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12 Steps to
Successfully
Promote Your
Photography on
Instagram
A Post By: Robin Ryan

29.1K 59

Instagram is an excellent way to attract

attention, gain followers, engage with
likeminded folks, and even improve your
photography, but it’s all easier said than
done, right? Plenty of photographers post
on Instagram and get nothing out of it – no
followers, likes, or even views.

So how do you use Instagram the right way?

How can you promote your photography on
instagram and come away with likes,
followers, and comments galore, not to
mention a great community?

In this article, I’m going to share my

personal secrets for Instagram success.
Speci!cally, I’ll o"er techniques to get better
exposure for your photography, build a
community, and grow as a photographer
through Instagram. I assure you, I know
what I’m talking about; my personal
Instagram account has 15,000 followers
(and counting). So you know this advice
works.

Let’s get started.

1. Only show your best

work
What’s the di"erence between a good artist
and a great artist?

Great artists only show their best work.

While nobody is expecting you to rival
National Geographic photographers right
away, you should pay close attention to
what you’re sharing. It only takes one bad
photo for people to lose interest in your
photography.

In short, if a photo doesn’t make you say

“Oh, yeah!” when you see it, don’t post it.

Also, don’t post too often. Unless you have

a really good reason for spamming your
follower’s feeds, don’t do it. I recommend
sharing one or two images a week – it’ll
keep people interested without getting
annoying. So post the great stu", and leave
out the bad, the mediocre, and even the
good.

2. Find your niche

This is key to de!ning your brand and to
your growth as a photographer. It’s about
determining what makes you di"erent from
everyone else and about using that
di"erence to create something unique and
interesting.

The amazing thing about Instagram is that

it’s composed of people across the world,
each of whom have a di"erent interest. I’ve
seen fantastic accounts focused on street
food in Vietnam, rock climbing in Utah, and
architecture in Turkey.

But despite these di"erences, the best

accounts all have one thing in common: a
focus around a central theme. And it’s this
theme that captures their audience’s
attention (and keeps it).

Exploring the ancient #forests of Vancouver

island, @kaitross and I found that even these
giants succumb to time and the winds.

Don’t forget: the only person who should

de!ne your niche is you. Do you love paper
maché and dinosaurs? Then become the
best photographer making seaside portraits
of paper maché Velociraptors.

I love to travel and explore nature, so my

account re#ects that and only that. You
won’t !nd photos of my food or my family.
If you want to share snapshots from your
daily life, get a private account for your
friends and your family to follow, because
they’re the only ones who (might) want to
see that stu".

3. Use a dedicated
camera, not just your
smartphone
Your shiny new smartphone may take
gorgeous snapshots, but constantly relying
on a smartphone is like trying to perform a
piano recital on a kid’s electronic keyboard.

Yes, smartphone cameras have come

a long way in recent years, and yes, there
are plenty of outstanding smartphone
photographers out there. But unless you’re
an experienced photographer with a lot of
compositional and lighting knowledge, I
highly recommend getting a “real” camera,
such as a DSLR or mirrorless model.

Why? For one, it’ll force you to learn key

photographic skills, such as exposure,
depth of !eld manipulation, and proper
handholding technique. Plus, it’ll give you
additional focal lengths to play with, so you
can shoot birds in the distance, sweeping
landscapes, stunning close-up shots, and
more.

4. Take the editing

process seriously
Instagram may lend itself to a snap-and-
post style of photography, but producing
excellent photographs doesn’t work that
way. Great photographs aren’t taken –
they’re created.

This means shooting in RAW, then working

in your favorite image editing program (I
recommend Adobe Lightroom). Learn how
to manipulate light, shadow, and clarity
until your !nal product is something you
can be proud of. The Instagram app just
isn’t built for this level of sophistication, so
ditch all those cheesy !lters and e"ects and
do your work on the computer.

5. Share a story with

your photo
Great photography leaves an impression.
So do well-written stories. But when you
combine strong images with powerful
words, you’ll evoke an emotional response
in your viewer and help them connect with
your work.

It wasn’t until I realized this and started

sharing the story behind my photos that my
account started getting real interaction –
people writing about how the image or
words a"ected them and their own
experiences.

Nobody expects the next Hemingway to

come out of Instagram, but some carefully
chosen words in a thought-provoking
caption will do wonders for connecting you
to your fans.

After the frenzied atmosphere of Shanghai’s

urban jungle, the fresh air of Huangshan’s
Yellow Mountains was exhilarating. Still in the
low season, March snow clung to the boughs of
trees while distant clouds made it feel like the
horizon could go forever. One of China’s better-
developed tourist attractions, Huangshan has a
long history: !rst recognized in 747 AD, it was
said to be the place from which the Yellow
Emperor ascended to heaven. This year, over
1.5 million visitors (mostly Chinese) will wander
its paths. I caught it on a quiet day, and these
peaceful memories linger with me still.

6. Ask questions in
your captions
What’s the di"erence between a story and a
question?

A story builds an emotional connection

between the viewer and the image; a
question builds a personal connection
between your viewer and you.

So tell stories, but ask questions, too. Your

questions should be open ended and create
a space for your fans to contribute some of
their own stories to the community.
Remember that many Instagram users are
new to digital photography and are looking
for people to connect with. By asking
questions, you can encourage them to
engage with the community (you might
even make friends along the way!).

7. Use hashtags
effectively
I never understood the value of e"ective
hashtagging until I started weaving them
into my posts. You should be hashtagging
important nouns and verbs – stu" people
will be searching for.

And get speci!c, too. The di"erence

between #!shing and #instagood is huge
for obvious reasons: people who might be
interested in your photo are much more
likely to be searching for their favorite
hobby than some meaningless, catch-all
term. So don’t add a bunch of generic
hashtags that say nothing about your work.
Instead, use descriptive hashtags that
target certain users.

Speaking of hashtagging, do a bit of digging

to !nd e"ective hashtags you might be
missing. It wasn’t until I came across the
hashtag #explorebc that I began connecting
with a ton of great local photographers who
eventually featured my work on their
account (resulting in a huge boost of
exposure for my photos!).

8. Post in the morning

The morning is when most Instagram users
check their feed, so keep this in mind and
set your posting schedule accordingly. I live
on the West Coast of North America, so if I
post at 8 AM, I’m already late for my East
Coast followers. Aim to get your posts out
early in the day for the time zone you’re
targeting (of course, if your followers are
worldwide, this is less useful).

Is there a best day of the week to post?

Studies show that Sundays have the
greatest number of interactions, which
makes sense given that many users spend
Sunday relaxing at home. Otherwise, stick
to weekday mornings.

9. Build a community
Build a community by actively !nding
photographers you respect and developing
relationships with them. I won’t lie – this is a
long process, but it’s necessary and
worthwhile.

It’s also pretty simple: Just !nd a hashtag

that speaks to you and your work, then
check it whenever you can to see who’s
posting. When you !nd photography you
like, leave a thoughtful compliment and
follow the user. Chances are, if they like
what you’re posting, they’ll check out your
account and reciprocate.

Whatever you do, when commenting, don’t

ask people to check out your account or
follow you back. It’s tacky and makes you
look desperate. Instead, be thoughtful,
complimentary, and ask for nothing in
return.

10. Cultivate
champions
A champion is someone who genuinely
engages with your work. They comment
frequently, and their comments are
thoughtful – not just “Nice” or “Love it,” but
lengthier, meaningful content explaining
what they like about the posted image.

Champions are great for both your

community and your popularity, but how
do you get them? What makes champions
comment on your photos?

Here’s the best way to draw in champions:

Foster relationships with other users.

Of course, this is easier said than done. But

if users are leaving you thoughtful
comments, return the favor and respond
with something more meaningful than
“Thanks!” If someone cares enough about
your work to awkwardly type out praise on
their smartphone, they’re worth their
weight in followers. These are the people
who are going to follow along through your
adventures and refer their friends and
followers. Do enough relationship building,
and these delightful unicorns will be out
there promoting your work for you.

11. Bring others into

the conversation
Bring others into the conversation by
photographing with them or referencing
them in your posts. Two amazing women
from Vancouver kicked o" @localwanderer
several years ago, in which they document
their travels around North America and
feature the hidden gems in communities.

Where the @localwanderer creators really

excel (in addition to their photography and
writing) is in their ability to constantly bring
local shops, restaurants, and people into
the discussion. By doing this,