Learning production essentials

Well, hello, darling. My name is Christopher Griffin, also known as "plantkween" on Instagram and I am a black queer non-binary queen obsessed with the botanical scene. So let's get into today's topic honey: Production Essentials. So that you can create some fabulous content. My social media presence, honey, has been rooted in a journey of self care, joy sharing, and community building all through the wonders of those green little creatures we call plants. I wanted to make my space feel more like home and I figured other folks probably wanted to do the same thing. I brought folks along on the journey, sharing tips and tricks on how to green up your space and tend to your indoor garden. But also your inner garden.

Starting with storytelling

If I want to capture the essence of a moment I tend to use a carousel of photos. If I want to captivate folks with a little joyful entertainment, paired with some music, then Reels are my go to. If I want to create long form content, then IG video is my go to. This particular Instagram surface is wonderful for episodic and tutorial content to immerse folks in some learning, whether it's to get to know you or something you want to teach them.

Keeping production simple

Creating storytelling and sharing that content does not take a ton of gadgets or overthinking. I use the environment around me so I shoot a lot of my content in my apartment. And because I want content creation to be easy, to be joyful, to be fun, I tend to shoot a lot of my content with my phone.

Creating a production checklist

Let's run through a little checklist of some things to think about as you dive into creating. One, you wanna be mindful of your setup, make sure it feels as natural as possible. Two, you wanna be mindful of lighting and sound. Natural light is always the best way to go but if you need a little ring light situation, that is fine too. If you're recording any audio just make sure that the environment around you is quiet. Three, you wanna have a little camera set up. You can either have a friend help you or you can have a little tripod or a cell phone holder to allow you to have a diversity of angles as you're shooting. Four, you may wanna do some warmups with yourself to get your body and spirit ready, as you dive in front of the camera. Five, do some research on some editing apps or use the features within the Instagram app to help you edit that content in a way that feels fabulous and fierce.

Key takeaways

I went through a lot of information so let's go through three key takeaways.

1/ Content creation should be fun and an extension of who you are in this moment but it doesn't need to be perfect. Think of production as a way to share that journey as a creator.

2/ Use the tools to help you shine through. A phone stand helps you to get in front of the camera so you can put yourself out there. Also when it comes to these gadgets and tools, you do not need a big budget or fancy equipment.

3/ When in doubt, collaborate, bring your friends into the process and create with them to keep things fun.

So darling have fun. Keep it simple, be yourself, and you'll be well on your way to create fabulous content like this.