Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Brand new images? Implications of Instagram photography for place branding

Thelander, Åsa LU orcid and Cassinger, Cecilia LU orcid (2017) In Media and Communication 5(4).
Abstract
The aim of this article is to develop an understanding of what happens when Instagram photography is used for branding a place. Questions raised are which photographs are taken and published, does the practice result in novel ways of representing a place, and, in turn the image of a place. A practice approach to photography is used where focus is directed to the performative aspect of photography. Fifteen qualitative interviews were conducted with participants in an Instagram takeover project concerning their photographs. The study shows that adopting a communication strategy based on visual social media is dependent on the participants’ competencies and that it is embedded in everyday life. Moreover, the participants’ photographic... (More)
The aim of this article is to develop an understanding of what happens when Instagram photography is used for branding a place. Questions raised are which photographs are taken and published, does the practice result in novel ways of representing a place, and, in turn the image of a place. A practice approach to photography is used where focus is directed to the performative aspect of photography. Fifteen qualitative interviews were conducted with participants in an Instagram takeover project concerning their photographs. The study shows that adopting a communication strategy based on visual social media is dependent on the participants’ competencies and that it is embedded in everyday life. Moreover, the participants’ photographic practices were found to be influenced by social conventions, which resulted in the city being imagined differently by different participants. To use visual social media such as Instagram for branding purposes does not necessarily mean that novel images are generated, but that they are choreographed according to the conditions of Instagram as medium.
(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
place branding, Instagram, photography, practice theory, visual communication
in
Media and Communication
volume
5
issue
4
article number
1053
publisher
Cogitatio Press
external identifiers
  • scopus:85039450138
ISSN
2183-2439
DOI
10.17645/mac.v5i4.1053
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
378354b1-681a-466f-bec5-b7d50a827bc8
date added to LUP
2017-08-28 13:07:30
date last changed
2025-03-17 23:56:58
@article{378354b1-681a-466f-bec5-b7d50a827bc8,
  abstract     = {{The aim of this article is to develop an understanding of what happens when Instagram photography is used for branding a place. Questions raised are which photographs are taken and published, does the practice result in novel ways of representing a place, and, in turn the image of a place. A practice approach to photography is used where focus is directed to the performative aspect of photography. Fifteen qualitative interviews were conducted with participants in an Instagram takeover project concerning their photographs. The study shows that adopting a communication strategy based on visual social media is dependent on the participants’ competencies and that it is embedded in everyday life. Moreover, the participants’ photographic practices were found to be influenced by social conventions, which resulted in the city being imagined differently by different participants. To use visual social media such as Instagram for branding purposes does not necessarily mean that novel images are generated, but that they are choreographed according to the conditions of Instagram as medium.<br/>}},
  author       = {{Thelander, Åsa and Cassinger, Cecilia}},
  issn         = {{2183-2439}},
  keywords     = {{place branding; Instagram; photography; practice theory; visual communication}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{4}},
  publisher    = {{Cogitatio Press}},
  series       = {{Media and Communication}},
  title        = {{Brand new images? Implications of Instagram photography for place branding}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.17645/mac.v5i4.1053}},
  doi          = {{10.17645/mac.v5i4.1053}},
  volume       = {{5}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}