Week #7 Creativity and Photo Stories

Reflections on Creativity and Making Photo Stories

Creativity

This week I learned what it means to be truly creative in a society that molds us to think a certain way from the time we are children. From grade school, we are trained for standard professions like factory work and teaching by sitting quietly for 7-8 hours 5 days per week and reiterating what is written in textbooks and on chalkboards.  We are encouraged to pay attention to subjects that do not interest us, trained to answer questions and complete assignments exactly the way instructors tell us to, and taught that the most intelligent among us are those who get the highest marks on standardized tests. 

After listening to Sir Ken Robinson speak about creativity I thought about how important it is for people to pursue what brings them happiness and not live in fear of making mistakes. People are most productive when they are doing what they love and some of the best inventions were created on accident by people who did what they were passionate about without fear of failure. http://list25.com/25-accidental-inventions-that-changed-the-world/ 

While thinking about what it means to be creative, and how people tend to be more productive when doing the activities they enjoy the most, I found an interesting TED Talk on the concept of flow. Flow is a mental state characterized by complete immersion and focus on an activity that is being performed with great precision.

While I believe dedication to activities that bring us joy and a sense of purpose are important for mental well being, I also believe that taking a step outside of one's comfort zone and trying new things are also an extremely important part of being creative. This Multimedia Apps and Tools class has played a major role in enhancing my own creativity recently because it has forced me to use online apps to create and publicize unique videos, audio, and images- something I never would have had the confidence to do on my own. Since I've always wanted to start an online business or have a popular blog, I'm hoping that one day I'll be skilled enough to be in a state of "flow" while creating online content and that I'll be creative enough to make something that people will want to look at.

Making my Photo Story

Speaking of trying new things, I got to make my first photo story in WeVideo this week. To get a good idea of how images can be ordered and manipulated to create a captivating story, I looked through the stories on The Boston Globe. After looking at several stories on natural disasters, war, and pollution, I decided that my favorite photo story was the one on the graduates of 2017 because it was the most uplifting and inspiring. The photos were incredibly inclusive and full of people from all walks of life. They gave me the feeling that even in my current circumstances, I will be able to get my degree.

After deciding that I like uplifting photo stories the most, I chose to use images of myself enjoying time spent with my fiance and my best friend at the Great Escape. After some technical difficulties, I was able to create an account with Google Plus and create a video in the F17 Photo Stories folder. Following along with the video tutorial, I added my photos in an order that showed how I spent my day at the park. I also incorporated a festive title and an old film countdown, as well as upbeat music entitled "Chasing the Dream" from WeVideo's audio selection. After adding page flip transitions, a spooky sound effect, and a fade out to my music, my photo story was complete.