I didn’t plan to stop posting photos. But when I finally took a break, I realized how much space I had lost to the pressure of staying visible online—and how much I was missing the joy in simply making things.
Yep, you read that right.
Ironically, after I wrote a few weeks ago about a friend who felt burned out from social media, that feeling has now found its way to me.
I usually post photos daily on my Twitter, but it’s been about a week or so since I last shared a photos there. Don’t get me wrong—I still love being on Twitter. The photography community, especially in Japan, is amazing. But lately, social media has started to leave me feeling more inadequate and, oddly, isolated.
It’s hard to explain, but I’ve started to feel like social media creates an illusion of connection and acceptance from people we don’t actually know. Some of my posts have gotten thousands of likes—but the next day, I don’t even remember them. It made me realize that those numbers don’t always reflect genuine appreciation of my work.
The turning point came when I was writing a script for my YouTube video and reviewing my own photos. I looked at the images and remembered how I took them—how I waited patiently, enjoyed the moment, and felt proud when I saw the results. But social media doesn’t work like that. It constantly tells us: “Keep posting, keep engaging, or you’ll be forgotten.” It’s a never-ending treadmill, and recently, it’s drained some of the joy from photography for me.
That said, there’s also a bright side. I’ve been truly enjoying writing here on Substack (I’m surprised that the photography community here is huge, posting photo with thoughts and generate meaningful discussions), working on YouTube scripts, building concepts for my videos, darkroom printing, and simply taking photos without feeling the pressure to share them right away. These platforms lead to more meaningful conversations—whenever someone reaches out through Substack, YouTube or Instagram but because of my YouTube videos or Substack writings, it always turns into something deeper. And I really value that.
I’ll definitely return to posting again—just at my own pace. When I do, it’ll be because I want to, not because I feel like I have to. But of course, since I find writing Substack and making YouTube videos is meaningful for myself, so I’ll still post some photos related to that when I release something.
So, this pause doesn’t mean I also pause from taking photos. I’ll definitely continue and still enjoy taking photos. I just pause from posting it on Twitter/Instagram right away. When I post it, It’ll be for myself, for my own progress as a photographer and a person—hoping it might inspire others along the way.
And in the meantime, if you’re reading this—let’s have a meaningful conversation about photography, or anything around that. Who knows—maybe we’ll find something to collaborate on someday :)
Also, please enjoy some of the recent photos I took with my film camera.
Thank you for reading! Let’s connect through some of my social media such as Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube!
I’ll see you again next time!
Cheers,