Are Photo Dumps the Means to Authenticity on Social Media?
This article analyzes the recent trend of 'photo dumps' on Instagram and whether or not their purpose of bringing authenticity is efficient. Originally published in Chronic! Zine.
Trends are a big part of discerning the cultural difference in various time periods. Social media has made it easier for that to happen, but faster. Every year, there are different viral trends we follow or memes we reference for a couple of weeks on Twitter, that leave just as fast as they enter our lives through social media. However, is this a natural product of society evolving or is this in relation to the gradual reduction in our attention spans?
In recent times, the ‘photo dumps’ have taken over the way we use Instagram. In an ironic attempt to create an authentic experience out of an inauthentic app, a photo dump (according to Refinery 29) is a series of unrelated pictures being posted in one carousel post. Similar to the concept of a finsta (“fake Insta”), it provides users with a way to show a different side of themselves, one less curated and more casual. It gives their audiences, both big and small, a glimpse into everyday life.
When you look at the app in itself, it has become a capitalistic nightmare. From the algorithm that doesn’t show followers the content they want to see to the recent implementation of the shopping tab, Instagram has shifted dramatically ever since its launch in 2010. Photo dumps create this cyclical experience as we take sharing back to the basics. Strip down the excessive filters and instead provide a multi-dimensional view of a person’s life.
Olivia Yallop, creative director at The Digital Fairy, a creative agency and digital consultancy, has stated that photo dumps feel like early Facebook albums: “uploading a plethora of uncurated images into an album straight from your camera”.
Though speaking from personal experience, the process of choosing photos for the “dump” is still quite methodical, I enjoy seeing glimpses of my friends’ (and Dua Lipa’s) lives. As this trend has evolved over the past year, I see now photo dumps have taken the same amount of care and time to curate as “normal” posts. Using social media now can be a tiresome experience sometimes, especially after the shift to it being used more as a tool for sharing information through infographics. The influx of these can be overwhelming sometimes. I’ve enjoyed looking at these photo dumps as a break from all of that, providing a momentary sense of relief.
What started as a way to reuse old pre-pandemic photos, a la Bella Hadid, has become a way to show their audience a well-rounded life that is not entirely accurate, and sometimes (not necessarily in a negative way) romanticized. However, this can’t be faulted too harshly as, after all, the ability to pick and choose moments of your life to share will inherently cause us to only show the positive sides.
Having a social media account has always been a tool for us to present the best versions of ourselves, increasing our self-esteem. The more importance we place on increasing our social capital, the harder it will be to control ourselves as we continue to fuel the mask we have upheld — just like Khloe Kardashian in her recent scandal. Instagram in itself is inauthentic as the main purpose for many is to gain validation either through likes or comments. Altering the way we post — whether that’s with photo dumps or a shift away from FaceTune — won’t change that, but I do think it is a good way to let go of the pressures of perfectionism when it comes to how we approach our use of the app.