Three years ago, Instagram was born. With the goal of making photography simple, fast and beautiful, the app took the world by storm and produced a new generation of wannabe photographers.
On Sunday, the company celebrated its third birthday. Three years of retro Polaroid-inspired photos that are accessible to anyone; there’s no need for photography skills or expensive SLRs here – your phone is now your camera.
The Instagram filters can make even the most boring photograph look like an old Polaroid discovered in an attic, with faded, romantic hues. The trend for everything vintage, antique and nostalgic made Instagram an instant hit. A total of 10,000 people downloaded the app within a matter of hours of its release, by the end of its first week that count had reached to 200,000 and after a month it hit the million users mark. Today the app is used by over 150 million people.
So what role has Instagram played in today’s internet culture? Well, Andy Murray used an Instagram video to thank his fans after winning Wimbledon. Some of the most important and controversial names in the world have Instagram accounts, from President Bashar al-Assad to Pope Francis. The royal baby pictures leaked on Instagram before many sites, and countless celebrities have flaunted everything from their engagement rings to first baby pictures to apparently news-worthy tattoos and haircuts on Instagram, making it the go-to place to go for what’s happening in the world.
So after being named iPhone App of the Year by Apple in 2011, Instagram has continued to soar. When Instagram for Android was released, it was downloaded a million times within the first 24 hours.
Two students at Stanford created the app, 150 million people are falling in love with photography because of it, and it’s only been around for three years. Here’s to the next three.
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