So how come this particular app, produced by a team of only six designers and developers, has suddenly amassed a user group of almost 10 million? Let’s take a quick look…

What is Instagram?

As mentioned above, the Instagram app allows you to take photos using any iPhone or iPod Touch compatible device and apply a selection of funky-named filters (Hudson, Lomo-fi, Sutro, Inkwell, 1977 etc) that allow you to give your photos a particular look that throws back to the days of Kodak Instamatic and Polaroid cameras.

The result isn’t a perfect, crystal-clear and colour-perfect shot. Far from it in fact, but therein lies one of the hooks. For whatever reason, Instagram, to put it bluntly, allows users to make even the most ordinary, badly composed, horribly lit, lifeless photos look cool. While this gives photography purists the absolute irrits, it does give the average iPhone user a fighting chance when it comes to snapping shots worthy of sharing with their friends and family.

What is responsible for the sudden Instagram craze?

Without question, Instagram’s move to build a community around their app by building in easy-to-use tools for sharing the photos taken with a number of popular social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Tumblr has greatly enhanced their popularity. With just a few easy taps, someone can share a cool shot of whatever it is they are doing or experiencing with their network of friends and family.

For some it eliminates the need to carry around a compact camera altogether, and the results, just like the good ol’ days of the polaroid camera, are instant. You just shoot, filter, caption, geo-tag and share! It’s as easy as that.

5 great online Instagram related services

So without further to do, here’s a list of FIVE great online Instagram related services that will allow you to extend your interaction with the application that’s taking the iPhone community by storm:

1. Followgram

With all of the great things Instagram has going for it, one of the gaping holes in the service is the provision of web-based user profiles. The app is quite rightly built as a mobile experience, but there are times when you might want to check out a user’s details and archive of shots while you’re sitting at a laptop or desktop computer.

This is where followgram.me comes in. By using your already registered Instagram login to gain access, you can have your very own web-based Instagram profile set up within minutes. Perfect!

2. Stickygram

This one is a little gimmicky, but I love the concept and already have friends who swear by it. Stickygram is a simple service that allows you to order your favourite Instagram shots as a set of fridge magnets. Delivered world-wide, the magnets are a perfect gift idea for friends and loved ones allowing them to add a stylish part of you to their lives.

At the time of writing this, you can get your hands on a set of 9 magnets for USD$14.99. Add to that FREE shipping to anywhere in the world and it’s a service worth checking out for sure!

3. Statigram

Like most things in the “Social Media” sphere these days, it’s nice to be able to have at least a bit of an idea as to what content you are “putting out there” is the most viewed, the most popular and/or the most loved.

Statigram allows you to view, or have a number of “snapshots” of your usage of Instagram emailed to you on a regular basis, and in doing so gives you some kind of ongoing insight into what your most popular photos are.

4. Postagram

There’s been a number of times in the past that I’ve thought to myself, gee it would be nice to send a photo of what I’m looking at right now to my Grandparents. I mean, they’re not “online” at all, so sending a simple email with a photo attached isn’t an option, and they live far enough away that I’m not going to be guaranteed of seeing them every other week, so if there was an effortless way of sending them pics with a message attached, I’d be all over it.

What I have just discussed in the latter part of that paragraph above is EXACTLY what the awesome “Postagram” does for you. Install the app, take an Instagram photo, add a message, choose a recipient and mailing address and a cool postcard of your photo (which can be popped out of the card) is sent off by snail mail.

It appears that sadly, Postagram is only available in the USA right now, but I’m hopeful that the service, or some kind of copycat service will be available in Australia and Canada REAL soon!

5. Extragram

Rounding off the list of 5 great ways to extend your Instagram experience is “Extragram” – a beautifully designed “explorer” application that allows you to browse throughout the Instagram user base viewing the most popular photos from users you don’t know, all the shots your friends have taken as well as a full archive of all your own shots.

While Extragram does the same or a similar job to the other services, like Followgram, I have listed above, it does it in the best way I have found from a user experience point of view. Easy to navigate and thoughtfully and beautifully designed, it’s worth checking out if you’re at a desktop or laptop computer.

Once again, you can use your existing Instagram login to gain access, so there’s no extra registrations required – sweet!

UPDATE: But wait, there’s more!

6. Printstagram

With Xmas not that far away, the folk at “Printstagram” offer 5 great printing/gift options that draw on your Instagram creative archive! Posters, miniprints and more can be ordered and delivered worldwide!

I’m just thinking out aloud here, but how cool would one of those posters look on the back of the dunny door?? Get rid of that old calendar from the chemist that features an uninspiring stock photo of an old rusty tractor in a field, and adorn the “throne room” with something eye-catching and creative!

Also, check out the “Minibook” and cute “Tinybook” options for truly unique and cheap gift ideas.

The World Press Photo 11 exhibition, presented by Canon and TNT, is showing at the Brisbane Powerhouse from now until Sunday the 26th June, 2011. The free exhibition features a selection of winning shots from the prestigious 2010 competition which received a record 108,059 entries from 5,691 professional photographers from 125 countries.

After having done so myself today, I can highly recommend spending an hour or two perusing the selection of inspiring shots from around the world, spread throughout one of Brisbane’s most spectacular multi-arts venues. A word of warning though, it’s probably not quite the family outing to take your young kids to. A good few of the powerful images, especially those on display in the Turbine Hall, are somewhat graphical in nature and are quite confronting for adults, let alone children.

Grab one of the limited free car parking spaces at Brisbane’s Powerhouse and check out the World Press Photo 11 exhibition between 9am-5pm on Mon-Fri, and 10am-4pm on the weekends.

As a taster, here’s some of the winning images you can expect to see in large format at the exhibition.

As someone who has a HUGE passion for travel photography, I would love to spend hours perusing the competition entries. I really hope the exhibition, unlikely a chance as it may be, makes the trip down to Australia sometime in 2011. In the meantime, here’s a taster of some of the amazing entries submitted this year.

Kicking things off (above) is a stunning entry featuring an adolescent brown bear hunting the salmon run in Alaska as captured by Eric Kruszewski (USA). The shot was awarded winner of the “New Talent 2010 – Sell It!” category.

For more images, check out the full gallery of winning entries on the “Travel Photographer of the Year” website.

Held at the Gaythorne Community War Memorial in Sid Loder Park, the march and hour or so long service was participated in by surviving diggers, their families, soldiers, community groups and school children, ensuring that the ANZAC legend rightfully lives on across multiple generations.

Once again, I’m proud to have been able to attend the service and hope that the images I snapped (below) give you a bit of an idea of what the ceremony was like.

Lest we forget.

After nearly 3 weeks of unrelenting rainfall across the state of Queensland which has seen a number of small towns ripped apart, sometimes repeatedly, by walls of water sweeping through their communities, the surge of water has made its way through the various river systems to the capital in the State’s south east. Hundreds of stranded people have required rescuing and the Queensland Emergency Services have so far been outstanding in their efforts which are continuing around the clock.

To put things into perspective, the flood affected area state-wide is the equivalent of France and Germany combined, or for the Yanks out there, two times the size of Texas. An estimated 19,700 residential properties are expected to experience flooding across their entire property either already, or over the week ahead.

Brisbane Braces Itself

The Brisbane River, the snaking body of water responsible for Brisbane’s “The River City” tag, has swelled beyond its banks on the way to a record level of 5.5 metres expected sometime early tomorrow morning. Many of the Riverside attractions in the heart of the city including the State Library, the Gallery of Modern Art, South Bank, Suncorp Stadium, Queensland Tennis Centre and the Eagle Street Pier have been consumed by flood waters and even iconic establishments like the unfortunately named “Drift” restaurant (formerly “Oxley’s”) have been completely washed away and destroyed.

Once affectionately referred to as “BrisVegas” and now “BrisVenice”, the city has, not surprisingly, experienced floods like this before. In 1974, some 40 years ago, “14 people lost their lives, mostly by drowning, in the suburbs of Yeronga, Newmarket, St Lucia, and the city of Ipswich upriver and to the West. The total damage in Brisbane and the surrounding areas was estimated at over AU$200 million (1974 values).” (Source: Wikipedia).

It has already been estimated that the current natural disaster will indeed eclipse the 1974 occurrence which is a frightening prospect for all affected Brisbane residents, especially those who witnessed and endured the last nightmare.

So far the death toll across the State officially stands at 12 with many more people (51 as I type this) missing throughout Queensland, especially in hard hit remote towns in areas like the Lockyer Valley (west of Brisbane). With stories circulating suggesting that there are many people who have suffered the horror of witnessing their neighbours being swept away by the floods, there is no doubt that this heartbreaking number of persons lost will rise as the floodwaters abate.

For those of you interested in keeping up to date with the latest in this developing tragedy here are a few decent resources:

• ABC News 24 Live Stream
• The Courier Mail Online
• Map Visage River Level Map

How Canadians Can Help

As a Brisbane boy who is struggling with the inability to help his fellow Aussie from thousand of miles away in Canada, it would be remiss of me not to at least mention how we Canucks can help. While Queenslanders are a tough and resilient mob, there is no doubt that the State is going to take a multi-billion dollar hit as a result of this natural disaster, and sadly there are going to be countless families left with nothing once the flood waters subside.

For more details, visit the Queensland Government Flood Relief Fund information page.

Vancouver’s Opportunity to Make A Difference

I feel like Vancouver has a golden opportunity to make a difference with Australia Day only a couple of weeks away. I think it would be awesome if a reputable and prominent bar/restaurant/club would put on a charity event on January 26th (Australia Day) with the bulk of the proceeds collected from things such as door cover charge, raffles, donation buckets etc donated to the “Premiers Disaster Relief Appeal” (see above).

With a history of charitable activity and a swag of super popular establishments throughout Vancouver, I was thinking that perhaps “The Donnelly Group” would perhaps be the perfect candidates for this effort. With pubs and clubs in their stable including “The Academic”, “Cinema”, “The Lamplighter”, “Library Square”, “Republic” & “The New Oxford” I think there’s a real opportunity for a HUGE Australia Day event that could benefit the people that need help the most throughout Queensland.

I have no contacts within the group, but would be happy and eager to talk to anyone who does. If you think you can help me get the ball rolling on the idea, send me a message or contact me on Twitter (@masey).

Finally, if enough people Tweet about this post and share it with their friends, hopefully we can at the very least increase the awareness of what is going on in Queensland right now. There is a selection of share buttons below to help you out with making this happen!

Thanks!

Whether anyone believes me or not, I had a funny feeling that we were going to be in for a great sunset and it’s always been a dream/bucket list item to be up on Grouse overlooking Vancouver’s downtown as the sun set at the distant reaches of English Bay. I’ve heard people rave about the spectacle, some going as far as saying it’s a truly unique experience that everyone should have the chance to take in before they die. I, for one, didn’t need anymore motivation to get up there!

The 45min or so journey from my apartment to the Grouse Mountain chalet is less than an hour despite covering three modes of public transport (Skytrain, Seabus & Bus). Sounds unbelievable to have a hill the quality of Grouse so close to home, but Vancouverites are well aware of the fortunate position they find themselves in.

Heading across Burrard Inlet on the Seabus, the ski fields (see image below) beckon in the distance not all that far away from my workplace (approx. 17 minutes by Bus). Crazy, I know!

Once at the top, I strapped in, got a few runs on “The Cut” under my belt before heading straight for the Quicksilver Terrain Park to see if there were any gun boarders and skiers around, flipping and contorting in the air. The following are a a few shots I captured of some pretty talented kids.

Leaving the terrain park, it was up to “The Peak” and the highest vantage point possible from which to catch the pending sunset.

The whole idea was to get a few quality runs in as the sun dropped behind the horizon and give the sky a chance to be drenched in colour, ready for me to snap the shot I have been wanting to take for almost 6 years now. Here’s what I ended up with.

What do you think? It’ll do, eh? – haha! Good enough to make it into my project365 as day #3 anyway.

I can’t recommend a Grouse Mountain winter sunset viewing enough. Whether on ski, board, snowshoe or foot, it’s a spectacle I’ll certainly remember for a long time and I hope others who have not known about it get the chance to experience too after reading this entry.

From a personal perspective, I hope to improve, through this project, a number of areas of my own photographic skills including more quality images from less shots, improved portraits and also just applying the sort of discipline required to keep up with this kind of project.

Where can you view the shots?

Of course, I’m going to share the daily shots with you all in a couple of different ways:

1. My project365 blog page

If you’re a regular visitor to my site, this is perhaps the easiest place to check on a daily basis. Just click on the project365 menu item at the top of the page and you can scroll through all the shots that have been posted since January 1.

Bookmark the page and it will be even easier to find each day!

2. My project365 Flickr set

I have created a project365 set on my Flickr account which is where I will be posting the daily shots. If you’d like to leave a comment on any of the pics, this will be the place to do it.

You can also subscribe to the RSS feed for this set. Add the feed to your feed reader and you’ll have the photo releases as they happen!

3. My tumblr blog “Masey’s Minor Musings”

The Flickr feed mentioned above is automatically pulled into my tumblr blog “Masey’s Minor Musings”. In amongst all the random videos, images, quotes and other bits and pieces I post each day, each project365 image will apear. Cool!

4. On the www.mostly365.com website

This last gem is actually something I literally stumbled across while writing this post. The lovely Lisa Bettany (MostlyLisa) and “tap tap tap”, the makers of the awesome iPhone camera app “Camera+” have come up with a new website where you can share your daily photos with the world with one tweet. All I do is add the hashtag #mostly365 to my daily tweets when a new project365 shot is published and it pops up in the gallery for the given day on the mostly365.com site.

Check the site out for yourself when you get some spare time and check out all of the photos that people are taking as part of their own 365 photography projects.

Featuring numerous marching bands, dance troupes, emergency service vehicles, community group floats, those awesome blue jackets and red mittens of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics volunteers, and, of course old Saint Nick himself, the parade drew a crowd of thousands as the dry conditions allowed people to leave home and flock down town to take in the colourful spectacle.

Although I was continually pushed and crowded out of any spot I tried to secure to grab a few shots, I did manage to snap a few frames from the afternoon. All-in-all it was a really entertaining event. I think the kids around me got a real kick out of the whole shebang, and Vancouver’s down town finally got that tingling “Olympic Buzz” back, albeit for a couple of festive hours this afternoon!

All I can say about the entire gig was that it was a lot of fun, both Katie (who I took with me) and I had a tonne of laughs… and we’ve come to the conclusion that Sara Bareilles has an “interesting” selection of fans. Not quite sure how else to put that – I guess you kind of had to be there…

Anyway, less talk from me and more pics from what was yet another enjoyable night of good music at The Commodore.

This belief is no doubt a large influencing factor in the minds of the thousands of talented hopefuls currently submitting amazing images across the three broad categories People, Places & Nature, in the 2010 National Geographic Photography Contest.

Up for grabs is a $10,000 purse as well as the invaluable opportunity to have the winning image published in National Geographic magazine. With entries closing on November 30 at 9am, there’s about 10 days left for entrants to get in their submissions.

With eight weeks of entries already in, the following are some of my favourites from all three categories. The leading image for me thus far, however, is the photo I have led with in this post titled “Cockfight” by very talented photographer “Ario Wibisono”.