It’s not that Instagram has changed photography in the way the invention of photography changed painting in the 19th century. It’s more radical than that.
The photo-sharing network has actually become photography. Launched in 2010 as a free mobile app, Instagram now has over 500 million users a month and is estimated to be worth over $30 billion.
It gives the world’s two billion smartphone users access to a global marketplace of imagery. Photography is no longer the province of professionals. Nor are family snaps consigned to neglected memorial albums. After nearly 200 years, photography is realising its potential. If you wanted an example of disruptive technology, here it is. We’re all photographers and curators now.