Bianca Barichello- s3540013

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 ENTRIES:

#Week 9- Instagram Video

#Week 9- Instagram Photo

#Week 10- Instagram Video

#Week 10- Instagram Photo

#Week 11- Instagram Photo

#Week 11- Instagram Video

HOW DO THE AFFORDANCES OF INSTAGRAM AFFECT THE WAY PHOTOS AND VIDEOS ARE AUTHORED, PUBLISHED AND DISTRIBUTED IN THE NETWORK?

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND:

Instagram’s evolving interface and expanding affordances enables us as users to engage in a network either casually, professionally or even as a potential business tool for a company. Within the contents of this report, I will share my experience and findings discovered during my interaction with my newly established Instagram account the_door_enthusiast. Furthermore, I will be analysing how the affordances of Instagram have changed and influenced how we author, publish and distribute content in today’s generation. (Manovich, L 2016,)

EVIDENCE/WHAT?

The most effective way to understand the fundamentals of a system and the aspects that have made Instagram the leader in the videography and photography network, is to experience the affordances it provides first hand. This was demonstrated in my experiment conducted, which was to set up an Instagram account publishing content purely based on doors. The rationale behind this was not only on the content being shared, but how the application was able shape and accentuate the quality of the content I produced. A difficult aspect of this investigation was that every photo and video had to be authored and produced with in the Instagram application, including the process of taking the actual photo. I found this a challenge, as my general everyday use of Instagram differed quite significantly. As I always captured the images on my camera roll and edited them prior to importing the image to Instagram.

AUTHORING:

Like anything with affordances there also comes constraints that limit the possibilities for what the user may hope for the application to do. The obvious, main constraint of taking an image directly from the Instagram app is the dimension restriction. My first experience filming this photo on the Instagram app,  #Week 9- Instagram Photo proved quite difficult at the beginning, to fit the entire tall door frames in such a small confined square. There was a longer process involved in taking this image ensuring nothing was cropped out. While, it seemed a little constraining at first, I later came to realise that publishing square photos looks a lot better for my profile ‘grid’, as there is no cropping or distortion of the picture, which can frequently occur to differently shaped images. Grid arrangement is a essential aspect of creating that classic Instagram aesthetic, that Manovich discusses in his analysis of “Instagrammism” (2016). Thus, during this process I’ve found that almost always the best Instagram photos and videos are framed well and fit within that perfect little square. In the case of my experiment Instagram account, my best and most “liked” photo content #Week 11- Instagram Photo  and #Week 10- Instagram Video framed much neater, even adding a touch of professionalism to the final image due to this format.

Throughout the establishment of my new account and through further research conducted, the other big thing of Instagrammism is the editing affordances of the app. Which provides convenience for users, with the ability for a one step process to finalise and upload their content. Without even having to exit the Instagram app. Despite, there being a lot more professional editing apps readily available,with even more extensive tools for more professional edits, Instagram affords its users with the main necessary tools required to enhance the quality of their image. including adding/reducing filters, modifying the contrast, lighting, brightness, saturation, highlights and more. In terms of my experience editing, the majority of my posts didn’t incorporate a filter, instead I capitalised on the individual editing tools such as adjusting the contrast, brightness and saturation slightly until desired. This was mostly used to bring out the contrast of the colours more, such as highlighting the blue tones as this became a visually appealing theme through my content shared weekly. An example  in my #Week 10- Instagram Photo you can see the vibrant colours have been brightened to result in a high quality photo resolution, whilst still remaining natural and authentic as possible. Eelco Roos an Instagram photographer who I studied for my Week 7- Online Photography is a prime example of someone who has generated great success, from his photo content being captured on his Iphone and taking advantage of editing features employed by Instagram’s affordances. Just like my Instagram account he slightly edits his pictures whilst ensuring not to eradicate it’s natural appeal.

PUBLISHING:

Instagram has created users with an experience which is easier for them to navigate the functions afforded to them, making the publishing process more simplistic as well as also influencing the way they share their content. They place emphasis on encouraging users to capitalise on the essential features such as adding a location, caption, hashtags and tags. There almost feels like there is a pressure to use these tools in order for the photo to be successful and worthy of sharing on this interface. In my own ever day casual use, I must admit I don’t often add a location to my post, nor use hashtags and captions as much as I probably should. However, from my experience of running the_door_enthusiast I have come to realise how powerful these tools are essentially to gain exposure, expand reach and lastly to draw in more likes.

I was quite surprised when I came to realise how many views my videos had already generated. After only one hour of uploading #Week 9- Instagram Video and #Week 10- Instagram Video . This reach linked back to my use of popular hashtags I decided to go with as well geographically referencing both these too. The importance of taking advantage of these tools has become more clear to me now, with users wanting to be able to gain some context around the photo. Thus, wanting to be able to click on things like locations, hashtags and tags. Rachel Ryle an Instagram blogger who I researched in my Week 8- Online Videography is a perfect example of someone who has capitalised on Instagram’s affordances to create an online community of users, with the same passions and interests as her hence her 1 million+ following. She uses an extensive amount of hashtags in each of her posts, to generate exposure for her creative content. By doing this, she is also making it easier for users to come across her work, as this is required in a big network like Instagram.

For each of my posts, the captions were quite concise but effective, only including a couple of words in relation to the content and featuring an emoji or two to add a personalised effect to the upload. My personal favourite caption resonates with my #Week 10- Instagram Video as it had a bit of humour to it featuring the little emojis of a person running after the train, which was very relevant to me at the time I filmed this. With this post I decided to incorporate a few extra hashtags as well to see if this would expand the reach achieved. The results definitely did show to have worked,  as it happened to be my most viewed content.

DISTRIUTION:

Distribution refers to the way the content that is authored and published is shared across Instagram and various other platforms in the hope to generate interest. Distribution is just as essential as authoring, as efforts to share content wouldn’t be worth it, if wasn’t going to be viewed and acknowledged by others. As analysed here in my #Week 9- Instagram Video I was conveniently able to link my personal Twitter and Tumblr accounts to my Instagram account, allowing me the ability to share my content across three different social platforms. I learnt that this allows for further reach and engagement.

In my personal Instagram use, I had only ever shared photos from Instagram to my Facebook account. In this experiment I was looking forward to venturing out to explore other platforms and see the ability each affords to translate to twitter and Tumblr platforms. This resulted in some interesting findings. Following Instagram, Tumblr was able to visually display the content effectively with same layout featured on Instagram, just like Instagram it is quite a visual medium. However, while the content does still look visually pleasing, it features a totally different aesthetic appeal to Instagram resulting in my content not fitting in as well. This may be because Instagram is more of a modern application and Tumblr being a little more dated and mainly for more GIFS and memes. Twitter, on the other hand only transfers a link of the post along with the caption and hashtags, removing all visual aspects. This spoils the overall content, as from the caption and hashtags it is quite difficult for viewers to gain an insight into what the visual component is.

CONCLUSION:

Throughout the course of this investigation, it has become comprehensible how such an influential social media platform, can employ a set of certain cultural codes or constraints through the affordances provided on their app. Over time ,Instagram has evolved and extrapolated on the initial affordances turning the service in to one of the largest marketing mechanisms used today. The ways in which Instagram associates with other platforms emphasises the fact that it is the by far the leader of photography and the home of images, significantly content of that ‘Instagrammism’ aesthetic.

REFERENCES:

• Norman, D 1998, “The Design of Everyday Things”, Basic Book, New York, US
• Manovich, L 2016, “Instagram and Contemporary Image”, University of San Diego, US

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpGnONVn-Ca/?taken-by=the_door_enthusiast

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

For my third photo I decided to do something a little different rather than just focusing on the door and the framing of it, I wanted to capture a long distance shot, showcasing the staircase and other surrounding aspects that also bring out the image. Again, the photo was taken on my Iphone 6 rear facing camera to ensure the best quality image is produced.

In terms of editing the image, I didn’t want to use a set filter and take away from the originality of it. As the more filters I experimented with were affecting the quality and were taking away the shadows and reflections as well as also making the image too bright and unnatural looking. Instead, I made use of the individual editing function available on the app, I slightly adjusted the contrast and saturation until I was happy with the final outcome, these modifications actually brought out the shadows a bit more as well as lightening up the blue tiles on the wall. I was satisfied with the quality of this photo as it also fits in really well into the theme on the page, especially with the blue tiles that can be seen, adding to the blue theme I have following in my posts.

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

I stood in front of the door and took several images, and still wasn’t completely satisfied with some that I had captured. Some were too bright and didn’t emphasise the shadows that i want featured in the photo.  I included a caption in this image that states “What’s on the other side???” to spark some curiosity in the viewers. There being a small window on the door also further generates questions of curiosity. Along with this I added some hashtags too assist in gaining further reach and hopefully more likes too. I used some of the hashtags that also featured in my previous #Week 9- Instagram Photo  where a higher amount of views were reached so I thought adding these in this weeks post, may also generate some extra views and likes.

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

In order to distribute the photo I published I decided to share it to my Twitter and Tumblr as I have my previous posts. This will ensure that all of my door content will be equally shared across three platforms, allowing for optimum traction. Although Twitter does not display the image it does state the caption used on Instagram. This allows the Twitter audience to gage what my posts are about and encourage them to view the image captured.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpHczbBHEe2/?taken-by=the_door_enthusiast

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

For this weeks video content I decided to record the revolving doors in the RMIT building, using my rear facing camera of my Iphone 6. These doors are quite innovative and an example of modern technology in today’s society. They provide a visually appealing aesthetic which fits in well on my account, alongside the other content shared. I recorded these doors with the ‘boomerang’ function within the Instagram app. I decided a boomerang would be more affective as opposed to a regular video, as it is more engaging and draws in the eye, constantly spinning around back and fourth with the captivating visual appeal.

The authoring process involved was quite time consuming, as I chose a busy time to film with people constantly walking in and out of the doors. As soon as it was clear I quickly captured the video. Ensuring where I positioned myself framed the entire revolving doors and making sure I was standing as still as I could, avoiding any shakiness affecting the recording quality.  I then held down the record button until the doors had done roughly half a rotation. Given, that it was daylight and the glass doors are already reflective, flash wasn’t necessary. In terms of the videos audio the ‘Boomerang’ function affordances to mute any audio, making this a silent clip which worked out to be quite beneficial, due to the background noise and distractions. In terms of filters, Instagram doesn’t allow for individual editing features and only provides set filters. Luckily due to the adequate lighting it didn’t even require any form of editing and colour and aesthetics fit well into my account.

2. How did you publish the photo you recorded for upload to Instagram?

The publishing process was very simple and quick for this post, as the content had been filmed in boomerang mode. I was able to save it to my camera roll and then upload it straight from my there to my account. Following the theme of my page I added a text caption ” Never ending spinning door” featuring a ‘world’ emoji near it as it relates  quite well. Thus also adding a bit of fun to the caption as well. I also attached some hashtags in the hope of gaining more viewers. Surprisingly the hashtags must’ve assisted me in gaining this, as after only 1 hour the boomerang had already over 14 views. Another tool that could’ve potentially assisted me in gaining this reach could be tagging the location on the top of the post being “RMIT University”. This being a popular and widely searched location may have created more interest.

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

Like last week I distributed this video on my Instagram and to the linked Tumblr and Twitter accounts. Navigating between these two accounts has been made very simple as I just have to go to my profile screen and click on my name, and Instagram remembers the linked accounts so all I have to do is select “Tumblr” and “Twitter” and it automatically uploaded to these platforms. I maintained the three hashtags for this boomerang in the hope of generating more views and likes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpBYOu5nePY/?taken-by=the_door_enthusiast

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

Once again this image was captured on my iphone 6s. To ensure the best possible photo quality was produced, I used the rear facing camera. This provides optimal quality and is more effective for capturing scenery landscape photography.

Like in my previous #Week 10- Instagram Video post this content idea was generated randomly with no plan or intention of coming across potential content to upload to my Instagram account. However, while going for a quick walk around my block, I ventured into a difference street, discovered this brick wall with a painting and then in the middle featured this door, which I had never come across before. This captured my attention immediately with the use of the vibrant colours popping out at me and the images painted on it which were very unique and creative.

I began the authoring process by positioning myself centrally to the door, so I could frame the image nicely. Allowing it to fit the Instagram square format as well as remaining balanced/ symmetrical. To do this I stood roughly about 2 metres back. Ensuring I wasn’t too far away, as I didn’t want to have to use the zooming in tool, as this tends to decrease the quality causing it to become slightly pixelated. On my walk home I uploaded this almost immediately, after experimenting with a few filters I came to the conclusion that a lot of them took away the authenticity of the unique painting featuring on the door and making the bright colours look overly edited. Therefore, I just utilised the individual editing functions by slightly increasing the brightness, contrast and warmth. This made the beautiful colours pop that little bit more, while still keep it looking original and as professional as possible.

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

When publishing this weeks photo content, I added a caption associating to the image. I chose to go with “Doors that tell stories” because on the door depicts a little picture story with an old fashioned car and greenery. I then added some hashtags as well to gain some further exposure from other interested users. I wanted to create some unique and quirky hashtags.

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

To distribute my image beyond Instagram, the affordances of the program allow an automatic upload to my other social media platforms such as my twitter and Tumblr accounts. I didn’t need to make any modifications to the images for the various platforms.

When viewing the exact same content on my Tumblr account the photo seemed to fit and adapt quite well to this platform, providing the same effect. Alike Instagram, Tumblr is also predominantly a very visual service, therefore the image size and everything remained the same. Twitter on the other hand was different as the visual content disappears, and only keeps the captions and hash tags along with the post link. Twitter being heavily reliant on hashtags, means that my future uploads will need to incorporate even more interesting captions and increase the use of them, in order to generate more interest in this process.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpBVarVHx8t/?taken-by=the_door_enthusiast

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

The authoring of this video took place at Eaglemont Train Station. I unfortunately was running late and happened to miss my train, I had to wait 20 minutes for the next train to arrive. Whilst waiting, a train travelling in the opposite direction came past generating an idea for this weeks content. Along with the caption, that resonated with me that day, “train doors definitely don’t wait for anyone or anything”! Again, I captured this video using the rear camera of my Iphone, holding the phone at eye level positioning my phone not too high or low, to capture a good angle of the train making its way past, while slightly angling the camera slightly more towards the right as that is where the train was heading.

When authoring this video, I chose to keep the audio featuring in the video without muting it, as you can hear the train gradually building up its speed and resonates with the sound of the unfortunate moment, hearing the train gradually building up speed, knowing you’re not going to make it.

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

The publishing process took place immediately after shooting this video, as I continued to wait for my train to arrive and then whilst sitting on the train when it finally came! My week 9 post earlier #Week 9- Instagram Photo required a longer publishing process consisting of more thinking and planning involved, as I was generating ideas of potential doors that would be suitable to share on my account. However, with this post there was a difference, as it was a spare of the moment subconscious moment, where no planning was involved at all. As i heard the sound of the train I thought what an innovative and different way of showcasing a train door.

I published the post once I had sat down on the train, taking advantage of the simple and quick nature of Instagram by uploading the video without too much hesitation or any over thinking, which usually occurs prior to uploading on Instagram. In terms of the editing process the length of the video was perfect not too long or short, therefore didn’t require any trimming. The brightness seemed quite stark and dull as the video was captured on a gloomy day, with very little sunlight, this was easily fixed with the decision to modify the image by utilising the filter “Lark”. This emphasised the blue of the train more and its surroundings, making it more visually appealing and adding to the aesthetic appeal of my page.

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

For the distribution process for this post, I used the in-built sharing features on Instagram, by simply transferring this post over to my Twitter and Tumblr accounts, leaving the captions universal across all three platforms as they were able to fit in successfully. I added quite a lot of hashtags, using the ones that had got me multiple likes from the other uploads which I had taken from other Instagram users who received quite a lot of likes for their posts as well. I also shared this to the twitter page using the prompted “Share to Twitter” option that appears when you upload your video to Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpBDaGOnX2y/?taken-by=the_door_enthusiast

1. How did you author the photo you recorded for upload to Instagram?

I used my iPhone 7 to capture this image and used the rear facing camera function on the Instagram app. I stood directly in the centre of the double doors to capture an optimal angle, best showcasing the double doors. Due to the affordance constraint of the square format of Instagram, I couldn’t get overly close to the subject otherwise parts of the image would’ve been cropped out. In terms of the editing process involved, due to there being minimal sunlight at the time of producing this image, I thought I would attempt to Incorporate a few filters to make the image slightly more vibrant and decrease the dullness of shot. I tried out the set filters available on the app, however these resulted in a highly edited and unnatural looking image. Finally, I ended up just focusing on using the editing features that are provided, such as adjusting the brightness, contract and saturation. This worked quite successfully in lightening up the image and enhancing the colours, whilst still looking quite professional and natural. 

Generally, I use my camera provided on my Iphone to originally capture the photos before I import them into the Instagram app. I feel as though It gives me more freedom to adjust and modify the image prior to getting it ready to post on Instagram. For example, the size of the image, various editing tools and framing of the image is easier to control on the iphone camera roll app. Thus, when taking images for a potential upload, they must to be perfect and worthy to be shared on my account, therefore I take several images and then compare them all. However, with this particular shot,  the photo was taken straight from the Instagram app to sharing it to straight to the public. Having experienced this method now I did find it saved me some time, whilst also providing some flexibility and a few other options as well, which is quite beneficial to know.

2. How did you publish the photo you recorded to upload to Instagram?

I stood in front of the door and took several images, and still wasn’t completely satisfied with the several outcomes. Some were quite dull and didn’t emphasise the colour composition and balance I wanted to highlight in the image for the visual aesthetic of my account.

I chose to add the location of my suburb before sharing the photo. I thought this may assist in expanding my following with some local viewers or potential future locals. As this suburb has recently increased in population and is currently a booming suburb, which may also help gain more exposure and interest in my post. I chose to include 3 relevant hashtags to attract more users; #justdoorthings #frenchdoors #doortraits. Through some research these hashtags seemed to be a popular and frequent search, so I decided to stick with these, as they are also related to the photo. After this, I immediately uploaded the image. Almost too easy!

3. How did you distribute the photo you published on Instagram to other social media services?

After merging the two platforms with my Instagram account, this made the process of distributing my image so much easier as well as saving me a lot of time. As each post uploaded automatically, without me having to post separately on these platforms. In terms of my hashtags I used, they were able to transfer and adjust relatively well to mainly Twitter, as this social media service is predominately written posts as opposed to visual ones. Similar to the affordances of Instagram, Twitter utilises hashtags effectively to archive content making it easier to find relevant content.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BpBDFIKn35l/?taken-by=the_door_enthusiast

1. How did you author the video you recorded for upload to Instagram?

I captured this video, with the use of my iphone 6s using the rear facing camera to ensure this kept my video in the best quality my phone could provide. This was my first proper experience using the ‘Boomerang’ video creator function. Because on my personal account I only share photos, boomerangs purely feature on my Instagram ‘story’ mode.

As boomerangs are quite short and concise, the video had to be taken multiple times to produce the desired outcome at just the right speed. Whilst capturing the image I positioned myself in various angles, to best show the door opening, as well as getting a step closer to the glass door to get more of a top/side view of it. I experimented with various filters available on the Instagram app after shooting the video. However I wasn’t entirely satisfied with the appearance of the set edit, as none of them enhanced the quality and colour. Therefore, I decided to keep it in original form, leaving it untouched.

2. How did you publish the video you recorded for upload to Instagram?

The publishing process was made quite simple and quick, as the ‘boomerang’ was produced from the app and then immediately uploaded, as it features the program required to produce this type of content. I decided to include a caption with hashtags, to increase my chances of gaining exposure and engagement from an audience, with a mutual interest in the photos I’m sharing. The hashtags included; #justdoorthings #poolgoals #doortraits all resonated with the theme of my page and allowed me to gain more views/ likes, therefore promoting a broader network of viewers also interested in doors. I was quite shocked at the fact that within only an hour of sharing the video it gained over 15 views despite having no followers prior to this. I was quite satisfied with the immediate reach already and just proves how vital and effective they really are. On the other hand, I also shared it to my Twitter account with the same hashtags to gain some awareness, however it did not do as well as the Instagram hashtags, due to Instagram being more of a visual platform as opposed to twitter where written posts are more popular.

3. How did you distribute the video you published on Instagram to other social media services? 

I distributed my content on my personal Twitter and Tumblr accounts. To begin the process of sharing my Instagram content to these platforms, Instagram required me to merge the platforms together by filling in my Twitter and Tumblr login details, such as my username and password through Instagram. Access also had to be permitted for Instagram to join these accounts. Once this was fulfilled, the process was as simple as pressing the three dots on the right side of my uploaded content, and turning on the ‘sharing’ tab for both Twitter and Tumblr and then finally pressing share. The post was then immediately uploaded to both platforms.