Improved Instagram photo viewing interaction GIF

Set about to improve the photo viewing interaction on Instagram.

Currently when tapping on an image a new screen slides in from the left which detaches the user from the journey breaking the flow. By using a fly in animation the user feels like they are delving into the photo and providing context of where they came from instead of starting a new flow.

Also currently it isn't possible to scroll through photos once you've tapped into a thumbnail, the user has to use the back button to then click on the next photo. I solved this with a simple horizontal scroll replacing the back icon with a close icon.

There is the list view which enables the user to scroll photos however this always starts on the first photo making it difficult to scroll through photos further down a profile/ explore screen.

Let me know what your thoughts are on this solution and any other ways you would tackle this problem.

Many thanks

Medium article here