I’m in love with Instagram. Giddy-as-a-schoolgirl in love with seeing what I hadn’t seen before when the Instagram filters I choose shape the focus and feel of my usual subjects.
Butterfly effect in our Columbus, Ohio, backyard
I create my life every day with my wife, my daughter, seven cats and three dogs. And now I Instagram it, too.
If I find a picture that moves me, I collect it for inspiration, instruction and awe. More importantly, to show the Creator or Curator that I admire their shareworthy images—that what matters to them, matters to me, too.
We grow together. (Photo Credit: Deborah Bernish-Fisher)
In their just released survey of 1005 adults, Instagram, Tumblr and Pinterest are included for the first time in analyses of human behavior online by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. The study credits “the rise of the smartphone” for the shift. The study also affirms that the future of SoMe content will be fueled by visual content creation and curation—made easier through the UX designs of YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest—and of course, Facebook.
My online interactions put me among the 32% of Internet users who both Create and Curate visual content—and the 12% of folks who use Instagram. Although, at 43, I am a decade or so older than the majority of Instagram participators: 27% are between the ages of 18-29.
Many of the images I create are from Nature—the place I go to reconnect and recharge and, until Instagram, the one place I didn’t take a device of some kind.
I’m pretty clear that what I am looking for and photographing is emotional and without words. And, as with all collections and sharings, I am telling micro-stories about my Self with every click and filter, Like and Heart. This made me wonder…
- Can we use Instagram and other visual collections for new kinds of research?
- Could subject matter and filter selection reveal insights into emotional states?
- Will people living with chronic diseases document their life in new and surprising ways with these platforms?
- Will we attach dollars to Hearts for a cause to raise awareness and funds for people in need?
And, selfishly, when can I get a real camera with Instagram so I can lose the “phone” and better control my wellness and creativity boosting retreats to Nature ?
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Instagram is still ripe for development. For example, at present, a user’s Likes are dumped into a single folder, but I’d love to see updates that allowed a user to categorize and share that content—depending on the original creator’s privacy pref’s, of course. Meanwhile, even as a young app, it’s interesting to see IG surpass Twitter in traffic this past month.
Thank you, Dylan. I did not know that Istagram out-engaged Twitter users this past month. Ripe is the word. I started digging to answer my own questions, see just how fast the platform is ripening and found this to share with y’all:
* 5 Ways to Use Instagram for Social Good http://bit.ly/SKd066
* Social Platforms to Raise Awareness for World Alzheimer’s Month http://bit.ly/PcXUdW
* @running for lupus http://web.stagram.com/n/runningforlupus/
Here’s a recent blog about 25 Brands using Instagram effectively…
http://bit.ly/PZi3kG
AND 40% of Interbrand’s Top 100 Global Brands are already using Instagram–impressive for a young app. Thank you, Mashable! http://on.mash.to/SA34Qf
Thanks again for the knowledge sharing and wondering, Dylan.