I remember back around 2013 asking some business friends if they thought a Facebook page was something I ought to set up. Really large businesses had set up “friend” pages and FB had begun cracking down on those “friend” pages, but also Zuck must have seen the kind of connection businesses had with their customers, and that engagement was something to use to sell ads on FB!
The answer was a yes, so, off I set to build my Facebook page and because my friends are wonderful, a solid majority of them found ways to “like” that page. They invited their friends, I invited clients, and before long I had a nice little social media site to share some of my favorite photos.
I shared photos, but not all. And only usually 1-2 photos a day because the algorithm would “screw up” if you shared more photos. Or more often. Or not enough….
Then came the flood to Instagram. And yes, I’m there too (though since I shoot a lot of portraiture, my images don’t fit as well on Ye Olde IG). I worked to share across platforms and that oftentimes meant resizing images a second time to fit IG’s frame preference. But, social media was a huge way to reach your clients, potential clients, and of course to share what you love. For a while, things were fine. I shared my photos, I had good engagement (seriously thank you for every like and share). Growth and stability was great! Clearly this is the perfect time to introduce shadowbanning– shadowbanning is when a hashtag you use is “banned” from… too much use! Like, come the frick on. You never knew what hashtag was banned, all you knew was that your post isn’t showing up in feeds. You HAVE to use hashtags in your posts, because- you guessed it- algorithm. So, ok, change up hashtagging, keep posting frequently, but not TOO frequently, make sure to post on FB and IG.
What the heck, let’s throw in REELS! If you’re a small business and you want to be seen, you gotta create that REEL content. Video. Video behind the scenes. Video working, Video yourself dancing and pointing at nothing. Video video video…. right on the heels of reels came explosive TikTok. More video, more dancing, more ‘let’s go viral”. More algorithm, more content, more video, more.. more… more.
I haven’t got any more. I just don’t. I’m a photographer. I engage with real people, I love real people. I photograph real people. I’m not going to pause a spontaneous game of parachute to set up my cell phone and take video. I’m too busy PHOTOGRAPHING the actual moment. I’m not going to set my iphone in a tripod while I hold and settle your newborn- I’m going to focus ON YOUR NEWBORN. I’m not going to video myself dancing to a Miley Cyrus song in order to sell my Galentine’s Day sessions- and I freaking love music and to dance.
All this to say, if you’ve noticed my socials are slower than in times past- this is why. I just want to photograph realness. I am a photographer, I’m not a videographer. I’m a photographer, not a content creator. We all know that SEO is king, but so many of us creative types have loved sharing our joy on social platforms, and yet now. I guess video killed more than the radio star.
If you’re hoping for a real photography session in the Cleveland area, I’m your photographer. If you don’t care about being the most viral TT sensation, hey, hi. I’m the ‘tog it’s me. If you want your photographer to be hands on, at all times with your newborn in the comfort of your own home ->this guy<- wendy@wboycephotos.com
With love, and lesser social media ๐
Wendy