🤠#020: treating Instagram like a gym

Wouldn’t it be strange to go to the gym but not work out?

You know, just casually stroll in wearing your street clothes, scan your keychain, grab a towel, drop your stuff in a locker, walk to the gym floor, and then hang around for an hour, don’t do anything, just watch other people?

Yeah. strange.

I was at the gym this week (there to work out, I swear) and I thought of something:

Would I be better off if I treated Instagram like the gym?

You don’t go in and watch other people work out.

You go in.

You do your work.

You get on with the rest of your life.

Are you like me, where it’s easy to burn thirty minutes like it was nothing, scrolling your feed, seeing what your friends are up to, seeing what creative people you admire are putting out there, looking at dumb memes that are essentially digital cotton candy?

I’ve been that guy a thousand times.

I will, regrettably, be that guy a thousand more times.

Paying attention to others often offers you incredible benefits. You can learn so much from others. My studio lighting folder on IG is brimming with ideas I can’t wait to shoot.

But it’s not always beneficial, there’s downsides: Every minute you spend one way is a minute you can’t spend another way. So anytime you’re looking for inspiration, you inherently can’t spend that time making.

A potential answer, especially if your screen time is higher than you’d like:

Maybe treat your social apps on your phone like they’re the gym.

• You open the app (walk in the door).

• You respond to comments and share some good energy (say hi to a few people).

• You post some new work (do the day’s workout).

And then you get out of there and get on with the rest of your life.

📊PART TWO: TRACKING MY PROGRESS

📡 Fig. 1: Captain’s Log

Big week coming up: Shooting two commercial projects this week. One’s for a very cool watch company, the other is for a clothing brand I’ve worked with in the past. I was walking today and thought to myself, man, this is a great deal of work. And I marveled, this time last year I would’ve been ecstatic to just have one opportunity like this.

Back when I started taking pictures in 2017, I had read this idea of a “ten year overnight success” somewhere. It’s a very funny bit to me, because “ten year” and “overnight” are oxymorons. But there’s insight in there - if somebody appears to be an overnight success, that might just be the tip of the iceberg, you have no idea how much work it took them to get to that point. I look fondly on all the free work I’ve shot over the years. I hoped for years it would start to create opportunities. Brick by brick, nine years in, that crazy dream is starting to pay out. Cue the Dirk poster.

Changing short form dynamics: I’m pretty new to short form video. Started in July ‘24. Made around 125, maybe 150 videos since then - a bunch, but in a tight timeframe. So I haven’t really been around to observe many changes in content. One thing I’m seeing more and more: Realness is winning.

Look at these two videos. They both look like they were shot on an iPhone. No hot takes, no engagement bait, nothing useful. But they convey a frequency that resonates with people. Simple, yet picturesque iPhone shots of a summer in New England when we’re all stuck in the dregs of winter? 129K views for this vid from Kylie Swanson, a creator that’s absolutely locked in right now.

How about watching chefs prep some glorious eggs Benedict at the Four Seasons Park Lane in London? Again, probably shot on an iPhone, simple as can be, but this one did 1.1 million views. By my boy math, that’s about 1000 views for every shred of Parmigiano-Reggiano in that video. GOOD GOLLY.

Makes me realize, no matter how far I’ve come, I still have so much to learn about telling stories and making messages move on the internet. Back to the lab we go.

Camera review - The Instax Mini SE is not as good as the regular Mini models. Images are fuzzier. I don’t know why it is, nor am I capable enough to understand the technical differences. My recommendation there - if you’re gonna buy an Instax, skip the mini entirely, get an SQ6 or one that shoots Instax wide (great for portraits). But if you want the mini, at least get the latest model. Skip the SE.

📸 Fig. 2: this week’s stills

Just one post, quiet week, some studio shots from the archive.

🎬 fig. 3: this week’s videos & some learnings

2025 #31: Lighting Tutorial #22 IG | TT 2025 #30: Intel for Creatives IG | TT

Let’s break down one key learning from each:

First, this “intel for creatives” video: Manychat is crazy powerful. That’s the learning. I am about to cross over the 1500 subscriber mark on this newsletter in less than six months. 90%+ of that growth has been driven by using Manychat to automatically offer something (in my case, usually Lightroom presets). This video alone resulted in 125 new subscribers. Pretty cool (and welcome to new folks!)

Second, this lighting tutorial. I’m really experimenting with shorter videos, here was my second try at my most popular format but about half the normal length. The main downside here is it gives me less time to explain, but it’s not really affecting my average view time, these typically land in that 9-12 seconds range regardless.

📈fig. 5: audience growth

Instagram: 13,740 followers, +355 (+3%) vs. last weekTikTok: 1393 followers, +40 (+3%) vs. last weekNewsletter: 1488 subscribers, +127 (+9%) vs. last week

Six weeks into 2025, just making steady gains of a couple points each week, which is heartening, because my output hasn’t quite been where I want it. Makes me feel optimistic for when I start making more videos.

Think I could help you 1:1 with your portfolio, lighting, short form, creative strategy, building mood boards, just being a sounding board? I’ve started taking a couple 1:1 calls here and there, so far they’re going great. Here’s a link if you’re interested.

📍Free mood board #12, northwest summer: LINK (this’ll be a core part of what I shoot this summer, calling my shot now)🆓Five free Lightroom presets: LINK🛠️All the cameras + flashes I use: LINK

Everybody have a good rest of your weekend,

Garrett