Is the IRYS photo app worth considering for photographers?
Over the last few years, the domination of short-form video content on Instagram and the platform's admitted preference for video in general, has prompted many photographers to re-think where their social media presence should exist. Adam Mosseri, Instagram chief, has stated that the platform has changed forever and that reels, video stories (and the resulting TikTok influence) is the preferable direction of travel. In regards to a possible viable substitute, I don't think Elon Musk's rebrand of Twitter has manouvered X into pole position either.
Now, I'm not going to reminisce about the good old days of social media when the feed was chronological and reach was untethered as everyone has, in recent times, added their tuppence worth to the argument and we all know the frustration felt. Most photographers are just so disillusioned by the dancing influencers and cat lovers and the use of short form video as an advertisement vehicle for everything from Lego to Toyotas. It’s just a shame that artistic photography is being so undeniably relegated down the pecking order. On the other side of the coin, the insta element of the brand name surely relates to instant and investing in camera gear and lightroom/ photoshop etc and intently composing and editing an image before posting on Instagram, goes in a contradictory direction to what was perhaps originally intended anyway and a photo taken on a mobile phone of one's dinner or adorable cat was perhaps a more genuine and spontaneous use of the platform? Photographers using the app to showcase their work have perhaps become so used to doing so that they believe Instagram is a gallery just for their efforts and that everyone else’s are perhaps inferior?
Have we as photographers become snobs?
Do we simply hang on to Instagram as we have invested so much time and effort into it down the years? Where do we go if Instagram becomes unbearable?
Alan Schaller (aka The lairy Londoner, his words , not mine) has decided to do something about it. For those who don't know who he is, a quick search on YouTube will verify his credentials as a photographer, publisher and video maker of exceptional standard. His street photography, in particular, is of appeal to people such as myself, who have, I'm sure, picked up many a tip and hours of instruction on the subject from the man. IRYS is a new app just for photographers. No annoying adds, no video, reels or stories - as the website states-
'You do the photography. Leave the rest up to us'.
As an admirer of Alan's work and a fan of his YouTube offerings, I was obviously compelled to hear of this new app and I decided to give the IRYS experience a try. I'd deleted my X, Threads and Vero accounts recently and not having to curate and contribute to those offerings, left a wee space for a new opportunity to communicate with like-minded snappers (and more blogging here of course...) Alan certainly has photography in his blood and who better to understand the requirements of the frustrated camera-weilding community more than someone who has an excellent CV relating to image creation. There's a free version too so what's to lose! Setting up the account was easy enough and adding photos and text was simple too. A daily upload limit of ten photos per day on the free app (which frames a user's profile photo in a white border) got me initiated and I then set about looking for photographers, new and familiar, to follow. At the time of writing, there are plenty of users already there and the Premium paid version (which frames a user's profile photo in purple) had been utilised by well-known YouTubers such as Mark Fearnley, Sam O'Shaughnessy and Alan Schaller himself. Those with brands can have a green frame on their profile photo on their Premium account. Anyone can set up Collections that enable separate galleries for the images uploaded on their account. For instance, one for black and white, one for colour. These are limited to two for a free account. Also limited in the free account is the number of Groups that you can join. This is capped at five. Groups are set up by Premium users where any subject not already created, can have a gallery associated with it and curated by the user who sets it up originally. So if anyone wants to have a more hands-on approach to their area of photographic interest, a Group can be created that they will oversee as an admin, removing images not suitable or unrelated to the subject and contributing to the general curation etc.
A list of Premium features-
Receive lifetime recognition on your profile as a Founding Member (at the time of writing)
Enter spotlight competitions
Upload Higher Res images
Post as much as you like
Create unlimited Collections
Join as many Groups as you wish
Current users of social media shouldn't have any issues setting up and using an IRYS account. A lot of the current icons and page layout from other apps' profile pages look familiar and having different versions of the Like button was a clever addition and the absence of ads and TikTokesque reels was a breath of fresh air whilst using the app. Start off with a free account before commiting to a Premium account and ensure that you're fully invested in your Groups before creating them if paying the £49.99 per year (or £4.99 per month). For those going down the free route, a limit of 100 images on your profile might deter those who need to upload more but I've started with eighteen or so over the first few days after setup and I'm going to be selective with future uploads, adopting a less is more policy to ensure my better images are represented. According to the IRYS website, following on after the app will be more community-based projects including online events where users can pay $27 for industry-leading photographers to host a one-hour webinar, giving the participants insight into their photographic journey. Other features to follow include IRYS Galleries, IRYS Publishing, IRYS Agency and IRYS Magazine. A photographic community worth participating in? Certainly, Mr Schaller is hoping so and I can't argue with the fact that a worthy competitor to the status quo is undoubtedly welcome.
Here's to IRYS, I wish it well for the future and look forward to communicating with my fellow snappers who take the plunge!
