Topic: Instagram? (Read 15977 times)

Chris Barrett · « **on:** February 19, 2015, 10:31:57 am »

These days Instagram has nearly as many followers as Twitter and is much more image-centric. As I attempt to become more marketing-aware, I've been embracing social media and tearing up the Insta-scene with commercial work, personal work and behind the scenes imagery. Exposure is all in the art of the hashtag. For example, with interiors shoots, I'm tagging the furniture manufacturers as well as the appropriate categories.

Anyone else using the platform? To effect? Thoughts and practices?

@cbarrettphoto

torger · « **Reply #1 on:** February 19, 2015, 11:31:42 am »

No personal experience and I'm not at a pro level; but in a recent discussion I was mentioning Iwan Baan and he's actually a keen instagram user:
http://instagram.com/iwanbaan

I've read in a recent article about him that some conservative clients have questioned his seriosity because of his instragram use, which to me sounds a bit strange. I think he does it for personal enjoyment rather than marketing (so the article said), but perhaps it works both ways.

Phil Indeblanc · « **Reply #2 on:** February 19, 2015, 11:35:09 am »

I have yet to see work come out of IG, but FB I get some work from.
I too am working on this and I think more and more and with local hashtag relevance, it will eventually make sense, I hope :-)

JoeKitchen · « **Reply #3 on:** February 19, 2015, 11:45:01 am »

I am on instagram too, JMKPhotog

Personally, I am not sure if this will turn into anything?

I kind of look at it as a way to get more work out there for people to see and what not, and right now, it seems like most of the people looking at my work are other photographers.

I like LinkedIn. I have gotten work through that site.

Jeffery Salter · « **Reply #4 on:** February 19, 2015, 01:13:27 pm »

Its just seems you need to find the right mix of images. Personal vs work. I'm still trying to figure it out. I do notice that when using good hashtags the interest in an image goes up. Besides giving clients a peek of your works, it gives them an idea of who you are. Are you fun on set? Or can you work in in a lot creative styles? Not sure if I have received any commissions directly from my instagram page, but in conjunction with my other social media sites it probably gives the clients a clearer picture of what to expect.

@jefferysalter

douglevy · « **Reply #5 on:** February 19, 2015, 04:51:17 pm »

Every photo editor and art buyer I've met or worked with in the last 18 months has asked, "You're on instagram, right?" They want to see because it's a direct unedited link to your ideas, vision and creativity. I'm @douglevy

Chris Barrett · « **Reply #6 on:** February 19, 2015, 05:21:27 pm »

I don't know that I expect to get jobs directly from it, but the more of a presence you can have online, the better. And as Doug pointed out, it's a great way for prospective clients to get into your head a bit more.

BJL · « **Reply #7 on:** February 19, 2015, 09:22:16 pm »

Is there anything comparable to Instagram but without that "so square that it's hip" forced cropping to 1:1 shape? Despite learning on an Instamatic, I have no nostalgia for that shape. (I don't need the filters either, but they can be ignored.)

This thread has made me curious abut being to put some modest resolution images out in public with a few keywords (sorry, "hashtags") to make them more discoverable by people who share my photographic tastes.

tom b · « **Reply #8 on:** February 19, 2015, 09:51:31 pm »

I think that you have to actually think about the sheer amount of images that are uploaded each day.

!.8 billion images uploaded each day.

A very interesting statistic.

Cheers,

ASSEMBLY · « **Reply #9 on:** February 23, 2015, 03:49:10 pm »

I'm on there as well. Both my personal www.instagram.com/sean_karns and my professional 'sketchbook' www.instagram.com/__area

....that said, having two instagram accounts is a real pain. So much effort to switch between the two means I dont post to __area as much as I would like.

Chris Valites · « **Reply #10 on:** February 26, 2015, 05:13:02 pm »

Quote from: douglevy on February 19, 2015, 04:51:17 pm

Every photo editor and art buyer I've met or worked with in the last 18 months has asked, "You're on instagram, right?" They want to see because it's a direct unedited link to your ideas, vision and creativity. I'm @douglevy

I'm with Doug, everyone WANTS to see instagram. For me, it's a sketchbook, really. You can see what ideas work, what doesn't, see how people frame their ideas. On top of that, I use mine like a little bit more of a social network than a camera tool; I think visually, and Facebook is mostly text, so why not?

Biggest thing I see is that Instagram shows ALL photos from the people you're following, rather than Facebook's craptastic publishing rate.

https://instagram.com/burlingtonography/

Capture Integration also has our own instagram account that I shamelessly use to show off my peak-bagging skills

https://instagram.com/captureintegration/

billy · « **Reply #11 on:** March 19, 2015, 03:20:52 pm »

I only want to post to one platform, Tumblr, would there be any way to have the post show up in Facebook or Instagram to get more traffic to the Tumblr? Nobody visits my Tumblr page really, maybe 50 a week. If so, which one is better, Facebook or Instagram? It just comes down to me liking the layout and design of my Tumblr site compared to FB and Instagram. On that note, all of my Tumblr post are horizontal still photos and horizontal video, which I know offers challenges up to Instagram's square layout.

BJL · « **Reply #12 on:** March 19, 2015, 03:29:07 pm »

Quote from: billy on March 19, 2015, 03:20:52 pm

I only want to post to one platform, Tumblr, would there be any way to have the post show up in Facebook or Instagram to get more traffic to the Tumblr? ... On that note, all of my Tumblr post are horizontal still photos and horizontal video, which I know offers challenges up to Instagram's square layout.

For the reason of not being a photographic square, I would go with Facebook. I wonder if Tumblr has anything like WordPress: one have a WordPress blog configured to automatically post an announcement of each new blog post on Facebook, complete with the "cover photo" and a link back to the WordPress post. For better for worse, it also puts least some of the photos into the blog a FaceBook album.

P. S. Seems like Chris Valites has answered my question with a "yes"!

Chris Valites · « **Reply #13 on:** March 19, 2015, 03:49:54 pm »

Hi Billy,

You can indeed share posts on your Tumblr and Facebook at the same time. You can even use instagram to post to instagram, facebook, and tumblr at the same time, but you should do the following specifically about tumblr posting to facebook:

1.) Go To Blog Settings » Check Share posts on your Timeline
2.) After you log in to Facebook you will see a message that says: Tumblr would also like permission to: Manage your pages Tumblr may login as any of your X Pages, including: (A list with your Pages). Click on Allow.
3.) Now, Go Back to your TUMBLR and go to Blog Settings » Scroll Down and, from the dropdown menu (that was not there before) choose which page (or profile) you will send your posts to.

billy · « **Reply #14 on:** March 19, 2015, 04:25:08 pm »

thanks for the replies. I have never had a Facebook or Instagram account so if anyone can send links of photographers who are successfully doing what I am thinking that would be great. I guess my next question regards my posting behavior; I post to my Tumblr a couple times a week just to share news with new imagery and post old imagery from my archive, would FB be better for me or Instagram? Seems like Instagram photos get followers that want to literally see where your at and what your doing. i don't do much or go that many places, and I am not into the wanking BTS stuff, so I won't even attempt to be that guy. Whats best for a photog that simply wants to share new and old imagery from jobs?

Chris Valites · « **Reply #15 on:** March 19, 2015, 04:39:16 pm »

Quote from: billy on March 19, 2015, 04:25:08 pm

thanks for the replies. I have never had a Facebook or Instagram account so if anyone can send links of photographers who are successfully doing what I am thinking that would be great. I guess my next question regards my posting behavior; I post to my Tumblr a couple times a week just to share news with new imagery and post old imagery from my archive, would FB be better for me or Instagram? Seems like Instagram photos get followers that want to literally see where your at and what your doing. i don't do much or go that many places, and I am not into the wanking BTS stuff, so I won't even attempt to be that guy. Whats best for a photog that simply wants to share new and old imagery from jobs?

Chris Burkard is probably the big one I know on instagram and facebook: http://www.chrisburkard.com/ https://www.facebook.com/ChrisBurkardPhotography and https://instagram.com/chrisburkard/

Chris Brinlee Jr is another: http://www.chrisbrinleejr.com/ http://chrisbrinleejr.tumblr.com/ https://www.facebook.com/chrisbrinleejr https://instagram.com/chrisbrinleejr/

I'd say that tumblr would be the best for you, at or just above Facebook, and instagram last. Instagrammers love a LOT of content, and it's much more a scrap book than a finished canvas, to coin a phrase.

billy · « **Reply #16 on:** March 19, 2015, 05:28:10 pm »

ok thanks. how about ' how people find you' on Facebook / instagram? it seems like Facebook i will just have all my schoolmates and friends find me instead of art buyers and photo editors. since instagram seems to be tool for part of the commercial photo industry, would an art buyer or photo editor be more likely to find me on instagram than Facebook?

Chris Valites · « **Reply #17 on:** March 19, 2015, 05:31:34 pm »

Quote from: billy on March 19, 2015, 05:28:10 pm

ok thanks. how about ' how people find you' on Facebook / instagram? it seems like Facebook i will just have all my schoolmates and friends find me instead of art buyers and photo editors. since instagram seems to be tool for part of the commercial photo industry, would an art buyer or photo editor be more likely to find me on instagram than Facebook?

That's a tougher question. Art directors, from what I've been seeing, seem to always point to instagram as their bigger source of leads from social media. Facebook pages have zero reach these days unless you pay to promote the posts ( see this post for more information: http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2014/03/24/facebook_brands_and_organic_reach_why_no_one_likes_your_self_promoting_posts.html )

I think I'd go with instagram were I you over Facebook.

Chris Barrett · « **Reply #18 on:** March 19, 2015, 08:24:06 pm »

While I prefer Tumblr's platform, it doesn't have nearly the reach of Instagram. Instagram currently has a user base rivaling Twitter's. Tumblr can't touch that. I seem to be able to find many images of mine that crop well as squares. Actually, I often do these barrages, where I post 9 at a time... did so earlier this evening. I have also 'matted' some images that wouldn't work as squares. There are even Apps to do that for you. What's key is knowing your target audience and hash-tagging appropriately, something I'm still really green on. I only got serious about Instagram 6 weeks ago... and have only gained 100 followers in that time. Will it help my business? Who knows? It's been kind of fun, though.

Also, the social network experts advise against using the ability to cross-post to all platforms. If people follow you on multiple platforms, you're just going to annoy them by posting the same thing everywhere.

Arminw · « **Reply #19 on:** March 23, 2015, 05:36:19 pm »

I tried to ignore the Instagram phenomena , but had to realise it is actually not such a bad way to be seen and discovered. I am still experimenting with what and what not to post, but I learned it has to be a mixture of work, and an inside into ones personal life .

https://instagram.com/armin_weisheit/

Author Topic: Instagram? (Read 15977 times)