Using Instagram to plan a print project

As I started putting together this year’s issue of New Observational Documentation (NOD), I hit upon a great use for my Instagram account. I used it as a reference for images created in the past year, that I might want to include in the new issue of NOD. So from those low-res snapshots viewed on tiny screens, I was able to plan a publication where some of those same images would actually be printed! What a good use of an Instagram feed.

The process was a bit more complicated than simply picking photos on the feed to print. However, review of the feed led me to pick specific images and identify themes that I wanted to pursue. From there, I moved to my personal and work Lightroom catalogs to collect and process images. This led to locating related images and discarding many more. Further culling and processing resulted in narrowing the image selection to a manageable number. From there, the design of the magazine determined the final 57 photos printed in the 2018 issue of NOD.

While Instagram is a great way to connect with an online audience, it is NOT a great way to exhibit photography. Nice that I can use that low-res grid of images to help inform a print project that is close to my heart.

Details for the purchase of the next issue of NOD will be available soon.

NB: All images captured with Fujifilm X or GFX cameras, fronted with Fujinon lenses or the odd adapted Mamiya 645 lens.