Is it possible to enjoy ourselves while posting on social media

Your typical social post while on holiday. Me taking a picture of gyros in Greece. Guilty.

I recently went on a trip to Greece. A holiday to wind down, charge batteries and to come back renewed (if you can in a week). I always want to soak in the nature and culture wherever I go, so I can experience as much as I can when I am away.

But there was one thing constantly bothering me: I kept wanting to take pictures to capture the essence of the place, but taking pictures all the time was distracting me from actually enjoying the place. And honestly - I was thinking how the pictures I took would look on Instagram. But why should this matter? Why should it matter how my pictures look on Instagram? My livelihood is not dependent on it, nor my relationships. So why? Why wanting to take so many pictures of just one week of my life, despite the other 51 also being completely photograph-able?

Sure, it is a new place. But I can just take 10 photos instead of 50. Why take so many photos just to get the perfect shot for Instagram?

Can we experience the moment if we are taking photographs?

I once asked a professional photographer that photographs a lot of weddings, how he can experience weddings and BE at the event if he is taking so many photos. Answer: you can't. You simply cannot experience what is happening if you are focused on how the picture needs to look, because your mind is on other things. Even if you are taking pictures of what is around you.

My boyfriend capturing me taking photos in White Sands, USA.

I noticed the same thing. I kept making photos in Greece, hoping each picture will be better that the next, encapsulating what Greece is all about. But isn't trying to capture the esssence of a place best done by simply experiencing it? And taking time to maybe take two photos when we are in a place instead of 20?

Why do we want to take pictures (and post on social media)?

Taking breathtaking pictures is a must on holidays nowadays.

It is no brainer that we want to take pictures while on holiday, enjoying time with friends and family or having an experience we want to remember. Of course we do this because we want to keep memories of these occurences. But while it makes sense that we take photographs to recollect beautiful memories, why do we have the need to post on social media?

The most common answer I get is that people want to show off their amazing lives and show everyone how cool, wonderful and spectacular their life is. No one posts themselves while crying, experiencing severe anxiety or just being utterly sick. But then again, we never did that. Even when our cameras were analog, and we did not show our pictures to everyone, we took pictures of happy memories, even if no one knew about it.

True, I confess no one took pictures of every brunch, breakfast or dinner back then, because... well why would you? But in general, we also wanted to take pictures of happy memories back then as well. Did we also feel to need to share back then, but simply did not have the means to do? And now with social media we finally can? Or has something dramatically changed in how we record our lives now?

Food photography has now become ubiquitous.

The aesthetics of Instagram

Since Instagram, Pinterest and similar platforms exist, it has become obvious that a certain kind of aesthetic beauty has prevailed. One can almost certainly look at a picture and almost immediately decide whether the picture is Pinterest or Instagram "worthy". With these platforms, also a certain standard for beautiful pictures has become the norm. You want cozy? Pick wood, lots of flowers and blankets. You want elegant? Pick sleek, sharp items with glow that speak sophistication.

Instagram and Pinterest are a great place to get exposed to great photos and find inspiration and at the same, find great ideas. But the standard that has become unified and so sometimes every photo we take strives to follow these rules.

What do you think? Is it possible to enjoy ourselves while posting on social media? Is the distraction too great to live and experience the moment or are you able to be where you are?