• Introduction
• Thesis   
  • Personal Design Research definition
  • Human Centered Design Research
  • Thesis goals
  • Work completed
• Project and Methods   
  • Introduction
  • Pre-research   
    • Bounding terms
    • Exploration of terms
  • Recruiting  
    • Overview
    • Process
    • Screening for ambivalence
  • Probes  
    • Overview
    • Evocative probes
    • Blank probes
    • Cameras
    • Distribution
  • Interviews  
    • Overview
    • Teams
    • Spaces
    • Photography
  • Analysis  
    • Approaches
    • Content based
    • Reflections
  • Findings  
    • Overview
    • Reflections
  • Outcomes
• Conclusion

Project and
Methods:
Probes:
Cameras:

Image + text, and self reporting cameras

Every study surveyed that used some sort of activity pack included either a disposable camera or an instant film camera. The cameras are used in basically the same way in all the studies: to collect textural images and to document events the researchers could not be present for. The cameras themselves can either be left as they are to use their familiarity to comfort the user, or altered to recast the camera away from being an ordinary object and thus encourage new ways of looking at the photo taking task.

For many conducting research of this sort, the use of a cameras has become a default choice, one that could be handled in a new way. For the Communication probe study conducted by Westerlund et. al. Participants received the developed photos and then wrote on them (Mattelmäki, pg 81.) The juxtaposition of the writing on the photo to the content in it is a reminder of the power of image and text together. A few words can transform an image. Bill Owens' photo book Suburbia is another influential example. Though mostly image, several pages contain annotations from the subjects.

A discussion of this subject by the Living Profiles team led designer Hannah Regier to create a system of mobile phone blogging in which teens took photos from given prompts, uploaded them to secure private blogs, and then annotated them online with text entries. This approach was made possible by using an expensive, imported mobile phone that could easily send photos to the secure blogs. It meant purchasing several phones and paying for service for all of them. While it returned good image and text combinations, it was prohibitively expensive for WWP.

Instant cameras were considered. They would allow for images to be taken and then annotated immediately. However, the participants would have an opportunity to self-edit photos they didn't like and if too much editing happened they would run out of film before taking all the photos. Digital cameras used with email were also considered but were thought to have too high a chance of failure.

In the end, typical disposable cameras were sent out with shot lists, which contained space for annotations. While the results were more interesting than with just cameras, there is still room for innovation in this area.

Technical notes.
Disposable cameras vary widely in their construction quality, depth of field, minimum focus distances, need for flash, and film quality. The camera used for WWP was not well selected. It had a distant minimum focus and a flash that would go off uncontrollably. This led to many poor photos. Also the cameras were mailed several times (to the participants, back to the researchers, to the photo lab) and several of them cracked open, ruining part or all of the photos within. This isn't just disappointing--these photos could shape the visual outcome of the research--having the best possible photos is a benefit.

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