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Instagrowth: Guidelines to Help Keep Instagram, Instagram.
04/20/12
Avid and often addicted Instagram users have had quite a month. First, the hashtag #iPhoneOnly became instantly obsolete in early April with the addition of millions of Android users to the photo sharing app. Then, last week, new members and old were shocked by news that social media giant Facebook had purchased the 13 person company for a jaw dropping $1B. For some, shock gave way to outrage and fear of the undoing of one of the purest and simplest forms of creative expression around.
We can be so over dramatic sometimes. Honestly, I welcome new users and the unique view of their lives and the world that Instagram makes possible. I don’t mind their likes and follows either … ahem … @robhutti. That said, I think it’s worth reaching out now to these new folks to help them, help us, keep Instagram classy. These are not so much rules, but guidelines to build a better Instagram community:
01. Level the Playing Field
One of my favorite aspects of Instagram may also be the reason for its success. The #iPhoneOnly mentality of core users has created a level playing field for photography. Even after the addition of other smart phones, most of us are walking around with basically the same technology in our pocket. Therefor, anyone from professionals to amateurs have the same capacity to take incredible photos. So put the fancy cameras away, and push yourself to see what can be done on your mobile device.
02. Fill the Freak’n Frame
This is my biggest pet peeve; make sure you fill the frame. Instagram’s use of the Kodak Instamatic’s square aspect ratio is intentional. Not only was this a conceptual and aesthetic choice, but also allows for a much cleaner and more usable UI. To me, deciding the composition of an image is more important than what filter, frame or depth of field is chosen. When you don’t fill the frame, you are throwing composition out the window.
03. Instagram Can Wait
Remember you can pull photos from your library in IG, so you don’t have to use the camera within the App for your captures. There are those who would tell you that Instagram is intended to be Instant. But, I think the best Instagram users are not so impulsive. Take your time, unless your photo is newsworthy or timely, it can wait. Take multiples, explore various compositions or over/under expose it. Feel free to try other filter apps or even typography apps. Then when you have a second to breath and really look through what you have, chose the best. Trust me your feed and followers will thank you.
04. Quality Over Quantity
On Instagram, all a buxom female needs is her camera and a mirror to send likes, among other things, through the roof. Though my 14 year-old self would kick me for saying it; I hate this. Am I jealous? Yep. But mostly frustrated for the amateur photographers I see everyday capturing smart, unique and unbelievable snippets of this beautiful world we live in. But there’s good news. Increasingly in the social space we see a shift from how many followers and likes we get, towards the quality/substance of those with whom we are connected. Instagram is a good example of this. Don’t feel pressured post every photo you take or follow everyone you know. Instagram for yourself. Like and comment on shots you really love and you will be amazed at the people you meet and the genuine support they return.
05. The Golden Rule
Do unto others, as you would have done unto you. If you are the type of person who likes to look at other people’s cats, then by all means take photos of your feline friend. But be mindful that Instagram is not just a generic photo sharing platform. What you post should be somewhat selective, creative and purposful. Capturing the same unvaried subject, especially if it’s your kitty, will likely yield resentment and not much else. Don’t get me wrong, consitency is good. Having a style is good. We all have our go-to shots that saturate our feeds; architecture, cars, round stuff and yes, even our breakfast. All Im asking is that you try to share unique perspectives with each shot, and let me save the mundane receptiveness for my own life.
A Second Opinion
Since my measly, yet appreciated, 230 followers don’t exactly grant me expert credentials, I have elicited the help of some of my favorite Instagramers for their advice on what works and what doesn’t. Following these folks may change your life, or at least bring a bit of beauty to your day. Here’ their advice:
@Dirka
Main thing CONSISTENCY. I’m most impressed when u can tell every pic was carefully shot/edited/chosen to post… instead of my feed just getting blizted with mediocre pics. Love seeing a personal side on occasion. Getting to know who Im following. Love honest, real, meaningful comments & replies. Shows that the person is not just a great photographer but a great person too.
@Trashhand
Do: Find the best users that you know will inspire you. Research apps. Develop a style and theme for your stream. Be consistent.
Don’t: Spam, ask for follows or likes. Don’t steal peoples work or post MySpace photos of yourself or your food. Don’t come off desperate.
@HerbertSchroer
Do: show interest in other peoples work, participate in contests, check who your favorite IGers are following, be inspired.
Don’t: spam, ask people to follow you, upload too many photos, post photos of yourself constantly, use heavy hdr effects.
@Curious2119
Not to let @HerbertSchroer do all the work but he said it perfectly. Oh and no cats!
@_F7
Use Snapseed and Filterstorm. Both cost some yet great apps to raise curves even on night shots.
Do: Engage your followers and the people you follow. Comment. Share. Interact. Have fun. Be sincere. Be yourself.
Don’t: DON’T think you need wild adventures for great photos. A small change in routine’s enough to open your eyes to beautiful pictures.
@elixir818
Do: Create a dialogue and get to know your community.
Don’t: Become a voyeur that only giggles at his/her own grams.
@chrisozer
Do: Always focus on basic photo skills while shooting – find good light, hold your camera very steady, think about composition.
Don’t: Don’t be aggressive with commenting in any way. Good photos speak for themselves.
@dankhole
Like the photos that appeal to you & follow the people who inspire you. Work on consistency & technique & people will notice you.
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5 Minute Design: Tilt Shifting
09/21/10
‘5 Minute Design’ is a biweekly blog post that features tricks, tools and techniques in design. I only have 5 minutes to complete it, so I will make the design as basic as possible, use shortcuts, and cheat if at all possible. It is my hope that other designers, with your superior skill and intelligence, will have a quicker, cleaner and more precise way to achieve the design. Then you will punish me for my ignorance and lack of talent by posting your own solution.
And so it goes.
Tilt Shifting. I’m sure many have been over-using this technique for years.
I just started over-using it last week.
It is a style by which you take a photo from a high angle (from above), and manipulate it in Photoshop to draw attention to a specified area by masking and blurring out the peripheral. This makes it look like a scale model, and apparently, so awesome that it needs to be done to every photo hipsters take.
Lets get started.
1. Grab your iPhone and go to a high place with a sweet view of a low place. I chose the parking garage across from work.
2. Take some photos. Choose the best one. I liked this one:
3. Open that photo in Photoshop.
4. Press the ‘Q’ key to enter Quick Mask Mode.
5. Grab your “Gradient” tool from your tool bar. Choose a Black to White Gradient, then click the “Reflected Gradient” option from the top tool bar. Click on the focal point (for me it’s that car crossing the intersection). Drag your mouse in straight line until the entire height of the area you want in focus is covered in that transparent red color (This might take some experimentation, enjoy it!).
6. Now that you have your vertical space quick masked, we need to shorten the horizontal focal distance. We do this because a camera lens does not focus a straight line, instead it focuses on a specific distance, and blurs from there. Even though tilt-shifting is not reality-based, we do want to keep some degree of photographic dignity alive. So, select a White to Transparent gradient and click the “Linear Gradient” option from the top tool bar. From the right side of your image click, and drag your mouse toward your focal point. Stop and release at a point near where you want your focus to stop.
7. Repeat on the left side of your photo.
8. Click the “Q” key to exit “Quick Mask Mode.”
9. Now, start whistling “The Ants Go Marching One-By-One” like I always do, as your mask changes to the “Marching Selection Ants.” Immediately go to the Filter > Blur > Lens Blur menu item. A pop-up will appear.
10. Play a bit, but really you only need to touch a few things. Make your “Radius” between 30-40. Make your “Blade Curvature” between 30-40. And make your “Threshold” between 225-250. Check your preview to make sure you like, and click “OK.”
11. Click the “Command+D” keys to deselect your focal area. And WOW! look at that. Pretty cool.
12. Almost done. We need a bit more contrast, so under your “Layers Pallete” click the “Create New Fill or Adjustment Layer” option. Select the “Curves” Adjustment Layer. Make a standard, but subtle “S Curve.” Click at the top of the diagonal line (not the very top) and drag that point to the left a bit (15px). Near the bottom of that diagonal line, click a point near the bottom and drag that to the right a bit (5px). You want more rich dark and bright white areas. Click “OK,” or just be done when your done (CS4-CS5).
13. We are going to saturate the crap out of the image. This will make the things in the photo look like they were painted by hand. Really bright colors. Go back to the “Create New Fill or Adjustment Layer” and choose the “Hue/Saturation” option.
Bring your Saturation up to about 20-40 depending on the resolution of the photo (iPhone smaller, DSLR larger). Click “OK” when you like it, and you’re done.
Not to bad for 5 minutes. Impress your friends on Facebook. Maybe your mom will hang it on the Fridge.
Now, designers … What did I do wrong? Tweet me @robhutti or comment below.
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If HDR is the Devil, then consider me Charles Manson
09/9/10
Someone broke in (walked in the unlocked back door) to 4ORCE Digital and stole my Nikon D40 back in July. I still have a hard time believing that it wasn’t a prank by David Johnson, but by any degree the camera was gone.
Our Pres/CEO, Dan Curran was extremely generous when he offered to pay for a new camera for me. I owe him in a very big way.
He told me to upgrade a bit, so I went for a Nikon D5000. I know, I know… an upgrade is a bit of an over-statement, but for my purposes this camera has been a vast improvement. Mainly because it has bracketing, and thus allows me to shoot for HDR photos.
High dynamic range photos are considered evil sacrilege by most photographers and over-used by most amateurs. HDR photos are merged from three or more shots with varying exposures. The bracketing on the D5000 and most DSLRs allows the camera to do this automatically and Photoshop or Photomatix can merge the shots into one HDR image.
I’ll try not to get addicted, and I understand that my first go kinda sucks. But I have to post something. So, without further ado, WashAve in HDR:
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Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired Logo Throwdown
09/3/10
The STL Egotist, a blog about advertising and creative stuff, recently had an off-day when they decided to slam two local Ad players; Schupp Co. and Ad Saint.
Schupp Co. is an agency that has been around for a long time and does a lot of point of sale and other general advertising (Remember the KTRS missing Cardinal Birds… that was them). Schupp designed(?) a logo for the Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Ad Saint, another STL advertising and creative stuff blog, was contacted by the Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired to run a story on their new logo, which they did.
The egotist basically took fault with the fact that for what they (and I) am sure was a pro-bono project, Schupp phoned the logo in. Meaning it really isn’t very good, or more, could have been a lot better. And then The Egotist kind of threw some fighting words at AdSaint for writing a post about this lame logo.
I have worked on projects like this, and know first hand that its generally the clients that limit the project (concept and execution). I also know that where the real money is saved on a Pro-bono client is not the creative effort, but the account sales effort. The mentality that, “They’re not paying for this, it’s not worth our time to fight with them.” Designers are the ones who spend the extra time and effort polishing feces, and then they are the ones that are pointed to when the logo sucks.
So, Egotist, have a little compassion. If Schupp roll’s out a campaign they are sure will be a Gold Pencil or a Lion, and you think it sucks… say so. If they cook a Pop Tart, I don’t need you guys to explain to me why they should have made Blueberry instead of Smores. As for AdSaint, call them out on bad stories if you want. Maybe that competition will yield deeper digging, more content and better insight for me.
In the meantime, I say we turn this whole frown up side-down!
Designer Throwdown!
The Place: www.blindlogos.tumblr.com/
The Weapons: Illustrator, Coffee, Ice Pick
The Logo: Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Click here and upload your better version of this logo:
(Egotist mystery writers, lets see your skills too)
Best logo gets lunch at Blues City on me!
Fight!
PS > I’ll narrow the logos down, and then let someone a lot cooler than me pick the winner.
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Is that Shawn from ‘Boy Meets World’?
08/16/10
You’re damn right it is!
Your Lucky Day from Dan on Vimeo.
Rider Strong in a short film about atheism… maybe hell… maybe lottery tickets. I don’t really know?
As soon as I saw Shawn take out a man that look remarkably like Mr. Feeny with a hand gun, I wrote this post.
I’ll keep watching now. You do the same.
Saw it on Devour again.
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Indians Take Over the World
08/16/10
This video and sport(?), Mallakhamb, reaffirms how the Indian people brought about the Kama Sutra, and why they will take over the world with their countless armies of triple-jointed contortionist climbing gymnast soldiers… all hoped up on Chaat!
I surrender.
Saw this on Devour… my newest addiction.
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