Two Years on Instagram

I joined Instagram two years ago, and so every year September marks my Instagram anniversary. I love this social media platform for the inspiration that one can find here, it's really amazing. Sometimes throughout the day when I need a little break, I will just open my Instagram and flip through pictures from my favorite profiles and hashtags, which will give me a little boost of energy, and then I can go on with my day.

At the beginning when I just started my Instagram profile back in September 2016, I struggled to find my own Instagram style. I tried different things and different ways of taking and posting pictures, to see what is the most me. I felt inspired by a few Instagram profiles and I tried to follow their style in the hope that I can do what they can do, but it didn't work for me. For instance, I tried to create a profile made of pictures on white background, but I failed. Then I tried a cream/beige background, and I also failed, as color inevitably kept making its way into my Insta pictures. So after a while I just stopped struggling and let it be, and for the next while my Instagram profile has been very colorful. Also, at some point in time I concluded that I don't like to post orchestrated and directed pictures, but rather truly instantaneous pictures, because this is what Instagram is all about anyway, isn't it? The instant beauty of the moment. Capture the moment and share it. So this is what I do now -- I capture the true moment without trying to orchestrate it, and share it on Instagram. Please don't get me wrong -- I do love those pictures that I can see have been prepped to be posted on Instagram, because they are so beautifully taken and inspiring. It's obvious how much effort has been put in them, and one can't but appreciate the effort and the perfection of it. It's just not working for me -- I feel much freer to take instantaneous pictures when a beautiful moment comes by and I capture it, rather than trying to reach absolute perfection by prepping the photo.

Finally, now I can say that I have found my style on Instagram -- travel pictures on sky blue background. I am sky blue now. 😊 I travel a lot, both in Canada and outside, and during this past year I took a lot of beautiful pictures from my travels which I enjoyed sharing on Instagram. Now that I have found my theme, the next challenge to overcome is how I organize my pictures on my Insta profile to have a content flow that makes sense and that tells my story. Still working on it. 😊

Today I would like to share some of the most appreciated photos on my Instagram account during this past year, but also a few of my personal favorites; and of course, the story behind each of these photos. I hope you will enjoy them. 😊

Please don't hesitate to follow me on my Instagram page! 😊

Lake Erie, June 2018

This is the most appreciated picture on my Instagram profile over the last 12 months, and I absolutely love it. It was taken on the shore of Lake Erie, one of the five Great Lakes. I made a trip to Lake Erie this summer, for the birthday party of a friend. The party was really great and we spent a fabulous weekend on the shore of Lake Erie -- the beach, the water, the boat, the friends, the summer, we enjoyed it all.

Cuba, March 2018

Cuba, March 2018

Cuba, March 2018

Cuba, March 2018

Cuba, March 2018

These five photos, also among the most liked photos on my Instagram profile this year, are from Cuba where I vacationed this March. I loved and enjoyed every single minute of it, and the beach and the ocean were by far my favorite parts of the vacation. When I go to Caribbean, I don't really care about anything else but the beach and embracing the sun. Give me a beach, give me white sand, give me sun, give me salt water, give me a hot shore on the Atlantic Ocean, and I'm happy.

Toronto, July 2018

Toronto, July 2018

Two photos of Downtown Toronto taken this summer. The second photo is taken from the heights of CN Tower that I visited this July, after 11 years since I last went up there in the summer of 2007.

Niagara Falls, June 2018

Niagara Falls -- another trip that I made this summer with my family.

February 2018

A typical winter day in Canada. 😊 Although this wintery photo is contrasting with all the other summery ones that I am featuring in my today's story, it has also been among the most liked pictured on my Instagram feed this past year.

*****

And a few of my personal favorites:

Cuba, March 2018

Vacationing in Cuba this past March. The most exciting experience during this vacation has been swimming with dolphins -- amazing creatures. This dolphin's name is Dana and she is 26 years old. I kissed her a lot while swimming with her. 😊

Cuba, March, 2018

Another favorite of mine from Cuba this year -- enjoying the beach.

Windsor, June 2018

I traveled to Windsor this summer in June, a Canadian city bordering the United States and facing the city of Detroit, with Detroit River between them. This photo was taken in Windsor, on the shore of Detroit River, with a view of the Detroit skyscrapers across the river.

Fenelon Falls, November 2017

I took this photo in Fenelon Falls, a small town in the cottage country, when I was coming back to Toronto from my own cottage in Minden, another town in the cottage country. My family and I stopped at a restaurant in Fenelon Falls to have lunch, and I took this picture from the restaurant, with the view of the waterfalls. The town is called Fenelon Falls because of the Fenelon waterfalls.

Toronto, July 2018

CN Tower, Downtown Toronto -- the perfect shot! The sky blue of this photo is unfiltered, this is how the sky in Toronto really looked that day, I absolutely love this shot.

My Instagram is blue now. 😊 I hope you enjoyed the photos!