If you have an Instagram account and have never once — not even in those early days before anybody knew how to Instagram with decent aesthetics and used the Kelvin filter far too liberally — posted an uninspired, so-called basic, photo … congrats. If you’re like the rest of the Insta-world, particularly the Insta travel world, chances are good that you’ve posted at least one image that looks strikingly similar to photos other Instagrammers have taken in the exact same location or scenario. The passport in hand at the airport. The plane wing nestled among the clouds. The ubiquitous shot — if you’ve been lucky enough to travel to Italy— of you holding up the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Using public photos sourced from travel hashtags, photographer and artist Oliver KMIA created a hyperlapse video to show just how often this happens. There’s something mesmerizing about watching the Eiffel Tower remain constant and watching as a slew of different people flicker in and out, reaching their fingers to the top. Same with the Taj Mahal, Christ the Redeemer, and a zillion different kangaroo-crossing signs Down Under.
On your next vacation, maybe consider deleting Instagram altogether. Or don’t. I’ll still like your travel Instagrams, if only because I want you to like mine the next time I take a trip, too.
