The Reality of Content Creation and How to Influence Positive Change
If you know me well, you’ll know that I tend to over-analyze most of what I come across. It can be helpful in certain aspects of life but extremely preventative in others. I’ve presented just about every single excuse in the book for why I don’t regularly write to this journal.
“I don’t have time,” is what I repeatedly state. But the reality is that I don’t prioritize myself and make the time. I have almost always put my (or Josh’s) business endeavors and client deliverables first. This reality explains why we have nearly eight years (since April 2014) of unshared personal content.
I recently spoke with a colleague (who also happens to be an “influencer”) about, you guessed it, content creation. There’s being a content creator to grasp the attention of others and dilute the web — and then there’s content creation with a purposeful voice. I’ve spent the last few years hiding behind other projects and I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that not all self-content is negative or vain. Sometimes, it’s important to step up and be the voice that others are afraid to be. I shouldn’t be concerned about what people will think about me but, rather, how my personal content creation can positively affect the lives of others. Can it improve confidence in their everyday? Can it broaden their minds when it comes to cultural perspectives? Can it give a voice to those who feel unheard?
For as long as I can recall, I was always someone who found happiness in writing. As a child, I scribbled in a daily diary and, as an adolescent navigating the world, I created an online LiveJournal account. Much time has passed since then. (I turned thirty-three last week.)
Regarding content creation and how “influencers” can improve:
Sustainability in fashion and ethics amongst product sales are topics that frequently get buried. It takes time to sell a product. Our planet is suffering from the amount of mass consumerism (and the lack of renewable efforts to compensate for this). Much of this suffering currently stems from online marketing. Social media has led to the accessibility of many products, which is great in some ways and terrible in others. There are so many individuals and families who struggle with survival and mass consumerism can be financially detrimental to those who don’t have the means to afford these purchases. I’m not proposing to end influencers or style lovers; I’d simply like to encourage better practices so that followers will make educated choices that promote positive change. Choose quality over quantity. Choose companies that pay fair wages to their factory workers (ie. don’t purchase cheap, knock-off items). Select clothing that can be re-worn and, eventually, repurposed. Consider gently worn, pre-loved items. Money is power and influence. Take that away from brands with your actions and it will force them to alter their practices or become irrelevant. It won’t hurt anyone if you are seen in an outfit that you’ve already worn. Consider individuals living in this world who only have that option.
The lack of “every day” female-identifying gamers certainly isn’t positively affecting the community. PSA to female gamers: You can be non-ostentatious and love gaming at the same time. In fact, it may just inspire other gamers to follow in your footsteps rather than feel as if their physical image and personality aren’t worthy of being shared with others.
I’m consistently saddened by the abundance of straight, cisgender male YouTubers within the technology channels of the platform. I sometimes wonder if this is due to the brutal comments that internet trolls tend to leave on video content. The unfortunate reality is that female-identifying and LGBTQ+ presenters typically face more criticism than others due to the ideology of what the masses are mentally trained to consider attractive (physically and personality-wise).
With all of that said, I’ll get off of my soapbox for a moment and share a tidbit from our afternoon. Josh and I were craving sushi from one of our favorite spots in town, Now and Zen. It had been on our agenda to experiment with some recently acquired camera gear, so we decided to take advantage of the beautiful afternoon weather, capture some quick content, and indulge ourselves in a delightful meal.
We brought along my Leica Q2 and Josh’s Lumix S1H with Leica Noctilux 50mm f/1.0. Unfortunately, the S1H with the f/1.0 Noctilux was deemed not ideal for outfit photos. The Leica Q2, which has a maximum aperture of 1.7, was determined to be the best fit. It’s small, lightweight, quick, reliable, and offers an ample amount of flexibility with its 47.3 megapixels and additional crop modes of 35, 50, and 75. With outfit photos, my objective is to be quick and the intention is not to spend hours capturing “perfect influencer photos.” The eventual goal is to be able to capture these more naturally. At the moment, we are attempting to find a balance between editorial, artful, and documentary.
Side Note: I enjoy creating expressive outfits and dress up frequently for whenever we step out of the house. I simply figured it would be interesting to actually begin capturing these outfits more regularly and see where things go. Additionally, it gives us an excuse to explore our town more. Before today, I had never spent time in the area we walked around and photographed in (near the Albemarle County Circuit Court).
Once we felt that the photos taken were sufficient, we proceeded to our sushi dinner date night. It was every bit as delicious as we had hoped and we couldn’t have been more delighted. If you’re visiting downtown Charlottesville, Josh and I cannot recommend a better sushi spot. Their Aburi Salmon dish is a favorite.
Sea New York Pascale Mini Dress via Poshmark | Alexandre Birman Kittie 50 Boot in Cognac via Poshmark | DIOR Bow Earrings via Poshmark | See by Chloé Mara Saddle Bag via Bloomingdale’s | Marc Jacobs Eyewear via TJ Maxx | Sheertex “Nude Sheer Tights” in Light-Medium
All images (with the exception of the sushi dinner snap — which was documented on the iPhone 13 Pro) were captured with the Leica Q2 by my dear partner, Josh .