10 Inspiring Instagram Accounts to Follow Right Now

According to a survey of social media use, 70% of Instagram users log in to the app at least once a day — which means most of us are checking in every day, most often during downtime (like during a commute or while waiting in line for something) or periods of distraction (like during the work day when you should be doing something else). And while some of the most-followed accounts are those of celebrities or adorable animals (looking at you, Lil Bub), there are plenty of others out there which may help spur you to do something creative.

Inspirational Instagram accounts aren’t just about needlepoint philosophy; many of them are about artistic ideas, novel concepts, or just exceptionally beautiful scenes and vignettes. Others showcase the skills of creatives who would otherwise rarely have their art seen, or attached to a name.

If you need a little pop of color or creativity in your feed, here are 10 inspirational Instagram accounts that can brighten your day and get you motivated.

Sean McCabe’s hand-lettering is beautiful, and his quotes are often super-smart.

Your mom never made you lunches as cute as the food art that Samantha Lee creates. Elevate your snacking with her help.

Composing the perfect shot is a lifelong goal — and one that Kim Ficaro, a prop stylist and photographer, seems to have nailed. Her shots are unexpected, beautiful, and full of inspiration.

Health and fitness website Greatist posts a quote a week, as well as cool things like recipes for healthier boozing.

Follow along with the thousands of others who are pulling for Grandma Betty, “the world’s InstaGrandma,” in her fight against cancer.

Feel like your photography is stagnating? Give it a lift with the incredible Junanto Herdiawan, an Indonesian photographer who makes his subjects appear as though they’re levitating.

Kelly Beall’s #365Quotes have been pretty popular around the CreativeLive offices.

The official Instagram account of Dschwen LLC., a design firm in Minneapolis, is full of beautiful, colorful things.

Rifle Paper Co.’s Anna Bond will make you want to pick up a pen and draw something beautiful with her gorgeous art.

Who says you can’t play with toys as an adult? These beautiful photographs of iconic Playmobile toys are pretty special.

If you are looking for a good place to hone the editing skills of your photos before you post them to Instagram, visit the Lightroom tutorials page to see a collection of great courses.

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Hanna Brooks Olsen is a writer and editor for CreativeLive, longtime reporter, and the co-founder of Seattlish. Follow her on Twitter at @mshannabrooks or go to her website for more stuff.