By the time you're done with this training, you'll have built some basic skills in shooting and editing both photos and video with your phone and know how to build a graphic using free tools. But how do you know which tool to use when? It depends on your need and circumstance. Read more about what they each do best.

Photos

Captures a moment by freezing time
Shows unfiltered emotion
“Worth 1,000 words”
Doesn't require translation: whatever language you speak, you will understand the image

Audio

Hear your sources’ voices, natural sound as it appears in the environment
Engages a listener's imagination by creating a "theater of the mind"
Audiences are able to listen while multitasking, i.e., driving in a car or working in the fields
Can be broadcast cheaply on the radio or downloaded and streamed
Requires less internet bandwidth than video
Can be as short as 30 seconds or as long as 30 minutes (or more!)

Video

Combines the benefits of photos and audio
Adds action, movement
Provides intimacy with sources that allows audiences to connect with those in the video
Good for demonstrating things
Easy for audience to “sit back and enjoy”
Requires more bandwidth than audio for the user to download/stream
Should be limited to 3 minutes

Text

Best to explain complex concepts since the user can return to reread until they have a full understanding
Allows for time and space for deeper context and analysis
Is searchable/scannable
Offers the fastest and most simple production methods
Writer has control over voice and tone

Infographics

Combines words and visuals to simplify complex concepts
Easily digestible at a glance
Helps the audience see the “unseeable”
Can be created automatically optimized for social media at little or no cost using online tools