I had a Flickr account starting in 2006, when i was a young teenager just beginning to take photographs. I definitely remember and appreciate how great the community was. It helped me grow as an artist and I really wish there was that sort of community now. Despite Instagram having a worldwide reach, there’s something about it that just prevents the sort of connection to strangers that used to happen so effortlessly on Flickr.
I completely agree with your thoughts on Instagram and have come to a lot of the same conclusions recently. In my photography, I’ve personally never exceeded the level of ‘amateur,’ but it’s still a hobby that I’ve always been known for among friends and family. I realized a short while ago that I had at some point lost almost all sense of what constitutes, to my mind, a ‘good’ photo, worthy of sharing. Because everybody moved to Instagram, and the focus shifted from people sharing their pictures for artistic consideration to people sharing their pictures to present an idealized version of their lives. A picture on Instagram is only as good as its ability to flatter.
My Instagram use has steadily declined, but now there’s nothing to replace it. I honestly don’t know where to post my pictures anymore, where they might actually receive some helpful criticism. I want to continue using Flickr, but with their new ownership, the last I checked, they went back to the 200 photo limit. I can’t upload anything new without some of the first photos I ever submitted on the site being deleted. I’d like to be a paying member, but can’t afford it. So I have decided to just let my account serve as a museum, until they inevitably delete it for lack of activity or payment.
(P.S. I have always loved your site and your photographs. I’ve been following for, I would guess, a decade at least.)
