“InstaMeet” at the Baltimore National Aquarium
The National Aquarium’s first ever “InstaMeet” took place this past Tuesday in honor of the one year anniversary of their Black Tip Reef Exhibit. A small group of people who use the popular social media app, Instagram, were invited to an after hours party to enjoy light refreshments, good company and the opportunity to photograph one of the aquarium’s largest and most diverse exhibits. The participants were chosen through a contest that the National Aquarium made available to their followers on social media. The contest required them to submit a contact form with their name and Instagram account. Winners were randomly selected a week prior to the event.
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- Instagrammers photograph the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium’s first ever “Instameet”. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Calypso, the 500lb sea turtle swims in the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Liz Glomb, 31, from Gaithersburg, Md takes a iPhone shot of a shark swimming by in the Black Tip Reef Exhibit. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- A Black Tipped Reef Shark swims on by, aptly named for its black tipped fin. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- The Humphead Wrasse is one of the largest fish inhabiting the coral reef. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Michael Rogers, known as MJRogersPhoto on Instagram, grams a photo of a HoneyComb Stingray. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Many fish are brightly colored in the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- A HoneyComb Stingray makes an appearance for photographers. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Fish swim in near darkness in a part of the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- An attendee enjoys refreshments at the National Aquarium’s first ever “Instameet”. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- A Chambered Nautilus hangs out in the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. This particular creature enjoys almost complete darkness, this photo was exposed for three seconds. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Instagrammers patiently wait for marine life to surface at the National Aquarium’s first ever “Instameet”. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Aquatic life peacefully floats in the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Refreshments at the National Aquarium’s first ever “Instameet”. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- A Starfish says hello in the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- A Flame Shrimp, named for its bright red color, sits on a perch at the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquarium. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- A Black Tipped Reef Shark swims on by, aptly named for its black tipped fin. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
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- Instagrammers photograph the Black Tip Reef Exhibit at the National Aquariums first ever “Instameet”. (Kaitlin Newman for Baltimore Sun)
The Black Tip Reef exhibit is home to 779 different animals including tiny fish, large sharks and a giant 500lb sea turtle named Calypso that enjoys eating carrots. The reef isn’t actually real coral but fake coral made from the molds of real coral skeletons. Since a reef takes anywhere from one-hundred thousand to three million years to fully form, molds were made and the fish enjoy a realistic habitat. Instagrammers were allowed to freely roam the exhibit at their leisure and photograph the marine life with their iPhones, point-and-shoot cameras and even professional grade camera gear.
“Shooting in very low light with curved glass was very challenging, but I thought it was a really well thought out event. I never felt unwelcome or awkward and look forward to future events of similar nature,” said Mike Rogers, 25, from Cockeysville, Md.
This was the first time the National Aquarium has done something like this but it won’t be the last. The meet was a huge success resulting in over 250 photos posted with the tag #reefmeet on Instagram.
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