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4/10 seeing this door means I’m going outside. Also, door doesn’t close properly, big problems there

A post shared by Dylan Simpson (@push.me_._pull.you) on May 29, 2019 at 7:13pm PDT

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

For this final video, as per usual, i recorded using my iPhone 6s, with the rear facing camera. Unlike my previous videos and photos i was running short on time and decided to go with something a bit close to home. I recorded multiple versions of the video using my iPhone’s camera app rather than the Instagram’s native video recording, as with the default camera app i can record multiple and choose the one i like most, whereas Instagram really only supports recording it and uploading it straight away, and not saving the video to anywhere external. Due to this, i had to keep in mind how it would look in the square frame, as it wasn’t a default option.

Unfortunately, my interior wasn’t very well lit, so there was a bit of a loss of quality in the video, and after recording a few different clips, i went with this one after trimming it down a bit. Because of the low raw quality, i ended up deciding not to edit the clip, although i did use Instagram’s thumbnail picker when deciding what frame i wanted as the thumbnail for the video

The only difference i seemed to find in comparison with publishing photography or imagery online is the constraint of Instagram’s square, gridlike display mode of the images.

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

After recording multiple times, choosing my final pick, selecting the thumbnail on instagram for the video to be previewed as, i published directly to instagram, repeating the process of the last two posts. That being, i posted a comment containing the tags so as not to clutter up the caption of the photo, as well as using the dot method to hide the comment so that even on PC the tags won’t show up in the caption.

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

For the final video, i once again posted to tumblr and had to create another account to post on for twitter. As per usual, with the same link back to the original post and the like. For the love of god, don’t lock this one too please, twitter

Original Instagram post here

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

I recorded this image on my smartphone, an Iphone 6s to be particular, with the rear facing camera. As for how i recorded the actual photo, like the previous photo, i ended up using the default camera app with a square frame, due to the fact that, like the previous photo, i took it in a high traffic area because i have an oh so great eye for when to take photos. Anyway, due to this, i didn’t have too much time to position myself, and required the ability to rapidly take multiple photos framing the door and it’s surroundings. The image was also sort of dark, so i did end up trying to bump up the brightness as well using Instagram’s in app tools

The only difference i seemed to find in comparison with publishing photography or imagery online is the constraint of Instagram’s square, gridlike display mode of the images.

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

After taking the time to sift through the photos i had available, choosing which one i felt would be best after a bit of processing, i went with a sort of quick, short caption this week, trying to keep the persona up, but also because i was a bit strapped for time this week as we come up to the completion of multiple of our prototyping due dates for class. Like the previous image and what i intend to do for the next, i used a few vague and specific hashtags placed in a comment below to keep the caption uncluttered and almost immediately received interaction after doing so

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

For this photo like all the others before it, after posting on instagram, i reposted the image onto my Tumblr account and twitter account. With my distribution to tumblr, i reposted the image and linked to the original instagram post, alongside using tags relevant to the post and image. As for twitter, i attempted to link the post as well use the image but funnily enough, my account has been suspended for “suspicious activity”, I guess not many people great an empty account and post about freakin’ doors. So i may just have to reupload all of these to a new account if i can’t get unsuspended in time

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You know my opinion on sliding doors, these are no different. Credit is due for the clear use of colour to indicate the handle, but the signage only tends to negate the intended design or confuse users. 6/10

A post shared by Dylan Simpson (@push.me_._pull.you) on May 23, 2019 at 1:28am PDT

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

This video was oh so not discreetly recorded on my trusty tool of the trade, my iPhone 6, using the rear facing camera of course, because there’s nothing more suspicious than turning my camera around and using the front facing camera to try and not look like a weirdo. Weird tangents aside, i recorded this only once using Instagram’s in app video as i was sort of trying my best not to be seen taking the video, to avoid getting my lights punched out. Other people’s lines may be empty at 8pm, mine is not. Because of this, i had to position myself in a way that would best frame the image without being noticeable. While multiple versions weren’t recorded, i did give a few attempts in app, deleting the recording and trying again if it didn’t fit.

Unfortunately, the lighting and my attempts to be subtle evidently were at the cost of quality in the image and, because i wanted to lose no further quality, i neglected to edit as the video was already quite compressed and had quite a bit of visual artifacting and noise. While i didn’t edit the video, i did use Instagram’s thumbnail system to choose which particular part of the video is shown as the thumbnail. In which i chose the thumbnail that clearly displayed the open doors and subject of the image. The ability to do this was something interesting i hadn’t really thought about in my previous publication of videos on other social medias other than maybe youtube.

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

After having taken multiple Videos of the same damn door opening and closing, i went with the video that ended up having the best video quality and thumbnail that would look best within’ Instagram’s grids. Once again keeping up the persona, i went my usual sliding door hating, judgmental caption. In contrast to my previous images and videos, i did provide relevant tags, with a few broader terms and specific ones such as #photography and #melbourne or #metro.

One affordance that i’ve gathered from previous experience in publishing on instagram, is that by posting the tags in a comment with multiple ellipses before the tags not only hides the comment as a set of dots, but also provides the same algorithmic retention as putting it in the caption. Doing this not only declutters the caption but also allows for hashtags to be used, evidence of this, while small, can be found that after submitting said comment with the tags the video received interactions from other users, while the previous posts had not. While understanding correlation is not causation, this evident change can’t be left unnoted

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

Like all the previous posts to this date, i repeated my same process on tumblr and twitter, reusing the same captions between the two and using tags on each post. The only real difference being that i used tags in the original post as well

Original post on Instagram

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

Not unlike the previous images, i recorded this image using the rear facing camera of my iPhone 6s. As for how i recorded this photo, i took the photo using my native camera app, using the square frame to make up for the fact that i wasn’t using Instagram’s default camera app, and to prepare for how the image would be positioned within the constraints of Instagram’s grid UI. The reasoning behind my use of just the native camera app, was due to the fact that my subject door was quite a busy place, and using the default app allowed for me to rapidly take a set of pictures of which i could choose what i felt best suited. Because of the high traffic, i had to find the right position that framed the image well, without taking up to much space in the thoroughfare. As for editing the actual image, it was broad daylight, but the awning above the door provided enough diffusion for the light to not be too direct, meaning i felt the image didn’t require any post processing edits to achieve the effect i wanted.

Once again, the only real difference i seemed to find in comparison with publishing photography or imagery online is the constraint of Instagram’s square, gridlike display mode of the images. Although, the lack of being able to take multiple photos in app and choosing the best one is a constraint that i feel is quite unnecessary

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

In this case, after hurriedly snapping my set of photos and being bustled along by the crowd. I found somewhere quiet and chose the image which best framed the subject, didn’t include people and wasn’t blurry as shit due to my wonderful camerawork. Again, keeping up my persona of my sliding door hating door rater, i added a caption, i rated the door while pretending my opinion was objective and once again posted without tags or location stamps

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

For this photo, like the others before it, after posting on instagram, i reposted the image on my Tumblr account created solely for this project and the twitter account of the same vein. With my distribution to tumblr, i reposted the image and linked to the original instagram post while also authoring a new caption “Ratin’ artsy doors today, check me out”. Alongside this, i used tags relevant to the post and image. As for twitter, i reused the new caption i added to tumblr, and embedded the photo in the tweet, while linking back to the original post

View this post on Instagram

I know my stance on sliding doors, but a good door is one that’s always open. 9/10

A post shared by Dylan Simpson (@push.me_._pull.you) on May 14, 2019 at 9:05pm PDT

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

I recorded this particular video on my smartphone, an iPhone 6s. Using the rear facing camera. Unlike my previously posted photo, i recorded multiple versions of the video using my iPhone’s camera app rather than the Instagram’s native video recording, as with the default camera app i can record multiple and choose the one i like most, whereas Instagram really only supports recording it and uploading it straight away, and not saving the video to anywhere external. Due to this, i had to keep in mind how it would look in the square frame, as it wasn’t a default option.

This scene, while also at night and particularly well lit, i had to spend more time thinking about the framing, as i also had to keep in mind the way in which Instagram would crop it after uploading it. While Instagram does provide the affordance of showing the full uncropped video, it comes at the expense of quality, as it shrinks the video down and adds unseemly white borders to the sides, which plainly do not look good in Instagram’s gridlike constraints. Other than what was previously mentioned or done by default, i didn’t edit this video much afterwards, as i was happy with the light balance and contrast

The only difference i seemed to find in comparison with publishing photography or imagery online is the constraint of Instagram’s square, gridlike display mode of the images.

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

After having taken multiple Videos of the subject door that i chose, i went with the video that i felt best framed the door in motion, and best suited the caption i had in mind. While trying to keep up the persona , i went with the caption “I know my stance on sliding doors, but a good door is one that’s always open. 9/10” to uphold the sort of joking facade and hinting at past history with the character in mind. Once again, i decided against using Geotagging, and continue to hold off on using hashtags for my first 3 posts, as mentioned in my previous post so as to experiment with the differences between native Instagram posting and posting with intent to game the algorithms in mind.

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

For this video, like the previous post, after posting on instagram, i reposted the image on the same Tumblr account and twitter account. With my distribution to tumblr, i reposted the image and linked to the original instagram post, alongside using tags relevant to the post and image. As for twitter, this time i decided to embed the video in the tweet alongside some use of hashtags as well as link to the original instagram post within the tweet

Original Instagram post here

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

I recorded this image on my smartphone, an Iphone 6s to be particular, with the rear facing camera. As for how i recorded the actual photo, i took the photo using Instagram’s in app camera as i felt that would be easiest in regards to seeing how the image would look restrained to instagram’s gridlike constraints, as i felt taking it at any other size or ratio would be a waste of time. As the scene was at night and particularly well lit, i had no trouble framing it with no one around or in the photo. While i am an atrocious photographer (I’ll stick to painting thanks) i tried to keep rule of thirds and the like in mind while framing the photo, as well as thinking about how the differences in lighting and shape would appear and contrast with the images around it on someone’s Instagram feed. While i didn’t do much editing, i used Instagram’s in app tools to slightly edit the brightness and contrast.

The only difference i seemed to find in comparison with publishing photography or imagery online is the constraint of Instagram’s square, gridlike display mode of the images.

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

After having taken multiple photos of the subject door that i chose, i went with the image that i liked the framing of the most, edited and then created my caption. In my attempt to create a sort of persona, as i didn’t want to frame these photos as serious or artsy in any way, i went along with the idea that i’d be rating doors on seemingly subjective things. I decided against using Geotagging, and also wanted to hold off on using hashtags for my first 3 posts, and then compare with the final 3 to see if there was much of a hike in interaction.

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

For this photo, after posting on instagram, i reposted the image on a Tumblr account created solely for this project and a twitter account. With my distribution to tumblr, i reposted the image and linked to the original instagram post, alongside using tags relevant to the post and image. As for twitter, i attempted to link the post as well use the image, yet the twitter post only embedded the link, as i haven’t quite figured out how to do both yet

Who is the practitioner (what is their name?) and when were they practicing?

The practitioner in question is Turkish Illustrator and Art teacher Ferhat Edizkan, or ‘@Edizkan’ on instagram. While his first public post is from the 2nd of October, 2012, it is evident that he has been working far longer than that as an artist, as his work is mostly comprised of figure drawings, paintings and technical art. He consistently posts every two to three days and since the creation of his account on instagram has posted 1,515 times, accruing 496 thousand followers as of time of writing.

What is the title of the photo or video you have chosen to analyse (can you provide a link?)  

The video is simply titled “Figure Drawing, Skeleton” on Instagram, although it was also posted under the name “How to draw Skeleton” on his youtube channel of the same name.

With the photo or video, you are examining when was it produced (date)?

Edizkan’s video was produced as early as February 12th, 2018 onto his instagram, although he later published it to his youtube channel on the 30th of November

How was the photo or video authored?

It is not clearly stated how Edizkan’s videos, even this one in particular, are authored. Despite this, there is reason to believe that his videos are filmed using his phone, as all of his videos are fitted to the square constraint of the in-built Instagram camera. Now while this alone wouldn’t necessarily indicate that this were the case, the fact that all of Edizkan’s videos that have been published on his accompanying youtube channel all contain the same square ratio, would indicate that this may be the case. Or at the very least, that Edizkan authored the videos with Instagram’s gridlike affordance in mind, and uploaded to youtube as an afterthought, leaving the same square ratio           

How was the photo or video published?

Edizkan’s videos are consistently videos of his artistic process, drawing, painting. The video in question is very similar to many of his others, and seems to be published just digitally, most likely using his phone, directly to instagram and posting onto the gridlike structure of instagram.

How was the photo or video distributed?

Edizkan utilises multiple platforms of distribution, although the majority are all mainly digital. As far as i’m aware he doesn’t have any print media that he associates with, although he does share the videos he creates and publishes on instagram, to his facebook page. While he does have a youtube channel on which he distributes some of his work, it appears that it is not as well maintained, as it seems the content there are just rehashes of the content made for instagram, albeit at a staggered date. Most likely because of the large disparity between the affordances of his audience between each platform. As while his audience on youtube isn’t nonexistent, it pales in comparison to the reach he has on Instagram.

Alongside this, Edizkan relies on the affordances of certain hashtags to reach out to instagram audiences that may not be aware of his work, trying force his works into some search terms to further aid this method of distribution

 

Who is the practitioner (what is their name?) and when were they practicing?

The practitioner i have chosen is a british digital artist who chooses to maintain the moniker of @b0neface rather than declaring his real name to the public, who is quite well known for working on large projects with games studios and musicians

What is the title of the photo or video you have chosen to analyse (can you provide a link?)

The image is accompanied solely by the caption “Gone.”

With the photo or video, you are examining when was it produced (date)?

This particular piece in question was produced and published on the 16th of January, 2018 on both his Instagram and Twitter, establishing the production date as confirmed

How was the photo or video authored?

While this work isn’t a photo, it is a digital work, most likely authored in Photoshop cs6 or some other form of digital painting application. This is important because this control over the creation of the image provides the affordance of pre-planning, allowing the author to crop, shape and create the image in a way ahead of time with Instagram or whatever platforms they may have in mind. B0neface’s use of negative space indicates a planned image based around the constraints of the Instagram’s grid interface. For comparison, B0neface would have edited the original image or created an alternate versions for his other publications on twitter and the like.

Most likely he works from a single parent file, of which he edits and creates child copies, as most of his works are created with being taken to print in mind, so while he does specifically crop and edit for digital release, i believe he keeps the raw file unaltered so as to have the best quality for print

How was the photo or video published?

Now, while this image in particular is a direct upload of his work, it sort of deviates from the norm from his work, as generally he uploads photos of the final print of his work. Meaning his work would be published and printed on card stock for selling at some later point. This image in particular though, was uploaded to his Instagram and twitter, but not his personal web page. Interestingly enough, his twitter post provides a more portrait style cropping, alongside two other close ups of his work. This could be due to the fact that twitter affords the author a way of displaying multiple images at once, while Instagram’s handling of multiple images in one post can be seen as a constraint.

How was the photo or video distributed?

This image was posted on only a handful of his platforms, his most popular being his twitter and Instagram. Funnily enough he neglects to use hashtags or anything of the sort on any of his works, as it seems he may have made a name for himself from working on larger projects that he no longer uses hashtags or relies on any of those systems, instead choosing to rely on his existing fanbase and word of mouth.

While this may be the case with hashtags, he does tend to cross post and link wherever he can between his platforms, consistently posting links to his home site and Instagram on his twitter posts, and while he is unable to link outwardly on his posts, he links to his own site in the bio of his Instagram, despite having not updated it since 2016

References

B0neface, Self Titled,  viewed 27 April 2019, <http://www.boneface.co.uk/>.

b0neface 2018, Gone… , Twitter, 16 Jan, viewed 27 April 2019, <https://twitter.com/b0neface/status/953236372327993344?lang=en>.

 

 

Who is the practitioner (what is their name?) and when were they practicing?

The practitioner of this week’s work was Nam June Paik. Paik began practicing what he was known for, video art and installation, around 1962, and seemed to have practiced until his final years of life, and eventual passing in 2006.

What is the title of the photo or video you have chosen to analyse (can you provide a link?)

 

The title of the piece i’ve chosen is ‘Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii’

With the photo or video, you are examining when was it produced (date)?

Paik’s piece was assembled/created in 1995, although it could just as easily be argued that while it is the sum of its parts, it uses works dating back to 1956 with his use of the Wizard of Oz and the like within his piece. It could even be said that the seed of this work was planted upon his arrival in the country he came to know as his home in 1964

How was the photo or video authored?

Pak’s piece in particular utilised various clips of film and media, most recognisable being the 1954 film “The Wizard of Oz”. In regards to that particular piece of media, it was filmed on the ‘Technicolor DF-24 Beam Splitter Motion Picture Camera’, meaning the film was partially filmed with different coloured film strips and developed together to create basic rgb colour, while the rest would have been filmed in black and white, later coloured in a sepia tone colouring process. All for this to be converted into a broadcast signal and fed to the televisions in this art piece on a closed signal loop.

How was the photo or video published?

The videos underwent the sort of process i mentioned above, although that may not be the case for all of the media involved, as it’s a mixed back of old film, direct to broadcast TV and television, possibly later recorded onto physical media such as tape or laser-disk so as to be later distributed. Meaning that Paik would have had to unify the different forms of media to present them all in the single place

How was the photo or video distributed? As explained earlier, the videos involved would have been displayed through theaters or broadcast TV, later to be imprinted on physical media to be sold for home viewing. In regards to the piece itself, to this current date, photos of the piece are placed online for museum websites that hold the piece itself. Interestingly enough, many photos of the piece are distributed digitally or physically in print, yet fail to convey the main movement of the imagery involved

References

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Electronic Superhighway: Continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, SAAM, viewed 25 April 2019.

<https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/electronic-superhighway-continental-us-alaska-hawaii-71478>.

 

National Museum of American History, ‘The Technicolor world of Oz’, Ryan Litelmen, viewed 25 April 2019,

<https://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/2010/06/the-technicolor-world-of-oz.html>.

Who is the practitioner (what is their name?) and when were they practicing?

Henri Cartier Bresson is the practitioner in question, having casually shown an interest in photography from the year he first received a camera in 1929, he only became more invested years later after his return to france and his reconnection with other artistic and surrealist influences, that led to him deepening his career in photography, going on to form multiple exhibits, Magnum photos, and then eventually retiring from photography in the early 1970s

What is the title of the photo or video you have chosen to analyse (can you provide a link?)

FRANCE. Paris. The Seine, The Pont des Arts bridge. 1955.

With the photo or video, you are examining when was it produced (date)?

The photo in question was produced authored and produced in 1955

How was the photo or video authored?

Bresson had a particular camera that he used, the ‘Leica’ that he preferred due to it’s small size and possibility for anonymity. Emphasised by the fact that he painted all the silver parts black, he wanted all this to really allow for more candid, ‘genuine’ photos. Rather than the typical formal looking personas many put on when they are aware of being photographed. Of course, these would be later developed in a red room. As for this particular photo, Bresson appears to have taken it from a distance, framing the men on the shore and the bridge with the dark shadows of the overhanging tree and surrounding architecture to really draw focus to the intended subject of the photo.

How was the photo or video published? The photo in question was printed, using the original film, and displayed amongst a gallery of his other pieces.

How was the photo or video distributed? Originally, the photo was part of a set, ‘The Seine’ and was most likely put on display in one of Bresson’s many exhibit’s of his work. As of this current day and age, his work is now distributed online in digital scans of his work

Reference

Bresson, HC 1955, The Pont des Arts bridge, photograph, accessed April 2019, <here/>.