Ingrid Spangler is a freelance social media consultant living in New York. She’s been snapping pictures since she was a child and involved with social media since before it was called social media. Before going out on her own, she handled the social media for AdoramaPix, the photo lab division of Adorama Camera, for four years. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, flickr, 500px, Google+ and Pinterest.
 

In this installment of “Being Social,” we’ll be talking about Instagram. While many IGers are undoubtedly using the hugely popular photo sharing app (80 million members, 4 billion images!) to connect/communicate with others in much the same way that Facebook is used, some photographers are finding IG is a great way to extend their reach and connect with their audience through a new channel.

Brad Mangin’s instagrams

Brad Mangin wrote for Photo Brigade back in April that thanks to his camera phone and Instagram he can “finally look at the world with a fresh eye at age 47.” He continued in the comments section of that post, when asked why Instagram was better than other sharing apps, “ I am inspired every day by looking at Instagrams that others have shot via my feed.” If you’re looking for some great other photographers to follow on IG, here’s a (by no means comprehensive and *just* slightly subjective) list of who I think is worth a look. Note that some of the photogs on the list have tons of followers, others don’t, but should.

Sam Horine’s instagrams

@samhorine is a NY based photographer with 189K followers. His IG is photos he makes with his iPhone, a mix of food, places he’s traveled and people. As Horine says in a Business Insider article from June of this year, “a majority of my Instagram is personal” and that’s what I like, for example he posted a snap of bride and groom figurines to commemorate his wedding anniversary a while back.

Ben Lowy’s instagrams

@benlowy is a photojournalist with about 18,000+ followers. His work speaks for itself; especially striking is his instagram series “[blank] at night, his subjects shot in profile with stunning, stark lighting.

NASA Goddard’s instagrams

@NASAGoddard: Because who doesn’t love space? Their Instagram is a mix of crazy amazing images from space as well as things like a shot of Neil Armstrong’s burial at sea and a snap of celestial-theme decorated high top sneakers.

LUCEO Images instagrams

@luceoimages: This photography collective with about 1100 followers was written up in the NYTimes Lens blog as an example of how to do a photography collective. The members see Instagram as a chance to get feedback from fans and fellow professionals alike on new work, one member called it “visual note-taking.”

AMPt’s instagrams

@AMPt is Advanced Mobile Photography Team. This is a feed with 17K+ followers. It’s comprised of a team of just under 30 camera-phone photographers from around the world. Their feed features not only a bit of background on each of the images posted but what the process was in creating the image. (Stand outs for me: annacox and hirozzzz.)

Robert Caplin’s instagrams

@robertcaplin is the founder of The Photo Brigade and a freelance photographer living in NYC. From the personal shots like the envelopes he used to mail in his traffic ticket fines to some street art that he thinks resembles his friend Matt, it’s a glimpse into how someone who is paid to photograph things for a living sees the world as he moves through it.

Marcus Bleasdale’s instagrams

@marcusbleasdale shoots for NatGeo but his Instagram is collection of shots taken while on location and a really cute one of his dog.

Kendrick Brinson’s instagrams

@kendrickbrinson A former member of Luceo, Brinson posts images from her honeymoon, her pets, her husband and partner in crime @davidwalterbanks, as well as shots taken while on assignments.

If you’re curious about my Instagram, you can check me out @ingridspangler.