4 in 10 travellers visit tourist sites to capture social media content

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• Hacker News
• I think the causation is backwards here. If you find yourself in a memorable or interesting scene, you're going to want to document it.

  I've wore out a DSLR doing this before social media really was a thing.

  I've taken way more photos since a derecho decimated the trees in my town. I wanted to share these experiences with my distant friends and family.

  I also learned that the utility bill I thought was way too high was a pittance compared to the cost in terms of money, time and effort running a gasoline generator.

  by mikewarot
• I would have thought it's more. Feels like everyone is taking pictures to post. Not to remember
  by Bombthecat
• I used to be an avid amateur photographer and took a backpack full of gear anytime I’d visit tourist sites or anywhere cool. After a few years I stopped altogether because it dawned on me that I was missing the experience entirely. Now I just snap a few pics with my phone and try to enjoy the experience. Never did it for social media cred though.
  by xvxvx
• Every so often I see a news article about an instagram influencer that literally like, rolls off the side of a volcano while trying to capture "content", and I think to myself "well, I'm not surprised".

  https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=influence...

  by walrus01
• You haven’t truly experienced an exceptional vantage point until you hear the influencer next to you say to his cameraman “Does my hair look windswept and interesting?”
  by JSR_FDED
• The nice thing about others taking photos, is that I can focus on the odd ones. I have photos of really well made knots on a guiding rope, and street gutter stones.

  You wanna see what Venice looks like in general? Just go on Tiktok; they have better equipment anyway. You wanna see, up close, the nicely carved gutter stones that handles water without breaking the stone pattern? I'm your photographer.

  by flowerthoughts
• Before social media, they would be taking photos (and later videos) just the same. In fact, before they became ubiquitous in phones, people used to buy cameras (and extra film) specifically for the purpose of using them in their travels.
  by userbinator
• Was recently in Borneo, picked up a magazine in an accommodation, read an article about how traveling nowadays needs to be documented and is about experience as much as your feeds... I... felt old.

  I think that in some cultures it's even more than others, for example I often saw hordes of Chinese tourists (but there are of course simply a lot of Chinese people) take turns in front of a waterfall (on flip flop or even heels), have some pics taken and go back to the bus.

  I also visited food-markets and saw food stalls with large lines of people, where as some had hardly any people waiting, I ask: Why this stall? "It's popular on Chinese social media"... One by one they snapped a pic as the cook made their meal, and waited for >30 mins to do so.

  People ask me when I travel (with family usually): Where is your Polarsteps? My what now? (Yeah yeah I know what it is I just pretend I don't.)

  Amazing.

  Edit: Also amazes me that many people told me: "Wow 5 weeks in Malaysia, you could have done Thailand, Vietnam, etc, etc as well!" Well yeah but I like to take some days to explore and not rush and get to know a nice restaurant and eat there again and rent a scooter or bike and drive around a bit. And sleep 2 nights in some small village that doesn't have a large temple or something and eat a great meal there for 2 euros, made by people that are very proud that you as a tourist sat down at their place and don't accept any tip. Moreover, there is a boatload of cool stuff in every country, to me this country hopping just adds travel time, not much more. Next time we'll visit another country, and if not, I still rather experience one country more deeply.

  Another edit: Also an amazing thing, the amount of couples where the guy is holding a phone, making of a video of the girl while she dreamily walks through the sea waving her arms slowly, just looking around. Like a perfume commercial (what's up with those anyway?!), or like Hillary Clinton when the balloons fell. A-ma-zing, what a species we are.

  by teekert