#geo-narrative

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Rationale - Geo-narrative Link: SoCal Motocross Track Comparison. For my Production Project I chose to create a geo-narrative based on my motocross trip in America. Having a background in Graphic...

[televisionetc-blog]

Production project

For the production assignment I chose to do the geo-narrative. I never knew that Google Maps had a feature to do this, and was intrigued by it. I found it a little difficult to find inspiration of what the theme of my geo-narrative would be, but once I figured it out it was quite a fun process. Firstly I decided I would make it a photographic tour, and settled on the theme being music and arts festivals. This way I would be able to use my own photos from festivals in Australia that I have been to, as well as using other peoples photos that were under creative commons licensing. I was able to execute my initial idea that was to overall have 10 festivals in different countries, and explain a little bit about each one. Having actually gone to the festivals that were in Australia made it easier to discuss, although I enjoyed writing about the festivals that I would someday like to go to.

 I used Flickr as my resource for finding creative commons licensed images, and found this to be quite a smooth process. When it came to adding the hyperlinks of images to the map is where I ran into trouble. I thought it would be as simple as copying the image location and adding it to the map, but Flickr doesn’t facilitate this. What I ended up doing was taking screenshots of the images on Flickr then uploading these to Picasa, which I also uploaded my own photos to. From there I was able to copy the image location for each photo and add the link to the map. In the end the process wasn’t too grueling as it was handy having all my images in the one place. To give credit to the creative commons licensed images that I got from Flickr, I added the links to these in the map, just under the image.

 The geo-narrative was like no other media assignment I have done before, in that I created it using an Internet platform, rather than a computer program. This project allowed me to see the fundamentals of networked media and how each part of the geo-narrative makes a difference to the end result. I was able to further my knowledge of different new media platforms, and how they can be integrated with one another to create a production piece. This process of networked media production allowed me to utilize skills that I have learnt over the duration of the semester such as HTML and privacy, and putting them into the one project. In creating the geo-narrative I was also able to see what works and what doesn’t when it comes to networked production; such as the inserting of images into Google Maps and finding a way around it. Overall this production project allowed me to further explore the fundamentals of networked media, and put them into practice.

Take a peek at my geo-narrative here!

[papayafox]

For my production project, I selected the option to create a geo-narrative. I was drawn to the idea because the concept of a geo-narrative was something I’d never considered before and I was interested to explore it. A Google search for “geo-narrative” allowed me to see past student’s geo-narratives, whilst searching for “Google custom maps” presented me with tutorials and guides on how to make the most of Google Maps.

As I am not yet very well travelled, I decided to create a documentary style geo-narrative. I’ve been a horse lover since I was born, and have ridden and owned horses for many years. Horses have a very vast and interesting history; they first existed as dog-like prehistoric animals with toes. I was interested to look at the journey horses have taken to become the creatures that I know and love today. So for my geo-narrative, I decided to track the evolution of the horse. The geo-narrative takes the viewer on a journey through time and around the world, beginning with the arrival of the very first equines, through to their domestication, then exploring how the horse changed the course of human history, by changing the way we moved around, waged war on each other, enforced law and order and engaged in sporting events. These major events in the history of the horse are attached to locations around the world with an image and description that gives an interesting insight into the fascinating history of the horse. Throughout this geo-narrative I hope that the viewer sees the incredible and unshakeable bond that has existed between horse and man for centuries, and for centuries to come. 

For my geo-narrative, I replaced the default Google drop pin icon with a pixel horse head icon that I made on Photoshop. Seeing all these horse heads pop up all over the world shows that the horse’s journey has taken it all over the globe. A pink line roughly connects each site on the map, showing the journey the horse has taken throughout history. A lot of research was required to plan out the horse’s evolutionary journey through time. The resources I relied on are all available at the bottom of the description on each point on the map, as are the sources for the image used in that particularly map point.

My images are made up of a combination of creative commons and my own images – drawings, photomanipulations, and photographs. For historical images I found myself using images from Wikimedia commons and Flickr. I drew my own image of the Hagerman Horse in Photoshop. For other images, such as the transport image and the cowboys and horses image, I created photomanipulations in Photoshop. These photomanipulations were created using stock images from DeviantART. DeviantART is a social website that allows users to post all kinds of art. Many photographers also create stock image accounts, where they post high quality photos that are usually free for non-commercial use in photomanipulations and as reference pictures. For those images that are photomanipulations, clicking on the image source link will take you to the image’s page on my DeviantART, where the links to the images used in the photomanipulation can be found. Other images used in this project have been supplanted by my own photographs and can also be found on my DeviantART page.

Using stock images posted on DeviantART usually requires the user to give credit to the original artist in the description. The artist also often requests that if the image is used, that a link to the finished image is provided so they can see how their stock has been used. This is a great example of networked media production – creating photomanipulations encourages liaising with the original artist and builds connections with others in the creative industry. The image below is a screen capture of my DeviantART messages page and shows some replies I received from the artists whose stock I used, after I had sent them a link to my finished works. Without the high quality images these artists post for free use, I wouldn’t have been able to create the photomanipulations used in this project.

I gave credit to all artists whose stock images I used in my geo-narrative, and all were grateful for this. This interaction is an example of networked media production.

The key to a cohesive geo-narrative is to link the location with an image and text. Each place on the map represents an important event in the history of the horse. Each image used complements the location and description and gives visual and textual context to the importance of that location in the history of the horse. Locations such as the Wind River Basin in Wyoming, where the first equids lived, to the Bering Strait Land Bridge, which used to connect America with Asia and Europe and allowed the horse to diversify around the world, to the historical site of the Botai people in Kazakhstan, where horses were first domesticated, to the shores of Gallipoli, where men and horses of the Light Horse Brigade sacrificed themselves for our country, all show that the history of the horse is colourful, interesting, and shaped by the evolution of mankind. 

In creating this geo-narrative, I learnt much more than I already knew about horses – which I thought was a lot. From humble beginnings as an animal that resembled a dog more than the modern day horse, to man’s ever reliable partner in warfare, transportation, sport, work and leisure – in almost all facets of life – looking at the history of the horse is truly remarkable. I also realised just how strong the bond between man and horse truly is – it has stood the test of time. I hope the viewer enjoys this geo-narrative style history of the horse, and maybe comes away with a stronger appreciation of just how much these gentle animals have shaped the course of human history.