Greetings from the team at Ghumakkar!
It's time again for the end-of-the-month update meant specially for our authors. There's never a quiet time at Ghumakkar, both at the frontend and at the backend. And this September was no different. While many exciting stories were published on the site, a lot of changes have happened behind the scene as well. This authorletter will help you get acquainted with them.
Ghumakkar evolves all the time. Right now, there are no hard and fast rules about the use of media apart from the usual copyright/privacy stuff. And as a result, you'll see photos and videos being used in different ways by each Ghumakkar and this gives each author a unique personality. However, here are a few guidelines that will help you use the digital media most optimally:
First, always remember that the primary asset of a story is the story itself. The text presides and is supported by digital media. The roles of both the components cannot be switched too often.
Second, remember that the purpose of the digital media is to showcase the place. While a couple of pictures of people are good for a story, reserve a considerable number of pictures through which the readers can take an unhindered look at the place. It is the place that the readers need to decide about so it is important for them to get an idea of what they should expect from it.
Third, somethings or situations call for a video rather than a stationary shot, Consider for example, the traditional dance of a place you've visited or a salmon jumping up a waterfall. A video can do these moments more justice than a picture.
Fourth, try to support your pictures with good, meaningful captions because captions help a reader relate to the pictures and also add to your story. And they also make your pictures appear pretty because pictures with captions are displayed with a nice black frame around them.
Fifth and final, use large pictures. The optimum resolution for Ghumakkar is 640*480. While this size is a bit expensive real-estate-wise, we are ready to bear this cost because images with this resolution appear clear on all display types.
Here are some examples where we feel that digital media has been used suitably:
Tadoba National Park- A Heaven for Wildlife Lover - for its fitting use of video
Dodital Trek: Himalayan Adventures - for its engaging captions
These are by no means the only examples. Ghumakkar is full of stories that make optimum use digital media. And we hope you'll find this note helpful when you're preparing your next post for publishing.
For any feedback or suggestions, please write to us at info@ghumakkar.com but for now, go on, read the rest of this authorletter. It is full of news for Ghumakkars.
Cheers,
Vibha
Editor - Ghumakkar.com
