Photos speak a thousand words.

They add an extra dimension to a blog post. Ever since I’ve started blogging on Steemit, I’ve found a new appreciation for a particular type of photo - the GIF.

What is it?

As already mentioned, it is a photo file format. It is an acronym for Graphical Interchange Format and was developed at Compuserve way back in 1987. Ref

Controversy

There is some controversy in how to pronounce "GIF" - "Jiff" (like the sound in Jeep) or "Giff"(like the sound in Give). Personally I say it like the later.

GIFs add a movie-like dimension to a blog post, without having to embed an actual video. At times, they are even more suited to a post than a video is.

There is a certain sub-class of GIF that I've become very fond of and have been messing around with lately called cinemagraphs. They are basically GIFs but cinematically done. It’s hard to explain. You’ve go to see it to see what I mean. Check them out

How I make them

A GIF is simply a collection of images played back one after the other in a given order - like a movie. Which is why they are mostly made by capturing portions of a movie.

I make them on my Mac with the tool called Giphy. It’s a little tricky to use, and I could suggest a whole bunch of improvements to the developers if I knew them, but the results are great.