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Method PHOTO SAFARI

Users document ideas and needs to inspire the innovation process

Vejviser

Photo Safari is a method used to research a selected user group. By taking pictures, user groups document specific situations or places of importance to them in their daily lives. The resulting Photo Safari is used to get fresh perspectives of needs, opinions and feelings of the users, which  can then inspire the development of new solutions.

The objective of the method is not to gather information, but to inspire. This is often used in connection with the completion of a User Journey and is dependent on prior research and established contact with users (eg. via Interviews and Observations).

Instructions

  1. Choose a focus for the study and formulate a task for users to address. It is important that the task is formulated so that the user knows what is expected of them, but not what they are expected to find.
  2. Thereafter, distribute disposable cameras to the users (or the users use their own smartphones) together with a description of the task.
  3. The user then returns the camera after a defined period of time, when the photos have been taken.
  4. Afterwards, the students conduct an interview with the users, during which they ask about the meaning of the photos.
  5. The photos and interviews are then used throughout subsequent idea development and implementation.

Worth Considering

In most cases, students do not have the opportunity or time to integrate a user group. Where relevant, students can make use of the Photo Safari as a method in their own fieldwork.

Foto Safari is inspired by Cultural Probes (Please see reference under SOURCES)

Preparation

Obtain smartphones, digital cameras or disposable cameras depending on the target group and resources available.

Sources

Gaver, B., Dunne, T., & Pacenti, E. (1999). Design: cultural probes. interactions, 6(1), 21-29.

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