Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Urban Explorers Descend on Rochester for World Wide Instagram Meet

A invitation posted to Instagram called on people to celebrate the eleventh World Wide Instagram Meet in Rochester.
Credit Steve Carter / @ExploreRochester
/
@ExploreRochester
A invitation posted to Instagram called on people to celebrate the eleventh World Wide Instagram Meet in Rochester.

In honor of the eleventh World Wide Instagram Meet (#WWIM11), mobile photographers gather in Rochester to connect with each other and their city.

It's a really grey day, chilly with wind and rain, but inside Fuego Coffee it is crackling with energy. Dozens of people have gathered at the intimate little downtown Rochester coffee spot, and they're not just here for Fuego's famous affogatos.

They're here to Explore Rochester.

"It's naturally evolving. People want to be a part of something else," says the group's leader, "and this is where it's at."

Explore Rochester is the brainchild of Steve Carter. He's what you might call "Instagram famous" around these parts; he has over fifty thousand followers. He says Explore Rochester started as hashtag he and his friends used to be able to share pictures with just each other, but since then, it's blown up. Thousands of pictures tagged #ExploreRochester capture so many different perspectives. Some of them might even surprise you, and Carter says that's what he loves so much about it.

"I remember it clearly. It was like, three years ago. I posted a photo of High Falls, and there was two people who commented on it -- one person grew up in Rochester and didn't even realize it was there. It's crazy, in the middle of the city there's a waterfall. So, it's just a way to encourage people to go find these things that are within the city."

The meet and greet is only the first phase of the outing. Carter and his friends and partners Joe Snell and Justin Dusett have plans to take the ROCsta Meeters on a walking excursion through the streets, eventually winding up at the top floor of the First Federal Plaza. Along the way, they'll take some pictures, explore a little, and hopefully make connections with each other. That's an important part of all this, too -- the community aspect.

Justin Dusett says the transition from online to offline is made easier by the fact that everyone here has the same thing in common.

"People see the pictures and they feel connected with that person and then you start commenting back and forth and it just creates a community before you've ever even met somebody. And then when you have something like this is just brings that online community into the real world. You can see, like, hey, they're real people, too, not just Instagram handles or Twitter user names."

Some people at the meet have fancier equipment than others, but that doesn't seem to be a barrier to entry. Ryan Auber, for example, is just using his phone today. His girlfriend Paige Smith says she really likes what this subculture represents.

"I think it just really shows the beauty of, like, even if you think of buildings like abandoned or like, doesn't get a lot of attention, it's just really shining a light on how beautiful this city can be even if there's nothing really happening with it."

Over fifty people took to the streets to take pictures, trade Instagram handles, and connect with the city.
Credit @ExploreRochester
Over fifty people took to the streets to take pictures, trade Instagram handles, and connect with the city.

This is why Explore Rochester seems to really resonate with people. It's not just about the photo sharing community, or the meet-up spirit of millenials. At it's core, #ExploreRochester seems to tap into an excitement about the revitalization of Rochester in general, a swelling arts scene, and a community finding beauty in a rust belt city with a lot of potential.

Jason Barber attributes this attitude to the group's de-facto leadership.

"When I met Steve, and I met a lot of these guys, their drive for Rochester -- they have a hope for change in this city and also trying to capture the beauty of this city. And for someone who's grown up here my whole life, I've kind of grown cynical. So it's definitely given me more energy to look at my city in a different light."

A little over an hour after the meet began, the rain finally starts to lighten up. People head outside to prep for the walking excursion.

Steve Carter stands elevated on the stoop of the coffee shop and passes out flare. He's become something of a figure head for this movement, whether he expected to or not, and the dozens of people who answered the Explore Rochester call follow him down the street, cameras in hand.

Veronica Volk is a senior editor and producer for WXXI News.