Posted by Nicole
in Facebook, Social Media, Social Networks, Technology, Twitter
June 16, 2012

According to my Instagram account I posted my first picture 78 weeks ago and since that day I have been completely obsessed with it. I have posted 186 photos and I have 91 followers, which is not a lot by any means, some people have thousands of followers.

For those of you who are not familiar with Instagram, it is a photo application that went from being a zero revenue start-up to a $1 billon company over night. The application lets you take pictures or use current pictures from you mobile device, apply photo filters and then share them on the web to Twitter, Facebook, Tumbler, and Flickr. Originally it was only available to iPhone users but after opening it to Android customers it surpassed 50 million users. About 5 million people are signing up each week.

Part of the ‘cool’ factor of Instagram is the fact that they have 18 different filters you can use to up the interest of your pictures as well as a focus feature to create a focal point.

Original Photo

Photo with Instagram Filter

Now boring photos can look amazing with some of these filters. Instagram has tweaked their filter selection since the launch and there are indications that eventually you will be able to purchase additional filters. Filters range from retro to futuristic. When you factor in other photo manipulation apps like Diptic, Camera+, 100 Cameras and LabelBox, the possibilities are endless.

Its social aspect comes from the fact that you can follow other people and “like” their photos as well as tag people and places. You can also comment on peoples photos.

Instagram lets you see which of your Twitter and Facebook friends are using instagram and easily start following them. One of my favorite ways of finding people to follow is by looking at the “Popular Page”. The Popular Page shows you which pictures currently have the most “Likes”. You will inevitably find 2 cat pictures, 3 sunsets and 4 with really amazing lines (people seem to like symmetry). You can click on any photo on the popular page and see all the other photos posted by that person. I enjoy viewing pictures from people all over the world. Due to my other obsession which is with cats, I follow quite a few people who only post pictures of kitties.

You will find some of the most amazing photographs you have ever seen on Instagram. The tools we now have allow almost anyone with a decent eye to take beautiful, professional looking shots.

To be 100 percent honest, I have to admit I was devastated on April 9th when Facebook announced its plan to purchase my favorite app. When I first installed the Facebook app on my iPhone I could barely stand it. It had way too many glitches and problems. My first thought was – Great! Now Instagram is going to not work!

According to Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook bought Instagram because it was beating them at their own game.

“For years, we’ve focused on building the best experience for sharing photos with your friends and family.” Zuckerberg said in the announcement. “Now, we’ll be able to work even more closely with the Instagram team to also offer the best experiences for sharing beautiful mobile photos with people based on your interests.”

I am not as upset over Facebook’s purchase of the app as I initially was. I am anxious to see what changes are made to it over the next few months. I have noticed that more and more people I know are downloading the app. For me, I love Instagram because I love pictures. I love taking pictures, looking at other people’s pictures and sharing my pictures. Pictures are the best way to keep a memory.

If you use Instagram tell me what you like or dislike about it…oh and look me up, my username is nicolerenae.

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