By Nina Golgowski: From Great Britain to the United States, to Argentina to the Middle East, 2012 was undeniably a big year. And as one photo-sharing website will show, so was it for the people's ability to instantly share their experiences. Celebrating the year's highlights, website Instagram has released this photo compilation of some of the world's top 10 biggest events captured by none other than their now more than 100 million users. 'With 2012 coming to a close, it’s only natural to look back at the history-making events that have defined this year,' they write in their blog posting showcasing their list.
February: Severe freezing in Europe earned first place on their list showcasing this picture of a vehicle remarkably drenched in ice
July 4th: This photo of a little girl posing before the Statue of Liberty in New York City earned second place on their list for the U.S.' Independence Day
Skipping a few months into July, a photo of an adorable little girl posing before New York's Statue of Liberty - her own pink, jeweled crown included - highlights the United States’ Independence Day. Days later Spain's Running of the Bulls captured hundreds of spectators and participants in one frame alone. They swamped around a lone black bull seen barrelling through the crowd, throwing at least two men on their backs. On July 20th, London's 2012 Opening Ceremony filled their site with a collection of whimsical and grandiose photos.
July 8th: Spain's the Running of the Bulls earned third place with this astonishing photo of at least two men knocked flat on their backs from a loose bull
July 20th: London's opening ceremony for the 2012 Olympics brought in this colourful photo featuring green pastures, clouds and a watermill
Only able to choose one photo for the event, they featured a bright green field where the opening ceremony took place, seen decorated with clouds and a corner watermill. In September, the site honours Space Shuttle Endeavour's flight from Texas to California on the 20th, showing the massive spacecraft secured on the back of a plane. Taking sixth place on their list was the World Series at San Francisco's AT&T Park where the Giants beat the Detroit Tigers in a 4-5 victory.
September 20th: The final flight of the Space Shuttle Endeavour riding on the back of an airplane between Texas and California earned fifth place on their list
October 26th: The 2012 World Series between the San Francisco Giants and Detroit Tigers was captured as number six
October 27th: Muslims journey to Mecca for the Hajj offered this photo taken by a participant lost in the many thousands around
Celebrating Muslims' journey to Mecca for the Hajj on October 29th, a captivating photo taken by one participant shows thousands of small bodies circling the structure, the city's back dropped lights glowing in the sky above. Days later on October 29th, Hurricane Sandy's descent upon the East Coast earned spot number eight. There, a bench is seen slowly drowned by washing floodwaters rising from the Hudson and East rivers. More than 800,000 photos related to Hurricane Sandy were uploaded during the East Coast super storm they reported.
October 29th: Hurricane Sandy's descent upon the East Coast came in as number eight on their list, with this flooded bench overlooking the Hudson River from New Jersey pictured
November 6th: U.S. President Barack Obama was reelected to the White House defeating Republican challenger Mitt Romney, reaction to his win seen on the streets
On November 6th, the site celebrated the U.S.' Election Night where President Barack Obama was reelected to the White House. On that night the website saw more than 100,000 photos under the hashtag of #iVoted and about 150,000 more using #election2012. Lastly, listed as number 10 the site chose the 300,000 protest government in Buenos Aires, capturing just a frame of the thousands of people who turned out to represent their views.
November 9th: The 300,000 protest government in Argentina's Buenos Aires is seen, capturing in this photo just a sliver of the thousands of people who turned out
Strangely out of their 'just a few events captured with Instagram,' they failed to leave out one big milestone for their own site: Thanksgiving. While it is an American holiday, at the time of the event they boasted a record-breaking rate of 226 photos per second uploaded to their page. It was their biggest day for picture uploads with more than 10 million photos specific to the American holiday alone. Source: Travelfwd+
