I recently had a conversation with a friend and we were discussing Instagram and how much it has changed. It used to be a great place for photographers to showcase their work, but is it still? Let’s buckle up I think this might be a long post.
It seems many of us were addicted to Social Media, at least 10 years ago, and now lots of us don’t go near it or rarely do. Things on these platforms have changed so much that my friend and I were wondering where does that leave us and where can we show our photos.
So I asked Google is social media for photographers dying? I got the following response from the AI in Google, which I think can be spot on sometimes.
While not entirely “dead,” social media for photographers is undeniably evolving, with platforms like Instagram shifting focus away from still images and towards video, particularly Reels. This shift presents challenges for photographers who rely on the platform for showcasing their work and building an audience. However, photographers are finding success on other platforms like TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube, or even building their own websites to showcase their work.
I have noticed the shift to video as well. It seems when you go to your feed on Instagram you see everything except what you want to see. There are adverts, there are reels (short videos) and things that the algorithm thinks you might be interested in. In all that you might find a post from someone you follow, you might.
Meta, or Facebook, is a whole other creature these days. I think it has become known for conspiracy theories and people who follow that kind of stuff. It has certainly got that reputation now, though I turned away from it long before. I hated going on it to see what my friends were doing and not being able to see what they had posted. The algorithm was showing me adverts, and lots of other things. I would only see posts from friends who I had engaged with recently, so you would have to go hunting for others to see if they had posted. It was so time-consuming, I gave up.
I’ve never really used X or Twitter, couldn’t really see the point for me. It just didn’t work. So it is interesting that Google AI recommends it, TikTok and YouTube. The last two are basically video platforms, so how does that help photographers who want to show their photos?
I do have a YouTube channel and show my photos in a slideshow type of way. I don’t know that it is very popular, but I do like seeing it. I’ve been posting more there recently.
Still, that leaves the question of where do we go to show our photos? I know some might say “Why do you need to show them?” I just do. I like to share what I have taken or what I have done with my photos. I know I’m not alone in that.
I found an article from Fstoppers about this discussion. It was Social Media Is Bad for Photography and Even Worse for You and I thought it was interesting. You can click on the title of the article to read it for yourself.
Basically one of the things they say is that blogging is making a come back for this reason. They are good for showcasing your work. I have to say I totally agree with this.
I especially like this, and think it is very true.
With a blog, you can control your galleries’ overall appearance and make coherent collections. You can also network with other blogging photographers and enthusiasts for your subject matter. For example, ornithologists may follow bird photographers’ blogs, and entomologists might be interested in the work of insect macro photographers.
It is also funny to realise that most of us don’t really think of blogging as social media, obviously it is, but I think it is different. Blogging doesn’t seem to be controlled by the algorithms that you see on Instagram, Facebook or other social media sites. We don’t want them determining who will or won’t see how posts. We have more control over the look and what we post. Though, WP does have limits on things like tags, but you can just ignore them if you want. You can still publish, but your post won’t appear in the reader. Though, having said that, I’ve seen posts with lots of tags and it has still appeared in the reader, no idea about that.
Speaking of the reader, I do like it. It is a great way to see what others are posting and you can use it like your Instagram feed, for example, except there won’t be lots of ads or other things that you aren’t interested it. I really like that WP has not ruined it.
So, what are your thoughts on Social Media? Is it dead for photography? Do you still use it? Do you find it a waste of time? Would love to hear your thoughts, especially if you made it to the end of this long post.
All the images in this post were created with AI in Photoshop.
Thanks for this – I have never done Twitter/X or Tik Tok. FB has sure changed, I have had some success influencing my feed my hiding every ad that appears – you can “hide all ads from this advertiser” which is a bit of a process, but after a few days, maybe a week, they stop serving up ads. For a period – probably two or three months this time around. But it is a bit tedious! Instagram I joined because I read that this or that photographer was discovered there – well I haven’t been discovered yet, but every day someone is offering to take money from me to generate a whole bunch of fake followers! And I don’t scroll very often, as there are too many reels now and not many photos in the feed. Still posting on both every three or four days, and sometimes I will share my blog which generates a few hits. But I have sold a few prints to people who know me from FB posts. I enjoy blogging though, I have two, both on WordPress, and it is nice to keep up with the small community that has gathered around me here!
You aren’t wrong about how much FB has changed. Not sure I could be bothered doing the hiding ads stuff. Oh yes, I hate the pay for followers crap, it is not good. Blogging is great, it is something I really enjoy, and have enjoyed for a long time. I like the community here, it is really nice. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences Steve.
Wow what a way to get people talking! I agree … I don’t believe that social media works for photographers as once it did. I’m with you on blogging … Long may it live!
That’s for sure Julie, a lot more talking that I was expecting. I agree with you Julie, I feel like blogging is the way to go. Thank you Julie.
My numbers have been rising. Because of all the medical chaos going on here, I’ve been posting more photography than words. This may change of course, but I’m trying to avoid getting into politics. It’s ugly and until I find something new and interesting to say, I’m just going to go with short quips. Nothing long or complicated. Also, I have some medical issues for which I’m waiting for results and then, undoubtedly for surgery. Again. Photography is better for ME than writing.
I think despite all evidence to the contrary, slowly but surely, “our” kind of social media is coming back. Not like it was a dozen years ago, but there are more readers, more viewers. And anyway, what do we have to lose by keeping our blogs functioning? They already exist and frankly I don’t see any other way to show my pictures. To me, unseen pictures are like diaries. Photographs, like paintings, are meant to be viewed.
The ON1 is working really really well. I’m beginning to figure out what does what and where to start to get the look I want. Very very happy with it. If, by some chance, I don’t have something malignant waiting for me, I’ll be even happier.
I like to think things are improving again for blogging. I think that is the wonderful thing about blogging, you can do what you want to with it. I’m sorry to hear about the medical stuff.
I really hope so Marilyn. I’m wondering as people lose faith in the other forms of SM if they will come back or start blogging. It is a great community and the best one I’ve found. I totally agree, I think it is the best way as well.
I’m so glad to hear that you are finding your way with ON1, I am starting to use it more and more all the time. Thank you Marilyn. Take care.
Checkout Portraitmode or Foto, they are alternatives to Instagram, they are alright… I still don’t get the kind of engagement I want, but I’m gonna keep sharing to social media and my blog, take photos of what I like 😁
That might be good for others, but I have to admit I’m going to just blog for now, I enjoy this a lot more. Thanks for the ideas.
Social media, we need it, but it’s exhausting. I went off of Facebook years ago, but have logged in recently to follow puzzling people. So, I think Facebook is good for that and your photography. You then get a following. On the puzzle groups, it’s fun, people from around the world are posting puzzles they make, brand, piece count, etc. Then people comment and share what puzzle they are working on. I would think, as a photographer, you’d love some camaraderie among other photographers. I’ve been blogging 10 years now, many people have left. They just didn’t have anything to say anymore. i finally have taken a break this summer myself. I haven’t been logging in every day and I rather enjoy the mental freedom. So, we all evolve as technology evolves. AI taking over is scary business. Do some searches on facebook for photography groups. Curious to see what you find, maybe you’ve done it already. I agree, Instagram is trying to be like TikTok.
I don’t know that we do need it, it is nice, but we all survived in the world without before. It is nice, well it was, but if it disappeared we would be okay. I haven’t heard of puzzle groups. I don’t think FB is that great anymore, I think it’s reputation has done down hill.
I think a lot of people left blogging for FB and IG, sadly. I wonder how many of them will come back. I think we all need to work out how often to blog. I tried not doing every day and I completely lost the plot and hardely blogged. I need the routine I think.
I have done the photography groups on FB, I’m just not interested. I prefer blogging and will stick with it for now. Thank you so much for your thoughts.
Of course. I found that blogging once a week works for me. I have a friend who unfollows anyone who blogs more than once a week, because he doesn’t want to read so much and clog up his Reader with messages primarily from one person. I understand. Anyhow, we keep evolving and do what’s best for each of us.
I think we have to blog at what we want. I used to unfollow people who posted several times a day, but I have limited myself to only some that I really want to follow. That is exactly right, what is best for each of us.
Yes, in this crazy stressful world. Blogging offers a nice and happy escape. Always enjoy your photos.
Very crazy world these days, and I really agree. Thank you for saying that.
I feel sad that Instagram has changed so much. I love it for the photos but not all the videos and reels.
I totally agree, I used to love it too, but not so much now. There are other platforms for videos and reels, and not almost no where to show your photos. Thank you for your thoughts.
Totally agree! They don’t need to make Instagram like TikTok. Each can have their own individual identity. Too much competition and greed.
I don’t understand why they felt that, they have lost lots of people because people don’t want to do videos.
I’ve only ever used my blogs and Instagram for social media. Don’t know what it’s like in Australia, but in Germany if you click on the Instagram logo top left, you can choose between “for you” (recommendations from IG) or “following”. If you click the latter, you only see posts from accounts you’re following, which is way better than the craziness of “for you”.
I haven’t noticed (yet) that blogging is coming back, it would be nice though if it did; I also still like WP. The only thing I dislike is that it enables people to use an enormous amount of hashtags that have nothing to do with the actual category or tag you’re looking for in a search, so I stick to visiting the blogs I have subscribed to.
With regards to “I like to show my photos” I’m totally with you, as it would be a shame to have them all just sitting on a hard drive. I also like that on WP you can showcase them any which way you like, without ads, to make it easier on the eyes of the viewers.
Fingers crossed for a blog revival 😊
Well there you go Kiki you just taught me something, I had no idea you could do that with IG and you can do it here. I clicked on but it seems everyone is doing reels these days, I’m just not interested in them.
I keep hearing about people coming back to it, so I live in hope. lol
I agree, I like that you can decide how to show your photos with WP, you can pick the theme you want and go from there. It is so good for that.
Oh yes, absolutely fingers crosses. Thank you.
Honestly, I left most of the platforms several years ago. I found them quite dull in the end. I just type into the void like many people, with the occasional engagement. I would recommend checking out platforms in the Fediverse though. Mastodon has some advantages. Pixelfed is a good Insta replacement but it suffers from not enough users. The other problem is that lots of people believe that any platform needs to be big to be good and that likes and follows are the only goal. I cannot be bothered with people who want engagement but don’t return it.
I think these other platforms are great suggestions, but not for me, I just don’t want to learn them and start over. I like blogging, so I’m staying here.
True, you have to return the engagement and I find doing that here enough. Thank you for you thoughts on this post.
Certainly made it to the end. 😄. I’ve never had X, or Instagram, or anything other than WordPress (since 2005), and a simple FB page to drop misc images. I do belong to a specific MFT FB camera group, that’s for general gear info.
However I do think Social Media in general is ending for photographers. Aside from politics, misinformation, and special interest groups it seems to be almost gone now. Social media as we know it most likely will be totally different in a few years, can’t even imagine what it might evolve to.
Wow Ted, you have been with WP for 20 years, that is a massive achievement. Congratulations.
I think we are seeing the end of social media, I think we can all see that it is doing more harm than good and anyone with half a brain is staying away from it. There is so much misinformation and propaganda on it and people don’t realise they are being fooled, and made to look like fools. I agree, I wonder if it will still be around. Give me blogging any day. Thanks for sharing your thought Ted.
Yeah, 20+ years actually 🥹. I first used the software on my own servers. Wow…. No wonder I creak in the morning.
That is a long time. I got told to start one because of the cycling photography. If you creak then so do I Ted. lol
🤣😂🤣, hard to sneak up on critters now days. (Best fake southern accent).
🤣😂😂🤣
I fully agree, Leanne.
Maybe you want to give Vero a try. It’s like Instagram used to be.
You can find me http://vero.co/solaner
Check it out 😊
It is a pain really. Thanks for the link, but I’ve decided not to try anywhere else. There are so many sites, I think I will just stick with blogging for now.
For me, my blog is also still the main platform
I think many of us are feeling the same, I love my blog.
Me, too 😁
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I used FB in the past, and my photos were widely viewed due to the algorithms that the software is based on. However, FB just slid into a site with so much disinformation that I eventually deleted my account. I moved to Instagram, but that was not much better. I actually enjoy blogging on WordPress, and the only downside for me is that notifications are sent to my readers via email. I know many people no longer view email on a regular basis, so the number of people actually viewing my photos has decreased. I am currently exploring ways to expand my audience.
I have to agree about FB, I think they screwed around with the algorithm too much and it is just crap now, hardly surprising that IG went the same way as they are both owned by FB or Meta. Yeah, that can be a downside, but maybe you need to teach your subscribers about the reader, I don’t get emails, I use the reader to see what everyone is doing, I find that so much easier. Another thing too Joe, is that the web address on your comments is for your gravatar and I went to look for it, but only found a site that is like a gallery, so where is you blog? I would put you blog in the place instead of the gravatar so people can find it if you comment on someone’s blog. Thank you for contributing to our discussion.
Thanks for the info on the gravitar, I changed the web address to my blog.
You’re welcome Joe and I can see it now so I will go and take a look.
I love travelling, near and far,. I like taking photos on the way. I enjoy writing. A friend introduced me to WordPress and this, allows me to combine the three. The only other thing I do regularly is post one photo a day on different daily theme in the site, “Images Exposed” This is a small group of friendly, supportive people who also like sharing photos. Every fifteen days or so, I use these photos to form a kind of story for WordPress, usually including photos from different places but not used in other posts. I place my WordPress posts on Facebook, which then basically circulate to friends. It is simply the “doing” that motivates me, and I am not worried about having lots of followers. However, I am extremely grateful to those who do read the posts. I keep saying to myself that I will try out different challenges….. but time slips away and I always say, “next week”. It is a pleasure to be part of a Word Press community, and read incoming posts. I have, in fact, learnt a lot from your posts and experiments.
Sounds like blogging is perfect for you Geoff. I think it is great for all those things. My blog gets updated to FB as well, I just let it do that, but I don’t worry about anywhere else. I hope you find some time to do some challenges Geoff, they are a great way to be introduced to new people. Thank you for sharing your experience Geoff, I appreciate hearing from you.
Yes, I agree that social media has run its course. Too many ads, too many pushed videos and stuff. Facebook groups still works for keeping up with a small circle of friends. I have several websites, very few on WordPress.com, mostly “self-hosted” using the WordPress.org “engine”. That does cost money, but the sites are mine, no ads.
Blogging is now the best way to connect.
Funny that in a way it has caused its own downfall. My blog is self-hosted and I like it for the same reasons, I own it, well I own it to a certain extent. It does cost, but thankfully it doesn’t break the bank.
I agree Ludwig, I have always loved blogging and still do. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this.
All you said were true. Social media is a disappointment. I still have fb and instagram but I’m slowly weaning myself away from it. Blogging has been working well for our photography and travel stories.
That’s good to hear, blogging has always been so positive for me, but the others not so much. Maybe in the beginning, but I think their algorithms have turned people away. Thank you for thoughts on this.
A very interesting post. I still use Instagram but I agree it isn’t what it once was. I follow a few excellent photographers there but a lot of what I see are adverts or posts from people who aren’t especially into photography, they’re using it more as a general social media platform. I dropped X when Musk aligned himself with Trump, but in any case I’d pretty much stopped using it as I’d originally started with what was then Twitter as a professional work thing so most of my followers were people working in my field rather than friends or other keen travellers and/or photographers. I’ve dabbled with Bluesky recently, which is a good alternative. There are no ads, only a few sensible algorithms (and it’s easy to choose whether to see only posts from people you’re following or include suggested posts) and a lot of travel bloggers (and I assume bloggers on other topics too). It’s a good way to promote your blog and discover others, although I’ve found relatively few people engage directly on my site, preferring to comment on Bluesky if at all.
I do however stick with Facebook despite its many shortcomings. The reason is that since the closure of the Virtual Tourist website most of the people closely engaged with the site have joined our FB group and it’s the easiest way to stay in tough with all my VT friends, learn about meet-ups etc.
I think we are having the same experience with IG. I deleted Twitter when Musk purchased it, I knew it would become a platform for right wing propaganda and I think that has proven to be correct. I’ve heard of BlueSky and a friend of mine uses it, but don’t think I will bother. Yeah, one thing I have learned over the years, people don’t like to click to other things.
I mean if you find what you need on FB and it works, then why wouldn’t you use it. I still have it, but more messenger, I enjoy that as a way to keep in touch with people. Thank you Sarah, great response and thanks for sharing it.
Really enjoyed this post, Leanne. Also enjoyed reading the comments too. I see blogging as social media but agree, most don’t see it that way. Instead many see it as something dated and fading out. I do feel WordPress is moving more towards Jetpack and posting through an app. Not sure how I feel about that – more convenient to post, but it’s also posting because it’s convenient and easy. Anyone can take a photo and put it up right away – and you got to ask where is the best space to appreciate those who put in effort towards photography.
I used to have a public Instagram where I shared my photography. Then it felt like too much effort to keep up. Then reels became a thing – where most of the time a short video just completely goes over my head. Blogging is still my preferred way to share my writing and photography. There’s something more thoughtful about sharing here and people generally take more time to appreciate what’s posted.
I think we will all have different approaches, preferences and likes to each social media platform. But there’s always an algorithm to contend with in some ways. Glad to have connected with you, Leanne. It was a long time ago, and I always appreciate your work 🙂
That’s good to hear Mabel. I have wondered that about blogging too, but I’ve noticed that there seems to be a bit of a return to it, many went with the new shiny platforms and discovered they weren’t quite as good as they thought. Me included. I haven’t heard that about jetpack, though I’ve noticed on my phone that to see your site you have to use the jetpack app, which is annoying. I will never post from my phone, I hate typing on it. Exactly, I like writing posts.
I have to say I agree with all you have said Mabel, I like blogging far more too.Nice to hear from you again Mabel, hope all is well in your world. Take care and thank you so much for thoughts on this.
I only use WP these days. I do not like the other platforms. I can’t see my friends and family without searching. I see lots of crap tht is not geared towards photography. YouTube is barely OK. When I open it I am bombarded with stuff I have no interst in. I have to go to the channels I follow. So that limits what I find. All of it is a big time waster with no rewards.
I think their algorithms have killed those platforms, made them unbearable to use. I don’t mind YouTube, I do think you have help it find stuff you are interested in, but some of the stuff it can recommend is very dodgy, I use the don’t recommend channel a lot. I guess it is up to you what you want to spend your time on. Thanks for sharing your thoughts Sherry.
Great post, Leanne! I still link my blog posts to Facebook and Instagram, but I’m finding I enjoy WP blogging more, because of the community. People seem to be more genuine and easier to connect with each other.
To me WP is all about community that’s what I think too. I like your use of the term genuine, I would agree with that. Thank you Donna, good to hear your thoughts.
Good post, Leanne! I started photoblogging in September 2012. Compared to Facebook, that I closed this year, when Zuckerberg bowed for Trump and lowered the factcheck levels; and for the reasons that you mentioned above, I think blogging is more serious and followers even started to feel like some sort of friends with familiar interests after a while. I never had any commercial expectations or goals with my blog. For me it’s the best way to share my photo’s with people who are interested and appreciate what I’m doing and I like what they are doing and I give a serious reply whenever it feels good. I like Bushcrafter Marc’s remark about finding new ‘friends’ on blogs of other followers. That’s a good way to keep this ‘photoclub’ alive. Cheers and keep posting!
Good reason for closing FB, though it is very hard to do. I agree about what you say about blogging it is so much better. I like that you can write more, and show more in one post. It is such a great place for meeting people, I love it. I have made friends on IG here in Melbourne and I don’t see them anymore. I have friends from WP and I’m still friends with them. It is great that way. I like your description of it being like a photoclub. Thank you so much Harrie for sharing your thoughts on this.
I have a similar opinion Leanne. Thanks you for starting the conversation. I started using Instagram & then Threads for my photos with Instagram getting more junk posts & videos from especially Instagram. I use Facebook mainly to keep in contact with Family & friends but it’s getting harder to show my photos there as I don’t know where they end up & not many friends see them because of Meta processes. Threads is still more useful for photos and there seem to be less bots and few videos, I still quite like it. I left X ages ago because of Musk.
I have gone back to Flickr (after 10years away from it) to show my photos. It has improved a lot.
Then I found WordPress for Blogging. A friend of mine has as an amazing WP site which I can relate to for photography. I joined WP in the last few weeks and I have started blogging I love it.
So less of social media and more WordPress blogging for me.
It is strange that FB and IG haven’t worked out that people are turning away from their platforms because of the algorithms. It seems to be a common theme. I left X for the same reason, as soon as he purchased it I left. My husband stayed for a while, but he got sick of the right wing BS that was all over it.
I haven’t been to Flickr for years, maybe I should take another look. I just remember being asked for money and thought, I don’t want this.
Blogging is amazing, I love the people here, I’ve made lots of friends on it. I agree, definitely more WP. Thank you Peter and welcome to blogging.
You need to do your gravatar and add your WP site so we can look you up.
Hi Peter. Where’s your blog here?
Really enjoyed this post, Leanne — it struck a chord. When I retired, I resurrected my old blog mostly for the simple pleasure of having a space that was mine. I’ve slowly been migrating older posts and images I’d scattered across Flickr, Behance, and 500px over the years — not for an audience, really, but to have everything in one place that reflects what I’ve enjoyed making.
Instagram never quite worked for me either — aside from the algorithm circus, I’ve never liked viewing work as tiny squares or awkwardly cropped rectangles. It just feels wrong, especially for carefully composed images.
I’ve poked around a few other platforms as well. One I’ve appreciated more is the Frames community (part of their magazine subscription). It’s quieter, smaller, and has the rare benefit of being photographers-only — which changes the tone entirely.
But maybe the biggest revelation has been rediscovering the humble RSS feed. I now get updates from blogs and portfolios of many long-time photographer friends and favourites, all in one clean app. No ads, no distractions, no algorithms — just photography I genuinely want to see.
Feels a bit like coming full circle.
Thank you Iain, glad to hear you liked it. OMG 500px, I forgot about that one. I have that with all my stuff too, all on my blog.
Great point Iain, I really like the WP reader, I like that it shows you what you want to see without all the other crap, no adds, occassional suggestions, but they are done different so easy to slip over.
I pulled away from blogging for a while, but I’m so happy to be immersed in it again, I think it is a great community.
When I used to ‘showcase’ my work (not photography) I mainly used a website — on WordPress Org — and didn’t rely too much on social media. I found it good for building a community but not so much for selling myself. Perhaps I was doing it wrong? Nowadays, I’m on three main social media sites: WordPress, Mastodon, and BlueSky. I post quite a lot on the latter two, and they’re great for spitballing ideas and posting images, but could never sell anything there. WordPress I use for summarising what I’ve been up to, photography-wise, new cameras and techniques, and — of course — the Lens-Artists Challenge. On WP, I’ve met a lovely community of people, and see a lot of great work. Personally, with increased use of algorithms, the big sites are to be avoided in favour of websites/blogs, and unfederated services like Mastodon.
My blog is a WordPress.org site. I liek that you can connect it to the reader here, that helps a lot. I don’t know about selling work, it is not something I’ve ever had any success with. I have a friend who joined BlueSky, not sure I can be bothered really. WordPress is great for doing whatever you want really. I love that about it. The community is fantastic too. I’ve helped others and I have learned from others. Couldn’t agree more Keith, thank you for joining the discussion.
I used to like the flexibility of WordPress Org, what with plugins and whatever. When I retired I couldn’t see the point of the extra hosting costs so I moved to WordPress Com (I had one of those before getting the .org). I’ve kept my personal domain, though.
I’ve wondered if I made the mistake of going to .org, but I transfered everyone over and it doesn’t cost me a lot to have to it. Though many of the plugins now expect you to pay for them. I don’t like that so much and I’m restricted in that I can’t try to sell anything or they will make me pay a lot more. That doesn’t please me. Sounds like you are happy with your .com site, that’s great Keith.
I have considered going org again, but it’s a lot of work to move stuff over and set it up again.
It is a lot of work, my husband did a lot of the work for me.
Like you, I self hosted for ages but it was too fiddly and too much work in the end. Despite the shortcomings, the WP com version makes it easy.
I heartily second checking out the federated platforms.
Yes, WordPress is my social media now. It’s better here than any social media out there. I would say, photography in social media is already behind, as lots of lots of contents there, sometimes nonsense, at least for me. There’s always a chance on YouTube.
I totally agree Hazel. I just want to show what I do or where I go, so the blog works great for that. It is such a nice community too. Thank you Hazel for sharing that.
My pleasure, Leanne.
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I post photographs on Instagram, Facebook, and my WordPress blog. Facebook is where my extended family members see my photos because they don’t subscribe to my blog. Otherwise, I don’t spend much time on Facebook. TikTok drives me crazy, and I post nothing there. A number of people now are migrating over to Substack, but I see that as mostly a platform for writing and less so for photography.
I’ve given up getting my family to see my photos, lol. I’ve heard of substack, but I don’t know that I want to learn about another platform, I think it will be blogging for me. Thank you for sharing.
Blogging is social media, at least for me. I interact with so many people from all over the world. Time zones are the only bugbear.
FB is for catching up with family.
I bung stuff on Inta when I am away from home just because I can.
My blog is a connection especially as most I engage with are photographers and we all learn from one another.
I think the same, but I think it is different to ones like IG or FB. I like that you can write a lot more if you want to with the blog.
I totally agree about the connection with blogging, I feel the same way Brian. I’ve met so many amazing people here. Thanks for contributing to the discussion.
You’re welcome Leanne
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Food for thought! I’m spent less time on “legacy” social media, and it’s been good so far. From a purely photos perspective, I moved to Foto (Foto Inc., iOS/Android), because the creators are trying to do something “different,” in a way that’s gone back to what Instagram had started out to be: images in free format, limited tags, and no video. Clearly, there is an audience for whom the static image is key. I think it’ll be interesting to see what the future holds.
I haven’t heard of Foto, but then again I don’t tend to go looking for other platforms, I think I will stick with my blog and that is about it really. Thank you for sharing that information, I’m sure other might be interested.
Sorry if this is a bit long. But since you asked for opinions on the matter…
Your post paraphrased my thoughts so well that I think I could have written it for you. If only you had asked! LOL
The AI is correct that social media for photographers is undeniably evolving, but the statement about TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube is incorrect.
Most photographers who have found success on video platforms like TikTok and YouTube are not using these platforms as a way to share their everyday images. Instead of sharing their photos, photographers are using these platforms to promote video tutorials or other video content that might include some select images.
Years ago, Flickr was the best place to see the work of others. However, over the last several years, it’s felt more like a ghost town than anything else. Flickr couldn’t compete with social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram. And it was sold to Yahoo. Who later sold it to SmugMug. Neither of which did anything to develop or improve the platform since then. They both just let it die a slow death.
I’ve never liked Instagram and stopped using it some time ago. When I first started with it years ago, tag abuse was notably bad. It did little good to search for specific tags because the search results were full of everything except what I was looking for. This also made it harder for a post with a particular tag to be seen by others.
Reels have also had a substantial impact. Even if it is a generational thing. Today’s younger generation seems to prefer reels over static photos. So, Instagram started to give Reels more priority in the algorithms.
But the extra priority given to Reels reduced the reach of static photos. After this, several photographers I followed complained in their posts that they were losing reach because of it. I noticed a big drop in my reach as well. At the same time, Instagram increased the number of ads it showed in my feed. Which reduced everyone’s post reach even further. My feed was so full of moving content that it became a rather undesirable place to follow the work of others. And I found myself spending a lot less time looking at it.
Finally, it got to the point where it seemed like the spammers/scammers were interacting with my content more than my followers were. And Instagram offered no way to control this. It’s fascinating that spammers are liking my posts from years ago. but my followers haven’t seen them. So I just threw in the towel and disabled my account. And, it appears many others have done the same. If not for the success of Reels, Instagram would be a dying platform.
Facebook was getting to be the same way. If you didn’t pay to boost your posts, your business page didn’t get much reach outside your personal Friends List. My default feed had also become so full of sponsored posts and ads that I got tired of looking at it and almost gave up on that platform as well. But Most of the people I follow are on Facebook, and it’s also where a lot of my followers are. At least I still get some occasional reach when I use my non-business account to share with some of the groups on the platform. As a result, I have begrudgingly stuck with it. But I got so tired of them trying to control everything, I decided to start my blog on WordPress as an alternate platform.
Facebook, however, has made some recent improvements. They did away with public followers on private accounts. So people can no longer follow your private account publicly. But they are giving more emphasis to “Friends” posts in your feed. Which means you just need more “Friends” now. You can also view a feed of just your “Friends” posts. But you have to click the Menu icon and select “Friends” to see it. You can also select “Groups” from the menu and browse just groups without all the ads. So I still use these options when I feel like browsing the work of others.
I’ve also noticed an improvement in the Explore feed on Flickr lately. So I’ve been thinking about giving that one another try. But I’m not sure I want to duplicate my content across multiple sites.
Oh yes, if I had asked, lol.
I remember the old tag abuse too, the tags that some people used were ridiculous.
I tried during tutorials, but not a lot of luck. Though I’m going to do some more I think with the One Four challenge.
I haven’t been on Flickr for years. I got turned off when they started asking for money. I don’t like the short videos, I find them annoying. Short attention span of the young maybe.
Reach for photos is so low now. I don’t even bother looking at IG now, I find it so annoying.
I gave up on FB it was probably the first one where you couldn’t see what people people who were your friends posted. Then there are the conspiracy theories.
You have thought about this a lot Randy, it is great and I really appreciate you taking the time to write your thoughts. I really just do this now. Thank you Randy.
Aside from Flickr, I don’t use social media at all.
I had to check recently to see if Flickr was still around. I haven’t used it for years. Thanks Emily.
I am probably the wrong person to answer because I am very focused on who and what I follow on social media and I tend to just swipe past video content, largely because I don’t have time for that. I am, therefore, very much a consumer of still images plus I only have Facebook and Instagram so my understanding of other platforms is very limited. I have noticed a lot of the artists and photographers I follow have been interspersing video content into their still imagery, a video preamble prior to sharing the photograph at the end of the video, for example. It seems like they are adapting to the algorithm rather than it being a natural extension of what they were doing.
I don’t like short videos, they drive me nuts. I like still images too.I guess if you want to stay relevant you have to adapt, I don’t think I can be bothered, I have too much in the real world to spend too much time on that now. Thank you for sharing your thoughts Laura.
Since Facebook deleted my account I’m just a WordPress user. FB said I was selling from my posts. All I did was post my pictures and did not sell them! I think someone hacked my account and started selling. I’ve never used Instagram or Twitter, and won’t. And, with AI it’s going to get worse.
I can’t believe FB did that to you, though probably not a massive loss. I don’t understand what would be wrong with selling from there anyway, people do it all the time, they sell courses and lots of stuff. WP is the best. Thank you Anne.
Blogging is it for me. I do have some favorites on TikTok that I visit daily, but that’s about it.
Yeah it is pretty much it for me too, even my YouTube videos are more for here. I have never got into TikTok, I am not really into short form videos. Thanks Lois.
I cut ties with socil media years ago after a large data breach. I mostly write and post a photo when I like. My traffc is growing, not surrounded by negativity and my blogs are read by people who want to not what is pushed in their face.
I don’t think that is a bad thing. Good to do it when you want, thanks for your thoughts.
Great article – read it with interest! Tags and keywords can be handy for websites and blogs, but don’t forget about followers – both yours and the people you follow. I’ve visited sites with barely any followers or tags, only to check back weeks later and spot dozens of my own followers hanging out there.
Why is that interesting? Well, if you’re looking for like-minded folks or photographers in the same niche, just check out who’s following a particular site – you’ll find your audience in no time (and vice versa).
Just my two cents. Have a great evening! All the best,
Marc
I don’t know how that works with WordPress it is all a mystery to me.
That is an interesting observation. Great two cents Marc, thank you for sharing that.
Great post, Leanne. I left Twitter, Threads, and hardly use Facebook. Instagram is ok, but the shift towards videos is bad. I have to turn off the sound on my phone to avoid the cacophony of music bites in almost every post. Awful! I only use Instagram because I’m in the beta group. The beta version allows me to look at my feed without ads and suggestions, and in chronological order.
It is horrible that platforms that were for photos are now for videos, that annoys me so much. I post on Instagram but I don’t look at it anymore. I stopped chasing new followers a long time ago, it is too much work. You are lucky with IG I hate all the stuff on it now. Thank you Egidio for you response.
I only stay on IG because I have several friends there who have no website to post their photos.
That’s nice of you to do that.
I agree with what you say here, Leanne. I dropped FB and Instagram long ago for similar reasons and also don’t see the point of trying to showcase photos on YouTube or Tik Toc. Additionally, there is a partial ban on Tik Toc in this country as it is seen as a security and privacy risk (in Australia too I think). That leaves WP which seems to be the best choice at the moment.
As an aside, I’ve been reading about the issues Google AI is causing (along with the possible advantages). Here’s a link to an article if you’re interested. https://www.forbes.com/sites/torconstantino/2025/04/14/the-60-problem—how-ai-search-is-draining-your-traffic/
I’ve never been on TicTok, I just can’t be bothered, with new stuff, I want to enjoy my life now. I think WP is great, I love it, always have, I’ve been using it for almost 15 years and love the people I’ve met.
Thanks for that article, must admit I’ve been doing some of what they talk about, I will have to stop, and not let AI decide what I need to know.
I didn’t know you’ve been on WP that long. I’m coming up to 13 years (in the autumn) and agree about the people here. I also like to read posts on diverse topics which WP covers as well. Cheers.
Yeah, it has been a while, I started on Blogger in Jan 2010 and moved to WP around Sept 2010, I had a different blog and then I went self hosted in 2016, so there have been a few. That’s very true, it is such a great space, I love it.
I recently researched and wrote a whole post on AI. There are some good uses making a positive impact but it poses very real dangers to society. And there are too many people using it to make junk and generate slop just to make a buck.
I totally agree about AI, it could be useful, but it could also be very dangerous. We need to make sure we know what is happening with it.
I struggle with Instagram and when I was talking to my daughter the other day she told me about Mastodon. She used to be on Twitter (now X) but has changed to Mastodon because it doesn’t use algorithms. I haven’t really looked into it and it does sound quite complicated in some ways. it is a Fediverse of smaller servers with their own rules. You might like to look – https://joinmastodon.org/
There are so many different things out there right now, I have no idea what to use. I have to admit I love blogging and am quite happy to do just that, I don’t want to spend all my time on my computer anymore. Thanks RJ
I like Mastodon. I think the complexity of it is overrated though. The jargon gets people, but it’s little more than choosing a server/community and signing up.
For the moment I agree, blogging is a good way to show off photos. I wonder what happened to flickr. Did you ever use it?
I like blogging. I did use it, but then they wanted to charge you if you put too many photos, and I just didn’t want that. Thanks IJ.
Interesting, and glad you’re here blogging-
I appreciate that Beth, thank you.
The best venue is always going to be the one where you own the rights to your own content (or as best as that can happen today), which to me is your own website. The problem is it’s harder to build a following, google seems to constantly downgrade sites in favor of big box store sites like Quora or Reddit, but, if photographers are only posting their work on social media sites they are working for those sites, for free. I get it’s a lot more complicated than that, and people earn a living on social media platforms, I just can’t sell my soul to Facebook and feel good about it.
I agree Scott, my blog is self hosted, so I own it as much as I can. That is where WordPress.org is good, it is your own site, though you do have to use the WP platform, then you get a lot of the benefits of wp, though I’m finding Jetpack is getting more and more greedy, sadly. I don’t know about making money from social media platforms, it is a lot of work, and I think I am too old for it now. In the end I’m not sure I can be bothered, I like my quiet life and just doing some photos here and there. Thanks for your response Scott, good to hear what others are thinking.
Interesting. I have gone the whole route with social media and photography – all with no real financial gain.
I’ve been told that I have to do this and that in order to succeed. I did this and that. The folks who suggested that path are the only ones consistently making money from it.
I may not be the best photographer, but I don’t think my art is unattractive.
Here’s my take:
There are a gazillion amateur and pro level photographers selling their stuff on every platform you can think of. It’s overkill.
Also, why buy it when you can see it all on the net for free.
This is my second website. My first failed all together and got no real traffic. This one is years ahead of my old one, and gets lots of visitors—who look but don’t buy. 😋 it still takes work to maintain this, so it comes down to how much time you are willing to spend with no return other than likes and comments.
You never know, though. Yours might be the art that inspires one to want to own it.
For myself, I’m over the manic mindset that drives us to succeed. We are not starving. We pray our bills. We’re comfortable.
My race is over. Others will continue theirs. I wish you much success with your art, but don’t lose sight of life.
I have to say one of the biggest problems with photography and trying to sell your work is that everyone thinks they can do it. Then yhou have people who like people to buy their images and sell them for next to nothing. It is hard to compete with all that.
I gave up selling, like you said there is so much out there, I can’t be bothered. I do stuff for me because I love it.
Wordpress blogs are great, I’ve always enjoyed being here.
I’m not going to hold my breath,I don’t really care if people buy them or not.
That is a good way to be, I just do photos because I love it.
Thank you Mike, your rant is fine and good luck with yours as well.
I’ve sold a few photos here and there, done a few paid gigs, sold paintings, writing, and music…but none of it is my day job. I think if it was, it would suck the fun out of those hobbies. It would be nice to occasionally send real prints to people for the cost of a coffee, just to stay engaged with people.
My husband always said if you turn your hobby into a job you won’t enjoy it anymore and I think there is some truth in that. It is nice to sell work, and I’ve sold photos, but I can’t be bothered doing the push and having to deal with the disappointment.
I’ve got an instagram account but never actually uploaded anything on it. I dislike Facebook and after a few posts about 14 years ago never use it, One of my brother messages me on Facebook and that’s about it.
I prefer blogging and interacting with like minded souls. I love the control over images, galleries and other content on WordPress but I wish they wouldn’t keep updating the software and adding to the confusion. My philosophy is that ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’
I also have a YouTube channel for the same reason you do, Leanne. I’ve only made 3 slideshows many years ago. More recently, I uploaded some insect videos from my digital microscope onto YouTube. I’ve love to learn how to make a proper video with music, but never have the time to learn how to (do it).
I don’t have the energy (with being a Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome sufferer as well as severe heart probs I inherited), so just make do with the occasional post on WordPress.
There are so many expert technology folk out there that I can’t keep up.
Facebook has too weird if you ask me. I have to admit I so use Facebook messenger a lot to talk to people, but that’s it.
I am with you about blogging, I have made so many friends from around the world because of it. YouTube can be fun, but yeah, I am interested in doing videos for here. Doing videos with your photos and music can be easy once, you know what you are doing. It is figuring it out first.
I thought you might have a lot going on, but I think it is up to you how much you share or when you want to post. It is great liek that. There are so many things these days. Thank you Vicki for sharing your thoughts.
I feel the same way about Facebook. X or whatever it’s called gets a thumbs down too. I hope that you feel better. I also have several health issues as well. Stay positive and have a wonderful day. 😊
Thank you.
I’m a bird photography blogger. I enjoy finding other blogs about birds and nature and photography, and especially enjoy those who take the time to write something engaging to go along with their photos. It’s like sharing a visit with someone through new territory. I don’t use instagram, meta, X, tik-tok, pintrest, or any of the rest and don’t want to use substack. Hope you find a satisfying platform!
I’m with you Sam, I don’t use the others either. I like blogging, I’ve made so many friends with it and I think it is a great platform. I agree with why you do it as well. It is a great way to connect and find people. Thanks for your thoughts Sam.
I’m not one to ask, as I don’t use Social Media (I hadn’t thought of the blog in that way either!). Nor have I any wish to showcase my photos, so I hope other readers of your blog have got constructive comments to make!
I don’t think what you are doing is wrong Margaret, if you aren’t interested in doing that, you shouldn’t. I really don’t anymore, not much besides the blog, but I like to think of the blog as a way to communicate with you all.
Thanks Margaret.
Exactly. I really enjoy the connections of blogging.
It’s fantastic.
De nada.
😊😊