Networked Media Week 9 – The perfect fit

How did you author (the photo or video) you recorded for upload to Instagram?

For the video this week, I chose to do an extension from the photo to further enhance and explore the idea of good design. Similarly, with the photograph, I authored this image with the rear-facing camera on my iPhone 11. Whilst I tried to stick to working within the application of Instagram, I found the set up and functions very hard to use. When filming on Instagram, the user has to hold down the filming button which is different from filming on the iPhone. Furthermore, unlike the drafting process on Instagram for photographs, there is no equivalent for videos. This meant each time you went to film, you had to decide whether it was going to be ‘the one’ or not as once you discarded it there was no getting it back.

I originally tried to do a bit of stop-start motion by holding the button down and videoing a few seconds, then stopping and moving the ladder down and then going back to my phone to the video again. After a few tries, I gave up doing this as I was not getting my desired smooth transitions, so I videoed it directly on my phone’s camera application. Through doing this, I was able to set my camera up and then start recording and move the ladder and stop filming. I ended up filming for about 40 seconds all up with just repeating the motion and chose the best sequence to post. Unlike Instagram’s constraint of not allowing for multiple drafts, I was able to film a few tries and then choose from my selection.

Longform video clip without editing

IMG_0356 2

In comparison to the photo I posted on my account, I wanted my video to have a different aesthetic. Therefore, during the week I decided that I was going to have all photographs in colour and the videos in black and white to create a cohesive and aesthetically pleasing approach. Hence, for the video I ended up uploading it onto Instagram from my camera roll in its original state, unedited, and then I proceeded to apply the filter ‘inkwell’. During the editing phase I decided although that I didn’t want any sound especially due to the unnecessary background noise, in my mind the sound effect enhanced the effectiveness of the design. Therefore, I decided to include it. Through the authoring process I also decided on the grid cover photo, which I decided to feature the shot right before the ladder slots into place. I chose this shot as I wanted to give an insight into what the video could be about but also leave some mystery as to the possibility of it being the ‘perfect fit’.

 

How did you publish (the photo or video) you recorded for upload to Instagram?

For the publishing of my video I kept it simple and cohesive to match the photo I had posted earlier. When choosing which video to post, I wanted a clip that showed the ladder sliding into place in a ‘satisfactory’ way, smooth and swiftly.

Likewise, to the photograph, the video was accompanied by a quote for a caption. The quote in this instance “Make it simple, but significant” – Don Draper, fictional character from Mad Men, as to me that is what the design of the bookshelf demonstrated. The bookshelf ladder pole shows how the designer has thought out the function and usage of the bookshelf and therefore is an example in my eyes of good design. The video plays automatically on a phone yet on the computer the user must click the play button, I didn’t specifically choose this function as I believe Instagram plays videos straight away on the phone with their latest updates regardless.

For this video post, I did choose similarly to the photo post to exclude the location as I didn’t feel it was necessary or would be beneficial. I potentially could have been broader in my approach and just put Melbourne as the location although at the time it wasn’t the most important thing to me. For this post, I was focusing more on the caption and hashtags to reach my audience.

 

How did you distribute (the photo or video) you published on Instagram to other social media services?

For the distribution of my video, I carried on with the same approach from my photo. I included the hashtags #design #gooddesign #video #blackandwhite #bookshelf #perfect #fitsperfectly to slightly differ from the photo post but still show a common theme throughout my content.

Again, I posted the video to Twitter and Tumblr however, I did notice similar issues on Twitter when I posted my video. Like my photo image which didn’t appear on my Twitter post, the video did the same thing. This meant that in order to see the video they had to click the link rather than just being able to watch the video on Twitter. I appreciated the feature that Tumblr showed the original posted content but I also realised on Tumblr, unlike Instagram, users had to click the play button on the video for it to play and I was not able to choose a cover photo. In order to try and combat these issues I am going to attempt to upload and share my content next week outside of the Instagram app to see if this makes a difference. I am keen to see if this will expose a constraint that Instagram needs to fix or if it simply Twitter and Tumblr’s platforms that disable the content.

I have noticed that the video post on Instagram has been played/viewed five times and whilst I cannot see these same figures for my photograph post, I am wondering if the hashtags or aesthetic had anything to do with this. I wish that I was able to see how many people viewed my Instagram post and how far my reach was. This is something that business accounts are afforded on the platform, yet personalised profiles are restricted to and I believe this should potentially be reconsidered.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *