Although even its own Instagram logo has a photo camera drawn and for many it has been the reference in photography for years (and it may continue to be, although it gives more and more importance to video), photography lovers agree lucky for the existence of different social platforms dedicated to this art/hobby, other social networks from which to choose the one that is more akin to the interests of each one.
Some photographic platforms are more geared towards the professional user
Below are some alternatives that (at least for now) continue to prioritize photography, are available on different operating systems and allow comments, something essential if it is not just about offering a showcase to others or reviewing the works of others, but You also want to cultivate the social part of sharing this hobby.
On the other hand, they may be less well-known or popular platforms, but for some this can be a very valuable value for moving away from social noise. At the same time, they can be places where you can find help and advice from professional photographers to learn from and with whom to share more artistic works. Some are even platforms that promote the monetization of graphic work.
-500px: For many it is the platform of reference in professional photography. And it is enough to take a look at the works published on this platform to corroborate it due to their high quality. In fact, it has an option that allows you to license the photographs published here for commercial use, and their authors can monetize them. The free version, with advertising, includes the possibility of publishing only seven images each week. Pricing plans extend that limit, remove ads, and offer other features with plans starting at $4.99 and $9.99 per month.
-Degoo: In truth, it is not strictly a social network, although the published photos (which can be organized in albums) allow comments. These albums can be shared for others to see, but they are not open per se to the general public, as happens by default with profiles on social networks. The free version offers 100 Gb of ad-supported storage space, with paid options offering 500 Gb of ad-free space for $2.99 per month and up to 10 Tb of storage (also ad-free) for $9.99 per month.
-Deviantart: A reference for professional photographers who can share their work through galleries divided by categories, in addition to comments, it includes its own chat platform since one of its purposes is to create a community of creators and artists. Registration (free) allows you to upload photos unlimitedly (with the only limit being the maximum size of the images, 80 megabytes) and only when, in addition to publishing them, you want to sell the photos, you will have to take the step to the paid membership, which For $3.95 a month, it allows you to trade your own images (in exchange for 12% of the sale price for the platform).
-Flickr: One of the oldest, chosen by many as an online photo album and which suffered a considerable loss of popularity when it warned its users of the cancellation of its very generous storage space (1 Tb). It has a free and paid option, the first maintaining some limitations such as not being able to publish more than 1,000 photographs, in addition to not admitting the publication of certain sexual and nude content, also allowing the storage of only 50 “non-public” images, that is, restricted access.
The free version of Flickr includes advertising inserts. In addition to the possibility of including comments, each image includes information regarding the place where the photograph was taken and various technical details (optics, aperture, exposure…). Each user can configure whether they allow their photos to be downloaded and, if so, the option to do so in different dimensions and sizes. The paid version lacks all these restrictions (except the one referring to images of sexual content and nudity) for prices starting at $8.25 per month, $72 annually or $133 bi-annually.
-Glass: Without a free version and focused on the Apple ecosystem, initially it was necessary to have an AppleID. Now it is accessible via the web page but there is no Android version of the application, there is only the app on iOS. For $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year, it offers a space to create and share portfolios of graphic work.
-Pixel fed: It is an open source social network that defines itself as a “free and ethical platform to share photos”. Does not include advertising or third-party ads or analytics. When registering you have to select the server to connect to (or you can even create your own). Its appearance is very similar to the Instagram user interface, although it lacks content in the style of Stories or Reels.
-True: It could be described as a simplified version of Instagram, although it is much more than that. Vero is a social network that allows you to create collections, supports comments, and users can see their verified identity.
It is currently free, although it is noted that in the future an annual fee could be included for future users and it does not include advertising or use algorithms to display content. The content can be grouped by categories and its most famous users include musicians like Madonna or film directors like Zack Snyder.
-VSCO: Although VSCO was initially set up as an online service to store, edit and share photographers’ work, a new feature, VSCO Spaces, has recently been added, allowing the creation of themed galleries. The possibility of adding comments is limited to a maximum of 15 members, while visitors can only see the images, but without adding comments.
There is a free version and a paid version, which offers a wider and more powerful range of tools for both image and video editing, for prices starting at $7.99 per month or $29.99 per year.
