely the opposite, or at least it is in my case. This career choice is pretty much 24/7 and while it undeniably has its perks, I think the amount of work that goes into creating content is grossly underestimated. In general I work every day, including Sundays, but I’m trying to give myself more time off.

Now it’s completely cliche to say this, but no two days are the same when it comes to content creation. My schedule is dependant on what events I have that week and what campaigns I have to shoot, but I do go through similar daily motions. I work best with a little structure and over the last nine months of self-employment have (slowly) gotten a grasp on when I’m at my most creative, even if it’s not during the traditional 9-5 hours.

So whether you’re a blogger yourself or are just curious as to ‘what I really do all day’, here’s a behind the scenes look at a typical shoot day. If there’s something you’d like me to share a little more about, I’d love to hear from you! Pop a comment below or message me on Instagram. Now let’s get to it…

6.15am

Bobby’s alarm goes off and I groan, roll over and snooze until he’s out the shower. I then spend a few minutes going through the notifications on my phone and replying to messages, before joining him downstairs for a coffee. This is my favourite part of the day, so much so that it’s almost become a sacred ritual. We chat about the day ahead and I see him off around 6.45am. I guess I’m lucky that Bobby has an early start, I don’t think I’d be such an early riser without it.

6.45-8.00am

I head upstairs to the home office, switch on my laptop and begin replying to emails. I’m usually half asleep at this point and so use the time to get the general admin out of the way for the day. As a self-employed one-person business, I am essentially every department you’d expect a normal company to have. Unfortunately for me that includes issuing invoices and chasing the companies who’ve decided not to pay on time *groan*.

8.00-8.30am

Now (hopefully) I’m awake, my second cup of coffee has kicked in and I’m ready to take on the day. I shower, put on minimal makeup and pop my Specsavers Daily Contact Lenses in (making sure to wash my hands before-hand). I LOVE the freedom of wearing contact lenses, especially on the days I’m photographing food. It’s a luxury not having to readjust my glasses every two seconds as they slide down my sweaty nose – mmmm so sexy! Honestly though, trying to look through a camera’s viewfinder whilst wearing glasses is HARD.

8.30-9.00am

By this time my stomach is usually growling at me. I enjoy a bowl of oats while some crime drama plays absentmindedly in the background. I also use this time to catch up on a little more blog work; writing captions, editing photos, engaging on Instagram – you get the gist.

9.00am – 10.30am

Despite recipes being the hardest and most time-consuming posts, they are easily my favourite images to create. The majority of the recipe research and planning is done before the shoot day, which means I’ll have a list of the ingredients and props ready. I pop to the shops and grab everything required for the shoot.

10.30am – 2pm

Cook, style, shoot the recipe. And guess what? Because I’m wearing contacts there’s no steaming up of my glasses when I take food out the oven. I’ll let you guys into a little secret – I shoot most of my food photography on my kitchen table. I think there’s this perception that to create great quality images you have to have a professional studio, but that’s just not true. I currently use this camera but will be writing a more in depth blog post about my photography equipment soon so stay tuned!

2pm-2.30pm

After I take the photos it’s time to take a break and have a late lunch. The kitchen usually looks like it’s been hit by a hurricane at this point. I ignore it for as long as possible but after about half an hour it’s time to clean up.

2.30-3.00pm

Loading the dishwasher. Packing away props and backgrounds. Throwing cloths/tea towels used in the wash. Sweeping the floor. Oh the glamorous life of a blogger eh?

3.00pm-5.00pm

Once the ‘studio’ resembles our kitchen again I begin to process the images. I take roughly 100-150 photos per shoot, so my first job is to go through the images and cut them down to around 40 favourites. I use Lightroom to edit all of my photos, and each image can take anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour from start to finish. It all depends on the lighting, whether the image needs retouching and how much of a perfectionist I’m being that day.

5.00pm-7pm

Bobby usually gets home around 5pm so that’s when I stop for a break. We have dinner and park our bums on the sofa while catching up on whatever Netflix show we’re addicted to. This is when I take out my Specsavers Daily Contact Lenses and reach for my glasses. It’s recommended that you wear contact lenses for a maximum of 10-12 hours per day but I find any more than 10 and my eyes become a little dry. I sometimes pop in a few eye drops if they’re feeling especially tired.

7pm-8pm

I typically post on Instagram around 7pm each day as that’s when my engagement is best. After posting I spend about an hour engaging with other accounts and replying to comments. As a teacher, Bobby usually has marking or planning to do in the evenings which means I can get my Instagram ‘shift’ in without feeling guilty for being on my phone.

8pm-9.30pm

Time to switch off. We watch TV (with snacks of course) and unwind for a few hours before bed.

10pm-11.30pm

I like to be in bed by 10pm, so tend to head upstairs at around 9.30pm. I’m really enjoying my evening skincare routine at the moment, so always allow time for that. I’ve got a really bad habit of using my phone before bed – it’s one that I’m trying to kick. I’ll scroll Instagram, Pinterest or catch up on a true crime podcast, until I eventually fall asleep around 11.30pm.

So there you have it, that’s what a typical shoot day looks like for me. Even though I’m technically working more hours than I would be at a ‘regular’ job, I don’t mind because I love what I do. Every day is different and I’m sure my routine will shift and change as my business grows – but I’m excited to see where it takes me.

Are you a blogger? If so, is your daily routine similar to mine? Do you use daily contact lenses?

Jasmin x

*This post is sponsored by Specsavers.