It's almost hard to imagine, but in less than a decade more than 60 billion pictures have been uploaded to Facebook. What is even more interesting, according to a recent study, that 10 percent of the images are posted to Facebook profiles. From a sociological perspective, profile pictures tell us more about what we think about ourselves than many other forms of self-disclosure. A study by Pixable found that more women than men post profile images. In addition, women show more pictures with other women, while men prefer to be seen with women rather than other men.
Credit: Mashable
Thomas Abel notes, "Private pictures make up an inherent part of the environment and everyday life of modern societies." Interestingly, Abel believes the deluge of personal images of self are akin to a "testimony of being." In other words, Facebook pictures act as a visual fingerprint in virtual form -- represents and depict and seek to reinforce our self indentity. This makes sense when considering how often people change there personal profile on Facebook. Also, as we change our pictures, there is also a feedback effect -- a way of soliticing the attention of others and keeping a profile in the forefront.
Photography has become even more of a ritualized form of expression in a digital age. Not only is it an essential part of creating a sense of self in a social space, it has also become a unique and validating influence in forming internal and external circles of collaboration. Photography historian John Berger observes, "The thrill found in a photograph comes from the onrush of memory. This is obvious when it’s a picture of something we once knew." What Berger is suggesting appears so obvious to us today. Pictures + Memories = Self Concept. In a way the concept of the individual self only exists within relation to others. I am who I am because others reinforce the concept. Pictures, however, voluntarily uploaded to Facebook or other photo sharing sites, such a Photobucket (8 million photos), Picasa (7 million), or Flickr (5 million), indicate how an individual's personal image of self mirror what they and others expect to see of themselves. Comments made on an individual's wall about a specific image, placing pictures in online albums, or tagging pictures to share with others, are indications of self-validation through the actions of others.
Where this is headed is anybody's guess, but as mobile clouds and crowdsourcing expand, it is likely that the process of making and sharing images in real-time may become a norm. We can already do this through Facebook, Twitter, and Twitpic, but what is suggested here is that such practices will increase dramatically in the future.
