Even if your starting out with photography, you can stand out and communicate visually with your own authentic style

How authenticity is the marketing currency of this social media age

I don’t have to tell you that social media is one of the main ways we market and spread our messages. Things have become so accessible for everyone that even though it has opened the door of opportunity to many, we have become flooded with messages. Even more with the high volume output of AI. Though AI can be a useful tool, those messages can be generic, or do not have that emotional intelligence component that is tailored to you and your audience. Then you have corporations with their large budgets and high production costs trying to reach large crowds. So how do we as individuals stand out in this sea of information? How do we connect and have impact with our messages? Well, worry not. It starts with being your unique and distinct authentic self. That which allows your soul to express itself and attract with your words, with a distinct photographic style, and knowing who your audience is. 

You do not need to be an expert photographer. What you need is to express your passion in your own words and visual language style. 

Let me tell you a story that happened a few years back to illustrate this. This is a story of how storytelling with pictures can create a community and create impact. 

A screenshot of posting of Blair Braverman about her sled dog Flame and the Iditarod

There is this famous 1,000 mile dog sledding race called the Iditarod that goes from Anchorage to Nome Alaska. It’s a grueling race, so much so, that they even honor the last team that reaches the finish line with the “red lantern” award. Traditionally, this is the lantern that they leave on till that last team crosses the arch at the finish line. Needless to say, no matter your position, if you completed the race you are a winner. 

A few years back Blair Braverman, a rookie musher (the driver in a dog sled), an adventurer, writer, advice columnist and expert storyteller on Twitter (now X) had a huge following. Her wholesome stories around her adventures and the personalities of her dogs were peppered with pictures that were out of focus, with dogs moving, or jumping. Some pictures were ok, occasionally good pictures, but they all complemented her stories perfectly well. She knew exactly what to show in her pictures to help illustrate her words. She was kind and engaging with her followers. Her followers were called #uglydogs because a troll once said “Go back to your ugly dogs!”. Charmingly they took on the moniker and all her fans are now called #uglydogs.  

Blair one year raced in the Iditarod. During the race mushers are disconnected from the digital world. They have trackers on them so her fans kept tracking her on the Iditarod map and communicated with each other via Twitter. One fan suggested that they help fund an Alaskan school field trip for a small school that was fundraising, which was situated along the route. The grassroots efforts began and within hours it was fully funded. 

But they didn’t stop there, they started the idea to find fundraisers for Alaskan schools along the route until Braverman reached the finish line. Some were for field trips, others for science projects, or school supplies. It became a beehive mentality. A few maintained an online spreadsheet helping coordinate everything, others where dedicated to vetting the fundraisers, etc. As Blair reached one of the stops in the race a teacher came to her and hugged her for funding her project. It came as a total surprise to her. By the time she finished her race in 14 days, her followers had fundraised $100,000! Blair created impact with her stories and engagement.  

Making an Impact when you communicate from the heart  

Humanity evolved to a point where cooperation and collaboration with our own individual talents were very important to build community. However, at one point many forgot about the importance of community letting individualism take over, or perceiving as a threat anyone that is not in their group. There needs to be a balance between individual needs, connectedness, and community in our society. We are not cogs in a machine, we are wired to be in community, to collaborate with our unique gifts, experiences, and emotions that are a piece of the puzzle that makes the community thrive. So ask yourself: 

• What impact do you want to make with your talents, abilities, and passion? 

• What is unique about you and what you can offer, and at the same time bring you joy? 

Images expedite and reinforce connections 

There is no doubt that we are a visual species. We can process images much faster than text which needs to be interpreted. Studies abound showing that text with images have more impact. Images are the hook that attracts attention, the companion to your text that illustrates, the picture that enhances your words, what puts things into context, sets the tone, or conveys emotions. Plus, with the consistency of your own style, they can easily identify you, that which goes beyond branding. 

Authenticity is the marketing currency that helps you stand out

Communicating in an authentic way is also important so you can connect and engage. Authenticity is the essence and honest part of you that shows your perspective. 

Take a moment to evaluate visuals very quickly and consider if it gives a generic, inauthentic vibe, like stock photos that are used extensively. Unfortunately many stock photos, which you can easily spot, are too generic, outdated in style, staged, cliche, or overused. Commercial photography was about selling products & services and now it’s about selling a lifestyle. However stock photos do have a place when properly selected and used as a design element.  

Unfortunately there is also a flood of information and everyone is chasing the latest trend to try to stand out, so much so, that many end up doing the same thing. 

As social media evolves we now turn to authenticity as the new currency. As an individual, authenticity is the way to stand out, showing your own uniqueness and your passion for what you want to share is the way to attract your audience and your tribe. Showing the context, the real story. You many not be as polished, but those little imperfections are what makes it real.

You do not need to be an expert photographer. What you need is to have your own visual language style. 

Yes, knowing your camera helps and just like there are different levels of writing from learning your abc’s to laureate poets, so too in the world of photography. But what makes things easier, simpler, and most accessible is the smartphone camera. You carry your smartphone camera with you everywhere you go. You don’t have to worry too much about technical aspects of the camera. Of course, knowing your camera and improving your photography with some basic composition skills helps too. When you couple that with your own visual style you can untame yourself a little, express yourself, and let your essence come out in your message.

Your own words and photographic style 

will help you stand out and communicate 

as your true authentic self with your audience.

Authenticity Takeaway 

So the point of all this is to think about what makes you “YOU”? What are your passions? What do you want to contribute and say to the world in your own way? Who do you want to say it to? It’s kinda like when you have your own fashion sense, or your own way of talking, in the same way you can have your own way of communicating visually. That is what will make you stand out for your right fit people.

Thank you for reading my first writing on Substack. If you are curious, please subscribe and I will be writing more on these type of subjects. Enjoy your picture taking.