Social Media For Photographers

By Geoff Harris

How to Use Social Media For Photographers – It's Not Just Facebook and Twitter


Unless you are a really into social media, it's also get to get tunnel vision and just focus on the two main channels, Facebook and Twitter. Both are great ways to promote your work and reach out to customers but there are other channels that can be useful for photographers. Here's a quick reminder of our social media services to consider.



Instagram


instagram


While you may associate Instagram with lots of 'retro' photos of people's morning cappuccino, Instagram is actually about sharing and enjoying photography. So it's a perfect way to get your work out there.


If somebody likes one of your images they are likely to talk about it and share with their friends – and because Instagram is all about images, you don't have to compete with all the other trivia that people see in their Facebook newsfeeds. Share new images on Instagram every time you have done a shoot and link it back to your main website or other online platforms.


Common sense suggests it's best to post images around late afternoon/evening in the territories you want to target, or at the weekends, but with the rise of smartphones, people are now on Instagram all the time. Use Iconosquare to find out when your account is most active, and other important information.



Google +


google plus
It's easy to forget about Google + and dismiss it as a wannabe Facebook, but it's becoming more and more important as an image-sharing platform. Being active on Google + and posting good content on there can also help improve your Google rankings, for free.


Research has suggested that most people look at their Google + accounts in the mornings, before the beginning of the work day, but you can post anytime. It's worth being on Google + just to raise your presence on the Google search engine, and again it's free.



Pinterest and Tumblr


pinterest
Pinterest may not be for everyone, but it's useful for wedding and portrait photographers as there seems to be a lot of brides on there, looking for ideas for the big day.


As with Facebook, there is a lot of other information to contend with – everything from recipes to random pictures to clothes patterns – so you need to be posting quality images to make sure you get people's attention.


It's important you provide full contact information with your 'pins' so potential customers can easily get in touch. Tumblr is another good way to post portfolios of work, though it seems to be slightly waning in popularity.


It's worth putting regular work on there though, as research also shows that people spend more time on Tumblr than they do on Facebook.



LinkedIn


linked in


f you're a commercial photographer, don't forget LinkedIn. It's a great way to keep in touch with business contacts and make new ones, and photography-related jobs are regularly posted on there. You will need to pay for a professional account, but if you only get one job a year off LinkedIn, it should soon pay for itself.

Geoff Harris

I am a journalist and photographer and currently work as the Deputy Editor of Amateur Photographer (AP) - http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk the oldest weekly photographic magazine in the world. Before that I served as the editor of Digital Camera, Britain's best-selling photography magazine, for five years. During my time as editor it became the UK's top selling photo monthly and won Print Publication of the Year at the 2013 British Media Awards. As well as being lucky enough to get paid to write about photography, I've been fortunate to interview some of the greatest photographers in the world, including Elliott Erwitt, Don McCullin, Martin Parr, Terry O'Neill and Steve McCurry. This has been a wonderful learning experience and very influential on my photography. Beyond writing, I am a professional portrait, travel and documentary photographer, and reached the finals of the 2016 Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year competition. I am a Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society and hope to take my Associateship whenever I can find the time. In addition I write about well being/personal development and antiques collecting for a range of other titles, including BlueWings, the in-flight magazine of Finn Air.

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