a quite simple outfit, trying to use the little blue and white apron thing (which is actually a dress I think, that I just leave un-buttoned in the back and added an apron-like tie to lol)

Social Media Suggestions You Should Know

It can be difficult for small business owners to showcase their company with limited funds. Necessity will be the mother of invention, and social websites marketers have devised approaches to reach their audience through Facebook, Twitter, along with other social media marketing platforms at low priced. This excellent marketing phenomenon is affordable while offering very flexible creativity as it pertains time and energy to reaching out for brand new customers and receiving your small business message to the masses. This short article contains valuable information about the way you might implement these ideas into your marketing want to make your business more productive. Provide promotions to the followers. Engage customers by offering all of them with something exclusive. Try performing a contest on your social websites page. If you would rather take action else, then offer something that is exclusive simply to them. You may also limit your announcements for your social media sites. Never spam when posting on social media. Posting spam will be the quickest approach to lose followers and damage you and also you companies reputation. Spam posts on Facebook, Twitter, along with other social websites sites make any legitimate marketing difficult. When your posts are only a few words as well as a link to an item, you happen to be posting spam. Give relevant content or reviews in addition to any links you post. Try using linking applications on Twitter to share to the other social media marketing profiles as well. These linking applications certainly are a huge time saver. Once you post information on Twitter, it would automatically post the same message in your Facebook, YouTube, and Google+ profiles, therefore you don't have to sign into all of them to publish the same content. Try to test and try new as well as other social networking techniques and opportunities. You can find literally thousands of various suggestions to upping your social networking presence and increasing your internet marketing. If you achieve stuck in one simple strategy, you may well be losing out on a new technique that may significantly help your company. Create a Feed for your personal updates and present your readers the chance to subscribe to it. This will likely allow them to visit your posts when they log into their Google account or right on their computer desktop should they use an RSS widget. Dependant upon your target market, you will definately get basically success with an RSS feed. You can have your Twitter posts show up on your Facebook wall at the same time. Perhaps writing different posts may be best because your audience on Twitter might slightly differ from your Facebook friends, and Twitter is about writing extremely short posts. However, this lets you update both websites effortlessly. Things move very fast in social media, plus your company will have to adapt quickly on the changes while they come. Just, some time ago, tablet computers and cell phones did not exist in a mass-produced and publicly available form. Keep close track of the newest technology so that you will are better prepared for the alterations in your marketing. Do not forget to post the link to your web page or blog on the social network profiles. If someone hears relating to your products over a social media, they will have to gain access to more information and see whatever you use being a storefront before they could decide to buy anything. When you use social media know your audience. This is correct for almost any marketing strategy, but especially important here to ensure your message is reaching the proper people. Consider who could use your products or services and seek them out using the specifications available when placing your ad with a social media marketing site. Following any ads on the various social websites pages are intriguing, as well as photoshopped images. It really is a very brilliant idea to use attractive images to draw buyers onto your ad. Once readers are drawn in, they will be more prone to visit your site and work with you. Spend money on ad space on Facebook or some other websites. These ads are targeted towards users who may have used certain keywords related to your company within their status updates. https://www.minds.com/blog/view/818865856602714112 must get a great deal of targeted visitors who can understand your products or services even though they are doing not opt to 'like' your page. Conduct Facebook polls. Utilizing the the "question" feature on Facebook, you are able to establish a poll to question your followers a question. It may be with regards to their thoughts on a new product, their opinion on how you're doing with customer satisfaction or anything else to which you'd just like an answer. This keeps them engaged. When your followers feel more involved, they identify more closely together with your brand or product. Use social media marketing to host Q&A online sessions. It is possible to effectively teach your potential customers concerning your product range or services while creating content to your website via FAQ entries. Ever since the sessions are interactive, they are able to make the business feel more personal and highly relevant to the visitor. Regarding retweets, acknowledge them if you do them and when they are carried out to you. What this means is if you love what someone tweeted, use "RT" and paste in their @name as well as the message. This offers them credit for the content. And, if a person retweets your articles, thank them. These are simple courtesies. bypass recaptcha marketing is focused on building good communication skills. All of the social media sites are derived from conversations of just one form or any other. Use these sites to engage potential clients by telling them what you have to offer, making pertinent posts and displaying prominent links to the product pages. Try asking your website visitors questions about whatever they are trying to find. You are going to build relationships by exchanging valuable information and become rewarded by increased sales for your personal efforts. Using SMM, you don't be concerned about losing the final of your money. Your focus now becomes providing quality videos, pictures, etc. to some correctly established audience. By using the many social media marketing sites that are available today, you should be able to expand your subscriber base and increase your business.

The importance of content-rich websites

Innovative marketers reach buyers through integrating strategically their media assets such as social networking sites, blogs, podcasts, Q&A’s, news releases and others. Emphasizing storytelling in their communications is a huge trend lately and, according to David Meerman Scott, a “content-rich” website is the optimal consolidating vehicle. Scott believes that most websites emphasize design, advertising and technology factors built through their “webmasters” rather than create educational, valuable, relevant and consistent messages to gain their buyer’s loyalty. Sophisticated and useful information is a daunting task but pays off in the long run in terms of attracting specific audiences and driving them to take profitable actions. Successful marketers should always think as content publishers rather than advertisers and a company’s identity is, ultimately, determined by the breadth and, mostly, depth of the content it publishes.

To earn business websites should earn visitor’s trust through their thought leadership. Deploying the power of content to obtain your buyers’ loyalty is an ongoing process of continuously creating and curating industry related and solution based ideas. Websites become “contextually-appropriate” by offering highly targeted content and detailed solutions to the concerns of segmented buyer personas. Customers should feel precious as if the website was tailor-made to meet their needs. This necessitates understanding targeted buyers through deep research on their problems and progressive profiling for each buyer persona marketers seek to attract. Interest in the company stock might be the initial user inquiry but by creating a buyer centric, relatable site personality and forming relationships will gradually convince prospects on your product’s superiority.

Leveraging different forms of well organized content such as news, professionals’ articles on hot industry topics and valuable blog content, white papers, detailed reports, glossaries and playing on creative promotion through various means such as audio, video and text carries the largest weight in the success recipe of a digital marketing strategy. Industry professionals and experts add information credibility and links to additional relevant content such as press releases is also recommended. Moreover, creating multimedia content with landing pages including various widgets and placing CTA buttons that induce people to take action (send messages, chat and open dialogues, donate etc) and share the educational content while on site as well as social bookmarking tools to add tags to StumbleUpon, Delicious and Digg are all good website etiquette.

In his examples of successful “content-rich” websites, Scott emphasizes the inclusion of virtual badges for bloggers to add to their blogs and receive inbound links to the website they represent. Websites should include links for bloggers to spread their message and

the ability for users to subscribe to the blog’s RSS feed and receive updates on the latest posts. Content distribution tactics also include podcast channels that help bonding and at “unconventional hours” (e.g. commute) and staff members spreading the word in their social networking channels.

Moreover, as Joe Pulizzi, Founder of Content Marketing Institute puts it online success is about “focusing on owning media and corporate content rather than renting it”. Scotts urges marketers to “unify online marketing and PR efforts on their website” and to try to maintain a global focus for ecommerce websites. The author believes that it is a challenge and ever-increased necessity especially for businesses with various product lines, brands, geographies and languages to coordinate their individual websites in a unified corporate website that will showcase a cohesive personality. Individual brands are often more popular than the corporate brand and, thus, tactics to create corporate sites with more content on individual businesses is crucial. Bed Bath and Beyond has tabs of its individual brands on the bottom of all webpages of its corporate website. By clicking on any of its brand’s e.g.” buybuy BABY” the visitor is directed to a new site that has tabs of all brand sites: Word Market, ONE KINGS LANE, HARMON FACE VALUES etc. On the bottom right it also has a “Feedback” button that leads to an “OpinionLab” pop up form for customers improvement recommendations indicating customer interaction and relationship building.

Best “content-rich” site practices include: having CEO-featuring videos, numerous, multi-angle and detailed-focused product photos, infographics and instructographics (interactive presentations), article stories about employees in important positions exhibiting their work, a structured online newsroom and an investor relations webpage. Website experience is further enhanced through real-time product availability, authentic content including differing and multi-perspective points of view, happy customer reviews and ability to drive action by placing clear CTA.

Scott suggests, that the unique combination of content creation and its delivery through design and technology as well clear value propositions emphasizing the company’s individualized story ultimately leads to an effective website. Design strengthens messaging as an additional method to retain the visitor’s attention but not the primary traffic driver. Ultimately, it is the combination of a user-friendly, responsive web design, intuitive navigation, relatable content and a supreme product offering that decreases the buying decision time and induces people to pay a premium, thus, increasing ROI and profitability.

Some examples that harness the above mentioned practices are the Wall Street Journal, the New Yorker and Party City but it pays to emphasize the aspects that each excels. The first two have categorized semantic content by section such as “World, US, Politics, Economy, Business and Tech” in a way that makes sense to your user and have employed consistent design and white space for a seamless user experience. Users are urged to subscribe to the newsletter when they enter the website using clear colored “sign me up” CTA buttons and  newsletter subscription pops-up when navigating the website. The New Yorker has created extensive multimedia content including the “Videos, Podcasts and Photo Booth” sections while WSJ has clear bottom page buttons linking to their Apps and social media accounts.  

Party City is the epitome of a “content-heavy” website with segmented and updated party decoration ideas. In its homepage it currently focuses on creatively combining party supplies for Easter, graduations and Weddings as these events peak this time of year. Specifically, it has “Ideas” Tabs on the following Categories: “Boys and Girls Birthday Party Ideas”, a “Holiday Party Ideas” on “Easter, Cinco de Mayo and 4th of July”, “Special Occasions Ideas”  for “Graduation Party”, “Bridal” and “Baby Shower” and “Theme Party Ideas” on “A day in Paris”, “Mad Tea” and “Luau Party”. When clicking on any of the themes e.g “Easter” there are elaborate and playful “Easter Gallery” decoration suggestions such as: “Easter Bunny Sweets & Treats”, “Egg-citing Easter Tablescape”, “Spring Dots and Chevron Brunch” or “Pink and Green” ideas.

CTA button such as “Shop now”, “Print Coupon” “View all Easter Ideas” and “Get Inspired” are deployed in their homepage current season banners.

Scott also emphasizes the importance of content and process management on websites. Content updates should be frequent, section-specific and curated by experts to maintain website freshness and credibility. For instance, to create valuable section content (e.g. on the footer’s recruiting section) the staff cooperation of the corresponding department is required. Thus, webmasters cannot create and curate meaningful information for buyers because the per section expertise of trained professionals (professional copywriting producing keyword rich content) is recommended.  Audits on site’s operation and usability (e.g. pages loading quickly) and holding “web summits” uniting different departments’ staff members is also key to the “content-rich” website.

Along the content-rich website, digital marketing strategy components also include: online advertising, SEM and Social Media, Content, Email and Mobile Marketing. Excluding online advertising good marketing tactics on all other components are essentially driven from valuable content. It is clear that Content, SEO and Social feed on each other. Content Marketing fuels SEO as it is educational content that will drive search engine generated website traffic. Indeed, strategic SEO campaigns should invest in content creation. Successful link building also drives SEM results. In turn, links included on websites’ content sources such as videos should lead to unique landing pages offering specific content for the per case targeted buyer personas.

Social channels should be leveraged for content promotion, to generate website traffic and posts should include cross-links among social networks. Social signals such as Facebook Likes, Tweets and Pins showing user engagement are driven by content and help search engines index content faster. Companies should have a ubiquitous social network presence (Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Vine and Tumblr), continuously post visually rich, snackable, remarkable and entertaining content across all accounts to increase reach and optimizing social sharing buttons to drive engagement and shareability across digital devices. Buzzfeed’s “Tasty” website have leverage the above mentioned practices. Sending targeted automated email optimized for mobile devices are part an effective online strategy.

Even through their branded content companies should always strive to be established as the most credible source of information in their niche. Visitors always reward companies’ “content-rich” media strategies through their business loyalty. Lastly, content marketing should not be confused with inbound, “non-interruption” marketing (earning visitors’ attention organically and driving the buyer journey path from strangers to promoters) which should also be leveraged along sales department’s lead intelligence for effective online strategy.

Common Mistakes to Avoid While Making Facebook Ads

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Common Mistakes to Avoid While Making Facebook Ads

It is widely accepted that the future of the marketing industry is online marketing and conventional marketing has nowhere near the reach that the internet can provide. And the increase in a number of Pay Per Click marketing firms also shows the importance of online marketing.

Now, Facebook is the world’s largest social networking platform with over 1.86 billion active users logging on every month. This means no matter what business you are in, you probably have customers who are on Facebook and thus it becomes vital for your brand to have an online presence.

Here are some common mistakes you should avoid while making Facebook Ads

No Specific Predetermined Goals

It is very necessary to have set goals that you target to reach in terms of your ads. Track the number of likes, post-level engagement, queries and comments you receive on your ads.

It is also vital to see if your ads increase the traffic on your website and actually generate on-site sales. These metrics will help you understand if you are receiving the appropriate return on investment in your ads.

Lack of clear goals makes it difficult to understand if you are actually making any profits and generating revenue through your ads. This is especially important if you have a business that is newly established and seeking to generate brand awareness.

Read Also: 15+ Must-Have Free Mobile Apps for Marketers

Not Targeting Specific User Groups

This is one of the most common mistakes people advertising on Facebook make. A professional pay per click marketing firm will tell you the importance of researching audience demographics.

Unless your ads reach the appropriate members, your ads are completely useless. Targeting broad audiences are a big mistake as the more people you target, the less relevant your ad might be to the entire group.

Before you start posting or creating ads, appropriate research needs to be done regarding your target audience. People between the age of 25 and 34 make up 30% of the users on Facebook.

So, it is a social networking site that is not only popular with teenagers but also with adults.

Lack of Regular Posts

Creating just a few ads can be a big mistake and regular posting is vital to reach your targets.

The more ads you create the more potential customers you can reach and increase brand awareness. Recent surveys reveal that every minute more than 300,000 statuses are uploaded on Facebook and you must post more frequently to cut through all the noise.

However, overwhelming customers with ads is not advisable too and one must mind an ideal frequency that corresponds with the highest level of user engagement.

Insufficient Focus on Content

The importance of the quality of content in your ad can’t be stressed enough. Your ad must be detailed enough to inform the consumer about the product but if it is too technical potential customers might get bored and uninterested.

Ads must be sufficiently informative and be slightly changed or mixed up from time to time. Several studies have shown online ads tend to accumulate less user engagement as they are used more often.

In simpler words, users tend to get bored with similar ads day after day and having a mix of varied content is necessary.

From the pictures to the font and headline – everything in the ad must be optimized to generate maximum user engagement.

Putting All Ads in One Set

At present, advertisers can submit multiple ads in the form of a set and Facebook will promote the ones which work the best.

Many pay per click marketing firms have highlighted the problem with the algorithm is important ads are often overlooked.

So, if you make a set of ten ads then only two or three of the best-performing ones are shown extensively. Thus, it is advised that you put only three or four ads at a time in a set to ensure they reach the audience properly.

Read Also: Why you should Link Social Media Interactions to Database

Not Having Proper Tracking Infrastructure

Just creating and posting high-quality ads is not enough and you must also invest in tracking how well each ad is doing.

Specific software is available that measure and analyze each like, comment and share your ad got.

Judging user engagement level, you can easily assess what you are doing right or wrong with your ad. These stats will not only help you improve your ads but also help you know more about your consumer base.

Creating Ads that Don’t Grab the Attention

On average, most Facebook users only spent 20 minutes on the site per visit. In that short time span, your ad has to be attention grabbing or most users won’t care about it.

With pictures and posts of friends, family, and celebrities abundant on Facebook, using click-bait titles and pictures for your ad has become a necessity.

In fact, many companies now hire a pay per click marketing firm to make sure their content is eye-catching and creative.

Not Scrutinizing the Data Available in Insights

Facebook provides essential information about how your ad is doing under the Insights feature.

Although the Facebook Ad Manager is a bit complex, one can get used to it with a little bit of practice. The manager not only provides valuable data but also organizes them in neat columns which can be further modified as per your liking.

You can get information about CTR (Click-through rate), website purchases, reach, frequency, cost-per-colicky and cost per result through the Facebook Ad Manager.

You can also find out the platforms on which your ad has been viewed and get details about the people who have viewed your ads and made purchases.

Read Also: 5 Effective Tips To Promote Your Facebook Brand Page

Improper Ad Formats

This is a problem often seen with groups that are inexperienced in creating Facebook ads.

Specific formats work better with specific audiences and it is vital to choose the right ad format depending on the campaign.

Facebook has a lot of in-built ad formats and new formats get added regularly. Make sure you carefully analyze all ad formats carefully and select one while keeping in mind the audience you are targeting.

These were some of the most common mistakes that businesses make and end up not receiving the level of user engagement they expect.

Online marketing has become critical to business and if done properly it can provide a better return on investment than many other advertising procedures.

Author Bio:

Dita is from Northern Europe and is passionate about digital marketing & helping businesses grow. SEM Manager at bestppc.marketing by day, blogger & social media manager by night.

Industry Report: Why do People Choose to Form Collectives?

Things have a tendency to be born out of necessity, and artistic collectives are no exception. Specifically, Peepshow and Big Orange, both being illustration/ design based collectives, are most relevant to one’s own illustrative practice. Therefore, their reasons for being founded need to be considered when deliberating the possibility of creating a modern collective, so that one can decide if their benefits are the ones desired by the prospective members.

When students graduate, it’s not uncommon for the feeling of being left stranded, of not knowing how to make their way in the world, to make itself known. Therefore, it’s not surprising that many collectives, including Big Orange and Peepshow, were the constructs of newly graduated college students. Or, as Jenny Bowers puts it, “the thing that people latch onto is that we somehow manage to keep a spirit of ‘college’,” (Nencini, P, 2012) – something that feels safe and familiar to people freshly thrust into a monolithic and often daunting world of work. But, of course, collectives aren’t only preferred in many instances as a result of anxiety. Being formed by graduates also has the benefit of all of the members being in relatively the same situation at the time – so they all learn the same skills at about the same time. What seems to come out of this is a kind of support network within the studio, wherein all the members are empathetic to each other’s situation and therefore willing to give and receive advice and help from one another. (Morison, 2017)  This can transform a graduate’s circumstances from uncertain to far more stable, enabling the members to experience a “more seamless and pain free introduction to the world of work” (Morison, 2017) from which they can build off a more successful career.

One of the most infamous setbacks in the work of creatives is the temptation to idle and procrastinate, as well as a tendency to ‘burn out’ and hit a brick wall creatively. And this is one of the most prominent reasons people choose to form collectives, as a collaborative studio environment goes some distance to resolving these issues, simply through them being a social work space. Procrastination, it seems, is made more difficult within a collective as “because there’s a group, you’ve got a gun to your head. You don’t want to let anyone else down,” (Nencini, P, 2012) individuals naturally don’t want to be seen as lazy, especially when the quality of their work has bearings on those around them, and are therefore motivated to use their time more productively. Furthermore, people who procrastinate extensively are often very aware of such and go to lengths to prevent themselves from doing so, making a studio a very attractive environment for them. At the same time, the immediate presence of others provides what can be described as a “sounding board” (Morison, 2017) for ideas as well as inspiration for each individual to experiment outside of their own comfort zone. It appears that this experimentation has value even on the occasion that it results in failure, as Luke Best, founder of Peepshow says – “You can appreciate what someone else is doing but actually it helps reaffirm your own philosophy behind the work.” (Nencini, P, 2012) Meaning that working in the immediate presence of others can help an individual to more clearly see that their process is their own, confirm their own sense of creative identity and validating their practice.

Another element that comes into the decision to form or join a collective is the issue of financing one’s own practice, as being a part of a collective allows a group of people to pool their resources together, enabling them to afford spaces and equipment that they wouldn’t have access to otherwise. (Morison, 2017)  This includes spaces such as warehouses, expensive equipment that can then be shared by the collaborators, and contacts in the industry. It also means that only the individuals who are confident in organising finances can take up the relevant roles, making the collective as a whole more financially stable than many of the individuals involved would be otherwise. However, possibly a larger attractor to the concept of the collective is the idea of having a larger name – “the kind of umbrella under which you all operate gets you publicity as well as your own name out there.” (Morison, 2017) Essentially, all of the publicity gained from each individual in the collective gains the collective, as a whole, publicity. As a result, all of the members benefit from the amalgamated efforts of their compatriots, meaning that everyone involved is more likely to be contacted by clients. This creates a mutually beneficial relationship between people that all work for a common cause.

However, Peepshow and Big Orange were founded just over a decade ago (Peepshow Collective Ltd, 2017) and approximately 27 years ago (Morison, 2017) respectively, so many of their reasons for being formed may not be relevant in the present day, especially in the case that a lot of equipment, although still expensive, is nowadays far more affordable than it was 20 years ago. (Morison, 2017) However, it seems that the pooling of financial resources is still necessary when it comes to buying working spaces, which are now wildly more costly than they once were. In fact, there have been very few, if not no collectives established in London in recent years due to the unaffordability of spaces brought about by the occupation of big business, effectively driving creative spaces to outer cities. As well as this, the exponential use of social media and other forms of digital communication calls into question the social relevancy of creating a studio-based collective. However, this may also mean that there is a new social reason for collectives to be formed, as “Collectives can play a really useful role as a sort of antidote to the dislocation that we feel from people sometimes in modern day society.” (Morison, 2017) That is to say, as our communication with commissioners and clients becomes more digital, it becomes ever more important to have working relationships that allow for the kind of organic and healthy conversation that can only be achieved by face to face contact. (Morison, 2017)

As it appears now, it seems that people still have reasons to form collectives, and these reasons are predominantly the result of a desire to support and be supported in an otherwise unsupportive market, and the want of the kind of creative stimulation that can only be provided by other creative people.

   Bibliography

·       Morison, T., (2017) [Interviewed by Author, 09 MAY 2017]

·       Bec, A., Rawle, G., Haber, M., Nencini, P., (2012) PEEPSHOW COLLECTIVE. Barcelona: Intex Book, S.l.

·       Peepshow Collective Ltd., (2017) Peepshow is a London-based, Emmy award-winning animation and illustration studio. Available from: <http://www.peepshow.org.uk/about/>[Accessed 10th May 2017]

Template Review – Which Templates Are Best for Setting Up a Photography Website

It’s amazing how over time, the ability to freeze and capture different moments, feelings, and emotions has become a mundane action. More and more people agree that photography is a form of art, no matter where it is used: wedding photography, travel photography, commercial shoots, food shooting and so on. But only a select few possess the eye and instinct of a true photographer because a keen sense of perspective and spatial awareness is always a necessity.

These qualities also apply to website design. Nowadays, having a website is mandatory for a photographer, as it can offer an unprecedented level of exposure. In an instant, works of art can be shared with the entire world. And this immediate, worldwide connection can only take place online.

However, just by having a few photos posted online is not enough to attract the attention of your targeted audience. The website you use for displaying them and the design of the site is also very important. Even if you are not tech savvy, there are many options out there that can help you set up a stunning portfolio website and show people your work in a tremendous way.

HTML templates offer so many customization choices, allowing you to create a page that will never underwhelm. You will be able to tweak every detail and alter any setting. Without any advanced web development expertise, users can make aesthetic and practical choices. You just have to decide which one is the best option for you.

Squarespace is an all-in-one platform that gives you everything you need to create a beautiful home online and run a successful photography business. The platform also offers more than 45 stunning templates to start with, and numerous options you can use to customize your website.

While all Squarespace templates feature built-in mobile design and contact forms, the templates below combine bold image presentation with a clear structure for a great photography website. This helps you attract clients’ attention with eye-catching images and communicate the values that make you an exceptional photographer. All Squarespace templates are optimized with responsive design, allowing your site to adjust to the format of any mobile device or browser. Some templates have mobile-specific tweaks in their Style Editors for an extra layer of customization.

That being said, let’s take a look at some of the best photography website templates you can find on Squarespace:

Om

  Om is a calm, cool template that elevates your content by utilizing a clean layout and a simple, open interface. It uses padding and white space to make images pop, and also makes great use of logos as a site title, making it a fantastic fit for you, if you want to establish a personal brand.

The template can aid to the needs of freelancers, digital studios, creative agencies, photographers, and artists. It offers many innovative portfolios and blog options that boost your chances of showing your work in an amazing way and getting customers. In a hyper-competitive market, Om can be your greatest asset.

Om and Squarespace’s other templates allow you to connect to a wider audience by linking your site to your social media profiles, and pushing content as you publish it. Adding social features like Share and Pin It buttons help visitors share your content too, which further increases your site’s reach. When it comes to website development, you can’t overlook Search Engine Optimization. Your website will be SEO-ready, increasing your online exposure.

 Momentum

Momentum is an exceptional template that never fails to impress. It’s modern, responsive, and retina-ready design promises full compatibility with any platform, device, or web browser. It also makes bold statements with big images. Featuring multiple options for gallery design, Momentum is ideal for showing past work in full-bleed galleries, with FAQ and Contact pages in the bottom navigation. With such an inclusive and versatile template, your online presence will surely impress and increase. As a Momentum user, you will be able to choose either a regular or a boxed version. If any issue arises during the installation or customization process, you can always rely on the excellent support system. In addition, a detailed documentation source is available. Also, you have a detailed explanation for every feature.

Ishimoto

A one-of-a-kind template, with a one-of-a-kind name. Ishimoto is a portfolio template with an innovative, horizontal slide gallery, that makes it preferred among photographers, artists, and restaurants. For sure, Ishimoto is the best option for those who love bold and vibrant pictures, displayed in a carousel format. Although you may be tempted to include as many features as possible, it is best to maximize performance while featuring a clean, intuitive interface. Ishimoto is a photography website template that understands the needs of ambitious, online business people. It offers a retina-ready design that is compatible with high-resolution retina displays, and it is capable of accommodating any customer.

Taking into consideration that Ishimoto is fully-responsive, you will be able to administer the site while you are on the move if you prefer hand-held devices. You can display content on the screens on desktop computers, laptops, smartphones and tablets. The code is well-written, streamlined and optimized. This enhances your site’s performance and allows for easy modifications.

Just as well, Ishimoto is very user-friendly. Even with a basic understanding of web development, you will be able to navigate its options and features. The website also includes awesome font icons, along with a Contact form. If you have any issues, Squarespace’s top-notch support system is there to help you. Besides, if you want to view this product or any other templates before buying it, a live preview has been made available.

Flatiron

Flatiron is an unconventional template that is high quality and pays such close attention to detail, that other templates could only hope to match. With a portfolio experience that supports multiple portfolio projects side by side, Flatiron is popular with art directors, illustrators, and photographers. This template empowers you to share your work with the world. With a flexible grid Index Page, Flatiron presents an overview of your projects, enticing visitors to explore individual pieces in greater depth.

By using Flatiron as a template for your website design, you will be sure that your projects become a reality, as it promotes and displays your content. The Index Page creates a grid of thumbnail images, each one linking to a separate page, giving people a snapshot of your work while encouraging them to dig deeper. Taking into consideration the multiple options you have for personalizing it, Flatiron is a modern template that never fails to impress. It also features a streamlined and well-written code that can maximize your page’s capabilities with any web browser. In addition, you will have an aesthetically pleasing portfolio website.  Because this template aims to maximize client convenience, page customization is accessible for all users. And best of all, you don’t need to be tech savvy.

If you want to learn more about Flatiron, be sure to access the detailed documentation source. It contains information regarding every feature. The template is also fully responsive, and has cross-browser compatibility.

Forte

“Less is more” definitely applies to this website template and, Forte is for sure the best option for those who love simplicity and minimalism. Forte is a bold, yet minimal template that features full-screen images and precise typography. Its landing page pulls visitors into your portfolio, displaying the range of projects in beautiful, high-resolution images. Forte can be also used for general, corporate, spa, hotel, restaurants, and event agency websites.

The layout is entirely responsive, and it can display your content on any platform, web browser, or device. As a special feature for this template, each page in the Index displays as a full-bleed background image with a content overlay, and you open it by clicking the page title. Forte has a color auto-detect feature that determines how light or dark your background is and sets the color of the site title, tagline, navigation, and social icons to black or white. Every relevant tool will be at your disposal, and you will not have to rely on 3rd party add-ons. From start to finish, you can design a fully-functional website in a matter of minutes.

Avenue

A classic template with a timeless look, Avenue’s clean, straight lines and adaptive grid-based layout are especially popular with photographers, illustrators, and designers. The template comes with an intuitively designed interface, carefully crafted to ease the display of your unforgettable photos. As a special feature, the Index Page organizes multiple pages or galleries into a single grid collection by using thumbnail images.

Whether you shoot landscapes, people, food, weddings, or you want to keep a journal with your vision and thoughts, Avenue works just for you! For a captivating visual experience, Avenue boasts lively and spirited page transitions in many unexpected, yet perfectly natural ways embodied in a minimal and beautiful design language that allows the photos to take center stage.

In order to make it easy for your mobile users to discover your site, Avenue is mobile ready and fully responsive and can be integrated with social networks.

Conclusion

We personally love every template. No matter which one you use, you can’t go wrong! Let us know in the comments below which one is your favorite, or what other ones we should cover in the future.

Try Squarespace free today for 14-days! No credit card required. When you’re ready to subscribe be sure to use coupon ‘WDL’ for 10% off your first purchase.

Thanks for reading, and happy web-designing!

Read More at Template Review – Which Templates Are Best for Setting Up a Photography Website

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Template Review – Which Templates Are Best for Setting Up a Photography Website

It’s amazing how over time, the ability to freeze and capture different moments, feelings, and emotions has become a mundane action. More and more people agree that photography is a form of art, no matter where it is used: wedding photography, travel photography, commercial shoots, food shooting and so on. But only a select few possess the eye and instinct of a true photographer because a keen sense of perspective and spatial awareness is always a necessity. These qualities also apply to website design. Nowadays, having a website is mandatory for a photographer, as it can offer an unprecedented level of exposure. In an instant, works of art can be shared with the entire world. And this immediate, worldwide connection can only take place online. However, just by having a few photos posted online is not enough to attract the attention of your targeted audience. The website you use for displaying them and the design of the site is also very important. Even if you are not tech savvy, there are many options out there that can help you set up a stunning portfolio website and show people your work in a tremendous way. HTML templates offer so many customization choices, allowing you to create a page that will never underwhelm. You will be able to tweak every detail and alter any setting. Without any advanced web development expertise, users can make aesthetic and practical choices. You just have to decide which one is the best option for you. Squarespace is an all-in-one platform that gives you everything you need to create a beautiful home online and run a successful photography business. The platform also offers more than 45 stunning templates to start with, and numerous options you can use to customize your website. While all Squarespace templates feature built-in mobile design and contact forms, the templates below combine bold image presentation with a clear structure for a great photography website. This helps you attract clients’ attention with eye-catching images and communicate the values that make you an exceptional photographer. All Squarespace templates are optimized with responsive design, allowing your site to adjust to the format of any mobile device or browser. Some templates have mobile-specific tweaks in their Style Editors for an extra layer of customization. That being said, let’s take a look at some of the best photography website templates you can find on Squarespace: Om   Om is a calm, cool template that elevates your content by utilizing a clean layout and a simple, open interface. It uses padding and white space to make images pop, and also makes great use of logos as a site title, making it a fantastic fit for you, if you want to establish a personal brand. The template can aid to the needs of freelancers, digital studios, creative agencies, photographers, and artists. It offers many innovative portfolios and blog options that boost your chances of showing your work in an amazing way and getting customers. In a hyper-competitive market, Om can be your greatest asset. Om and Squarespace’s other templates allow you to connect to a wider audience by linking your site to your social media profiles, and pushing content as you publish it. Adding social features like Share and Pin It buttons help visitors share your content too, which further increases your site’s reach. When it comes to website development, you can’t overlook Search Engine Optimization. Your website will be SEO-ready, increasing your online exposure.  Momentum Momentum is an exceptional template that never fails to impress. It’s modern, responsive, and retina-ready design promises full compatibility with any platform, device, or web browser. It also makes bold statements with big images. Featuring multiple options for gallery design, Momentum is ideal for showing past work in full-bleed galleries, with FAQ and Contact pages in the bottom navigation. With such an inclusive and versatile template, your online presence will surely impress and increase. As a Momentum user, you will be able to choose either a regular or a boxed version. If any issue arises during the installation or customization process, you can always rely on the excellent support system. In addition, a detailed documentation source is available. Also, you have a detailed explanation for every feature. Ishimoto A one-of-a-kind template, with a one-of-a-kind name. Ishimoto is a portfolio template with an innovative, horizontal slide gallery, that makes it preferred among photographers, artists, and restaurants. For sure, Ishimoto is the best option for those who love bold and vibrant pictures, displayed in a carousel format. Although you may be tempted to include as many features as possible, it is best to maximize performance while featuring a clean, intuitive interface. Ishimoto is a photography website template that understands the needs of ambitious, online business people. It offers a retina-ready design that is compatible with high-resolution retina displays, and it is capable of accommodating any customer. Taking into consideration that Ishimoto is fully-responsive, you will be able to administer the site while you are on the move if you prefer hand-held devices. You can display content on the screens on desktop computers, laptops, smartphones and tablets. The code is well-written, streamlined and optimized. This enhances your site’s performance and allows for easy modifications. Just as well, Ishimoto is very user-friendly. Even with a basic understanding of web development, you will be able to navigate its options and features. The website also includes awesome font icons, along with a Contact form. If you have any issues, Squarespace’s top-notch support system is there to help you. Besides, if you want to view this product or any other templates before buying it, a live preview has been made available. Flatiron Flatiron is an unconventional template that is high quality and pays such close attention to detail, that other templates could only hope to match. With a portfolio experience that supports multiple portfolio projects side by side, Flatiron is popular with art directors, illustrators, and photographers. This template empowers you to share your work with the world. With a flexible grid Index Page, Flatiron presents an overview of your projects, enticing visitors to explore individual pieces in greater depth. By using Flatiron as a template for your website design, you will be sure that your projects become a reality, as it promotes and displays your content. The Index Page creates a grid of thumbnail images, each one linking to a separate page, giving people a snapshot of your work while encouraging them to dig deeper. Taking into consideration the multiple options you have for personalizing it, Flatiron is a modern template that never fails to impress. It also features a streamlined and well-written code that can maximize your page’s capabilities with any web browser. In addition, you will have an aesthetically pleasing portfolio website.  Because this template aims to maximize client convenience, page customization is accessible for all users. And best of all, you don’t need to be tech savvy. If you want to learn more about Flatiron, be sure to access the detailed documentation source. It contains information regarding every feature. The template is also fully responsive, and has cross-browser compatibility. Forte “Less is more” definitely applies to this website template and, Forte is for sure the best option for those who love simplicity and minimalism. Forte is a bold, yet minimal template that features full-screen images and precise typography. Its landing page pulls visitors into your portfolio, displaying the range of projects in beautiful, high-resolution images. Forte can be also used for general, corporate, spa, hotel, restaurants, and event agency websites. The layout is entirely responsive, and it can display your content on any platform, web browser, or device. As a special feature for this template, each page in the Index displays as a full-bleed background image with a content overlay, and you open it by clicking the page title. Forte has a color auto-detect feature that determines how light or dark your background is and sets the color of the site title, tagline, navigation, and social icons to black or white. Every relevant tool will be at your disposal, and you will not have to rely on 3rd party add-ons. From start to finish, you can design a fully-functional website in a matter of minutes. Avenue A classic template with a timeless look, Avenue’s clean, straight lines and adaptive grid-based layout are especially popular with photographers, illustrators, and designers. The template comes with an intuitively designed interface, carefully crafted to ease the display of your unforgettable photos. As a special feature, the Index Page organizes multiple pages or galleries into a single grid collection by using thumbnail images. Whether you shoot landscapes, people, food, weddings, or you want to keep a journal with your vision and thoughts, Avenue works just for you! For a captivating visual experience, Avenue boasts lively and spirited page transitions in many unexpected, yet perfectly natural ways embodied in a minimal and beautiful design language that allows the photos to take center stage. In order to make it easy for your mobile users to discover your site, Avenue is mobile ready and fully responsive and can be integrated with social networks. Conclusion We personally love every template. No matter which one you use, you can’t go wrong! Let us know in the comments below which one is your favorite, or what other ones we should cover in the future. Try Squarespace free today for 14-days! No credit card required. When you’re ready to subscribe be sure to use coupon ‘WDL’ for 10% off your first purchase. Thanks for reading, and happy web-designing! Read More at Template Review – Which Templates Are Best for Setting Up a Photography Website http://dlvr.it/P0ZxJh www.regulardomainname.com

INDUSTRY REPORT

THE IMPORTANCE OF SELF-PROMOTION AS AN ILLUSTRATOR

As I am still relatively unsure of my exact position in the illustration industry, I am trying to focus on the types of projects that I seem to enjoy the most, to slowly gain a better understanding of my practice. I created a lot of work surrounding the Norwich Lanes, and another project on Brighton pier.  Making work on places that I am personally interested in helps me to stay motivated and engaged whilst working. Otherwise, I can find it quite difficult to stay on track and produce work. Therefore, I know that I’m quite interested in more self-initiated projects instead of constantly working to a brief, although I do sometimes enjoy this also. I think a good mix between the two would be ideal for my practice, to ensure I am happy with the work I am producing. The problem with a lot of self-initiated work is making a living from it. As illustrators, awareness and publicity of our work is integral to sustaining our careers – we need people to commission us and pay us for our hard work. Therefore, self-promotion is key to this and I think it’s particularly important with self-initiated projects. Obviously with a brief, someone is already paying attention to your work. However, your own creations and ideas need to be publicised in a variety of ways. Self-promotion is essential for a career in illustration, as with most creative subjects.

Obviously the most obvious way of self-promotion in today’s modern world, is social media and having a website. In this digital age, we can post work and immediately each people across the world. Instagram is a particularly useful tool for artists, as we can upload photos of our work, or works in progress, and use hashtags to gain an audience. Building up a following on social media can be extremely beneficial. Toby Morison is a well-established editorial illustrator who has a lot of experience with self-promotion. He says that “It is absolutely vital that you utilise a website and social media presence.” People who admire your work will follow you, which could then lead to them buying work of some kind from you, especially as you can publicise an online shop or any pieces you’re selling at the time. In addition, many companies, collectives, charities, organisations or other artists may follow you, increasing your chance of making connections and them reaching out to you. I find most of the artists that I like through Instagram, and I know I’m definitely made aware of the work they have on sale mostly through their Instagram also. “Offering friendly interaction, criticism and approval, and also an increasingly common way for artists to seek out, or be sought out by, potential clients.” (O’Reilly,J, 2016) All of this can help your career greatly. Websites are the perfect tool for an online portfolio. Potential employers can see your full portfolio easily, without you having to be there in person, or posting your entire portfolio to some remote location. They are a very practical thing to have and a necessity for any illustrator trying to promote their work.

Sending your work to people is obviously an effective way in gaining publicity. Taking your promotion into your own hands and not waiting around for someone to discover you is important. Emailing publishers, collectives, galleries, and companies, for example, is a quick and easy way of them seeing your work wherever they are in the world, without having to make the journey, as mentioned previously. However, this does have its drawbacks. With everyone having this idea, publishers and companies etc. obviously get a lot of work submitted to them. To stand out from the crowd, sending physical copies of work such as newsprints of your work, or postcards are a great way to grab art director’s attention. Mr Bingo is a good example of breaking the mould. His practice centres around creating hate mail and he has built up quite a big audience. He sent a hateful postcard one day, and from then on it has developed into a big thing, with him publishing a collection of his most popular hate mails in a book. Originality is the key to catching someone’s attention and increasing your chance of getting work.

Collaboration and forming collections are great ways of networking and promoting your work. Making self-initiated projects with other people opens a whole new pool of people who you can form connections with, and potentially gain work from. “It has become more essential or illustrators to work collectively.” (Varoom, 2016) Holly Exley says “I value the support network I have online.” (Exley, H, 2016) Promoting and supporting other artists is obviously a great way of helping other people, but also puts you in a more positive light, and hopefully they will return the favour. You never know where a commission could come from. Collectives such as NousVous can be very successful in raising awareness of themselves, and then consequently their individual work. I and my flatmates have been toying with the idea of forming a collective for a while, as we wanted to start trying to sell our work at art fairs. However, we were worried that our very different styles would cause problems trying to create an identity for ourselves. Toby reassured me that having a very similar style isn’t essential to be successful. “You can be bound together by a sensibility even though it’s different work (Morison, T, 2017). It can be a group of people who have complimentary skills or who are just simply friends.” We plan on starting to think about it more now, so that we can prepare it for when we leave university, as it would be very beneficial in raising awareness of our work.

Self-Promotion is an essential tool in becoming a successful and established illustrator. We have to take control of our own practice, and reach out to other artists, publishers, collectives, art directors etc. Raising awareness through collaboration, social media, websites, networking and sending your work to potential employers are all important strategies, all with their own pros and cons. People interested in a career in illustration or within a creative industry should value and understand the importance of these. I, myself, definitely now appreciate self-promotion a lot more, and will start to step up my social media and website, as well as looking more into forming the collective, to hopefully begin forming some sort of identity within my practice. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

O’Reilly, J, (2016), ‘The New’, Varoom (Issue 32 – the New Issue).

Mr Bingo, (Date unknown), What is this shit? Available at: shop.mr-bingo.org.uk/pages/what-is-this-shit

Exley, H, (2016), ‘The New Social’, Varoom (Issue 32 – the New Issue).

Author unknown, (2016), title unknown, Varoom, (Issue 33 – the Collaborators Issue)

Nous Vous, (Date unknown), Nous Vous, Available at: nousvous.eu/look/#/rosemary-works-2

You are what you attend to - about the “ambient”

“For just as ubiquitous computing introduces flexibility in the coupling of human and computer, so does it abandon the object-centered model of media in favour of an environmental one.  [...] Media becomes an environment that we experience simply by being and acting in space and time. [1]

More than ubiquitous computing, I’m interested in the ambient. While “ubiquitous communication technologies” can nowadays point to almost any networked object that is not-a-desktop-computer, ambient communication media – especially situated technologies – present a more narrowly defined, fascinating area of research.

In order to open up the topic, I’m going to draw mainly from two sources: the essay Ambience and Ubiquity by Ulrik Schmidt [2] and the book Ambient Commons by Malcolm McCullough [3]. Besides, in order to illustrate these abstract ideas and generally inspire the creative process, I will include a few works of art loosely related to ambient aesthetics.

Let us begin by elaborating on the different meanings and connotations of the “ambient”. Ulrik Schmidt traces its etymology to the latin word ambire, which literally means “to go around”. Hence, ambience could be described as “the production of a distinctive effect characterized by an intensification of the experience of being surrounded” (p.176).

Schmidt writes that “An ambient phenomenon is not experienced as an object or a group of interrelated objects, but rather as a field. [...] Ambient phenomena are experienced as open, formless fields where such distinctions are no longer possible or relevant “ (p.177).

He continues that “The elements are “all over”, “all around” and “everywhere” in the field. Hence, there is a close relation between ambience and ubiquity in the sense that ambient fields are experienced as “total fields”, all over and ubiquitous” (p.177). McCullough expresses the same idea in other words: the ambient “suggests some recognition of the whole, like noticing the forest and not just trees” (p.17).

In his essay, Schmidt writes that there is currently a tendency to move toward an ambient aestheticization of digital media and information tools. Besides ubiquitous computing, he links the phenomenon to also “ambient intelligence” or “ambient informatics”. In a few words, ambient intelligence (AmI) refers to electronic environments that are sensitive and responsive to the presence of people [5].  Ambient informatics includes both the collection of real-time information with the use of sensors, as well as the (dynamic) organization, design and display of this information [5].

Ambient awareness While these terms mainly point to the nature of computation, the word “ambient” is becoming more popular for describing the aesthetics of human experience in information societies. Just a few days ago I googled “ambient awareness”, which seems to be an already established term in social sciences for explaining a new form of peripheral social awareness, made possible only recently through perpetual, machine (-and internet-) mediated contact with one’s friends and colleagues. While today technologies linked to “ambient awareness” mainly refer to social networking sites and the internet, the basic principles can be applied to a whole new range of new media.

According to Andreas Kaplan, ambient awareness is made possible by constant reception, and/ or exchange of information fragments [6]. Clive Thompson of the New York Times describes ambient awareness as "very much like being physically near someone and picking up on mood through the little things; body language, sighs, stray comments..." [7] In the context of social media, this refers to a constant feed of twitter updates, instagram pictures, and other symbols of being “online” or active”, which, according to McCullough, can build a detailed portrait, even an imagined presence, of a friend (p.12). In other words, these bits and pieces allow for an awareness of that person’s activities and hence, existence.

Nevertheless, why couldn’t this flow of information (bound to screens and other computer-related activity) be replaced by sensor-tracking activities in the real world? And why couldn’t it be projected and mediated to our living environments instead of apps bound to pocket-size screens? 

New sensibilities Malcolm McCullough elaborates on ambient awareness as something that can reflect a more general mindfulness; “Almost any use of the word ambient suggests some aspect of sensibility”(p.13). While my first impulse was to connect this sensibility to the surrounding environment, why couldn’t it relate to a social sensibilities as well? When you sit across another person, it is not for granted that you are really present for them, or that they are conversely present for you. But, according to my intuitive judgement, only through mutual awareness can one achieve a sense of social connectedness.

Embodied interfaces What I very much enjoyed in McCullough’s book was his emphasis on situated technologies and embodied information, which helps to emphasize that not all computing is mobile (p.14) and promises a departure from –or co-existing alternatives to– all-powerful handheld gadgets. “In the meeting of architecture and interface, attention and situation technology, or cognition and environment, embodiment has long been a unifying theme” (p.280). While reading Dourish & Bell, I struggled accepting that ubiquitous computing may be simply rendered to the emergence and new usages of smartphones, this emphasis on ambiently embodied interfaces was very welcome for framing and motivating my thesis project.

Attention Another theme in Ambient Common by McCullough is information processing and attention. In the context of societies where its  citizens are increasingly bombarded with information, ambient media is seen as even necessity. Again, while small and singularly irrelevant social media notifications might overall create a sense of ambient awareness, each and every one of them grabs your attention for the moment you receive it; most of the time they require your focused vision and some form of semantic processing.

It might have also unwanted consequences: “As ever more diverse media cut ever deeper into everyday life with links and portals to someplace else, people may not suspend only disbelief about where they are at the moment, but eventually also a more general sensibility to surroundings” (p.96). This is certainly related to the phenomenon of “...a blaze outlook [that] has been the norm among city dwellers” (p.23). Perhaps too pointedly, he talks about people who “...tolerated in-your-face media, assured needs for pervasive entertainment, lazily consumed whatever was playing, and generally turned out of shared space (p.276) – and yet, there might be a seed of truth here too. A very powerful statement in the last chapter “Silent Commons” went as follows:

“Little is more dumbfounding than to lose control of your attention. Perhaps texting has become so popular because it requires no listening.”

Yet, as McCullough usefully points out, “once you assume that most information is semantic, you can more easily identify its opposite–non-semantic information” p.35). He takes as example light coming from the east; it has a natural meaning which one might perceive intrinsically, without any encoding or human agency. Instead of the centre of attention, the information resides in the periphery, which, on the other hand, we are aware through embodiment.

The same way, we are aware of each other when we spend time in the same space. You might hear the other washing dishes round the corner, see them walking by in the corner of your eye, feel their body sitting side by side while performing a different task. Occasionally, you might glance towards each other, say a word or tap on the shoulder as an attempt to confirm that yes, I’m aware of you right now (and I care about you too). On top of general (ambient) awareness, this establishes a sense of mutual awareness, which furthermore allows the experiences of connectedness and togetherness. (note to myself: another essay about these themes! Using definitions by Rettie…)

Application / speculation So how does this translate to ambient communication media? Although this topic might have been touched on already a few times in previous posts, here is the summary in a few sentences:

Taking as a starting point some recent technological trends and possibilities (which are the catalyst for but not the focus of this inquiry), for example embedded sensors (ex. biosensors, movement tracking, gesture recognition), different combinations of actuators as ambient displays, and the Internet of Things – we can now input non-verbal or even non-semantic activities taking place in the “real-world” – beyond the graphical user interface – and mediate it back to the physical reality in another remote location.

A useful definition by William Washington [8], “Ambient media systems“ display abstracted information in a space occupied by the user of the system using light, sound, movement of mechanical objects, or temperature changes that is mapped to the information.  A user receives information in the periphery of his/her awareness. Because they provide abstracted information, ambient media are not transparent in their immediacy. Instead they are opaque; they rely on the user to make the connection between the ambient signal and the information associated with it.”

Furthermore, “Whereas ambient media provide all types of information in abstracted form, “awareness” systems provide awareness information about other people. Ambient media awareness systems map presence information associated with other people to ambient media. In that does not force the psychic split that a GUI does. Instead of the GUI paradigm where we are looking into a window–into another world, ambient media allows others’ presence to appear as light, sound, movement, or temperature changes in our environment. We become aware of the presence information as it exists in our space.”

The information of interest here is related, on the one hand, to mundane everyday activities (such as walking around the home), environmental information (the noise level of the room) and social or affective information (changes in emotional states, or socially meaningful gestures). Furthermore, the form that we give to this information can be ambient, peripheral, even poetic, made for background processing or aesthetic contemplation instead of active information processing.

In other words, the aim here is to create a sense of togetherness that draws from our co-located social experiences. Yet this new kind of mediated communication can go beyond what we have in the same space since technology can read us, and engage us, in new, pervasive ways. 

Currently in the “real world” you can’t see inside the other person’s mind nor perceive their real-time breathing patterns. Nor are we yet used to receiving constant, non-semantic information through these multimodal mediums. Although it’s already another topic, McCullough mentions neuroplasticity (which “exists, makes use of embodiment cognition, and is worth knowing and debating more often” p.281). Could we acquire new social sensibilities or “true” telepathy? How would these capabilities change the way how we perceive and inhabit the world? How do these new abstract or ambient representations of human (activities) change our idea of the self or the other, in particular when it concerns those people whom we are the closest to?

Sources

[1] Hansen, Mark BN. "Ubiquitous sensation: Toward an atmospheric, collective, and microtemporal model of media." Throughout: Art and culture emerging with ubiquitous computing (2013): p.74.

[2] Schmidt, Ulrik. "Ambience and Ubiquity." Throughout: Art and Culture Emerging with Ubiquitous Computing (2013): 176-187.

[3] McCullough, Malcolm. Ambient commons: Attention in the age of embodied information. MIT Press, 2013.

[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambient_intelligence

[5] http://ambientinformatics.com/

[6]  Andreas Kaplan (2012) If you love something, let it go mobile: Mobile marketing and mobile social media 4x4 Found, Business Horizons, 55(2), 129-139 p. 132.

[7] Thompson, Clive (09-07-2008). "Brave New World of Digital Intimacy". NY Times. Retrieved 16 December 2011.

[8] Washington, William. "Exploring ambient media presence awareness." Masters Degree Project Report. Department of Technical Communication, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA (2001). (p.17-18)

Picture credits

I Chapel of St. Lawrence in Vantaa by Avanto Architects

II Pinterest / unknown 

III Skater shadow / (c) Emilia Tapprest

IV Ville in the kitchen / (c) Emilia Tapprest

V Daniel Rozin, “Wooden Mirror,” 2014

VI Pinterest / unknown source

VII Kitchen moment / (c) Emilia Tapprest

VIII Half portrait / (c) Emilia Tapprest

IX Anna / (c) Emilia Tapprest

X James Turrell / Gathered Light http-//jamesturrell.com/work/gathered-light/

XI Olafur Eliasson / Your double Lighthouse projection http://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/olafureliasson.net/objektimages_final/IMG_MDA114052_1600px.jpg