Following Up on Instagram, Flickr

My thoughts regarding Instagram as Flickr's likely successor have proven to be somewhat controversial. I suspected they might be. I'm okay with that.

What I'm not okay with, however, is my apparent negativity towards Flickr. In trying to be brief with my remarks, it's clear I edited some vital information that was included in the original draft: I remain a fan of Flickr.

I've applauded Flickr's overhaul of the photo page as a terrific example of visual hierarchy. In conference presentations I've raved about their mobile website as one of the best on the web. I plan to renew my Pro subscription when it comes due next summer.

More importantly, I have a good relationship with some individuals at the company, specifically Dunstan Orchard and Ross Harmes. The caliber of these individuals is off the charts. It was unfair to state that Flickr's culture today is not what it was yesteryear, having spoken to only a couple individuals on the matter (none of which were named in the previous article). For that, I apologize.

However, what I hope remains clear in my previous article is this: On the web, there tends to be a natural progression — or succession — of things, as the digital lifestyle is constantly evolving. Just as tweeting wasn't a replacement to blogging, I bet we'd all agree it has been the successor to it. The need to post news, express opinions (like this one), and document the extraordinary remains in full force today. But the tools used to do it and the context in which we do it has evolved. Twitter has been a perfect complement to this evolution.

So it is with capturing the world around us. As many of us have increasingly shifted our attention to shorter, more transient means of composing prose, it's possible many of us will shift to more lightweight, portable means of composing images. Instagram (and the phone in your pocket) has the potential to perfectly complement this evolution.

I'm excited to see what that world looks like.