Lots of parents refuse to put their kids on Instagram because it feels too public. I respect that but and plastered my five-year-old Lulu and three-year-old Marcos all over my feed. I was a newspaper photojournalist for years, and I鈥檓 used to capturing and sharing photos publicly. Since I鈥檓 now a dad and not chasing news stories, my kids are my subjects and I chase smiles, passed-out toddlers聽after a day on the hill, and other moments that capture the awesomeness of childhood.聽I鈥檓 so used to shooting photos that I can鈥檛 not pull out my phone when they do something funny or cute. Plus, it helps build my personal brand.
There are rules, of course: I never share anything that I think they鈥檇 hate to see once they鈥檙e older. I thought about posting photos of them throwing fits鈥攁s a way to be more honest with my followers鈥攂ut my wife and I talked it over and decided that the kids might not want to 蝉别别听迟丑别尘蝉别濒惫别蝉 losing it. They can鈥檛 control themselves right now, so I felt like it wasn鈥檛 fair to show them pissed off.
If it鈥檚 even close to the line, I pass the photo by my wife, who鈥檚 not a photographer and has a thicker filter. Right now聽I get a lot of satisfaction out of sharing our moments, but ultimately, Instagram motivates me to shoot more photos. I鈥檓 not just taking pictures and letting them sit on my phone;聽I have somewhere to share them. My feed only captures lighthearted moments鈥攍ike聽Marcos learning to ski by himself or Lulu honing her rock-climbing skills at our camping spot in Moab, Utah, last聽summer鈥攂ut that鈥檚 what family albums are all about.聽I hope that one day聽my kids are thankful I documented their lives.
In full transparency, my feed also promotes my brand as an adventure writer, which I鈥檓 fine with. Instagram proves that I don鈥檛 just talk about skiing with my kids, I actually do it. I don鈥檛 just want that beautiful Patagonia onesie for my boy because it鈥檚 cool鈥攈e actually uses the crap out of it. Instagram builds my equity with the brands, agencies, and magazines I work with颅. At times I question whether this is exploitative, but the answer I always land on is no. My career as a journalist has provided my family with a lot聽of gear and opportunities that we might not otherwise have had, and if Instagram helps keep that going, I鈥檓 all for it.
Currently, I have about 2,400 followers, which is small compared to the influencer聽crowd聽but larger than your normal parent. I do use two hashtags specific to my kids: #lulugrams and #marcographs. Most of my followers are family and folks I鈥檝e met on the road as a journalist. I鈥檓 not close to everyone, but I consider them friends or acquaintances, so it doesn鈥檛 feel like I鈥檓 sending my kids鈥 photos off to some random group of people. Instead, I feel like I鈥檓 sharing my daily life, just like people might share their family highlights on a Christmas card.
For my mom, who lives two hours away from our home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Instagram is a way to keep up on the day-to-day of the family. She checks it every morning to see what鈥檚 going on. For my aunt who doesn鈥檛 get to see the kids very often, she feels closer to them because she knows what鈥檚 going on when she sees my posts. My mother-in-law loves to share my photos with her friends.
My feed will eventually change. If either of my kids feel like they鈥檙e sick of me posting their images, I鈥檒l stop. I know that people are not going to be as interested in seeing my children聽once they鈥檙e older because that cute-kid factor wears off. And I realize that Instagram will probably go away and be replaced by some other social platform. I鈥檓 fine with all of this, but until it happens, I鈥檓 going to keep shooting and posting.