Travelling through the lens of Instagram

Figure 1. A young woman is taking a selfie, Positano village in the background

If you search “#travel” in the Instagram search bar, you will find more than 517,000,000 posts using the hashtag. Very quickly you will see photo upon photo of beaches, castles, lakes, mountains, and monuments. Is what we really see all just Plato’s “shadows in a cave”?

On Instagram it is very easy to come across a friend, or an influencers travel photos. These could be photos of them riding a moped in Bali, swimming in hot springs in Tuscany or riding a camel in Egypt. Thus, creating what is known as “wanderlust” with many being inspired by popular travel inspiration accounts such as @chrisburkard, @danielkordan or @doyoutravel. You must often wonder if the reality of their photos is what they seem. Is the reality of the photo your reality or the reality of the photographers? To the viewer it may just be another beautiful photo, but to the photographer there may be a deeper connection. This could be either to the person that took the photo, or to the memory attached to the photo that they may reminisce about. When Kuttainen (2020) describes Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, she says that the prisoners in the cave believe the shadows to be real. Are these Instagram photo’s merely shadows? That generates the thoughts and the questions; is that place really that beautiful? Are those colours that bright in real life? You also do not tend to see tourist shops, tour guides or salespeople in the backgrounds of landmarks such as Niagara Falls. Where are all the other tourists?

Instagram has been constructive in modern technology (including travel) in that people can express themselves through photography, they can share their travels and “must visit places” and explore their self-identity while sharing with followers. Viewers can see sights of the world such as the Eiffel Tower and the Mona Lisa from the comfort of their couch. People that may never be able (or wish) to travel, can still view all the things that the world has to offer. However, is it just a virtual interpretation that we are viewing?

For people who have travelled outside of Australia, you will understand that there are some fact and fiction to this. Danaher (2017) states “virtual versions of these kinds can never be real; they can only be simulations or representations”.  This means that while getting reviews and views from all over the world in the palm of your hand is great, it is not the same as having the firsthand experience. You are not experiencing the ‘feeling’ and emotion attached to a place. When asked to describe a ‘feeling’ of a place, a friend said “ going to Stonehenge was an ‘in awe’ emotion that you were actually standing in the same place as the people who built it thousands of years ago – to me that was incredible but to my friend it was just a pile of big rocks”. Even though the two travellers had the same experience they did not share the same emotion. Online your experience will only ever be a representation. On Instagram you are only having the sight sense fulfilled. When actually experiencing “leaving the cave” you can smell the aromas in the air, feel the textures of those beautiful colourful scarves, taste on your lips the sweetness of that papaya, and hear the sounds of the bustling streets (see Figure 2 & 3). 

Figure 2. Tourist taking selfie while eating an ice cream.

Figure 3. People taking a selfie together in group during a Holi celebration party in India.

Chen et al. stated that taking photos enhances your emotional well being. Travellers that have been “outside the cave” of Australia can say that this is true. Viewing past photos can take you back to a memory of a place and events that may have happened there. When returning to Australia, you can tell your friends and family about the experience and show them photos. However, unless they have been there themselves- it is just a visual representation of a reality they have not experienced. A reality that they will not understand until they leave the cave themselves. It is only when you leave the cave that you understand the ‘virtual experience’ is through another person’s camera lens.

 

References

Chen, Y., Mark, G. & Ali, S. (2016, July 4). Promoting positive affect through smartphone photography. Psych Well-Being, 6 (8). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13612-016-0044-4

Comi, A. (n.d). Figure 1. A young woman is taking a selfie, Positano village in the background. Getty Images. https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/photo/young-woman-is-taking-a-selfie-positano-village-in-royalty-free-image/916928478?adppopup=true

Danaher, J. (2017, September 18). The reality of virtual reality: a philosophical analysis. Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. https://ieet.org/index.php/IEET2/more/Danaher20170918

Debat, A. (n.d). Figure 3. People taking a selfie together in group during a Holi celebration party in India. Getty Images. https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/photo/people-taking-a-selfie-together-in-group-during-a-royalty-free-image/544639310?adppopup=true

Instagram. Search for “travel”. Retrieved 10/09/2020 from https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/travel/

Kuttainen, V. (2020). BA1002: Our Space: Networks, Narrative and the Making of Place; week 7 lecture. LearnJCU. https://learn.jcu.edu.au/

Ted-Ed. (2015, March 17). Plato’s Allegory of the Cave - Alex Gendler [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RWOpQXTltA

Tomm, L. (n.d). Figure 2. Tourist taking selfie while eating an ice cream. Getty Images. https://www.gettyimages.com.au/detail/photo/tourist-taking-selfie-while-easting-an-ice-cream-royalty-free-image/940034606?adppopup=true