Attention is the new currency and everyone’s fighting over for yours. With the incredible rise of TikTok, the world knew how short-form content you can leisurely consume in less than a minute had the power to spread like wildfire in everybody’s feeds, building personal brands practically overnight.
Instagram released Reels, an in-app feature that aims to rival TikTok, just last year and it’s already garnering impressive numbers, signaling a very real opportunity to even topple the competition thanks to its stronger base.
So what does another flavor of social media mean for creatives like you? Well, Instagram Reels, just like TikTok, is another platform that businesses like yours can use as a creative outlet/insanely powerful marketing tool.
We recently went in-depth on Instagram Reels, if you haven’t read it yet I would start here:
Let’s see how you can leverage Instagram Reels as a photographer or a filmmaker.
Why Photographers and Filmmakers Should Start Creating Instagram Reels
“Instagram Reels is currently too hot to not be included in your social media strategy,” or “you’re already handy with a camera anyway so go ahead and shoot short clips” may not be enough to get you started creating reels, so let’s run through some of the biggest reasons why creatives should incorporate Instagram Reels in their marketing strategy.
Also related, if you’re looking to grow your photography or filmmaking business, checkout our 27-Step Guide to Starting a Photography Business and How to Start a Video Production Company (from Zero).
Instagram is Going All-in on Video
Just a few months ago, Instagram Head Adam Mosseri no less announced that Instagram is now “leaning” into video and entertainment more than ever. All signs point to the social media giant heading to a new path and is “no longer a photo-sharing app” which should hint at Stories, IGTV, and Reels becoming the app’s primary focus going forward. This here right now then is prime real estate for creatives who want to establish themselves early in the game and get serious with creating Reels.
Massive Opportunities for Growth
A few years ago everyone wanted to be a YouTuber (and they make a lot of money), but starting today can be overwhelming and it can be hard to be found. Reels on the other hand, gives you an opportunity to be viral provided users engage with your content. With Reels, it’s less about focusing on YouTube SEO, and more about creating short video content that grabs the user.
Reels can be shared in more than one place. They can be found as a “typical” post and stories that pop up in your followers’ feeds, or appear in the Explore page — Instagram’s For You Page — where it can be potentially discovered by people outside of your following. Getting “featured” on the explore page puts your reel in front of a global audience but remember: you don’t even need to get your reels to go viral, you just need to do well enough to build momentum and snowball your boost in reach as you create more content.
Builds Instant Credibility
Instagram Reels is yet another platform for you to showcase everything that you do in your creative life. Fortunately, that creative life is tied to your professional life. Shooting a quick BTS reel of a recent project, or teaching other people about tricks of the trade is not only you sharing your work, it also doubles as an incredibly powerful tool to promote your business. You build more following, you get better and bigger social credibility which can only spell good things for your company.
It’s a Great Place to Find Inspiration
Stuck in a creative rut? Just scroll through the Reels tab and get hit with a bombardment of cool transitions, post-processing techniques, lighting schemes you’ve never seen before and one of the million different creative “hacks” and boom — you’re now on your way planning your next project all giddy and motivated. But seriously, simply binging through what your peers in the industry are doing can give you an extra boost of inspiration and drive to create more work.
Help the Creative Community Thrive
The benefits of creating content on Reels doesn’t stop after you’ve gained a few extra thousand followers or landed extra gigs as someone in the creative industry. Instagram is still a social media platform and actively engaging with your peers and adding helpful stuff out there is you doing your part in keeping the creative community alive and well.
Instagram Reels Ideas for Photographers and Filmmakers
Now you might be thinking, “that’s great, but I never got into TikTok and I’m at a loss here. I’m not sure how I can start creating content in this format.” To that I say, don’t worry! You can think of it as starting a YouTube channel only at a much more manageable, 15 to 60-second scale. If you have more of a photography background, I’d start with out post on Videography 101: 37 Videography Tips for Beginners.
Generally speaking, you can divide Instagram Reel content into three main categories. The first is purely entertainment-focused content. This could be just you showcasing your latest work, sharing sneak peeks of ongoing projects, quick gear reviews or a studio tour. These types of reels should grab your viewer’s attention in just a few short seconds. Here are a few more ideas:
- Before and after reels, preproduction work to finished video.
- Photoshoot or video production timelapses.
- Personal, inspirational reels sharing your business’ story.
- Gear talk.
- Quick showcase of printed albums and other photography products.
There are your educational reels, where you share tips and tricks that can make the creative life a lot easier. Think bite-sized post processing tips, posing ideas, gear recommendations, leads to awesome locations anyone in the area can use. This type of Instagram Reels helps you build authority and it’s exactly the kind of content that your fellow creatives will love.
- Preproduction checklists.
- Photography/filmmaking “hacks.”
- Go-to poses for X type of portraiture.
- Outfit ideas for certain projects.
- Easy photo or video editing tutorials.
The third category is what you may call trending reels. Now trending reels are trickier to define since there’s no telling what the next viral, meme-y scenarios would hit everybody’s feeds next week, but you definitely want to keep an eye out on what’s trending so you can ride the hype as soon as you can. Trending reels are usually challenges or trending videos redone in another context, such as in the creative industry.
How to Find Trending Instagram Reels Songs
Now a great way to find trending reels is to find the trending songs/audio that are being sampled by these reels. You can find these rising songs and use them on your reels yourself, which of course increases your chances of getting your stuff featured on the explore page. Here’s how you can find trending songs for your Instagram reels.
#1 – Spend some time scrolling through your reels tab.
This is the easiest and one of the most reliable ways you can spot trends and trending Instagram reel songs. Try to find reels that are doing well and when you do, simply hit the audio track on the bottom left of the screen, they can either be the title for the track or an Original Audio by the creator.
You’ll then be taken to a screen where you’ll be able to hit the “Save Audio” button which does exactly that. Relevant reels that have sampled the same audio can also be found in the same screen so make sure to watch a few more of these clips and do a bit of research if you’re joining in on the trend.
Now when you create your own reels, you can tap the Music icon and you’ll see a “Saved” tab which contains all of your saved songs that you can then use for your reel.
#2 – Browse songs from the Instagram Library.
When you get to the Instagram Music library, you’ll see similar songs that are based on the audio you’ve used before, though you can sometimes see recommended songs that are trending on reels.
#3 – Do some sleuthing on TikTok
With the two platforms being oh so similar, it’s never a surprise when you see something that’s been going viral on TikTok make its way to Instagram Reels. I’m not saying every trending song or original audio from TikTok would carry over to Reels without any issues, especially for creatives, but this gives you a huge head start if you have a rough idea of what’s going to be trending on Reels soon. Who knows, maybe you can get ahead of the curve and start using songs on the rise on the other platform and start the trends yourself over at Reels?
#4 – Follow these popular Photographers/Filmmakers for Inspiration
I like following and checking out other people’s work every time I feel like a creative’s block coming on for that extra motivation to get stuff done. So before you go out there and start creating banger Reels, you might want to give a follow to these creatives who are already crushing the Instagram game.
Professional wedding photographer Ang McCabe of Myrtle and Moss Photography shares a lovely behind the scenes reel from a beautiful wedding ceremony. Quick and easy behind the scenes content like this is a great way to give followers and potential clients an intimate, inside look of what’s it like to work with you.
Nicole Hill teaches fellow creatives the most important stuff to include when drafting a client contract. A lot of her content are indeed practical and useful, but I’d be lying if I don’t say they’re awfully entertaining, too! Hill’s reels are a perfect example of how you can combine actionable tips with personality and entertainment.
Emily Saenz, another awesome wedding photographer, flips the focus from fellow creatives and into couples trying to book a wedding photographer. Check out this super handy reel packed with useful questions every couple should ask a prospective photographer.
If you’re into wildlife, I highly recommend checking out Nat Geo contributor Paul Nicklen’s work. This surreal bite-sized footage of a coastal wolf is not only a sight to behold, but Paul doesn’t fail to include highly detailed captions behind his work.
Or, you could showcase your portfolio and create mock ads for your potential clients. Have a look at Elliot Stephens’ process and how this Instagram reel ad for a soda company came about.