As New York City finally transitions to spring, Australia meanwhile slowly slips into winter. If you’re planning an escape Down Under, where then would you go to find tropical paradise? In the Hamilton Islands off Queensland in the northeast, temperatures currently fluctuate from 73 to 75 degrees.

This weekend, the weather welcomes a clan of eager Instagrammers for this year’s Ultimate Instameet: a social initiative that brings together top digital photographers from around Australia, the UK, and Asia. I’m tagging along to catch their photo tips, learn more about beach Instagramming, capture some epic sunset shots … and share the experience with you guys! On the feed, just look out for #return2paradise #hamiltonisland and #seeaustralia.

Attendees of the Ultimate Instameet were hand chosen through a beach photography competition. If you’d like to check out their feeds, here are their handles: @markseabury, @mattglastonbury, @bobby_j, @miaglastonbury, and @ido8all. Also attending will be a crew of Hamilton Island approved ambassadors, i.e. cool people you’d never imagine you’d be stranded with on an island — swim champion Michael Klim, Balinese Princese Lindy Klim, and designer Jeremy Somers of We are Handsome (to name a few).

I look forward to sharing the photo love with you. Hopefully when I’m back home in the East Village, we can share island memories while on an InstaWalk around town.

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In addition to long walks on the beach, travel journalist Megan Snedden enjoys falling from high places and photographing every single thing she eats. Follow her Instagram feed @megansnedden or check out her website at www.megansnedden.com

The app is the brainchild of Shinji Kim (@shinjikim), who’s been active in the Instagram NYC community for a long time and loves building mobile apps. She’ll feature NYC Instagramers on @shufflepix, so fill out the form below to get your photos featured on the game!

So, how do you play? The app shuffles an image and you arrange the tiles into the correct spot in a race against the clock. You can play against friends or other people using the app, and if you are good you can win the daily leaderboard.

Check out their Instagram account @shufflepix and Happy Shuffling!

 

We will meet at the entrance to the park by Grand Army Plaza at 4:30pm on Sunday, October 21. We’ll walk through the park towards the southwest corner, eventually meeting again at 6:15pm at the exit by 15th Street. Then we’ll meet the creators of the Lightbomber app and they’ll have fun activities and props to create art in the dark. Finally, what else will we do? Meet us at the Double Windsor for drinks and snacks by 8pm.

Head over to our Meetup Group to RSVP!

NBCUniversal is teaming up with the Small Plate Movement to bring awareness to the fact that our plate sizes have gone up +35% in the past 30 years, which means our portions have grown too.

Check out the mega-sized dining room table chairs and get your photo taken and broadcasted in real-time on a live interactive wall. Have your photos printed for free! Plus, every time you pose for a photo or share your photo socially to help spread the Small Plate Movement, NBCUniversal will donate $10 to FoodCorps.

Join Angelo Sosa (Bravo’s Top Chef All-Star), Teresa Guidice of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of New Jersey, and other celebrity chefs and personalities, such as NBC’s Joy Bauer, for free recipe cards, one-on-one nutrition consultations, cooking demonstrations, and autograph sessions.

The full event runs from 9am-7pm but we’ll be meet at 12:30pm in front of the giant screens. See you there! (RSVP here)

I’ve been following Brandon Page (@b_page) for quite a while. His sense of composition is simply superb and tends to turn everyday life into something beautiful. Below, Brandon talks a bit about life on Instagram, apps and inspiration.

How long have you been on Instagram? What made you join?

I joined Instagram in October of 2010 when I needed a photo app to take along a Europe trip. I was one of the original adopters and its been my most used app ever since. The instagram team does an amazing job at updating the app and keeping in relevant in a world of constant change.

I absolutely love the square. It requires that you really focus on creating a compelling composition. Once you adjust to the idea of it, photography becomes easier. It would be great if Apple would eventually give an option to shoot in the square format.

The one thing I love about Instagram is that it can be a platform to whatever you want it to be. For many, its a daily diary. Some use it as a social media platform. Personally, I’ve used it as a place to experiment with new creative ideas. Its like my daily photography sketchbook. Honestly, shooting on an iphone has its limitations as a photographer. I’ve gotten creative lately with my post processes and chopping up imagery. The app “Diptic” has been great for this. Using a combination of iphone apps is definitely key to staying original and finding your own unique style. As for choosing an image, I tend to hold my iphone in my hand at all times. Even in my busy career, I make time to take a great deal of snaps throughout the day. I then look back on my photo library and pull together stories. On average, I spend anywhere from 10 minutes to a half hour on each photo I post. Some end up being duds, while others a well received.

What cameras and apps do you use to edit your photos on Instagram?

I have been using the first generation iphone4 as my primary Instagram camera. With the new iphone5 coming out this week, I am sure I’ll quickly move over to that phone. I frequently try out new applications, but favorite “go to” apps are Snapseed, VSCO, Picfx, and occasionally Diptic.

In my professional photography, I shoot a lot of people, but in my Instagram feed, they are often absent in my shots. To be honest, I’ve enjoyed photographing mundane things in life and reflecting them back to my audience in a more alluring manner. Since I travel a lot, these snapshots come from being on the move. Many people go through life with blinders on, missing out out the amazing colors, shapes, and compositions around them. I do my best to hone in on those brief moments. Its not uncommon for me to stop dead in my tracks for that perfect shot. I am also open to constantly evolving my style and story. Thats not for everyone, but it suits me well.

Any favourite hashtags?

I don’t use hashtags too often. One day, when my life slows down, I’ll try that out.

Finally, whose posts do you look forward in seeing in your feed? Name some of your favourite IGers.

So many! @Komeda was the first person I followed a few years ago, and we still follow each other to this day.

Some newer photographers on the scene that have caught my attention are @38ssiew, @the_atl_aaron, @cubbygraham, @chadosaurus, @mikediamond, @pauloctavious, @thiswildidea, @atvlobos, @emies, @cinderlee, @brad, @oliviermorisse, @lomostatic, and @seb_gordon.

Thank you Brandon for taking the time to share your instagram experience with our community. Keep creating and inspiring. Follow Brandon Page on Instagram @b_page