The Anatomy of An Instagram Post
It’s easy to look around at other people or even ourselves and forget about the overwhelming amount of work that occurs for us to be able to carry out everyday functions. Numerous cells and processes keep us breathing, moving, and living.
Our perceptions of Instagram and other social media platforms can operate in the same way. The pressure to get an acceptable amount of likes or appeal to others fosters the mindset of wanting to put our best selves out there. This easily creates a very captivating and false world. When constantly exposed to “perfect” moments/pictures, it’s easy to view our own selves and lives as falling short. However, the reality is that no one really lives up to this idealized standard.
An individual’s entire profile could smoothly display the highlights of their life or present themselves in a very skewed light. Oftentimes, a lengthy process is behind just a single post. The process can even begin before someone stands in front of a camera. It’s not uncommon to hear about someone selecting an outfit just for the purpose of posting. An extensive amount of time is then put towards trying out various poses, lighting, and locations. Finally, the slew of photographs is examined until one is deemed just right.
The result of all this work might be a few hits of serotonin. Your phone might begin buzzing with notifications stating that the girl from your art class thinks you looked pretty or the guy that used to be your lab partner took .05 seconds out of his day to click a red heart. These interactions might feel sweet for a second but fail to provide any real depth.
These series of photos aim to remind or even inform people of the extent to which social media fails to tell the truth or facilitate true connections with others.
