The cold hard truth about Instagram for photographers
Dec 13, 2019
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
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Instagram is just a fact of life for many photographers these days. We all have our various reasons for posting and a lot of us have become disappointed and disheartened with the results it has brought (or hasn’t brought) in return for the amount of time we spend on there. But are we approaching things all wrong?
This video from Sean Tucker came out a little while ago now, but what he says holds true now as much as it ever did. In it, he talks a lot of sense and “straight talk” for photographers who want to make Instagram work for them – and not the other way around.
The thing that many photographers don’t realise is that Instagram (and Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc) is a tool. And like the tools we use to create our images, it is one that you need to understand and master in order to get the most out of it. So, they approach it with unrealistic goals without understanding how the platform really works.
Sean doesn’t profess to provide a “How to get big on Instagram!” class with this video. That’s not what the video’s for and he admits that he’s not entirely sure he can give that kind of advice for everybody’s needs. He doesn’t believe anybody can do that. But he talks a lot of common sense to make people think. To think about how they might be able to adapt principles to their own accounts and their own goals in order to help make the most out of Instagram.
A lot of the points Sean raises in the video aren’t just for Instagram, either. They can be equally adapted and applied to Facebook, YouTube or any other social media platform you might be on. Sean’s humility and common sense breakdown is refreshing to hear, too.
What’s your biggest struggle on Instagram?
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
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2 responses to “The cold hard truth about Instagram for photographers”
If You Sean are shooting only for Your self, then why do You post to Instagram.
The intent is different. If you shoot for yourself and happy that other people like it, then it is you, the photographer that appears in the photos. If you ask your viewers what they want and then shoot, it is the viewer that appears in the photos. In the latter there is no surprise for the audience.