Instagram is the starting point for photographers. The main thing is not to get stuck in it
1. Instagram is the starting point for photographers. The main thing is not to get stuck in it
Instagram is the place where photographers arrive first. A place with a great many beginners and people who got stuck at this stage.
Mature photographers either simply publish their work or show how they spend their free time. Mature clients do not come from Instagram. They are not inspired by Instagram or Pinterest either. This childish game of views and likes is neither needed nor interesting to them.
Besides, everyone has officially accepted that Instagram is not a place for complex and thoughtful content. So people who make complex things either leave Instagram or give it far less attention than beginners do.
Fashion brands have adapted to this "simplicity" too, simplifying their content so as not to scare off "newcomers".
As a result, Instagram has very little mature, high-quality material and a great many "beginners" among "beginners", who inspire each other and make "useful content" for other newcomers like themselves.
The most dangerous thing is that the "beginner" level becomes the norm and is encouraged. Everyone is comfortable there, which means there is no motivation to grow further.
2. The difficulties of working with Instagram photographers
After regular contact with photographers who are focused on Instagram, I have noticed several of the most frequent and visible differences typical of most (but not all) "Instagram photographers".
Very cliché-ridden thinking. Photos must be "instagrammable", on trend and nothing else. Even when an Instagram photographer does not realise it, they still follow examples from Instagram. It is extremely hard to explain that photography exists beyond Instagram, that not everyone needs trends, vibes, looks, likes, views and followers.
A very strong dependence on the "Instagram philosophy": daily reels, stories, followers, likes... Everything for Instagram, even if it brings no benefit. "Everyone does it".
Superficiality. Unwillingness to go deep into the subject of the shoot. Everything comes down to the look, the pose and the location.
It is hard to talk about the notions of "image", "action", "scene" and how the image matches the action, the scene, the light, colour, form and emotional state.
A short horizon of growth. What in mature photography is considered just the basics sounds to Instagrammers like a "top-secret life hack" and a "creative trick".
A low bar for ideas. Creativity means stuffing flowers into a model’s trousers, taking a photo with a goose, combining a thong with a business suit, combining the incompatible ...
Unwillingness to understand the difference between bad and good composition. No work with form, colour, light, space.
As a result – a very simplified understanding of all the elements of photography. Unwillingness to change anything, yet a desire to increase income.