nicolem3ow

i could go on forever about this because there are just so many things that have ruined instagram over the years, which makes me really sad because it has always been one of my favorite apps. i love taking pictures and sharing them, and seeing other people's cool pictures too. i love having a visual archive of my life, outfits, places i've been, and just anything i find cute. but instagram keeps getting less and less fun because of both the app itself and it's users.

starting with the app itself, why the endless amount of either useless or absolutely destructive updates? the downfall began when they got rid of the chronological feed and introduced an algorithm, which means you're not seeing everyone's posts. then instagram introduced reels after tiktok started getting more popular, and now it's like every update is focused on prioritizing reels instead of photos, which is what the app was meant to be used for in the first place. the only way to grow your account is by posting reels because instagram is so desperate to compete with tiktok that the algorithm favors reels way more than photos. if we wanted tiktok, we'd just go on tiktok. there's also endless ads and random posts from accounts you don't even follow at the top of your feed whenever you open the app.

the update that infuriated me the most and still bothers me every time i look at my account? getting rid of the square profile feed last year. every other update prior to this one i was able to get used to or ignore, but not this. they got rid of their classic signature look so that reels can look better. again, this was originally a PHOTO SHARING APP. the square feed was a perfect neutral crop for landscape and portrait photos. they said it was because most photos posted are portrait now, so they will look great on your feed, but not everyone posts in only portrait. the photo sharing app forgot that photographers exist.

engagement has also gone way down unless you post specifically to please the algorithm. i have 31.3k followers and i used to get at least 1k likes on most of my posts, but it has been declining and now i usually get 100-200 likes per post. i don't really care that much, i just like to post my pictures, but why should people have to post according to a strategy to get people who already follow them to see their posts? why do we need to learn tips and tricks to have our photos actually show up on our followers' feeds? it's ridiculous when instagram announces new ways to get more engagement, why not just make it easy instead of us needing to trick the algorithm into showing our photos?

next, the users. it's too many influencers, brand deals, and "come with me to this hidden gem in ____" videos. since reels are the only way to grow your account, that's mainly what people post now. if it's not reels, it's a perfectly curated 20 slide photodump with a trendy algorithm friendly song playing over it. what happened to just posting a picture because you think it's cute? don't get me wrong, i know many people have been lucky to make careers out of influencing and need engagement to make money, and if i were getting paid to post and being invited to fashion week i'd be doing what i need to do as well (within reason, i'd always want to stay true to myself). but many people are started to get tired of these overly thought out curated posts and have been reminiscing about the old days of instagram when people would just take a selfie and post it without thinking about it too much or worrying if it'll get a lot of likes. i always see people saying "bring back casual instagram! just post pictures you like! have fun!", but how many of them are actually doing that? how many of them are actually just posting a single photo they just took of their dog or their coffee, instead of something that would obviously get more likes? you say you miss when you'd be able to just post a casual selfie, but the thing is, you've always been able to. you can have fun and be silly and casual on instagram if you simply free yourself from caring about the algorithm and worrying about how many likes you'll get.

all of this being said i will still keep posting my fun pictures. i have no plans to leave instagram. i will persist.