The other day I got a call from my gallerist, Bryan Ohno, and we had one of our usual spirited discussions. Among the many subjects we covered Bryan asked me to pull back from social media and limit my posts for a certain period of time; several months to be exact.
My first reaction was not only no, but hell no.
I have been participating in photography as a social media construct for several years now. I think my instincts have served me well when it comes to building an audience. I helped to build up BrickCentral to what is was last December, I have built a fairly loyal following on Instagram and I have made connections and friends world wide. Not to mention my work has improved by the daily practice.
Somehow I think I should continue to trust my instincts, they have served me well.
But then I got to thinking, maybe he was right; maybe I post too much. Maybe my work is worth less because I am so prolific; remember the idea that scarcity creates value?
So if I post too much, what is the right amount?
As is often the case life intervenes. As a few of you know I am active on Google+ (well about as active there as I am on Flickr and Facebook) and I group my toy photograph posts into what is referred to as a “Collection.” My collection was chosen as a one of Google’s official collections this week. I was extremely pleased and I have seen an increase in traffic and followers to the collection. So I must be doing something right, right?
If I am looking for exposure and building a fan base, how does limiting my work flow and posting schedule help me on the sales end of the equation?
Then I think about Vesa and his amazing Hoth images which I believe have been featured on the internet in just about every location you can imagine. Although this could be considered over exposure, it doesn’t seem to have diminished their value, if anything it has increased their value.
As an old school artist I can see where Bryan is coming from and I wonder if he is right and I should limit my exposure. Maybe posting daily to Instagram and sporadically on the multiple other platforms I play on is too much. But what does too much look like? Has social media changed the way we view photography in such a way that we are all sailing in uncharted waters?
I have a feeling there are no easy answers nor a clear road map for a successful art career anymore. As always I will take his words into consideration and try to find a compromise. I don’t know if he is right, but my instincts tell me I need to consider all my options carefully.
~ xxSJC
When does posting to social media become too much? Where do you cross the line between building an audience and over exposure?
Do you post daily? How many social media platforms do you post on?
If you post to multiple platforms do you post the same image everywhere on the same day or do you mix it up?
Hm, that’s a very interesting question, and you raise a good point: If you’re seeing growth (creatively and otherwise) by doing things the way you are, is that a bad thing? I do see the value in dialing things down a bit and leaving your audience wanting more, but it’s a difficult tightrope to balance on, for sure.
It might be worth saving your best work for galleries, bigger reveals, etc. and using social media tools like Instagram for the daily “practice” work that may not be as important or potentially lucrative as other, better work. Maybe that way you can play both sides?
Thank you James for joining the discussion. I am actually leaning towards the plan you suggest; I have been dialing back certain aspects of social media and setting aside certain images and projects for galleries and other platforms. I have always been clear when I talk about the work that I treat Instagram as a sketchbook. There is really no comparison to an image that has been edited in 15 minutes on an iPad to one that takes hours in photoshop. The images I have shown and exhibited so far, bear very little resemblance to the image when it was originally seen on Instagram. Will the general public be able to tell the difference? Will they care? More questions to ponder as I continue to explore this uncharted territory.
Thanks again James for your thoughts on this issue!
Shelly