Best of Instagram
Social media, as we all probably realise, is a double-edged sword. At its worst it’s a cesspool of hatred and vitriol. A platform for ignorance and self-aggrandisement. But at its best it’s a way of sharing passions and ideas across the world in a way that we could never have dreamt of twenty years ago.
I spent a couple of weeks with a personal twitter account last year and nearly got sucked into a vortex of anger and point scoring before I deleted my account. I’ve never had a Facebook account, and although I may have missed out on a few things the absence of the “f” logo from my ‘phone screen, the lack of signing up has become a point of pride!
However, as a photographer I have always enjoyed the concept of Instagram. Suddenly, exactly ten years ago, the thing that I had been doing for decades, making images, became a global hobby. Of course, 95% of it is drivel - the creating of inauthentic personas and lifestyles that just don’t exist in any form of the real world. But in the wooden boat community there are a few feeds that educate, inform and amuse.
I think the key to have a successful account in this space is to firstly provide information but to do it with personality. Here are half a dozen accounts that I feel do this particularly well.
In no particular order:
A small yacht chandler in London that’s been around for four hundred years. Wonderful products, fascinating stories, interesting opinions. Supplied expeditions such as Ernest Shackleton, Bill Tillman and George Mallory along with many others.
Documenting the building of a 45-meter cargo schooner in the Costa Rican jungle that will carry goods by sail around the pacific America’s to prove the value of ethical and clean transport. The scale of this project is awe inspiring!
Lots in interesting vessels in various states of repair, mainly on Port Jackson. Not all timber and not all sailing but some great factual history with a very personal twist. And a few great opportunities to get involved on a budget!
A very personal account of the custodianship and incremental improvement of the 100-year-old Alden Ketch ALTAIR in the Canadian pacific northwest. Lots of recent setbacks (such as a snapped mainmast) all expressed with honesty and feeling.
Vignettes from a small Tassie Cray boat based on Pittwater. Lovely evocative imagery and a sense of what’s possible in a simple floating lifestyle.
Ratsey and Lapthorn have been making sails on the Isle of Wight for over 220 years. In 1795 Lord Collingwood was a strong advocate of what he saw as the better sails coming from Ratsey's. Some of which were flown on HMS Victory by Lord Nelson in 1805 at the battle of Trafalgar. There Instagram feed, while obviously used as a marketing tool is a wonderful catalogue of traditional sail making techniques and history.
Editor // Mark Chew