Assignment Two: Review
Name: Emily Conlin s3718148

I declare that in submitting all work for this assessment I have read, understood and agree to the content and expectations of the assessment declaration – https://www.rmit.edu.au/students/support-and-facilities/student-support/equitable-learning-services

Blog reflections 

Week Five: Analogue Photography
Week Six: Analogue Video
Week Seven: Networked Photography
Week Eight: Networked Video

Review (word count: 1095).

a. Provide a definition for ‘analogue photography’.

In the simplest of terms, analogue photography refers to the practice of capturing visual representations of life on film. For many, creating images through this process was an art form as opposed to a hobby. Practitioners from this era enjoyed the authenticity which came from this style of photography; editing was a timely task and thus, many weren’t interested in the process. Without much editing, the moments captured are considered to be as real as they come. Analogue photography further represents images which were created without the existence of the internet. In order to view the works of these practitioners, those would have to purchase books or see them in an exhibition. This is what defines this photography as ‘art,’ (Kuc & Zylinska 2016, pg. 9).

b. Provide a definition for ‘analogue video’.

Analogue video represents the period of time when analogue signals were used to create the early inventions of traditional media such as the television. These electronic waveforms worked to create sound and visuals on screen. Due to video becoming a medium which stirred away from the process of film, these signals could be easily modified and interfered with (Speilmann 2007, pg.1). This interference can be linked to the invention of video-art, within which practitioners took advantage of how these signals could be manipulated to create something visually different and new. In order to understand analogue video, it’s important to address the analogue recording medium which is film. Like film, analogue video involves the process of registering light onto a surface in order to create an image, (Speilmann 2007, pg.3).

c. Provide a definition for ‘networked photography’.

Networked photography is a product formed off the existence of online media and new media technologies such as the camera phone and its applications. Since the invention of the camera phone, the everyday human being is invited to become not only a photographer but have easy access to publishing and distributing their content. Photographs are no longer developed in a linear fashion; digitisation has enabled the developing process to be so sufficient that photos can be authored, edited and shared in seconds (Palmer, 2014 pg. 245). Hand in hand with networked photography is the existence of photo sharing applications such as Instagram which further caters for the distribution of images in the digital era. By networking images through Instagram, users are encouraged to create an exhibition of their content founded on their own aesthetic (Halpern & Humphrey 2016, pg.2).

d. Provide a definition for ‘networked video’.

Through the invention of digital media and the development of video sharing services, audio-visual content has completely transformed. Since the late 1990’s when the first video phone was created, video communication has significantly developed from only being seen on television screens (Goggin 2013 pg. 147). Mobile media has become extremely flexible and as a result, sharing video content to an audience has become easily accessible. While the creation of YouTube catered to the mass distribution and consumption of video content, mobile applications have been developed in recent years to follow the trend. Users of multiple social media networks are now able to share their videos on all platforms without much limitation. Hence, networked video resembles an evolution of not only the authorisation of video content, but the ways upon which this content is consumed and shared to a global audience.

e. Provide definitions for the terms ‘authoring’, ‘publishing’ and ‘distributing’.

In the context of media, ‘authoring’ a product follows the process of its creation and development. Depending on the technology used, authoring media content can be extensive or done in seconds. ‘Publishing,’ on the other hand, is how this content is then set up to for consumption. When publishing a photo or video, the content begins in one set location. If the content is then shared, reposted or moved from the original place it was published, the item has then been distributed. ‘Distributing’ involves the process of sharing media content to have it seen by wider audiences. People may distribute their content in order to generate mass attention, develop financial gain or for aesthetic purposes.

f. What differences and similarities did you discover between the way analogue and networked photos are authored, published and distributed?

A significant difference between the authorisation of analogue and networked photography is accessibility. For those in the era of film photography, it was quite rare for photos to be authored by an amateur. Photojournalism was left to the professionals who took time to set up their shots, as opposed to those in the digital age who can snap an image on their camera phone in a matter of seconds (Kuc & Zylinska 2016, pg.7). The affordances of a film camera and the film’s editing process also differs to a digital camera. Applications on a camera phone allow for users to edit their photos quickly without much difficulty. Developing film was a timely process and although the look of film appeals to the taste of many, app’s in the age of new media allow for users to put “film” filters on their posts. It is quite hard to locate the original publication of many artists from the analogue era as there was no set application or blog to post it to for distribution, such as with Instagram. Instead, their work was published in newspapers and books that can be difficult to trace. Yet, analogue and networked photography can be seen as similar when it comes down to how the work is distributed for monetary reasons. Analogue photojournalists were paid for their work as they commonly travelled the world to capture what many would never see in person. Likewise, networked photographers with communities online profit off of sponsored travels, taking photos to advertise a destination, product or experience. Distributing content for both photographers would contribute to financially supporting their careers and expanding their audience.

g. What differences and similarities did you discover between the way analogue and networked videos are authored, published and distributed?

Unlike with photography, analogue and networked videos differ within the way they are distributed. Digital video-creators have the flexibility to share their content within the World Wide Web; countless platforms to post on such as YouTube, Facebook and Instagram. With analogue practitioners and video-art, their content could only be viewed in person. The authoring and affordances of both practices differ also: Analogue video signals could be manipulated in order to create effects while networked videos are digital and require digital editing. The equipment used to author digital content has also become far more advanced than the likes of analogue cameras. Yet, practitioners from both periods are similar in regard to publishing content that fits their aesthetic. With video-art, the video becomes one with the surrounding piece; there is symbolism and deliberate effects added in order for the piece to fit the artists vision and past works in their collection. Digital video-makers think the same way, wishing for their work to fit into the context of the aesthetic they are presenting to their audience when publishing online.

References:

Goggin, G 2013 ‘Mobile Video: Spreading Stories with Mobile Media,’ The Routledge Companion to Mobile Media, Routledge, New York, pp. 147.

Halpern, M & Humphrey, L 2016, ‘IPhoneography as an Emergent Art World,’ New Media and Society, Vol 18, no. 1, pp. 2.

Kamila, K & Zylinska, J 2016, ‘Photomediations: A Reader’, Open Humanities Press, viewed 3^rd May 2019, http://openhumanitiespress.org/books/download/Kuc-Zylinska_2016_Photomediations-A-Reader.pdf

Palmer, D 2014 ‘Mobile Media Photography,’ The Routledge Companion to Mobile Media, Routledge, New York, pp. 245.

Spielmann, Y 2007, ‘Video: The Reflexive Medium’, MIT Press Cambridge Massachusetts, London England, pp. 1-3.