Materializing Magic: How the Witches of Instagram Make the Invisible Visible Through Digital Photography and Editing Techniques.

The article examines how contemporary witches on Instagram, often referred to as the "Witches of Instagram," use digital photography and editing techniques to represent and materialize their magical practices and relationships with ritual objects. It challenges critiques that these witches engage in superficial consumerism by showing how their carefully staged and digitally manipulated images highlight the agency of magical materials and foster a "magical consciousness"—a relational worldview that blurs boundaries between human and nonhuman, material and immaterial. Drawing on feminist new materialism and the concept of "thick photography," the analysis situates these digital images as active participants in shaping witchcraft experiences rather than mere representations, while also linking this practice to historical precedents like spirit photography. Ultimately, the article argues that the Witches of Instagram contribute to a shift away from anthropocentrism by emphasizing interconnectedness with nonhuman agencies through both material culture and digital media.