Videography for Doomscrollers

I think our photo and video team is among the best in the business. They know all of the classical rules of photography, and their portfolios hold up to the best studio photographers in Chicago.

‍

They also aren’t trying to prove that to our clients. Instead, they’re taking a simple, digestible approach to content creation. On the surface, this may feel like a waste of potential. In reality, it’s just a matter of catering to the social media landscape.

‍

To illustrate this point, let’s do a brief exercise. Scroll through your Instagram feed, and pay attention to each post. Can you tell if it was shot on a professional camera, or if it was on an iPhone? Can you tell which accounts have strong, in house video teams, and which are managed by content creators with iPhones? Likely not. More importantly, does that affect your enjoyment of the post? Other than actual photographers, I have my doubts.

‍

To further highlight my point, I want you to think about when you actively choose to engage with art, as opposed to when you’re merely doomscrolling. What headspace are you in for each? They’re likely much different.

‍

Social media creators follow a different set of rules than their traditional videographer counterparts. Whereas the traditional video editor focuses on crafting the most impressive string of transitions possible, content creators need to focus on appeasing the viewer as much as possible. We focus on optimizing every frame to maximize retention, whether that be through pacing, pop ups, or even the placement of closed captions. Our sole objective is to make our content as digestible as possible. We don’t want to overwork our viewers. Instead, we want to feed them information on a silver platter. Even forcing the viewer to shift their eyes from the center of the screen creates too much work for someone who’s trying to relax their mind.

‍

There’s still value in artistic photography and videography. In fact, I like to take these pictures myself! I think they hold particular value in the restaurant industry. When you’re trying to showcase just how good your food looks, you probably do need the best quality imaginable. Similarly, certain industries do actually have a reason for highly produced video content. There’s still a place for it– commercials, etc– but that place isn’t social media. The things that make studio photography so powerful are things that get lost on a casual scroll through Instagram.

‍

I could write a few thousand words on how our attention spans are fried. I could talk about how social media has ruined the dopamine receptors of an entire generation. Instead, I want to focus on the human truths that drive social media marketing. Social media is simply not where people go to use their brains. The finer nuances of a well shot video will be lost on an audience that doesn’t want to analyze said nuances. Our content therefore prioritizes giving the viewer a reason to stay, stimulating their minds every few seconds with well paced videos.

‍

Focus your content on the actual medium you’re posting on. The results will come.