Somebody Is Showing How Instagram Photos Are All Starting To Look The Same And It’s Pretty Freaky
Did you ever scroll through Instagram photos and get a nagging sense of deja vu? There is a reason why. Insta Repeat is an account dedicated to highlighting the 'visual sameness' of many Instagram pictures, tracking the trending hashtags of influencers who see where the likes are and follow along to the same places, strike the same poses, and take identical nature photos.
An anonymous 27-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, is the brains behind the Instagram trends account. The filmmaker and artist told Photoshelter that “A purpose of Insta Repeat is to critique originality in media creation through the lens (pun intended) of this one ‘genre’ of Instagram photography accounts.”
Living in Alaska, a vast wilderness where so many 'adventurers' come to explore, she was struck by how the same few places and scenarios kept showing up again and again on her feed of beautiful pictures. “I have noticed it in general on a lot of different platforms and media and have been guilty of it myself for sure,” she told Bored Panda. “Artists and creators fall into patterns. But I think that what is happening on Instagram is more extreme.”
She seems to enjoy the irony behind these aesthetic pictures, often tagged with trendy slogans about 'authenticity' and 'creative living,' when contrasted with almost identical photos of other people claiming much the same things. It turns out that while many people may believe that they are pretty special, they are, knowingly or not, following a generic formula that has been laid out and done countless times before. “I chose the outdoorsy type to focus on because I see it a lot because of where I live but more importantly because I think think the "genre" celebrates a "free" and "authentic" lifestyle that is antithetical to the sameness of all the photos.”
It's certainly a fascinating idea and one that exposes some truths about the influencer 'game' that is being played out. She has attracted some negativity for this, but she says the page is not meant to criticize or belittle anyone. “I am interested in exploring the choice to make an image that has, in essence, already been made.”
“The most amazing thing that has happened since starting the account is people engaging in critical debate on originality and the creation of media. There are some really in-depth discussions going on in the comment threads.”
Scroll down to check them all out for yourself, and let us know what you think in the comments!
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Tent Hole
I actually think these ones are awesome. A glimpse of very different scenery.
Me too! The repetition actually makes a really neat effect on this one. I'd love to have it on my wall (a mental escape when I'm avoiding work)
Load More Replies...I love these images! All they're missing is a black bear nonchalantly walking across the shot
They've all been framed. Get it? Set up, framed...oh go back to scrolling.....
Close Up Of A Hairy Cow
i like to think a bul wouldnt deliberately hurt you - but unsure - I came upon this lovely brown bull with his lovely brown cows and gave them a wide berth
Load More Replies...technically they are just highland cattle - we didnt call them cows or bulls - doubt you could tell the difference from afar
Load More Replies...I wouldnt really go up to pet one in a field though -even though am used to cows - the horns a a bit much
Load More Replies...What are the chances that some of these are pictures taken by different people, at different times of the SAME cow?!
several are of the same beast - can tell by the shape of the horns - tourist attraction
Load More Replies...Back Of Head With Outdoorsy Hat
That is an "outdoorsy" hat? no, that's a felt hat that people don't realize is useless in a rain storm.
You’d be surprised (seriously outdoorsy farm person here) the wide brim is good at keeping the rain off your face and all they need is a short time to dry and your head doesn’t get wet...
Load More Replies...Feet In Front Of Horseshoe Bend
There must be a long line of people waiting at this place to pose for this pic.
I actually googled it - they had to reinforce safety barriers etc - i wonder why?
Load More Replies...The sad part is that these people seem to be going to this beautiful spot simply to take a picture of their feet for social media, rather than enjoying nature.
Exactly - living life staring through your phone isnt living it
Load More Replies...Wow - how do you actually get down into that place - apart from by accident?
you are on top of it ..and to get down in the valley there are a lot of pathways..
Load More Replies...It's just a fun way to show how far down it is, too, add some feet for perspective. That's why I do it anyway! And because I don't want my face in the photo. Humans are fairly predictable, but i think its endearing instead of "lame" ;)
Load More Replies...Person Centered Inside An Ice Cave
Oh who cares about the person ffs. That place though...I'm SO visiting it one day! This has been on the bucket list for a while. Somewhere in Iceland I think?
If there would not be a human for a scale it would be difficult to tell how large this cave is.
Load More Replies...i don't understand why this is weird. They seem to be popular tourist spots, and people just want to have a couple of nice pictures as memories.
It's not supposed to be a negative thing :) ..(even though the editor of this post kinda made it seem that way.) it's basically a fun social experiment to learn more about the different reasons so many people follow this particular trend; and she's finding that there are a lot of the people who are only doing it to receive the "likes" that others received from theirs, therefore gaining them and their pages quick popularity; rather than simply for the great photo-op or tangible memory. But as for the others that don't do it for that reason, is it because they simply admire it? Or could it be a type of "heard mentality"? Does that make sense? Haha I hope I explained that okay.
Load More Replies...The summer dream of every desert dweller ... (it was 112f/44c here on Tuesday)
Okay, I like this one. It's the least hipster one I've seen .... so far.
Standing On Top Of A Car In The Wild
They've even got the same car (more or less) This one is crazy!
I guess Enterprise in New Zealand only has white trucks available. ha
Load More Replies...And evidently, they must nearly all be white, and nearly all be jeeps....
*Land Rovers. Jeep is another brand. The type of vehicle is called SUV.
Load More Replies...Defender 110 Station Wagon. Proper workhorse. <3
Load More Replies...Person On Suspension Bridge
I do not see problem. It gives idea and scale what size is that bridge.
Person Centered Inside This Particular Cave
My ex was so proud of his “unique” photograph of himself on a large overhang on the Appalachian. Then a year later we saw at the dmv a plate for hikers with a drawing of a man sitting at the edge of the same cliff, same pose, and I laughed.
Yknow, the more I think about these, the more I think I actually like them. It's like variations on a theme! At first glance, they appear all the same, but then you notice different details. I like it!
3rd row in 3 photos down the outline of the cave looks like a cartoon rendering of richard nixon :D
Posing In Front Of Starry Sky With A Headlamp
By far the best shots of the whole series. At least these have interest, and not every one of them is a morph of the one prior to it.
Though why anyone would mar the view with light pollution I have no idea.
Load More Replies...Not a fan of the headlamp. Why is this one a thing? I'd be so overwhelmed by the starlight!
I just read on Nat Geo that 99% of Americans and Europeans can't see the milky way from where they live due to light pollution. I've never seen it, but hope to!
The first and almost only time I saw it was after we pulled up at an empty roadside rest stop in the middle of Australia. It was breathtaking
Load More Replies...No way these were taken with a cell phone and then processed through Instagram. These are either done with a very professional camera, or digitally altered.
Just teasing you, Kiahna. Erin always uses caps and about 20 people have asked her to stop. I think her computer must be stuck. Lol
Load More Replies...Person Centered Rowing In Canoe
Well, in all fairness, it wouldn't be easy to take this photo anywhere else, would it?
You could take it from the front. Though I suppose if you drop the camera there's a higher chance of it going in water, then.
Load More Replies...One person rows and the other takes the pics. Some very nice backgrounds here.
3rd one, top row--doesn't look like she's dressed to do anything physical, or have the body for it
It must be irresistible to take a photo if you are in this position.
Oh boo. That outdoor hat post? Yeah, this was the rest of it.
Hand On The Steering Wheel
This is illegal in most, if not all states... Distracted driving takes lives.
Load More Replies...Always the left hand, right hand on the camera. Looks like lefties are too smart to do this LOL
Where's the one with the bridge out right in front of the car? Or the tree straight ahead? Or the Moose? Now THOSE would be interesting!
Person Alone, Centered, Looking Up In A Slot Canyon
This is Antelope Canyoun in souther Arizona. It's magnificent!
Maybe it's just me, but as cool as these places are, I'd have a lot more shots of just landscape minus myself or others! :)
Person Standing At The End Of A Centered Dock
Oh look! People on the ends of the docks have actual cameras! I didn't think anyone used those any more. It's all cell phones and iPads.
So they are taking photos, while they are being photographed.
Load More Replies...Person Walking In The Center Of A Lonely Road
♪♫ I walk a lonely road, It's the only one I've ever known...♫♪
Very popular on Netflix too I might add! At least for the suggestions I get (end of the world and horror!)
Haha - it does make sense walking in the middle of the road. I used to do it regularly at 2am on my way home from the local nightclub- the smooth texture of the paint is kinder to your bare feet after you have given up on the high heeled shoes
happy memories of walks home clutching white stilettos and determinedly walking in a straight line in the middle of the road
Load More Replies...Standing On A Rock In Front Of Water
How can you see a rock on the water and NOT step on it? I'll be playing hopscotch on the rocks for sure.
For anyone who doesn't have a life: Get on Instagram and collect these pictures. Now you can make up well documented stories from all your travels and the wonderful places you visited.
I'm guilty of taking this picture myself - but the moment just presented itself and it's a great way to photograph your loved one AND the lake. It's a two-fer! (I didn't post it to social media though.)
Me doing this would result in a moment frozen in time falling off and into the water. I am hopeless at standing on rocks in water.
Person Centered In Front Of This Particular Row Of Trees
'this particular row of trees'? I don't think those were all taken at the same place!
Alot of these are The Dark Hedges - Ireland. Drove through, Amazing!
Moments later they all disappeared into a time vortex wormhole never to be seen again.
Mostly they are the dark hedges in Northern Ireland- sadly we might lose them due to the drought and heatwave.
This place is called The Dark Hedges and it's in Ireland. It's beautiful and has been used in countless movies and TV shows, but it's typically really crowded with people taking pictures. Lol
am almost sure I have been down this road - they are either Elms or Beeches - British Elm Avenues were amazing before Dutch Elm Disease
Standing On A Van In Front Of Aurora Borealis
Holl Balls I keep looking at your name thinking it says Hot Balls. Ha ha
Load More Replies...It's those alligators, again. Even at night they hunt you down. Best to stand on your car and stay safe.
Forward Facing Medium Shot Windy Hair
This causes me so much irritation just because I hate having my hair in my face.
All are saying, "Goddamnit! You didn't take my photo when my hair was in my face, did you? God, you are an a-hole! Take another one!"
Person Centered On A Green Pointy Ridge/Mountain
Red House
Don’t forget Sweden! Almost every summer house is red with edging.
Load More Replies...No problem, red house is in fashion especially in international photo competitions.
Person Centered In Front Of A Waterfall
Photos of this sort are just for proof to friends that one has been there. Proof to oneself in later years that, Yes, I was really there!
Person Sitting Alone In Front Of A Lake
Some of these women look like the "back of the head" shots, the "from behind in a canoe", the "standing on a mountain"...
Some of those are in Glacier Bay, Alaska... gorgeous country, despite the dwindling glaciers that will be lost soon.
They aren't alone though. There's at least one other person with them to take the pic. Kinda interferes with the serenity, doesn't it?:P
Wooden Path Centered
WHAT? No person centred in the centred walkway? Sheesh, someone is slacking off!
Person Centered In Front Of Waterfall
Vertical Phone In The Wild
Why take a picture of your phone taking a picture?.....Also would this be phoneception, photoception, wildernessception, or wildphonephotoception?
It looks more like an advert for the phone brand than a landscape picture. Then again, you can't even see the landscape properly...
Load More Replies..."If you ever want to know what someone fears losing, watch what they photograph."
Skateboarding Person On Lonely Road
Well, should they be riding on a NOT lonely road? Also it is very hard to snag a skateboarding pic from any other view.
These are not critiques of the composition, just pointing out that there are many similar pictures on Instagram.
Load More Replies...Second pic looks like a car is coming...or maybe that's their car...either way the picture is neat but I feel like people are underestimating exactly how easy it is to zone out on long empty roads...this is legit dangerous... but then again art sometimes needs to be dangerous right?
I personally don't think it's very dangerous. You can hear a car coming from pretty far away. Even if it's going fast, there is plenty of time to get out of the way.
Load More Replies...Passed a long- boarder doing this near Apache Junction. Alas, never thought of a photo .....
Person Centered In Front Of A Forest
Feet In Front Of A Waterfall
What is with the focus on the feet?!? There are gorgeous falls, yet these people post pictures of their feet?
If they were barefoot and women foot fetishists would approve. :D
Load More Replies...Recently several people have died trying to emulate this kind of photo.
Centered Bridge
These are cool. If you manage to catch right the centre of it oooo this is good. The symmetry becomes mesmerizing.
Person Walking On A Centered Wood Path
Ah, I see I spoke too soon in an early posting. Seems they DID do the centred person on the centred walkway after all. I just knew they couldn't help themselves!
Now there is a person to interfere with the scenery. Previous version was better.
Passenger Side Window
I NEVER put my feet out the window and I don't let my passengers do it either. If you have ever seen Deathproof you will know that doing that is the quickest way to loose a leg if you're in an accident... um spoiler alert maybe but not really :-)
I agree. my friend put her feet up and the car crashed, she broke her nose with her own foot >_<
Load More Replies...Okay, the bottom left just looks like an eye witness shot of an escaping axe murderer.
Everyone's vacation photos since cameras were invented, you can look back through thousands of them and see many similar pics done the same way over and over again. We are creatures of habit if nothing else.
Person Centered On Path In The Woods
Medium Close Up Back Of Girls Head
There was an article about something like this on here. About someone who made a fake Instagram account with stock photos of girls facing away from the camera and landed sponsorship deals.
Found it. boredpanda.com/fake-instagram-influencer-followers-bots-mediakix
Load More Replies...these are beautiful landscapes, i wanna push her away from the pic :|
Why did whoever downvoted it do that? What is wrong with liking hair
Load More Replies...Person Standing In The Middle Of A Centered Snowy Road
Person Standing In The Middle Of A Winter Road
Windy Hair In Front Of Landscape
RIGHT!!! How come they are all blondes....in just about every picture with a female with hair lol
Load More Replies...Person Centered On A Bridge
Person Running In The Center Of A Lonely Road
Finally they made their escape from the serial road killer who picks up random hitch hikers. Run, people, run be free!
I'd be running too if there were some fool with a camera in a car right behind me!
They running from a car? I'd suggest sideways rather than forward, more chances that way...
Haha! Why is it in movies that they always keep running down the middle of the road instead of getting off the road where the car can't drive?
Load More Replies...Person Centered In Front Of Waterfall
The second on the top with the black Assassin's Creed pose is Gooseberry Falls, Minnesota.
I'm so glad my photography is so bad that none of my images would fall under "centered" anything (waterfall,road,bridge,whatever)
Person In Front Of Waterfall
Icelandic Waterfall. So beautiful. My photos of this one don't have either of us in them. Just our Travelling Lego person :) I think it was Goth Guy's turn at this one. Banana man was on a rest day.
What about this on? This is all over the place. 55c6e3a3a9...26c00f.jpg
EXACTLY! I was surprised this wasn't on the list.
Load More Replies...You could do this with every trend. Style, camera angles, photos in magazines. Not super impressed.
These have become like visual cliches. I found some of these fascinating like standing on a car, but others are so overdone, even the compilation loses its power!
Between millions of people using Instagram it'd be weirder if no pics were similar. While some of these are amusing, tbh it seems kind of a waste of time to dedicate your time to figuring out "trends", be it for following them or "shaming" them(or whatever is supposed to happen here). I've stopped using Instagram after a while, couldn't really get in it I guess but when I was using it I'd just snap pics of here and there that I thought were cool to share with friends and look at their photos. Couldn't care less about what someone thinks is a "trendy" photo, let alone waste time on recreating it on purpose. Instagram can be great in the sense of being able to share a beautiful moment with the world, it just sometimes seems that these days people spend more time staging the "beautiful moment to share" than actually enjoying them.
Husband and I have started to travel. Most of the photos we take, we think are unique. Then we see them in ads or other photo compilations and realize we're taking all the "good" photos that everyone else takes. At least we know we stood there to get that photo. And enjoyed our time adventuring. Mind you I haven't posted any of the "copy cat" photos. Just ones that actually "are" unique... hopefully?
I think that's the real "problem" with all these people taking the same photos. It's not the taking - if you like the shot, take it - but why share it on Instagram when it's been done to death all ready? Because they hope someone won't have seen it before, will give it a 'like' and make them feel special?
Load More Replies...But..... you could say the same about selfies/dog photos/sport shots? Honestly if I was lucky enough to get to travel to some of the places in these pictures, I'd sure as hell be grabbing a well-composed shot of the place. If the account owner lives in Anchorage, lucky them. It IS an adventure for a lot of people internationally to travel somewhere like that.
What's going on here is a shared aesthetic, maybe previously only shared between professionals (and amateurs), made public and accessible via the global sharing network. When I think back on some of my old, print photos, they aren't much different than some of these. But, only me and the bottom of my photo drawer ever saw them. Makes me wanna dig through them and see what goodies I can find! :-)
These are some gorgeous pictures and places. I am jealous of all these people and their amazing experiences. I don't think it's "freaky", it just shows that many people appreciate the same beautiful locations that this Earth has to offer. And what's wrong with making your self a centered medium? I know I would want to remember and commemorate my experience if I was part of such scenery.
What about this on? This is all over the place. 55c6e3a3a9...26c00f.jpg
EXACTLY! I was surprised this wasn't on the list.
Load More Replies...You could do this with every trend. Style, camera angles, photos in magazines. Not super impressed.
These have become like visual cliches. I found some of these fascinating like standing on a car, but others are so overdone, even the compilation loses its power!
Between millions of people using Instagram it'd be weirder if no pics were similar. While some of these are amusing, tbh it seems kind of a waste of time to dedicate your time to figuring out "trends", be it for following them or "shaming" them(or whatever is supposed to happen here). I've stopped using Instagram after a while, couldn't really get in it I guess but when I was using it I'd just snap pics of here and there that I thought were cool to share with friends and look at their photos. Couldn't care less about what someone thinks is a "trendy" photo, let alone waste time on recreating it on purpose. Instagram can be great in the sense of being able to share a beautiful moment with the world, it just sometimes seems that these days people spend more time staging the "beautiful moment to share" than actually enjoying them.
Husband and I have started to travel. Most of the photos we take, we think are unique. Then we see them in ads or other photo compilations and realize we're taking all the "good" photos that everyone else takes. At least we know we stood there to get that photo. And enjoyed our time adventuring. Mind you I haven't posted any of the "copy cat" photos. Just ones that actually "are" unique... hopefully?
I think that's the real "problem" with all these people taking the same photos. It's not the taking - if you like the shot, take it - but why share it on Instagram when it's been done to death all ready? Because they hope someone won't have seen it before, will give it a 'like' and make them feel special?
Load More Replies...But..... you could say the same about selfies/dog photos/sport shots? Honestly if I was lucky enough to get to travel to some of the places in these pictures, I'd sure as hell be grabbing a well-composed shot of the place. If the account owner lives in Anchorage, lucky them. It IS an adventure for a lot of people internationally to travel somewhere like that.
What's going on here is a shared aesthetic, maybe previously only shared between professionals (and amateurs), made public and accessible via the global sharing network. When I think back on some of my old, print photos, they aren't much different than some of these. But, only me and the bottom of my photo drawer ever saw them. Makes me wanna dig through them and see what goodies I can find! :-)
These are some gorgeous pictures and places. I am jealous of all these people and their amazing experiences. I don't think it's "freaky", it just shows that many people appreciate the same beautiful locations that this Earth has to offer. And what's wrong with making your self a centered medium? I know I would want to remember and commemorate my experience if I was part of such scenery.
