“Pics or It Didn’t Happen”: Instagram’s New Rules for Life
A year ago, I was scrolling through Instagram, the wildly popular photo-sharing app, when I came across a video taken by a friend in her garden. She watched excitedly as her husband teed up a golf ball. There was much shrieking from a crowd behind the camera as he lined up his shot and swung. The ball exploded into a cloud of neon-pink powder, a dramatic way of showing that the baby they were expecting would be a girl.
This is a birth announcement, 21st-century style. I should add that I wasn’t surprised. On social media, I’d followed their journey from engagement to wedding to the purchase of a puppy, so I was sort of anticipating that the next pronouncement would feature a detonating pink or blue sport ball of some kind.
You see, I’ve learnt to speak fluent Instagram, where all major (and minor) life announcements of my generation take place. A photo of a boarding pass means you’re moving across the country or are about to embark on an enviable holiday; a snap of a company logo announces a new job; the Hamilton theatre marquee shows your friends that you finally got tickets.
As Instagram becomes more embedded in our lives, the app has fundamentally changed the way we share information. “Pics or it didn’t happen” has become an anthem for Insta-culture. And so a choreography of life updates has evolved. The Instagram feeds of twentysomethings are filled with new jobs, holiday pictures and engagement photos.
Instagram’s popularity indicates a deep desire to connect with others, to give and to receive validation from friends, colleagues and even strangers. But a constant need to document our lives can also skew the way we experience joyful moments. We shouldn’t need to photograph something to make it real or special, though by sharing our lives, the good and sometimes the bad, we can also create communities of shared experiences. Perhaps this is where the “social” in social media comes into its own.
Vocabulary
wildly popular – liked or enjoyed by a huge number of people, “The new video game became wildly popular just a few days after it was released.”
teed up – placed a golf ball on a small peg to get ready to hit it, “The player teed up his ball and took a deep breath before swinging.”
sort of anticipating – halfway expecting or guessing that something is going to happen soon, “The sky was getting very dark, so we were sort of anticipating a rainstorm.”
embark on – to start a new journey, project, or big activity, “After graduating from college, she decided to embark on a trip around the world.”
enviable holiday – a wonderful vacation that makes other people wish they could be there too, “They shared pictures of their enviable holiday on a beautiful tropical island.”
embedded in our lives – deeply fixed or firmly built into our daily routines and habits, “Smartphones have become so embedded in our lives that we use them for almost everything.”
choreography of life updates – a regular, step-by-step pattern of sharing personal milestones with others, “There is a standard choreography of life updates online, starting with an engagement, then a wedding, and finally a house announcement.”
receive validation – to get approval, praise, or recognition from other people to feel good about yourself, “Children love to receive validation from their teachers when they work hard on a drawing.”
skew the way – to alter, change, or distort how a situation naturally feels or looks, “Being very tired can easily skew the way you react to a simple disagreement.”
comes into its own – reaches its full value, power, or usefulness in a specific situation, “The heavy winter jacket really comes into its own when the temperature drops below freezing.”