Instagram guide for beginners

Intro to Instagram | What is Instagram

What is this trending social media platform known as Instagram? it has been around for some time now and is gaining media attraction due to everybody’s obsession with mobile photography, so don’t feel disturbed to ask what this platform does.
Instagram is a social networking app made for sharing photos and videos from a smartphone. Similar to Facebook or Twitter, everyone who creates an Instagram account has a profile and a news feed.
When you post a photo or video on Instagram, it will be displayed on your profile. Other users who follow you will see your posts in their own feed. Likewise, you’ll see posts from other users whom you choose to follow.

Devices That Work With Instagram

Instagram is available for free on iOS and Android devices.

It can also be accessed on the web from a computer, but users can only upload and share photos or videos from their devices.

Creating an account

To create an Instagram account from the app:

1. Download the Instagram app from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play Store (Android).
2. Once the app is installed, tap to open it.
3. Tap Sign Up With Email or Phone Number, then enter your email address or phone number (which will require a confirmation code) and tap Next. You can also tap Log in with Facebook to sign up with your Facebook account.
4. If you register with your email or phone number, create a username and password, fill out your profile info and then tap Done. If you register with Facebook, you’ll be prompted to log into your Facebook account if you’re currently logged out.

To create an Instagram account from a computer:

1. Go to instagram.com.
2. Enter your email address, create a username and password or click Log in with Facebook to sign up with your Facebook account.
3. If you register with an email, click Sign up. If you register with Facebook, you’ll be prompted to log into your Facebook account if you’re currently logged out.

Updating profile information

To update your profile information, including your username, the mobile phone number and email address associated with your account:

1. Go to your profile
2. Tap Edit Profile or Edit Your Profile
3. Type in your new name, username, website, bio, mobile phone number or private information, then tap Done or Save in the top right

Adding, Hiding and Rearranging Filters on Your Instagram Posts

Start by uploading a photo or video and swiping all the way to the right on your filters, until you reach the end. Then tap Manage. From there, you can:

• Add a filter: Tap the filter you’d like to add (Instagram has up to 23 filters you can choose to apply to both photos and videos). You’ll see next to the filters that currently appear when you post a photo or video.
• Hide a filter: Tap the filter you’d like to hide. You’ll see next to filters that are hidden.
• Rearrange your filters: Tap and hold the filter you’d like to move. Then drag it to the position you’d like.

When you’ve finished personalizing your filters, tap Done to return to your photo or video.

Tag people to your Instagram post

To tag people as you’re posting a photo:

1. After you’ve selected a photo and added effects and filters, tap Tag People from the Share screen.
2. Tap on someone in the photo.
3. Start entering their name or username and select them from the dropdown menu. If you don’t see the person you’re looking for, tap Search for a person.

To add people to a photo you’ve already uploaded:

1. Go to the photo.
2. Tap (iPhone) or(Android) above the photo.
3. Tap Tag People.

Sharing Your Instagram Posts

After you’ve applied an optional filter and possibly made some edits, you’ll be taken to a tab where you can fill out a caption, tag other users to it, tag it to a geographical location and simultaneously post it to some of your other social networks.Once it’s published, your followers will be able to view it and interact with in their feeds. You can always delete your posts or edit their details after you published them by tapping the three dots at the top.

You can configure your Instagram account to have photos posted on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or Flickr. If these sharing configurations are all highlighted, as opposed to remaining gray and inactive, then all of your Instagram photos will automatically be posted to your social networks after you press Share. If you don’t want your photo shared on any particular social network, simply tap any one of them so that it’s gray and set to Off.

To share a photo you’ve previously uploaded on Instagram to another site:

1. Go to your profile and tap the post you’d like to share.
2. Tap in the top corner of your post, then tap Share.
3. Tap the name of the site where you’d like to share your post (Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr) or copy the link.
4. Tap Share.

 Add, edit or delete the caption of an existing post?

You can add a caption to a photo or video you’ve already shared, or edit or delete the caption you originally included. To add, edit or delete a caption on iOS devices:

1. Tap above your photo or video.
2. Tap Edit.
3. Edit, delete or add a caption to your post, then tap Done.

Logout of Instagram

You can log out of the Instagram app or Instagram on the web by going to your profile.

Instagram on the Web

1. Tap or click in the top right
2. Tap or click to the right of your username then select Log Out

iPhone or Android

1. Go to your profile
2. Tap (iPhone) or (Android) in the top right
3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and tap Log Out

 Temporarily disable account

If you temporarily disable your account, your profile, photos, comments and likes will be hidden until you reactivate it by logging back in. To temporarily disable your account:

1. Log into instagram.com from a mobile browser or computer. You can’t temporarily disable your account from within the Instagram app.
2. Tap or click in the top right and then select Edit Profile.
3. Scroll down, then tap or click Temporarily disable my account in the bottom right.
4. Select an option from the drop-down menu next to Why are you disabling your account? and re-enter your password. The option to disable your account will only appear after you’ve selected a reason from the menu.
5. Tap or click Temporarily Disable Account.

Permanently delete your account

To permanently delete your account:

1. Go to the Delete Your Account page. If you’re not logged into Instagram on the web, you’ll be asked to log in first. You can’t delete your account from within the Instagram app.
2. Select an option from the drop-down menu next to Why are you deleting your account? and re-enter your password. The option to permanently delete your account will only appear after you’ve selected a reason from the menu.
3. Click or tap Permanently delete my account.