Back On Instagram

Me, December 2012:

I don’t begrudge Instagram their efforts to monetize their service, nor Facebook’s attempt to get a bit of money back on their billion dollar investment. That doesn’t mean I need to be a part of it though.

And so I’m moving to Flickr.

Last September:

I’ve been inching closer to returning to Instagram in the past year…

This week I signed up for Instagram once again. I’ve been feeling the slow pull back into it for some time, but the final straw was getting an iPhone 7 Plus last weekend. I’m already having a great time shooting with all three (!) cameras on the 7 Plus, and I know I’m going to want to share those photos.

Why did I leave Instagram four years ago? The short answer: ads. I didn’t like Instagram’s terms back then because they wanted the ability to sell user photos to brands without giving the photographer a cut. They reverted their terms after a public revolt, but the damage had been done for me. I lost trust in the company and left.

If I’m honest with myself I can admit that my writing about leaving Instagram played a bigger role in my resisting coming back than the reasons I originally left. That may seem silly, but stubbornnes usually is. Getting over that hurdle and taking a serious look at why I wouldn’t join again was a years long process.

I was right to leave then, but I’m also excited to come back. I’ve seen the fun that friends and family have with the app. There is something about it that really makes it a powerful photo sharing platform. I’m still wary about Instagram and Facebook, but I can be wary from the inside instead of from the outside looking in.

When I deleted my account, Instagram said I was forfeiting my username for good, but that turns out not to have been true.1 So if you’re looking for me on Instagram, I’m @poritsky.

Here’s my first photo, taken with Apple’s beta “Depth Effect.” That’s Hazel. I suspect there will be plenty of her in my feed. Happy snapping.


  1. File that one under being wary. ↩︎