Content isn't king... say whaaaaat?!?

I hate to break it to you, but content isn't king anymore... Neither is it queen! But I'll tell you what is: Connection.

We live in a time where the creation and sharing of content is so unbelievably easy. Social media platforms allow us to share our photographs and our daily snapshots in just a few seconds and have them reach people all over the world. We share, and share, and share and we enjoy seeing what others share, and share, and share! But have you ever felt like you were kind of drowning in this vast sea of content? I definitely have!

For me, art is supposed to move, not fly past me in a scroll.

But I do get the majority of my new clients through Instagram, so I know the value of the platform, and for a while I figured that the more I posted, the more potential clients I would reach. Until I realised I actually don’t want to reach just anyone, my photography is all about connecting.

You know how as kids we were taught "sharing is caring"? Well, I reached the point where I felt like sharing on social media should feel the same way—it shouldn't leave me feeling empty but rather leave me feeling connected and leave me knowing that my art connected with people!

Do I still want to reach many people? Sure, but more importantly I want to reach people who want to connect the same way I do—these are the clients I want to attract, so these are the people I post content for. When I choose what to post and what kind of caption to share with it, I always pretend that I am posting for one single person. And I want every person that comes across my post to feel like I am specifically addressing them. I want them to feel as connected to my art as I do, to become a part of the story that each one of my photographs tells, the emotions they convey. I love to share something about the day of the shoot, the story behind the composition or the model, a specific emotion a photo might evoke in myself, etc. And I always encourage the viewer to share their thoughts, because I don’t just want them to feel connected to my art and me, I, myself, seek to connect with the viewer on the other side of the screen.

Whenever I post I want to connect with potential new clients, old clients, and like-minded creatives, that are on a similar journey as me. I photograph to empower my clients, to empower myself, and to empower other photographers and that is the exact same mindset with which I share online.

At the end of the day all the likes and shares in the world mean less than hearing from people what my photography means to them—how it inspired them, how it empowered them. And isn’t that at the core of why we decided to become artists?

Keep that in mind when you post, everyone can share photos these days but it takes effort to truly connect with your audience. And a connection runs so much deeper than just a pretty picture. You’ll stay in someone’s mind as an emotion, a relationship, a connection, rather than just as a photographer that shoots nice pics.

In every click, prioritise connection, it is what breathes life into your photographs—what turns them from photos into stories, experiences, relations.