How did you get so many followers on instagram

I can remember before I owned an iPhone, instagram was the one app that I longed for most. And I'm pretty sure it was the first app I downloaded. The most popular question I get asked now is how did I get so many followers on Instagram. Well I'm here today to try and answer this question the best I can. As well as offer some free advice. First things first, a little history. I didn't just start taking photos on my iPhone. I've been shooting off and on since 2000 when I got my first Canon Rebel SLR. I've never taken a photography class. I spent a lot of time, and rolls of film, learning from my mistakes. All my early photographs are black and whites of buildings and shadows. I didn't know it at the time but I was training my eye to see light and composition. The two basic essentials to any great photograph.

I remember the first time I held my Lomo-LCA. The cold metal was heavy and solid in my hands. I knew I could take it anywhere with me. This must have been 2002. I had just discovered the world of "shooting from the hip" and fell in love with the whole philosophy of "shoot now, look later". It totally opened up my mind to what I thought photography was, or more importantly what it wasn't. It was also at this time I was introduced to cross-processing and the holga. Both of which are now popular filters on our favorite photo apps. I wonder how many people really know the history of the filters we use?

Shooting with a digital camera was something I long resisted. I was such a purist back then, and still am today in certain ways. For example, I don't use any app to shoot on my iPhone other than the default camera app. But that's besides the point. The point is, back then I valued the process of putting film in a camera and waiting to see the results once I got the roll developed. But eventually technology overpowered me and I turned digital.

The thing I love most about digital photography is the choice to keep or delete your photos at the push of a button. It's also the thing I hate most. I think anyone who wants to learn photography should start on film before digital. Understanding the basics principles of aperture and shutter speed sink in deeper when shooting film. Not only that but you learn to appreciate a beautiful photo when you see one that doesn't have a million photoshop effects applied to it.

That pretty much brings us up to the present time. I've been shooting with my iPhone now over the past year. I tried to keep a healthy balance of my DSLR and my iPhone, but my iPhone constantly won out. So now that's pretty much my camera of choice. It doesn't matter how many megapixels you have, it's how you use them. Shooting on the iPhone (specifically for instagram) requires much more than just pointing and "clicking" though. Here's some things I've learned about what makes a great photo on instagram:

1. Lighting. Pretty basic, but pretty profound. Learning to use the built-in censor on the iPhone has been a bit frustrating but at the same time I appreciate it. It makes the difference between a boring shot and a dramatic shot.

2. Composition. Another basic principle of photography, but one that should not be overlooked on the iPhone. If you don't understand the rule of thirds, you should. Only after you know the rules can you break them.

3. Quantity. I take a lot of photographs on my phone. I take an average of 10-15 shots of the same picture when I want to post something. That way when I get home I have options to choose from and find the best photo in the bunch.

4. Quality. Sometimes even after shooting a ton of photos I don't have any that I like. And that's okay. I don't post everything I shoot. Sometimes it's more about what you don't post than what you do. It's a hard lesson to learn, but one of great value. Remember, you don't have to share everything all the time.

5. Simple. The less you have going on the better. Some people call this minimalism, but I call it having a focal point. Without it you lose peoples interest.

This is by no means an exhaustive list on how to take better pictures, or how to get more followers on instagram. I can only share with you what I've learned from my experience. I hope it's helpful. I hope you continue to learn on your own and push yourself to do better. There is no secret to success, just a lot of hard work.

Freelance Week 13

On Life

Walking through this tax season was a bit unnerving, to say the least, but I feel victorious now on the other side. I think the hardest part for me through this whole tax thing was just starting. Something I've come to learn about myself is that I'm always super hesitant to enter new territory. I learn best by watching others show me how, so when I'm faced with teaching myself I am always really slow to get started. But hey! At least I'm learning.

On Faith

Nothing in life is free except for one thing, forgiveness. As we have freely received it, we are free to give it. It costs us nothing to forgive someone. It costs us dearly to hold it back.

On Work

Freelancing is like the ocean. High tides. Low tides. And all the moments in between. It can be a breathtaking view as the sun sets, or it can be a ferocious site as the storm approaches. But everything has its reason. Working for myself so far this year has already taught me so much. I'm looking forward to what the next 8 months have in store.

Freelance Week 12

You want to know the secret to success... there is no secret. Work Hard. Trust God. Enjoy Life. It's more than just my twitter bio. It's the way I live my life. I believe God gave us all a unique gift to share with others. And it's in my efforts to share my gift that I've found, to some degree, success. There is no 12-step program. There is no special formula. There is only living, learning and loving.

On Faith

This past week was a bit of an emotional roller coaster for me. And it can pretty much all be summed up with one word, taxes. I've gone through denial, resentment and now to a place of peace. But it seems like everyone I talk to agrees on one thing, our tax situation is totally unbalanced here in America. Without going off on a rant, I'll leave it at this: If I can trust the Lord with my provision then I can most certainly trust him when it comes to paying taxes. The following verse really hit home for me this past week:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

On Work

From last week I had a breakthrough in my project I was struggling with. I can only say that being open and honest with your client(s) is the best thing possible. I found I have to be willing to put it all on the line, even if that means I may lose the client. I would rather risk losing a client being honest than selfishly stringing them along. Once we recognize that clients are people too then it becomes more about the relationship than the money.

I continue to feel so blessed to be doing what I'm doing for a living. But the desire to create something more than myself keeps growing. As I watched the documentary "Being Elmo" last night I was struck with the importance of doing what we love. That's why I love partnering with people like Tim Coons and The Blackthorn Project. It's an opportunity for me to pour in all my talents and skills to help someone else. And that makes me happy.

On Life

I'll be 30 in less than 3 months now. I reflected on this last night in the fading light of dusk on my back porch. Wondering what my life has been so far. I've never really known hardship I realized. Most, if not all, of my struggles have always been with myself. I've never known hunger. I've never gone without a roof over my head or clothes on my back. For the better part of my life I've been a selfish brat. But I'm learning. Learning how to give back. Learning how to love others. Learning that my life is not meant for me alone.

I Am the Church

What's the most common question we Christians ask? Where do you go to church?

It's a simple, yet loaded, question.

We aren't really asking where you go, but why aren't you going to my church.

We've been deceived by our traditions that where we "go" is who we "are".

I have a hard time accepting this as truth.

I've given up "going" to church. This journey I've been on for the past 10 years has led me to one place, I am the church. I didn't get here by striving and working, but by resting and trusting. It hasn't always been easy though. I've had to fight through a lot of anger and resentment. I've struggled with finding new language to try and explain this place I'm in. And I've often times felt alone. All I know now is that I am loved and it has nothing to do with where I go or what I do.

Props to my friend Julie for inspiring me to draw this today.

Freelance Week 11

My work does not define me I was confronted with those six simple words, again, this past week. Usually when someone approaches me with a project, the process goes really smooth. But I hit a wall this week where I could not deliver what the clients needs were. If you've ever experienced this then you'll understand my frustration. Not with the client, but with myself. A lot of doubt, fear and frustration ran its course through my veins this week.

For the purposes of sharing what I'm learning, and without divulging any private information, here's a little peak at how this project has gone thus far:

1. Client shares great insight about their vision for the project with samples of what kind of style they want to capture for the brand.

2. I tell them how excited I am to work on this project and that I will have something to show them in a few days

3. I send over an email with the rough sketches to show what I've come up with and see if they like the directions I'm headed

4. Client rejects first round of rough drafts. Less typographic and more illustrative in nature is what they're looking for.

5. Awesome, I say. Back to the drawing board.

6. A few sketches later and a quick round of iterations over skype left me feeling less confident. (Side note: Don't do feedback sessions over skype. Pick up the phone.)

7. After a good heart-to-heart over the phone we agreed to move forward on the grounds that if they were happy with what I did next we could continue working together, otherwise we would go our separate ways. Not that I want this to happen, my goal is to always deliver the best work to fit my clients needs, but sometimes it's just not a right fit.

To be clear. I am not angry with the client. I only want what's best. No hard feelings. No grudges. Nothing. I can not afford to take this personally. Instead I choose to learn from this experience. I don't expect to be perfect. My hope is to always work through these problems in a professional manner. And that's what I plan on doing this week as I prepare my final attempt for this project.

Freelance Week 10

2 eggs, scrambled, and 2 cups of coffee, black. This is my morning routine. Staying 2 days in Austin for SXSW doesn't really lend itself to normal routines though. So I had to improvise. One morning was coffee with 2 breakfast tacos (win) and the next was coffee with no breakfast (fail). All in all, it was a good trip but I'm happy to be back home.

I'm hard-pressed to remember any real valuable lessons I learned this past week. The pages in mind keep flipping back the past seven days and nothing stands out. But who knows, maybe there's a lesson in not learning a lesson.

Looking out over the next few weeks I'm excited for a few reasons:

1. I'm starting a new branding project that is going to be a lot of "fun"

2. Our good friends from Colorado, Tim and Laurie Thornton, will be in town

3. My wife and I will be heading to Colorado for a week with friends and art shows

If I were to leave any type of encouragement this week, it would be this: Don't lose hope. Sometimes that is all I feel remains. Friends fail. Family hurts. Jobs suck. But hope is the gift we have to believe in something greater. Don't limit your hopes by where you are today. Think bigger. Dream greater. Live fuller.

Trend Setters

As creative people we live and breath in an environment all our own. Sometimes I like to imagine it's like that awesome 90's flick, Bio-Dome, where everything is green and lush and beautiful. But the reality is it's just a bubble. And there's a whole big world outside our tiny, albeit beautiful, little design world. There is a point to this post, I promise. Today I came across another instance where the little guy gets stepped on by the big corporate bully. Okay, maybe not that harsh, but it was a clear case of stealing someones work without any attribution. And what's worse, is the big corporations can get away with this (for the most part) because everyone else in this world who doesn't live in our tiny design bubble doesn't have a clue they're ripping anyone off. Sad, I know.

So let's put on our big boy (and girl) pants and accept our roles in society. We, as creative people, have a job of creating new trends, whether we know it or not. And sometimes that can turn around and bite us in the ass. As in the example I saw today, and have seen a growing number of times over the past couple years, people were outraged at what they saw. But let's not waste our time raging against the system, because the system is far too entrenched in it's own stench to change now. Instead let's educate ourselves about how to obtain patents and trademarks for the work we create.

If we're only ever pumping work out into the vast web-o-sphere then we have no one to blame but ourselves when it's ripped off. And unless we're willing to risk our work being copied without any compensation, then I suggest we start to learn what the big corporate dummies already know, and that is how to legally trademark and copyright our work.

But this is just a thought. My two cents if you will. Take it or leave it.