This post was originally posted on December 14, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
This year flew by…
As 2019 comes to a close, here are my favorite shots from the last year:
My wife, Liz, and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. This is one of my favorite shots of Liz, even if it wasn’t taken on our anniversary.
I’m still enjoying grad school and travelled to Toronto to present my first paper at an academic conference.
We took a couple of hikes as a family up near Asheville. Next year, we need take more hikes.
Ryan started soccer this year. There are lots of shots of him in motion, but I love this one of him crouched in goal — with all the action at the other end of the field.
Liz and I went to a “paint and pour.” I don’t really paint and I wasn’t sure what it would be like, but I had a lot of fun.
The girls and I went to Starbucks. They can be so silly, especially when it’s just them. Loved this moment, but I can’t actually remember what they are laughing about.
Jill was entertaining her cousin Gracie at one of Norah’s lacrosse games in Greenville.
The kids in front of the Christmas tree. I’ll be honest — getting pictures of the family in front of the tree almost broke me — but at least some of the shots turned out great.
If you are the kind of person who loves taking and sharing pictures, I encourage you to find your best eight images instead of using an algorithm to generate the nine images other people liked best. I’ve written a separate post on how I built my Fav8.
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
This post was originally posted on December 14, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
Forget ‘Best Nine.’ Why Fav8 is the way to go.
At the end of every year, Instagram is flooded with “Best Nine” posts — an automatically generated composite of the nine images on your feed that received the most likes. But last year, I tried something different… Fav8. I picked the eight images that meant the most to me and put them together into a “Best Nine” style format. Here’s what my Fav8 from 2018 looked like:
A couple of other folks did Fav8’s, too, and it seemed to work well for them. This year, I want to encourage more people to spend some time and make their own Fav8s. There isn’t an app or a spammy ad covered website to make a Fav8. It’s completely DIY. Curating your own compilation takes a little more time, but it’s got some definite benefits:
You can select the images that mean the most to you. I liked all of my Best Nine images from last year, but several of my favorite moments were left off. The system can’t tell which images mean the most to me, it can only tell how many likes each post got. The Fav8 approach lets you pick your favorite moments.
Memory lane. To select your favorite eight shots from the last year, you have to go through all of your images. It’s hard to believe how many amazing moments I had forgotten across the year. Going through the last year of images can be an amazingly affirming experience.
Pick the best shot from the sequence. I like to post multiple images in the same Instagram post, but the Best Nine generator automatically picks the first image in the sequence, which may not be the image you want to use.
So how do you make a Fav8?
It takes a little more time than clicking a button, but it’s pretty straightforward:
Pick the images you love. You can look at your Instagram feed or your camera roll, but pick the images you love. Don’t pay attention to how many people liked the image… just how much it means to you. I used Instagram’s bookmark feature to save my favorites. If you are using your camera roll, just start a new album. (If your images are on Instagram, there are several ways to download the images, but it depends on several factors like your operating system and where the images are stored. Your best bet is to Google the best option for your specific situation. UPDATE: Micro.Blog user Smokey Ardisson mentioned that Shortcuts on iOS and MacOS has a Photo Grid action.)
Narrow it down to the final eight. If you are like me, you liked more than 8 images last year. So think about which images tell the story of the last year? Which moments are most vivid? This might take a little bit of time, but it’s also one of the most fun parts.
Organize the images into a grid. There are many ways to do this. I’m a designer and I used Photoshop. If you want to only use your iPhone, I’ve used Instagram’s free Layout app to make a simple grid of images. (There are many, many apps that can do this.) Of course, there will be one spot left over in a 3x3 grid. Feel free to add whatever you want… your name, social media username, the year, an inspirational quote. Whatever feels right. (UPDATE: Micro.Blog user John Johnston is thinking about adding a map. Love that idea, too.)
Post your Fav8 wherever you like. This isn’t just an Instagram thing. Share it to your favorite social media site. Or write a blog post about your Fav8 and what each of the images mean to you. I’ve posted my Fav8 on my blog and will soon post it on Instagram and Twitter, too.
Bonus! Create something tangible. Too many of our images never leave the phone. This year, I’m going to create a printed version of my 2019 Fav8, frame it and put it in my office.
If you have fun making your image compilation, spread the word. Let others know about Fav8 and encourage your friends and family to do the same. You can use the hashtag #2019Fav8. Or for Micro.Blog, maybe we can use the 8️⃣ emoji?
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
Four hoops.
It’s been a long week. (Yes, I’m aware that it’s only Tuesday morning.) Starting this morning right with a Cubano from @indahcoffee.
My coffee* buddy.
Norah and her buddies heading to the homecoming dance. Photo by Liz.
