Instagram - With the incredible tagline "Capture and Share the World's Moments", I am totally convinced to start an account after much hesitation as I am quite a pro Facebook user and I seriously wonder how others find time to juggle using so many different social networking platforms. After all, there must be really good reasons why Facebook would spend US$1 billion to buy over Instagram.
The Creation of Instagram - Founded in October 2010, Kevin Systrom and Mike Kreiger had never expected such overwhelming response from the World on this photo-sharing application. The amazing thing about Instagram is that this photo-sharing app only took 8 weeks to build and launch but was the end result of more than 1 year's work. Till date, Instagram has more than 30 million users worldwide with majority being female users. I guess it's women's nature to take beautiful photos especially of themselves in the latest SELFIE craze. Hashtag #selfie and you would see tonnes of photos posted by different people at their very best angles. With regards to taking selfies, I really wish phone companies would recognize how important it is to create a "Timer" function on mobile phones so everyone need not struggle to press the photo button at awkward positions. If normal cameras can have the "timer function", why on earth did they leave out such an important function in mobile phones???
NEW! Instagram Video - Newly Incorporated in June 2013, users can record and upload videos up to 15 seconds but honestly, I feel that 15 seconds is simply too short to convey any message effectively.
Different Types of Filters - I use "Normal" most of the time!
Instagram offers a number of photographic filters that users can apply to their images:
- Normal: No filter applied
- Amaro: Adds light to an image, with the focus on the centre.
- Mayfair: Applies a warm pink tone, subtle vignetting to brighten the photograph center and a thin black border
- Rise: Adds a 'glow' to the image, with softer lighting of the subject.
- Hudson: Creates an 'icy' illusion with heightened shadows, cool tint and dodged center.
- Valencia: Fades the image by increasing exposure and warming the colors, to give it an antique feel
- X-Pro II: Increases color vibrance with a golden tint, high contrast and slight vignette added to the edges.
- Sierra: Gives a faded, softer look.
- Willow: A monochromatic filter with subtle purple tones and a translucent white border.
- Lo-fi: Enriches color and adds strong shadows through the use of saturation and 'warming' the temperature.
- Earlybird: Gives photographs an older look with a sepia tint and warm temperature.
- Sutro: Burns photo edges, increases highlights and shadows dramatically with a focus on purple and brown colors.
- Toaster: Ages the image by 'burning' the centre and adds a dramatic vignette.
- Brannan: Increases contrast and exposure and adds a metallic tint.
- Inkwell: Direct shift to black and white - no extra editing.
- Walden: Increases exposure and adds a yellow tint.
- Hefe: Hight contrast and saturation, with a similar effect to Lo-Fi but not quite as dramatic.
- Nashville: Warms the temperature, lowers contrast and increases exposure to give a light 'pink' tint - making it feel 'nostalgic'.
- 1977: The increased exposure with a red tint gives the photograph a rosy, brighter, faded look.
- Kelvin: Increases saturation and temperature to give it a radiant 'glow'
Do follow my sister Sara Shantelle Lim as well @sarashantellelim and even though she also just started her instagram account, she has quite a number of followers already!
@lorachristelleim @sarashantellelim #sgsisters
♥ Lora Christelle Lim ♥
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Follow me on my new Instagram Account @lorachristellelim
