Losing My Instagram: What 25,000 Followers Taught Me About Social Media
25,000 followers. 15 years of work. A creative community I loved. And one day… gone.
Well, not gone exactly - my Instagram still exists, but I can’t access it. No reason, no explanation, no warning. Just like that, I was shut out of the place where I had been sharing my photography, my projects, and my voice with the world for more than a decade.
The shock of it all left me frustrated and heartbroken. But it also left me with a question I couldn’t stop thinking about: Is social media really as important as we think it is?
Losing access to my Instagram reminded me of a hard truth: we don’t really own our social media. Our followers, our posts, our years of work - it all lives on platforms that can lock us out at any moment.
Social media is powerful. It connects us. It builds community. It can amplify voices in amazing ways. But it’s also fragile. And the control isn’t ours.
This setback made me pause and ask: why do I share my work online?
The answer isn’t about numbers or followers. It’s about my why:
To share my vision with the world.
To create connection with kindred spirits.
To build a community around creativity and inspiration.
My voice, my vision, my community - that’s what really matters. And no algorithm can take that away.
What this experience taught me is simple: we need a digital home we truly own. For me, that’s my website and portfolio. It’s where my photography lives, where my projects breathe, where my community can always find me - no matter what happens with social media.
If you’re a creative, a photographer, an artist, or anyone sharing your work online, I can’t stress this enough:
Keep backups.
Build your own space.
Don’t let your entire presence live on someone else’s platform.
So, is social media still important? Absolutely. I’ll still share my work on Instagram and connect with people there. But it’s no longer my foundation.
Instead, I’m focused on creating work that lasts, building my community on my terms, and making sure my creativity has a permanent home.
Instagram → @emily.endean.photography
Website → www.emilyendeanphotography.co.uk
Watch my full story on YouTube →
Come connect on the new account, and I can’t wait to see you over there!
