Author: jeremy

  • The Instagram grid change and why it’ll happen again

    The Instagram grid change and why it’ll happen again

    Instagram changed the layout of the post grid from square to a 3:4 aspect ratio format on mobile. It remains the same for now in the web browser. Note that the reels tab was already this new ratio. 

    The impact is that anyone who designed their content to fit Insta’s square format, now has a messy looking profile / grid. It’s clear that the platforms will continually make changes to fit whatever drives engagement and creatives are at the tail end of those changes. 

    Insta’s square grid has always been an outlier, a legacy layout from the early Insta days and never really worked well on mobile devices that have the 16:9 aspect ratio. 16:9 is an international standard and mobile cameras shoot in that ratio by default. 

    Here’s what the grid looks like in the browser.

    And on mobile.

    The learning & the fediverse

    The learning here is to create work in a format / ratio that suits your end game and also caters a little for the future, not for the platform. 

    I create a lot of my images at 5-6000 pixels across. It’s enough for most purposes and allows the work to be scaled down or cropped easily. If you’re a Redbubble user, you’ll be familiar with their one upload of the 6000 pixel upload that then generates all of the images for their various product merchandise. 

    The fediverse is Meta‘s answer to making all public online content and conversations available across all of its platforms that you give it permission to access. It’s important because what it means is that your online work / content is now (if you’ve turned it on) platform agnostic, Instagram users can see your threads content etc. 

    It’s not hard to imagine that the current platforms (Insta, Threads, Facebook etc) will all merge and become the Meta platform. So putting all of your effort into a single platform, is a risky long-term approach. 

    Federated content

    The little fediverse icon next to your name (the two circles, on Threads) is there indicating progress on federating your post to the network. It’s posting it to the  server infrastructure and running all sorts of algorithms for it to find the right audience across all of Meta’s platforms (Insta, Threads etc). 

    Own your house

    From a marketer’s perspective, the best choice is always to own your house. Make your website and post the content there and share it out to the platforms. if you have the time and resources, there are benefits and necessary cases to posting direct on platforms such as TikTok (doesn’t support URLs), but branding and actions should drive back to your home where possible. 

    For the wanderlust travellers and those who post mainly on Instagram or TikTok, tips would be to make sure you save drafts of all of your media on your phone or lappie. You never know what will happen in the future, like the grid change, and you’ll need to resize or repost. Save any edited content, reels etc that you’ve added copy, effects and all that editing time, onto your device. 

    Let me know if you have thoughts on the grid change and what’s coming in the future. 

    Follow me on these platforms for more: threads, Insta, Facebook, TikTok 

  • Jeremy Burton – Artist and Illustrator

    Jeremy Burton – Artist and Illustrator

    I’m an artist and illustrator working in Perth, Boorloo – Western Australia. 🌱 I illustrate a sustainable lifestyle of growing your own food, whimsical characters, books and also Shop✨ If you’re looking to hire an illustrator or collab, hit me up on socials or contact with your requirements.

    As a student I studied Fine Arts at Curtin University majoring in sculpture and lived in Melbourne and Kyoto and travelled a little. I spent over 10 years living in Japan in the game development industry. Eventually the winds brought me back to Perth and now I create in a small garden. 

    The ocean and our green world is what I dream about and you’ll find lots of that inspiration throughout my work. I try to produce everything in a sustainable way using available materials. I love to draw, paint and sculpt and use many mediums to illustrate, make bush crafted materials and produce gifts. 

    Thanks for checking my site out and I hope you find something that moves you. 

    Artwork

    Join me on these platforms for more: threads, Insta, TikTok

  • Character design artist, Perth – Jeremy Burton

    Character design artist, Perth – Jeremy Burton

    I make art and illustrate a whimsical life. I’m an ocean and nature lover and try to contribute back by sharing knowledge and supporting protection efforts where possible. Mixed in amongst all of that, are plenty of cute characters, like coconachan 🙂

    I previously worked in the game development industry in Japan with some amazing game artists. The teams in Japan worked on Nintendo, Xbox, Playstation and other console games. And yeah, a bit of that slot (pachinko) work too. 

    Check my blogs for art prints, stickers and decals or merch and sustainability ideas. 

    If you have a collaboration idea or your searching for an artist in Perth, WA to design characters or other things for your business, please reach out and let’s have a coffee contact me

    Follow me on these platforms for more: threads, Insta, Facebook, TikTok 

  • How to make spicy ginger beer

    How to make spicy ginger beer

    How to make spicy ginger beer

    I’ve been making all sorts of combinations of this, mixing in other fruit, honey and spices. You can use any organic material that will ferment, basically any fruit. 

    I’ve experimented with peach, mango, ginger, strawberry, lychee, watermelon and all sorts. Sometimes you hit a good combination, sometimes simple is best. I love just a simple ginger and a little honey mix. 

    Make your ferment mix or ginger plant

    Start off by making your ferment mix (ginger plant). Sugar, water and ginger bits in a jar and let it ferment and bubble for a week. Warm weather helps this whole process.

    I just pierce a metal jar lid for breathing holes. Add in two tbsp of your fruit ingredient, and one of sugar and ill with water. Keep adding a little fruit and sugar each day. Throw some water or fruit out if you overfill. After a few days it should start to generate CO2 and bubble. Cover it with a cloth or paper towel (keeps the ants out) and then put your aerated lid back on.

    Boil your ingredients

    I put them in a pot with a little more water than I need, chuck in all of the fruit ingredients and bring it to the boil. Let it simmer for 10 mins and tun the heat off. Then let it cool to room temperature. 

    Bottle it up!

    Put your boiled mixture (including the fruit) into your sealable bottle (I use these flip cap ones) and add a cup of your ferment mix (or half will do). Give it a gentle roll upside down to mix. Sit it in a cool, dark area to ferment for a week or two. 

    Top up your ferment mix

    Add whatever you used back into the mix and you can make as much as you like!

    If you don’t want to use a ginger plant / fermentation method, you can used a soda machine to carbonate your mix. Just keep it in the fridge and mix it with soda to the strength you like. 

    This is all worth the effort, my ginger and honey 🍯 mix is really carbonated and so refreshing in the morning. It’s a real zing and immunity booster in the morning or hot afternoon.

    Drop a comment if you make your own probiotic ginger beer.

  • Living with chickens – training the egg laying location 🐓

    I need help with chicken training 🥹 one hen 🐓 refuses to lay in the nest box and lays under the olive tree. How do I get her to relocate? I’ve tried fencing off the area, she just flies over it. Any ideas … ?💡