UKC

I have just signed up to Instagram - (not sure why yet!) - can any experienced users give me a few pointers?

Specifically

i) can you really only upload from your phone?

ii) why would you use it instead of (e.g. Facebook, or your photo hosting site?

iii) #hashtag - what's that all about?

Cheers for any pointers


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:

i) As far as I know yes. To get around this, I shoot on my DSLR, edit in LR, download via lightroom mobile to my phone, then post to instagram. I haven't found it to be a huge deal.

ii) Instagram is a nice way to share publicly. If you make your profile "public" then anyone can see it, regardless of who's following who. It's different from a photo hosting site because a) it reaches a wider audience--you get both photography enthusiasts as well as normal selfie-taking people. I kind of like that it's a great way to spread the beauty of the outdoors with people who might not otherwise seek it out. b) you can only share one photo at the time, which forces people to be selective about what they post. It's nice as a viewer because you don't have to sift through a 50 photo album to find the one or two photos you actually appreciate.

iii) Hashtags are basically keywords people will follow/search for. For most people, it's all about getting exposure...As I'm sure you've seen, some people hashtag the shit out of their photos to get as many "keywords" out there so more people hopefully see the photo. Personally, I find it tasteful to use minimal, functional hashtaggery (usually just share location of the shot).

And finally, a shameless plug to my instagram as a mediocre example of what I'm talking about:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/92129809@N05/

I hope that helps!

In reply to Chris Craggs:
i) Yes, however if you take a picture on your big camera you can edit it as per normal on the laptop and then transfer to your phone and then upload. Faff but it works.

ii) It's more of a source of new 'followers' rather than sharing quantity with friends. Upload best pic of the day and add a link Facebook in the description.

iii) The way to get followers! So #hashtag what you're doing, where you're doing it etc. #lakedistrict #helvellyn #winterclimbing #scotwinter #tradclimbing #etc #etc

In reply to Chris Craggs:




Yes, but not necessarily phone pics - any jpg etc on your phone can be uploaded. The format/ratios are a bit limiting but more forgiving than they used to be (no longer 1:1)


A different audience and better algorithms for finding other images/photographers/random marketing bots based on what you post and what you follow


A way of categorising and tagging images so that they can be found by (or suggested to) others who like that sort of thing. For example, a winter climbing shot in Ogwen might have #mountain #climbing #winter #mountaineering #wales #snowdonia #adventure underneath. Yes it is a bit wanky but it can be useful at times.


Follow me. I think I'm amazing. Many others don't.

https://www.instagram.com/richprideaux/

In reply to Chris Craggs:
It isn't a hosting site, it's an image based social network. So it isn't designed for you to upload whole albums, it's merely for snapshots and snippets of what you're into. You'll see some galleries tend to be food based, outdoorsy, social etc etc etc

The hashtags enable other users to search images based on common interests #landscape_captures will bring up landscape, #wanderlust will be travel based.

I'll shamelessly add my own instagram account

https://www.instagram.com/spoonertim/

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Hi Chris.

If you're into photography it's a good place to get a bit of exposure. Yeah, you can only upload from your phone.

Generally Instagram is more of a public platform for the individual I think and is literally just for photo sharing.

The secret of the #hashtag is to use relevant words for the most exposure/targeted audience. So for example if you were uploading a picture of someone on a route you might use #climber #climbing #outdoors #peakdistrict #mountain. And don't be afraid to use quite a few! Also by using the @ symbol you can tag pages/people (e.g. @ukclimbing for their page)

Hope that helps a bit

Find me @adamturner0505

In reply to all:


Cheers for that guys, some really useful stuff there to get my her round. Instagram has kept popping onto my radar, and I thought it time to get a handle on it,


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:

I haven't actually found an easy (any) way of easily getting shots from my Apple computer to my Apple phone - Bluetooth doesn't seem to work, neither do mail or airdrop - just ridiculous!


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Try uploading to Dropbox and downloading again from there.

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Do you post them elsewhere like Facebook or Flickr, or use Dropbox? As the resolution doesn't have to be that high for IG you can just 'Save Image' when viewing whatever image you want to post online. My usual method is post them to Facebook, and then copy them to my phone to post to IG.

You can also email them to yourself and download to your phone from there.

In reply to Chris Craggs:

I tend to think of instagram as a daily snapshot type thing, more tweet than flickr. Mine are pretty artless but there's some absolutely stunning stuff on there. People can be quite generous with their likes so you get pretty instant feedback.

In reply to steveriley:

Though Chris should be warned that, if my experience is anything to go by, many likes will come from Russian ladies looking for love... particularly baffling when the picture they're 'liking' is of some sewing project...

This recent thread had some more useful thoughts on Instagram: http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=633054

In reply to all:

Cheers again everyone - pleased to see it isn't just me being a numpty. It does seem a right rigmarole in these supposedly 'interconnect times'!


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:

It's good for sharing 'the other way round' - if you post something to Instagram, at the point where you 'publish', you can set it to share to your Facebook/Twitter/etc. I think the faff of getting images from proper cameras uploaded is due to its initial conception as a phone-image sharing platform.

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Woops, sorry I realized I posted a link to my Flickr not my Instagram... If you're still interested:

https://www.instagram.com/moeliasen/

In reply to Tall Clare:

Indeed, beware the suspiciously good looking account, 500 followers, following 16. They don't even LIKE sewing!

In reply to Chris Craggs:

Photos...

as in http://www.apple.com/icloud/photos/


That said, as I might edit the pics in LR, I've set my LR to publish/export the pics to a certain Dropbox-folder which is also automatically synced to my iPad and iPhone when I have WiFi connection...

So the pics are all in crossplatform Dropbox folder, and also quite often on my iOS things...

In reply to Chris Craggs:

What I do is create a new folder on my desktop, add a load of photos that I want to upload (some pre planning) then sync your phone using a cable. In iTunes go to the photos section and select the folder to upload to your phone. This way any changes you make to the folder will then change on your phone next time you sync.

https://www.instagram.com/jaredhayward/

Enjoy

In reply to Chris Craggs:

I use dropbox to upload images taken on my DSLR. Set dropbox up to sync to you phone, edit photo on your computer and save to dropbox. Then go to instagram on your phone and dropbox should be an option for where to upload image from, (might be under other).

Slightly convoluted but instagram was originally meant for taking a photo on your phone and instantly sharing it. At one point you couldn't even use saved photos!

Another way is to get a a wifi adaptor for your DSLR. That way photos can be transfered directly to your phone with no computer needed. Could have other uses such as viewing/sharing photos while traveling without a access computer.

Here's a link to my instagram if you're interested https://www.instagram.com/honeymanryan

In reply to Chris Craggs:

I use Dropbox. The procedure is pretty simple but I wish Instagram would let people upload from the web interface.

1. Drag photo to Dropbox
2. Open Dropbox app on phone.
3. Tap 'export' then 'Instagram'
4. Process photo as usual.

Here's my Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alex_roddie/

In reply to all:

Thanks everybody for the really useful feedback - UKC at its best.

Now I get it (!) and have made a start - I rather like it

https://www.instagram.com/chris.craggs/


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:


Airdrop should work - might be worth Googling and checking your settings because its by far the easiest method. Otherwise just email it yourself if you're using something like Gmail on both devices.

I think with Instagram, the key is the 'insta' bit. It was originally a way to quickly share images in the moment with your social network (hence the huge number of avocado toast breakfasts) but has since been co-opted by brands and professional photographers. The filters were a way to at least hide the rough and ready nature of the quick pics but became a bit overkill and cliched. Still, like any social media, it's about the quality of the output of the people you follow, rather than the nature of the medium itself.

Shameless plug for my feed - mainly pics of my trail runs and life in the French Alps.

https://www.instagram.com/chamoisbotherer/

In reply to yorkshireman:


Cheers for the response, I have tried airdrop but it isn't finding it - which is odd - it is 1m away and discoverable.

The dropbox system is working fine for me.

Now I need to start using my phone more for taking photos!


Chris

In reply to Chris Craggs:

A really nice gallery you've started too.