Blog Tip: Got Vine?
I've heard a lot of buzz about Vine all of a sudden so of course, I joined, and of course, I gave it a try. It's a bit like the Tout app (I told you about Tout already here) but you can stop and start your video several times during recordings which gives you the added bonus to experiment with your very own stop motion video creation - which I think is fun!
I also like that the Vine format is nearly one-to-one with Instagram and though I do not like seeing sameness on one hand, yet on the other it works because now I don't have to learn how to navigate yet another app that I use. Here is an example of what you can do on Vine below if you're a blogger, for instance. You can share things that you love quickly and easily...
I uploaded the little clip above of some of my current favorite books (your Vine videos are saved in your camera roll) to Vimeo but you can also look at the source code of your Vine video in a browser if you don't feel like doing it that way and simply copy the Mp4 file, paste the link of the file into a new browser window and download it, then upload to Vimeo or YouTube or where you personally like to host your video files. Easy!
Bright Side: You can use Vine to give your fans a glimpse into your day, show a very quick DIY project, share a quick book review, try stop motion animation and share other things that your readers may enjoy. It's very easy to use which is both good and bad - as a blogger, you really need to consider that your image can be impacted in a positive or negative way by the content you are pushing out there. My advice is to avoid using it for just anything - put a little thought into it - allow it to push you in a creative sense - what could you do with it that would be fun and exciting for you and to your fans?
Dark Side: This could potentially become a playground for amateur p*rn vids or ones featuring violence, drug use, etc. The volume of obscene videos are on the rise so I'm concerned especially since some of it involves minors. Just be careful because there is no adult content filter - most of us are used to being able to have a choice as to whether or not we come across nudity (or other) on photo sharing sites - not on Vine. You most likely won't find this stuff though unless you search for it.
Note: Vine only gives you 6 seconds of video making time and Tout gives you 15 seconds only Tout doesn't (yet) give you the ability to stop and start video during recording, so you can get as much done in 6 seconds on Vine as you can on Tout if you record your video with a little thought. Also, Vine was purchased by Twitter so that is why you can easily tweet your videos using Vine.
Will you use Vine? How will you use it for blogging? Any ideas as to how you see it being used by bloggers? Would love your feedback. More and more I think video will blow up online but in ways we may not expect... And with the rise of these micro-video apps I think my predictions are slowly coming true.
(video: holly becker for vine)