🚀 From Instagram to Zines: A New Way to Showcase Your Photography

Last week, I wasn’t feeling well, so I had to skip the newsletter. To those of you who were looking forward to it—sorry about that!

By the way, have you noticed Instagram’s grid display has changed from squares to vertical rectangles? It’s probably exciting news for influencers who post vertical videos, but for photographers who’ve been sharing horizontal photos, it raises the question: how should we use Instagram moving forward?

I’ve always said that zines let you break free from the fixed formats imposed by platforms like Instagram, allowing you to create layouts that truly express your photos. Last week, I participated in ZINE FEST TOKYO, which gathered over 700 attendees, and it made me reflect once again on the value of creating zines.

As we step into 2025, I’ve been thinking: this year, we should make more zines. That’s why, in this edition, I want to share my thoughts on why we should be creating zines. I hope this inspires some ideas for those of you who are wondering how to share your photos or struggling with your photographic expression.

Table of Contents

• 🚀  Why Photographers Should Make Zines in 2025

  • 🍄 What Instagram Has Given Us

  • 🧀 Now Is the Time for Photographers to Rethink In …

  • 🍎 Don’t Limit Yourself to the Likes Your Photos G …

• 🧃 3 Reasons You Should Make a Zine

  • 📸 1. Zines Help People Truly See Your Photos

  • 🤝 2. Zines Expand Your Network of Friends

  • 💵 3. Zines Can Help You Make Money

• 💐 One Key Question: Who Should You Show Your Zine …

• 🕺 I’m Committed to Making Zines Every Month

• 🌹 Thank You for Your Support

🚀 Why Photographers Should Make Zines in 2025

There’s an interesting experiment I’d like you to try. Watch the video below and follow the instructions: count how many times the people in white pass the ball.

It’s only about 30 seconds, so focus—it’s a little test of your concentration.

Haha! I’m sure many of you were surprised and thought, “Wait, what!?” I’ll explain why I started with this video a little later.

🍄 What Instagram Has Given Us

Many of you reading this newsletter have been following my Instagram for years.

Until Instagram shifted its focus to vertical videos, it was a platform dedicated to photography. When I started taking photography seriously around 2018, I often used hashtags for inspiration.

In the same way, hashtags helped my posts reach a wider audience, and many people started following my account through them.

Without Instagram, I wouldn’t be where I am today. It allowed me to connect with photographers worldwide. When they visited Japan, they’d reach out with invitations like, “Let’s go shoot together,” and I was able to meet and build friendships with so many amazing photographers.

🧀 Now Is the Time for Photographers to Rethink Instagram

Instagram’s algorithm today is vastly different from what it was in 2018.
Viral content—especially video content—is now heavily prioritized. When you post a photo, it often gets fewer likes than before, and the number of people it reaches is disproportionately small compared to your follower count.

On top of that, as I mentioned earlier, the grid display has shifted to vertical images. Posting horizontal photos now makes your profile page look awkward and messy.

“I want more people to see my photos I love.”
“I want to meet new people through photography.”

Those were my motivations for posting photos on Instagram. But maybe I’ve been using Instagram wrong, because now my posts rarely reach my followers. With the changes in the algorithm, I’ve hit a ceiling when it comes to expanding my network through Instagram.

Since Instagram is focused on maximizing ad revenue, it will likely continue to prioritize video content to keep users engaged longer. For photographers, I believe now is the time to rethink how we use Instagram.

🍎 Don’t Limit Yourself to the Likes Your Photos Get

The act of viewing photos on a small smartphone screen has its limitations.
Let me state the obvious: photography isn’t just about capturing rare or incredibly unique subjects. A great photo is often made up of multiple elements interacting within the frame, and it’s these subtle details working together that make photography so enjoyable and captivating.

But when it comes to Instagram posts—especially on a platform designed for scrolling rather than truly viewing—most people don’t take the time to notice every detail in a photo. They’re not looking at the reflection of a person’s shadow in the glass or the subtle expressions and poses of people captured in the background. On Instagram, viewers rarely spend time fully understanding the details of a photo.

Even if you’ve spent hours editing on a computer or, like me, printing in a darkroom to perfect a single shot, most people on Instagram—yes, even those who hit “like”—aren’t really seeing your work in its entirety.

In other words, when we post photos on Instagram, we think people are seeing them. But in reality, they’re not.

Let’s be honest: when you unlock your phone and tap on the Instagram icon, are you thinking about me or my photos? Probably not. You open Instagram almost instinctively, casually scrolling through your feed, liking or commenting on whatever content catches your eye in the moment.

The video I shared earlier is called the "Invisible Gorilla" experiment. Studies show that nearly half of people who watch it don’t notice the gorilla walking across the screen at first. This proves that if you’re not actively looking for something, you won’t see it.

The same applies to photography: unless you consciously make an effort to look at the finer details, you’ll miss the most important aspects of a photo.

🧃 3 Reasons You Should Make a Zine

I’m not saying you should stop using Instagram. I’ll definitely keep using it too. And if you’re not a photographer but a content creator, feel free to ignore my advice.
But if you’re a photographer—someone who creates photographs, not content—then I strongly recommend making zines.

Here are 3 reasons why.

📸 1. Zines Help People Truly See Your Photos

When someone picks up your zine, what’s going through their mind as they flip through its pages? If they weren’t interested, they wouldn’t have picked up your zine in the first place. But if they’ve chosen to get it, it means they’re curious—they’re wondering, “What kind of photos will I find here?”

Curiosity creates a sense of unease in the brain, which sends a message to resolve that uncertainty. That’s why, when people are curious about your photos, they’ll unconsciously try to understand them, carefully examining each one in detail.

Of course, if a friend casually hands them your zine with a “Hey, I made this—take a look,” and they’re not particularly interested, they might just flip through it and say, “Nice,” before moving on.

But even in that situation, viewers are engaging with your photos more intentionally than they would on Instagram. If I’d told you in the earlier video to “Look for the gorilla,” almost 100% of you would have noticed it.

Similarly, when someone consciously looks at your photos, the feedback you receive becomes far more meaningful. When I share my zines with others, I’ve noticed that everyone pauses on different pages, and I often receive insights I hadn’t thought of myself.

That doesn’t happen on Instagram. All you get there are comments like “🔥🔥🔥.”

🤝 2. Zines Expand Your Network of Friends

Zines have always been a punk, countercultural medium—a way to spread anti-establishment messages. They were created to share themes and opinions that mainstream media wouldn’t cover, serving as a tool to connect like-minded individuals.

This characteristic holds true for photo zines as well. At past zine fairs, plenty of strangers have bought my zines. They resonated with my photographic style, and some of them have gone on to buy every zine I’ve released since or even made the effort to attend events I’ve participated in.

One example is Sorami, who I previously featured in a video on YouTube. She’s someone I got to know through zines. We met at a zine fair, where I bought her zine, and she bought mine. We hit it off, probably because we found common ground in each other’s styles. We started exchanging messages, and before long, we were collaborating on videos.

If I’d stuck to Instagram alone, I doubt I would have ever met her. One of the best things about zines is that they create opportunities for these kinds of connections.

💵 3. Zines Can Help You Make Money

This might be the most practical benefit, but selling zines can help you make money. Sure, Instagram has programs that pay bonuses based on views, but unless you’re an influencer whose Reels consistently hit a million views, those programs don’t apply to you. No matter how many photos you post, Instagram isn’t going to pay you.

With zines, however, you can turn your photos into something that generates income. I’m not saying you need to start a business out of your photography. What I’m suggesting is this: instead of letting your photos be consumed as "content" that benefits platforms like Instagram, let them circulate in the world as something of value.

We pay for things we find valuable. It’s the same with food—when you go to a restaurant, you pay because you value the meal. When you watch a movie at the theater, you pay because you value the experience. When you go to a jazz bar, you pay to enjoy the music because you see its worth.

So why don’t we pay for photos? It’s because photography has become something we expect to see for free. But not every talented photographer has enough paying opportunities. There are photographers who take incredible photos but can’t afford to develop their film. Some even give up on photography altogether because it’s too expensive to continue.

I find that incredibly sad. Saying, “You’re making art, so don’t think about money,” is just empty idealism—it’s something only wealthy people would say. Mocking someone who’s trying to make a living through their art, like rappers hustling to eat, shows a complete lack of understanding of their reality.

I believe that photos that carry value should generate an appropriate financial return. Of course, this requires us to think about what makes a photo “valuable.” But isn’t that process itself incredibly creative and thought-provoking?

💐 One Key Question: Who Should You Show Your Zine To?

If you were to quit Instagram, you might wonder, “Who would I show my zine to in the first place?” I get it—leaving Instagram behind feels like saying goodbye to your followers and limiting the reach of your work.

But think about it: 40 years ago, before Instagram or even the internet, photographers still thrived. How did they build their networks back then?

If they wanted to get their photos featured in a magazine, they had to figure out how to meet editors. Maybe they visited publishers, asked for introductions, or hung out at bars where editors were rumored to gather. They had to get creative and take action to build connections.

Even in today’s era of instant connections through Instagram, I believe those real-world networking efforts are still vital for photographers.

And here’s the thing about zines: you don’t have to sell them. You can hand them out for free to people you meet, using them as a tool to promote yourself and your work. Why not use zines as a way to amplify your presence as a photographer?

🕺 I’m Committed to Making Zines Every Month

Thank you for reading this long piece all the way through.

Since 2024, I’ve already been posting less frequently on Instagram, and in 2025, I want to shift even more toward expressing my photography through zines and exhibitions. I’m especially committed to zines—my goal is to create one every month, or at least as close to that as I can.

I’m also planning to revamp FAR EAST DARKROOM to carry more zines from other photographers. Beyond that, I’m looking to create spaces where photography can be expressed and shared in new ways.

In this newsletter, I’ll continue sharing not just zine-making tips but also updates about these projects. I hope you’re looking forward to it!

To maintain the quality of each issue, I’m temporarily switching from weekly to biweekly newsletters. So, the next issue will be on Tuesday, February 4. I’ll see you then—stay tuned!

🌹 Thank You for Your Support

We’ve added new zines to the lineup at FAR EAST DARKROOM. Thanks to your support, we’re able to focus on more creative projects. We truly appreciate it—thank you so much!