Over 8000 people have started following me in 5 days. It's overwhelming. Flattering, sure. But mostly overwhelming. It changes the way you interact with Instagram.
Back in the day (last week), I knew every person who liked one of my photos. I either followed them or looked at their profile. Now, I can barely keep up with the likes. I had to turn off the notifications because they were coming in every minute. And now it's a little bit of a chore to respond to everybody who comments on my photos and I really don't get that many comments. But I do want to respond to everybody who takes the time to comment. It seems like the polite thing to do.
I don't know why I was put on the list. I'm guessing it had to do with being featured on the Weekend Hashtag Project two weeks ago. It got my portfolio noticed by somebody at HQ. And since it was a picture of water bottles in the Potomac, somebody there may think I have a social conscience (which I hear is admirable). But I would think my other random pictures of bananas and cats would tell them otherwise.
I don't know how they would know this, but I generally follow all the rules of any of the contests that I enter. I only enter new photos that are my own. I always go and look and comment on other entries. I haven't any bad reviews and I haven't been mean. I upload regularly because I just love it. And I enter almost every weekend hashtag project because I think they are fun to do.
For a day, I felt compelled to take better pictures. I even went into DC to get something more fun than my usual cats and bananas. I was debating on going to see the Cherry Blossoms in bloom this weekend, but now I will definitely go since people all over the world follow me and it might be a treat for them to see the DC blossoms. I know it was a treat for me to see the blossoms in Japan on other people's feeds.
I'm sure this Instagram fame is fleeting, but I'm going to see where it leads me. Maybe I needed a photography related push and this was the universe's way of giving me one.
Here are my latest photos on Instagram:
