It’s little wonder that Instagram, a leading iPhone application for stylizing and sharing photos on the web, is proving so popular among street style photographers, some of whom have amassed followings in the thousands. What is unusual is that before Instagram, many of these well-followed photographers had done little to no street style photography in their portfolios.
“I started using Instagram about two weeks after it launched in the App Store and just fiddled around with pictures of my family and friends,” says Anthony Danielle, who publishes images (right) of stylish New Yorkers to some 18,000 followers under the pseudonym takinyerphoto. “I’d see other people doing street work and thought, ‘I could do that,’ and I just started taking pictures of people on the street.”
The app, coupled with the iPhone’s portability and capable camera, has encouraged Danielle to take up a hobby he had never before considered. Even the darkest and least remarkable photos are transformed into art with Instagram’s and Camera+’s filters, he says.
Similarly, Thomas Kakareko (thomas_k) of Berlin “had nothing to do with photography” before he downloaded the app earlier this year, he says. He began exchanging photos with friends before realizing that street photography was his calling. He now publishes a stream of high-contrast, black-and-white images (left) that could be mistaken for vintage film noir stills, which he posts exclusively to his 13,000+ followers on Instagram.
Although both Danielle and Kakareko are fans of Instagram’s filters, both cite Instagram’s community as the key to their success — and their addiction.
Instagram’s community is “unlike any other I’ve ever encountered … [because] mostly everyone is willing to help and share constructive opinions about your pictures,” says Danielle, who credits much of his development to the community, strangers he now calls friends.
Arianna Power of London, a.k.a streetstylish, is confident her brain gets a dopamine hit every time someone comments on one of her photos (right). “It’s completely addictive,” she says, admitting that her Instagram photography shifted its focus toward candid street photographs of stylish individuals because she received more positive reactions.
“Instagram is appealing because it’s fun to have a social network based around images,” she says, noting that other photographers on the service inspire her as much as comments from her followers.
(Although no one at Mashable self-identifies as a street style photographer, we can certainly sympathize with their addictions. We’re constantly browsing and commenting on others’ photos, and some of our snaps even sneak their way into posts on occasion.)
If you’re an Instagram user and want to add a little more street style to your newsfeed, check out a gallery of some of our favorite photographers below. And please, if we missed someone you admire, let us know in the comments section or submit your own by adding it into the widget below.
The photos in this article were processed using a variety of apps, including Camera+, Hipstamatic and Filter Mania. All were shared to Instagram after processing. The above article was published/reposted from its original on Mashable. There’s a cool widget at the end of the post where people have contributed to the photos. (top photo by MalSherlock-NYC).
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
