i am like this too. i have lots and lots of janky photos that aren't insta-worthy but fulfill their core purpose as little time machines
Wow, this comment just got me thinking. If I've got good at taking well composed photos, according to common photography techniques, might they have less of that time-machine, memory-jogging quality? I'd like to have both - maybe I need two sets for photos!
I take photos that don't make it into the albums that I share with friends. These kind of photos give you an idea of the real character of an experience. To give you an idea of what I might photograph:
* Pictures of individual local food I bought (candies and other snacks)
* Pictures of rooms, possibly panoramic to capture everything
It's pretty simple, and really not caused by people attempting to appear unique. There are two main factors: 1. All humans has a need to be accepted and approved of by their peers, 2. Humans also have an essentially identical neural architecture and a very similar set of likes and preferences to their peers. This results in groups of people with similar habits, clothes, and so on. The vast majority of humans normally…
But take computer games, for instance. The main character (or any important character) is usually very different from everyone around them. Both in the way they act, but also the way they look. Nobody wants to play as the NPC. To me, that applies to real life as well. But it would seem that a lot of people want to stand out in a video game/movie/book etc., but conform in real life?
Not everyone can be the protagonist in real life, but they can imitate a prominent person and thereby associate themselves with that person's success and prestige. It's a variety of narcissism in which less successful people deal with their narcissistic urges by becoming "followers".
How many millions of people are posting on Instagram? How many billions of photos are on Instagram now? Is it really so crazy to think that all of those billions of photos, you can find groupings of 12 that are similarly composed? How many unique photos are there to take really? I'd be way more impressed if you could somehow come up with a set of a billion photos such that there are no compositional groupings across…
If you take photos to remember something then you can have a lot of unique photos. While everyone else is chasing the perfect photo you'll have something that is actually true to the memory.
You take photo to forget. You let objects to save that memory for you so that you can forget. Sure you still remember some, and some pointers of images.
It's pretty simple, and really not caused by people attempting to appear unique. There are two main factors: 1. All humans has a need to be accepted and approved of by their peers, 2. Humans also have an essentially identical neural architecture and a very similar set of likes and preferences to their peers. This results in groups of people with similar habits, clothes, and so on. The vast majority of humans normally…
> Also, anyone who claims not to understand this is either lying, engaging in some form of virtue signalling or has some sort of mental illness. Let’s assume you are right and there are only these three possibilities, what kind of mental illness would you suggest I have? Since I was a little kid it never appealed to me to do what most of my friends were doing just because they were doing it. A fourth option would be…
I'd suggest that if you genuinely don't understand this sort of social thing instinctively, then you're probably on the autism/aspergers spectrum then. I really wasn't trying to be offensive towards you or anything, I just probably forgot some extra caveats... Basically, this sort of social reasoning is (usually) hard wired into your (typical) human being, and has been since prehistory. But mental disorders like autism seem to mess up social perceptions and interactions, masking these instincts. Fortunately, in that case, I've found it's possible to work around the issue by simply researching what the natural instincts and drivers are for the typical human, hence my suggestion of referencing an anthropology textbook.
How many millions of people are posting on Instagram? How many billions of photos are on Instagram now? Is it really so crazy to think that all of those billions of photos, you can find groupings of 12 that are similarly composed? How many unique photos are there to take really? I'd be way more impressed if you could somehow come up with a set of a billion photos such that there are no compositional groupings across…
If you take photos to remember something then you can have a lot of unique photos. While everyone else is chasing the perfect photo you'll have something that is actually true to the memory.
In an attempt to appear unique, everyone ends up doing the same thing. Instagram is just a reflection of what society does in real life. This is visible in fashion, hair styles, beard, and whatever is the trend now. I personally don’t understand why so many people have this need to look like their peers. Does anyone with more social skills have an explanation?
> In an attempt to appear unique, everyone ends up doing the same thing. Time and again it is said about people subscribing to various subcultures or styles: "they think they are unique but they all are the same!" However I have never once heard or seen anyone in any such group actually claim to be unique.
Indeed, what they (members of said sub-culture) all are is collectively different to, or in some way deviating too far from, whatever the current social norms, mores, or accepted majority cultural standards are. In this way, the group as a whole will appear unique compared to the majority of the population, who (usually) behave, dress and act in a (mostly) homogeneous way according to whatever the culture deems normal and within (somewhat) acceptable deviations.
If you take photos to remember something then you can have a lot of unique photos. While everyone else is chasing the perfect photo you'll have something that is actually true to the memory.