BY Mackenzie Maher
Staff Reporter
Find the right backdrop. Switch between multiple different angles and poses. Prepare the picture with edits and filters. Think of the perfect witty caption that fits the photo. Upload and wait for the likes to flow in.
This is the process that junior Julia Meltzer follows when she uploads her pictures onto Instagram.
“I based my entire Halloween costume this year around an Instagram caption that I thought of first. I think it’s cute and will get a lot of likes,” said Meltzer.
She says she will be dressing up as a football referee for Halloween.
Some students say they must maintain a certain image on their social media pages.
“I use specific filters on my pictures and feel like I have to keep that up every time I post,” said sophomore Madison Craig. “If one picture doesn’t have the same exact filter, the rest of my feed will just look off.”
Many students purchase Instagram Presets for their photos. Presets are pre-made filters that you can buy from the internet. They can be applied to any photo with edits and effects using an editing program such as Adobe Lightroom.
“Using presets on my pictures has really changed the way I edit my photos and perceive myself on social media,” said senior Maria Koch. “It makes uploading the pictures next to each other go smoothly and makes me feel like my life is put together even when it’s not.”
According to Lightroomfreepresets.com, the California Lova Collection Lightroom Presets (which includes four Lightroom mobile and desktop presets in the edits, California Sun, California Pop, California Chill and California Dream) can be purchased for $19.90.
Some students say they will plan their Instagram posts around an event they are going to because they can get a good post from it.
“If I know I’m going to be doing something fun, such as the President’s Gala, I will try to tell myself to get a good picture so I have the option to post it later on,” said junior Sarah Lacey.
On the other hand, some students say they do not care about the aesthetics of their instagram profile and will post whatever they want.
“I’ve never gone out of my way to go to a certain place or event just for the main purpose of getting the right picture for Instagram,” said sophomore Madison Bellemare.
Many students say they do not keep up with social media trends and will not buy specific items to fit a popular social media trend.
“I already wore scrunchies and owned a hydro flask before the VSCO girl trend became a thing,” said freshman Arianna Harrington. “People constantly come up to me and ask if I’m a VSCO girl because I have a scrunchie around my wrist but I just like that item, it’s something I’ve always worn. I never intentionally bought it because it was part of a social media trend.”
Some students say they don’t have time to keep up with the trend of having an aesthetically pleasing Instagram.
“I don’t care what my pictures look like before I post them,” said sophomore Gianni Occhipinti. “I take a picture and automatically upload it, there’s no editing involved at all. I have not posted a picture on Instagram since May 13. It’s honestly too much of a hassle for me to keep up with.”
