Name: Phoebe Drake s3708088
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
Making Media blog links
Week 5 – Instagram photo
Week 5 – Instagram video
Week 5 – Instagram photo
Week 6 – Instagram video
Week 6 – Instagram photo
Week 6 – Instagram video
Instagram Handle: @networkedphoebe
This report responds directly to the course prompt:
‘How do the affordances of Instagram affect the way photos and videos are authored, published and distributed in the network?’
Invisibility Uncovered: The Affordances of Instagram
Introduction:
Instagram is a platform that allows users to author, publish and distribute networked photos and videos. In todays ever-evolving globalisation, the affordances of Instagram have become arguably invisible; as it serves its [users] without drawing attention to itself (Norman 1998 p.1). As users, we have underestimated the power of Instagram as a multidimensional channel for distributing and receiving content. While there are many true affordances within the network, there is a number of constraints that have potentially gone unnoticed. However, it is important to recognise that the current balance of affordances and constraints allow users to understand the purpose of the app. One of Instagram’s main affordances is the ability for users to share ideas, aesthetics, cultures and values with people instantly. However, since there are billions of users on one standardised piece of software, I believe the affordances of Instagram have affected the ways images and videos are authored, whilst also encouraging and constraining different creative processes concurrently.
Evidence:
Creating media content has allowed me to critically analyse how the affordances of Instagram affect creative processes, in relation to authoring, publishing and distributing on the network. I note that uploading content to Instagram was refreshing. I am usually one to upload a selfie or a picture with friends; without thinking too much into it. Since I downloaded Instagram in 2012, this was the first time I did not think about what people thought of me or how I look, and instead just considered the beauty of capturing good design. Moreover, the making media task made me critically think about what constitutes an Instagram post and how it is affected by the affordances of Instagram itself. For example, when I authored the first photo and video, I captured the photo of the bridge with ease, because I knew what I wanted to do straight away. Over the days, I began to reach an impasse about good design. As Donald Norman states, ‘good design is hard to notice’ (Norman 1998, p.1), and this was proving true. However, I decided not to take the prompt so literally, and used for thematic inspiration instead.
Evaluation:
- Authoring
Daniel Palmer argues that mobile media and the apps associated with them, such as Instagram, are changing the way that photographs are produced (Palmer 2014, p.245). Over the years, we have seen a shift in the types of content that is being created within the Instagram network, and the app has transformed into the perfect medium of the “aesthetic society” (Manovich 2016). One affordance of Instagram is the variety of editing tools that allow users to author photos to become more aesthetically pleasing or unique. For many Instagram users, these tools allow for more creativity and individuality. However, I found through making media that these editing tools are quite basic, and only provide standard tools such as adjust, brightness and contrast. This limits the creative options for users, who may use particular content creation as styles of expression and communication. This proved accurate in my third making media post, as I found that most people edit photos in third-party apps such as VSCO in addition to the basic Instagram app (Manovich 2016 p.4). Ultimately, Instagram may be limiting the creative process for some experienced users with their standardised palate of editing tools, but is concurrently encouraging novice users to take a leap of faith into the realm of expressing themselves and their creativity.
- Publishing
The affordances of Instagram have affected the ways users publish photos and videos, by simplifying the publication and distribution process. Instagram affords users as not only photographers, but publishers too. Moreover, there is no bias in Instagram, as it does not provide just one singular use. Instagram benefits a wide variety of posters; professionals or amateurs, and has created a highly successful and diverse model for receiving content. In this way, Instagram users produce and consume media without being restricted to the traditional ideals held by mainstream print organisations. One could argue that the authoring, publishing and distributing process used to be quite linear, but now you can do all three at once; or even backwards. For example, in my fourth making media post, I published my video, but then went back and added hashtags to reach a dog lover audience. Historically, print media was usually framed on gallery walls or printed within a magazine. Today however, Instagram allows users to bypass formal publishing and reach audiences instantly, by affording users a digital gallery, in which the tiled format grid affords a ‘virtual exhibition’.
The ease of Instagram publishing was also apparent in my sixth making media post, when I used hashtags to garner more support from other Instagram users. By using hashtags, users can be noticed quickly as both authors and publishers of networked media. This accessibility has allowed people to find posts that are relevant to their interests and affected the movement of ideas, values and aesthetics between people (MacDonald 2017). This affordance has therefore affected the way photos and videos are published to the network, as they expose users to new ideas and content, without having to conform to the systemic nature of traditional print media publishers.
- Distributing
The expanding world of online social networking sites have enabled platforms such as Instagram to distribute photos and videos with ease. Instagram has allowed users to distribute content within a nationless, digital state. For example, in my second making media post I was able to cross distribute to Twitter and Facebook within seconds of posting my video. Photographs are now digital data; predictive and deterministic. If you send or store them, they are now able to be reproduced across devices. This data is then placed into this ‘global generation’, connected by common social media platforms, programming languages and visual aesthetics (Manovich 2016, p.1). However with any software there are discrepancies between perceived affordances and the processes that actually occur (Norman 2008). One could argue that distribution involves the sharing personal information too. Data harvesting is still a prominent issue, especially after the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal in 2018. According to a 2018 study by Identity Guard, Instagram’s main motive is to build a cache of personal user data to optimise engagement (Identity Guard 2018, para 1). This can be measured through geological, transactional or facial recognition data. Thankfully Instagram have released an updated data policy which outlines the information [they] collect depending on how you use [their] product (Instagram nd). While Instagram affords the ease of distribution and the ability to cross distribute; it is important for the network to remain transparent in regards to data collection from its active users.
Conclusion
Instagram has a set of affordances which affect the way photos and videos are authored within the network. Instagram’s editing and publishing tools, as well as the ease of touch-of-a-button distribution are all affordances which affect the creative processes of users on the network. Instagram therefore feeds into the notion to a spread of ideas, which contributes to the ever-evolving process of globalisation (Lister et al 2009, p.21). However, with so many people authoring, publishing and distributing content, Instagram is collecting an abundance of sensitive data that could jeopardise user trust. It is therefore paramount for users to recognise that the current balance of affordances and constraints, as they ultimately allow users to understand the purpose of the app.
Word Count: 1,239
References:
Identity Guard, 2018, ‘What You Need To Know About Instagram’s Privacy Policy’, article, viewed 24th February 2020 <https://www.identityguard.com/news/what-you-need-to-know-about-instagrams-privacy-policy>
Instagram, 2020, ‘Data Policy’, webpage, viewed 24th February 2020 <https://help.instagram.com/519522125107875>
Lister. M, Dovey, J, Giddings, S, Grant, I & Kelly, K , 2009, ‘New Media: A Critical Introduction’, Basic Book, pp.21, Routledge, New York.
MacDonald. J, 2017, ‘The Importance of Hashtags: Know Where, Why, and How to Use Them’, article, viewed 20th February 2020 <https://www.business2community.com/social-media/importance-hashtags-know-use-01837644>
Manovich, L 2016, ‘Instagram and the Contemporary Image’, University of San Diego, USA, pp. 24-113, viewed 20th February 2020 <http://manovich.net/index.php/projects/designing-and-living-instagram-photography>
Norman. D, 1998, ‘The Design of Everyday Things’, Basic Book, New York, pp.vii-xv; 1-13; 81-87; 177-186.
Norman. D, 2008, ‘Affordance, Conventions and Design (Part 2)’, Nielsen Norman Group, viewed 24th February 2020 <http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/affordance_conv.html>
Palmer. D, 2014, ‘Mobile Media Photography’, Routledge, New York pp. 249–55.