Clever Instagram Account Highlights Visually Similar Influencer Photos

Instagram Account Exposes How All Adventure Photos Look the Same on Instagram

MCU back of head with outdoorsy hat 🎩 #personaloneinthewild

A post shared by Insta Repeat (@insta_repeat) on Jun 26, 2018 at 10:38pm PDT

If you scroll through Instagram long enough, you may start to notice something strange—everyone seems to have similar photographs. Don't believe it? Insta_repeat is a clever Instagram account that puts together collages of photos from across the popular social network. Though the photographers are unrelated, their imagery is eerily similar. Whether it's taking in the landscape from inside a tent or holding one's phone out to get a “picture in a picture,” the photos are a striking look at how we're visually gravitating toward “sameness.”

Most of the collages feature travel photos, with adventurous kayakers out on the water or wanderers standing alone on a snow-covered bridge being two popular tropes. Unsurprisingly, the account also features quite a few images of the Northern Lights, an enormously popular attraction. But interestingly, red houses also make frequent appearances. The lesson here? If you don't want your house photographed, don't paint it red!

The account was created by a 27-year-old American artist and filmmaker who wishes to remain anonymous, as a way to “critique originality in media creation.” Based in Alaska, she was partially inspired by all the adventure influencers whose imagery she saw popping up around her.

“What makes these images unique targets is the specific genre these accounts I feature fit within,” she tells Photogrist. “It’s this genre of adventurous and creative living, tagged with phrases like ‘liveauthentic' and ‘exploretocreate' that seems so ironic and thus an interesting target to me.”

While the account primarily focuses on outdoor and adventure photographs, the theme can be carried over into other areas. As influencers continue to shape our worldview, Insta_repeat is an important commentary on the current state of media and the public's consumption of these “Insta perfect” experiences.