Artist David Thomas Smith stitched together thousands of Google Earth photos to create these Persian rug inspired photos.
See more of his work at The Copper House Gallery and see some awesome Google Earth time lapses of Southern California on KPCC’s Without A Net blog.
Spotlight: Melbourne
Since launching, we’ve seen Instagram spread from our headquarters in the Bay Area to every corner of the globe. In this series, Spotlight, we’ll highlight top users from countries and cities with thriving Instagram communities.
The city of Melbourne—Victoria’s capital and the second most populous city in Australia—was deemed the most livable city in the world two years in a row, causing a plethora of artists to move into the city’s limits. Due to the ever-changing skyline’s modern, cutting-edge designs and its diverse, historical architecture there is never a shortage of photographic inspiration.
Want to view Melbourne from an insider’s perspective? We put together a list of some amazing Instagrammers from in and around the city.
- Kamil Sharaidin, Malaysian architect and photographer living in Melbourne— @kamilsharaidin
- Farrah Allan, wedding photographer — @farrahallan
- Stephanie Stamatis, stylist and designer with an affinity for rustic greenery — @stephanie_somebody
- Cleo Coppinger, model and photographer documenting her day-to-day adventures — @cleocoppinger
To explore the city in depth, you can also browse the location pages for some of Melbourne’s more popular landmarks:
- The Arts Center, known for its easily recognizable and iconic spire
- Federation Square, a civic center and structure with unique and beautiful architecture
- Eureka Skydeck 88, the highest public vantage point—285 meters (935 feet)—in the southern hemisphere.
- Melbourne Cricket Ground, the tenth-largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, and the largest stadium for playing cricket.
The Beautiful Minimalism of @katia_mi
For more beautiful black and white photographs, follow @katia_mi. Black and white not your thing? Visit her second account, @katia_mi_, for her color photos.
Moscow, Russia-based art director Katia (@Katia_mi) isn’t trying to create a mood with her photos. “I have no mission, no reason. This is an internal dialogue. Feelings are much more interesting than ideas,” she says.
In her day-to-day, Katia works as a versatile designer, working on interiors, jewelry, women’s accessories and even communication design. And while her career requires her to tailor her art to the needs of her clients, her Instagram account allows her to express her own daring thoughts.
“Most photographers believe that details are the most important things in a picture. In black and white, I get rid of details and put sense in shadow.”
Though shadows are her specialty, Katia also has a second Instagram account, @katia_mi_, where she posts some of her photos in color.
