My wife got me hooked on Instagram. I was about to take a cross Canada road trip a few years ago, and she thought it would be the perfect time for me to sign up and document the trip through posted photographs. I was a Twitter guy, and didn’t think I’d have the time or interest in Instagram, but I gave it a try, and suddenly realized that every cliché they ever say about the power of the photograph is true. Suddenly, Twitter felt as old-hat as sending a telegram.
Instagram launched in 2010 with the dead-simple format of posting a photo and a caption (and maybe adding a filter or two to make that sunset Mars-like surreal). Five years later, Instagram now boasts over 300 million users, who post over 70 million photos a day worldwide.
I’m one (@grantlawrencecbc) and I follow about 1,500 others, mostly Vancouverites. And so in no particular order, here’s my five favourite Vancouver Instagrammers, who snap and show off their lives in our city.
1. @piperwinston is Laura Bancroft, a designer, blogger, and fantastic shutterbug who has a keen eye for detail in both the outdoors (oceans and forests) and indoors (interior design). She also happens to be engaged to Tyler Bancroft from beloved Vancouver band Said The Whale.
2. @vancouverkingsway is Rachel Sanders, a journalist and blogger who manages to beautifully capture the “grubby nooks and crannies” of the “perverse directionality” of Kingsway and its surrounding neighbourhoods in flux.
3. @miss604 is Rebecca Bollwitt, an award-winning blogger, author, and columnist who shows off Vancouver and its oceanic environs in the very best possible light.
4. @historical_vancouver is Gary Grennan, a Point Roberts fireman and juicer (like actual juice) who became hooked on fascinating older photos of Vancouver. In turn, his account has opened up a window for us all to the city’s earliest days.
5. @tinseltownmall is an anonymous account, and I think they like it that way, as this is an absolutely hilarious send up of Vancouver’s weirdest mall (also known as “The International Village”). My only complaint: post more often!
Honourable mentions: @misstiffytaylor @gracepartridge @georgevancouver @ashperson @gatesandgarages @gadabouttown @christine_mcavoy @artofbryce @christian_leblanc
Who are your favourite Vancouverites to follow on Instagram? Let me know: @grantlawrencecbc
