Tim L. Walker
April 17th, 2008, 10:12 PM
PhotographyCorner.com Newsletter
Volume 5, Issue 4
Contents:
1) Buckle Your Seat Belts
2) Sponsor: Parade Portfolio Management Tools - Websites for Creatives
3) CCC#49: Controversy
4) Diamonds in the Rough
5) "Noteworthy Notables" Double Dose
6) What's Your Plan?
1) Buckle Your Seat Belts
If you've been to the Corner in the past couple of weeks, you've probably noticed the banner at the top of the forum about the "2008 Server Fundraiser." As I'm sure you know, PhotographyCorner needs a new server - there are just too many of us hanging around the Corner for our current server to keep up. The fundraiser has been going on for a little over a month now, and we're over 70% of the way to our goal of $2,500. We have just under $750 to go. Think you can spare a bit of coinage to help out the Corner? For everyone that donates, we're also giving away prizes: from PhotographyCorner pens and stuff to a $300 Lowepro camera bag! A new server will mean a better Corner from everyone, so pull out the checkbook/credit card/paypal account/piggy bank and make a donation today - all the details are available here (including a list of those that have already donated!): http://www.photographycorner.com/2008-server-fundraiser
2) Sponsor: Parade Portfolio Management Tools - Websites for Creatives
Discover the smart, simple, stunning solution to display and manage your portfolio online. Parade knows the importance of making a high-impact statement and provides photographers with stunning options to showcase their work online. All of the CUSTOMIZABLE, FULLY EDITABLE templates feature clean, uncluttered designs, sleek functionality, innovative navigation, and huge, quick-loading images. And with our customization tools, you can make your site your own by choosing fonts, backgrounds and accent colours. On the back-end, all of Parade’s templates are powered by an extremely USER-FRIENDLY website management suite. Big buttons, DRAG & DROP interaction and in-line instructions let users dive in and become experts at managing their website in minutes.
With Parade, EVERY feature is included with EVERY design...PLUS ongoing feature additions & updates! Features include:
* UNLIMITED GALLERIES & UNLIMITED IMAGES per gallery
* Bulk image upload
* Simple DRAG & DROP gallery and image re-ordering
* Automatic and instant re-sizing and optimization of images and thumbnails
* Easy caption formatting
* Slideshow ability
* UNLIMITED content pages
* Editable section titles
* Customizable blog
* Fast loading and streaming MUSIC (bulk-upload MP3 files)
* Password protected CLIENT AREA
* Search engine options
* Parade uses a simple, web-based approach, so there's NO download, installation, or configuration required. All you need is a web browser and an Internet connection and you can edit your site anytime, anywhere!
Use promocode: PC25 for a 25% discount off the initial set-up fee: http://www.getparade.com
3) CCC#49: Controversy
We've had some controversies on the Corner before. It's a global community, and the fact that the entire world isn't at peace means there's bound to be some issues. Being Canadian myself, though, I never thought that I would have caused any of it (hey man, make peace, not war... and have a beer), but when I announced Contest Corner Challenge #49: Play Ball (link: http://www.photographycorner.com/forum/showthread.php?t=72338 ) a couple of days ago, I received some backlash from the community. While I was 100% aware that baseball was not a popular sport in a good chunk of the world, I assumed that most people knew what it was, and would, therefore, be able to take a "baseball-related" photograph, even without having equipment/props/games/etc at their disposal. Baseball is a pretty simple sport, and the imagery around baseball is even more obvious, if not cliché. That being said, some people obviously took offence to the fact that I created a challenge that would give our American friends an apparent advantage. As much as I love my American brothers and sisters (hey, I'm heading down to Atlanta in a couple of weeks...), PhotographyCorner is not a US-only or North American photography site - it's a global photography community. Some of our best and favourite photographers are from abroad: Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Israel, Australia, Poland, and the list goes on and on. I thought this contest would be a great way for those that love the game of baseball to capture something for a contest, and those that didn't love (or even watch) baseball, to expand their creativity and try to capture something that is not nearly as familiar to them. I guess I was wrong. Originally I thought I was going to stand my ground. I liked the idea. I thought we'd get some great photographs. After calming down a bit and reading through the "discussion" on the topic again, I realized "What's the point? Why bother to alienate some people because of pride?" Yeah, the baseball idea was mine and I liked it. Obviously it didn't go over well. So here's the deal. Cricket is (apparently) the world's 2nd most popular sport. If people don't play baseball where you live, they probably play cricket. The games are not the same, though there are a lot of similarities. CCC#49: Play Ball is now officially open to both baseball and cricket photographs. Don't say I never listen to you. I expect a whole bunch of entries, though. Anyone that commented in that thread better get a photo in. Oh, and if they don't play baseball or cricket where you live... you're out of luck - I'm not changing it again. ;)
4) Diamonds in the Rough
One of the coolest, though under-utilized, sections of the Corner is the Corner Galleries (link: http://www.photographycorner.com/galleries ). We have just under 12,000 members, over 16,000 photographs, and less than 9,000 comments in the galleries. Don't those numbers seem a little bit off? If you post your photographs up there, you know the amazing quality of a lot of the photos in the galleries, but if you never visit that section of the site, man, you're missing out - there are some FANTASTIC photographs nestled away in the galleries. If you're looking for some inspiration, or you just want to spend some quality time looking at great photographs, make sure to drop by the Corner Galleries from time to time (and leave some comments!) - you won't be disappointed.
5) "Noteworthy Notables" Double Dose
For those that are new to the Corner (or for those of you that have never read this far down in a newsletter before), the Noteworthy Notables have been a steadfast section here in the Corner Newsletter. It gives a brief run-down of the cool threads, new articles and blog posts, and other "worth checking out" stuff that has happened here on the Corner. There's been so much going on this past month, in fact, we're doing a "Double Dose" of the "Noteworthy Notables." Enjoy!
Photoshop Express Video Series
http://www.photographycorner.com/tutorials/software/photoshop-express-video-series-part-1-what-is-photoshop-express
Erik put together a 13-part video series covering the new, online photo editor from Adobe - grab some popcorn, sit back, relax, watch and learn everything there is to know about Px
Kodak EasyShare 5300 All-in-One Printer Review
http://www.photographycorner.com/product-reviews/printers/kodak-easyshare-5300-all-in-one-printer-review
A review of the Kodak EasyShare 5300 All-in-One printer (by me!)
Two New Manfrotto Tripod Reviews
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/03/two-new-manfrotto-tripod-reviews
A couple of quick reviews of 2 manfrotto tripods by Erik Bernskiold
Happy Birthday to Us!
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/03/happy-birthday-to-us
PhotographyCorner turned 4 last month!
New Forum at the Corner - Photojournalism/Street Photography
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/04/new-forum-at-the-corner-photojournalism-street-photography
For all your street photographers, we've got a whole new forum for you now
SmugMug Corner Recap
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/04/smugmug-corner-recap
A walk-through of our first 28 SmugMug Corner interviews (with over 300 photographs!)
April 2008 Bling
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/04/april-2008-bling
See who came away with PhotographyCorner awards this month
April 2008 PotM Winner
http://www.photographycorner.com/photograph-of-the-month/2008/04/spring-lamb
Richard Peters won the April Photograph of the Month with a great shot of a lamb bouncing in the grass
CCC#47: Digital Darkroom #2 Winner
http://www.photographycorner.com/contest-corner-challenge/contest-corner-challenge-47-digital-darkroom-2
Tyger won our 2nd Digital Darkroom contest with his photograph composite "Forgotten Railway"
CCC#48: The Path Winner
http://www.photographycorner.com/contest-corner-challenge/contest-corner-challenge-48-the-path
Just announced a couple of days ago, Ben Jacobi (aka shutterbug2007) won his first CCC with his leading-lines photograph "Ghost"
The Corner Blog
http://feeds.feedburner.com/photographycornerblog
You're subscribed, right? If not, you're missing out on all the Corner news
Picture Relay
http://www.photographycorner.com/forum/showthread.php?t=55218
One of the most popular threads at the Corner - if you're not taking part, find out what you're missing out on
The Corner Calendar
http://www.photographycorner.com/forum/calendar.php
Ever confused about what contests start and end when? Check out the Corner Calendar to find out all the important PhotographyCorner-related dates you need to know
PhotographyCorner Resource Center
http://www.photographycorner.com/resources
Hundreds of articles, tutorials and product reviews in there (and I'll be adding a couple dozen more over the next month!)
7) What's Your Plan?
It's always good to know where you're going - that way you know what you have to do in order to get there. The Corner is part of your path to becoming a better photograper. For some, it's just learning the basics so that they can take better photos of the family at the beach; for others, photography is their career and the Corner is a place to show off their best shots, hone new skills, and even help some beginners learn the ropes. Most people at the Corner, however, fall somewhere in between. You want to do more than take "decent snapshots" at the beach with the kids, but you're not quite ready to quit your day job and do photography full-time. You want to keep the day job, but maybe sell some prints here and there, take some good shots, maybe even get published (or win a contest at the Corner). It's a good place to be - but where do you want to go? What's your plan from here? You don't have to decide right now, but maybe take some time to think about it. What are your (photography-related) goals? Where do you want to be (photography-wise) in a year from now? in 5 years? What are you doing to reach those goals? Even if all you want to do is "become a better photographer" (and there's nothing wrong with that), what are you doing to make that happen? Are you trying new techniques? Reading new articles? Taking classes? Participating in Premiere Projects? Entering contests? Take some time this month and think about where you want to go, and how you want to get there. Maybe even write it down on a piece of paper and stick it next to your computer, or in your camera bag. If you keep working on it, who knows where you'll be in 5 years.
See you around the Corner,
Tim L. Walker
www.PhotographyCorner.com
Volume 5, Issue 4
Contents:
1) Buckle Your Seat Belts
2) Sponsor: Parade Portfolio Management Tools - Websites for Creatives
3) CCC#49: Controversy
4) Diamonds in the Rough
5) "Noteworthy Notables" Double Dose
6) What's Your Plan?
1) Buckle Your Seat Belts
If you've been to the Corner in the past couple of weeks, you've probably noticed the banner at the top of the forum about the "2008 Server Fundraiser." As I'm sure you know, PhotographyCorner needs a new server - there are just too many of us hanging around the Corner for our current server to keep up. The fundraiser has been going on for a little over a month now, and we're over 70% of the way to our goal of $2,500. We have just under $750 to go. Think you can spare a bit of coinage to help out the Corner? For everyone that donates, we're also giving away prizes: from PhotographyCorner pens and stuff to a $300 Lowepro camera bag! A new server will mean a better Corner from everyone, so pull out the checkbook/credit card/paypal account/piggy bank and make a donation today - all the details are available here (including a list of those that have already donated!): http://www.photographycorner.com/2008-server-fundraiser
2) Sponsor: Parade Portfolio Management Tools - Websites for Creatives
Discover the smart, simple, stunning solution to display and manage your portfolio online. Parade knows the importance of making a high-impact statement and provides photographers with stunning options to showcase their work online. All of the CUSTOMIZABLE, FULLY EDITABLE templates feature clean, uncluttered designs, sleek functionality, innovative navigation, and huge, quick-loading images. And with our customization tools, you can make your site your own by choosing fonts, backgrounds and accent colours. On the back-end, all of Parade’s templates are powered by an extremely USER-FRIENDLY website management suite. Big buttons, DRAG & DROP interaction and in-line instructions let users dive in and become experts at managing their website in minutes.
With Parade, EVERY feature is included with EVERY design...PLUS ongoing feature additions & updates! Features include:
* UNLIMITED GALLERIES & UNLIMITED IMAGES per gallery
* Bulk image upload
* Simple DRAG & DROP gallery and image re-ordering
* Automatic and instant re-sizing and optimization of images and thumbnails
* Easy caption formatting
* Slideshow ability
* UNLIMITED content pages
* Editable section titles
* Customizable blog
* Fast loading and streaming MUSIC (bulk-upload MP3 files)
* Password protected CLIENT AREA
* Search engine options
* Parade uses a simple, web-based approach, so there's NO download, installation, or configuration required. All you need is a web browser and an Internet connection and you can edit your site anytime, anywhere!
Use promocode: PC25 for a 25% discount off the initial set-up fee: http://www.getparade.com
3) CCC#49: Controversy
We've had some controversies on the Corner before. It's a global community, and the fact that the entire world isn't at peace means there's bound to be some issues. Being Canadian myself, though, I never thought that I would have caused any of it (hey man, make peace, not war... and have a beer), but when I announced Contest Corner Challenge #49: Play Ball (link: http://www.photographycorner.com/forum/showthread.php?t=72338 ) a couple of days ago, I received some backlash from the community. While I was 100% aware that baseball was not a popular sport in a good chunk of the world, I assumed that most people knew what it was, and would, therefore, be able to take a "baseball-related" photograph, even without having equipment/props/games/etc at their disposal. Baseball is a pretty simple sport, and the imagery around baseball is even more obvious, if not cliché. That being said, some people obviously took offence to the fact that I created a challenge that would give our American friends an apparent advantage. As much as I love my American brothers and sisters (hey, I'm heading down to Atlanta in a couple of weeks...), PhotographyCorner is not a US-only or North American photography site - it's a global photography community. Some of our best and favourite photographers are from abroad: Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, New Zealand, Singapore, Israel, Australia, Poland, and the list goes on and on. I thought this contest would be a great way for those that love the game of baseball to capture something for a contest, and those that didn't love (or even watch) baseball, to expand their creativity and try to capture something that is not nearly as familiar to them. I guess I was wrong. Originally I thought I was going to stand my ground. I liked the idea. I thought we'd get some great photographs. After calming down a bit and reading through the "discussion" on the topic again, I realized "What's the point? Why bother to alienate some people because of pride?" Yeah, the baseball idea was mine and I liked it. Obviously it didn't go over well. So here's the deal. Cricket is (apparently) the world's 2nd most popular sport. If people don't play baseball where you live, they probably play cricket. The games are not the same, though there are a lot of similarities. CCC#49: Play Ball is now officially open to both baseball and cricket photographs. Don't say I never listen to you. I expect a whole bunch of entries, though. Anyone that commented in that thread better get a photo in. Oh, and if they don't play baseball or cricket where you live... you're out of luck - I'm not changing it again. ;)
4) Diamonds in the Rough
One of the coolest, though under-utilized, sections of the Corner is the Corner Galleries (link: http://www.photographycorner.com/galleries ). We have just under 12,000 members, over 16,000 photographs, and less than 9,000 comments in the galleries. Don't those numbers seem a little bit off? If you post your photographs up there, you know the amazing quality of a lot of the photos in the galleries, but if you never visit that section of the site, man, you're missing out - there are some FANTASTIC photographs nestled away in the galleries. If you're looking for some inspiration, or you just want to spend some quality time looking at great photographs, make sure to drop by the Corner Galleries from time to time (and leave some comments!) - you won't be disappointed.
5) "Noteworthy Notables" Double Dose
For those that are new to the Corner (or for those of you that have never read this far down in a newsletter before), the Noteworthy Notables have been a steadfast section here in the Corner Newsletter. It gives a brief run-down of the cool threads, new articles and blog posts, and other "worth checking out" stuff that has happened here on the Corner. There's been so much going on this past month, in fact, we're doing a "Double Dose" of the "Noteworthy Notables." Enjoy!
Photoshop Express Video Series
http://www.photographycorner.com/tutorials/software/photoshop-express-video-series-part-1-what-is-photoshop-express
Erik put together a 13-part video series covering the new, online photo editor from Adobe - grab some popcorn, sit back, relax, watch and learn everything there is to know about Px
Kodak EasyShare 5300 All-in-One Printer Review
http://www.photographycorner.com/product-reviews/printers/kodak-easyshare-5300-all-in-one-printer-review
A review of the Kodak EasyShare 5300 All-in-One printer (by me!)
Two New Manfrotto Tripod Reviews
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/03/two-new-manfrotto-tripod-reviews
A couple of quick reviews of 2 manfrotto tripods by Erik Bernskiold
Happy Birthday to Us!
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/03/happy-birthday-to-us
PhotographyCorner turned 4 last month!
New Forum at the Corner - Photojournalism/Street Photography
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/04/new-forum-at-the-corner-photojournalism-street-photography
For all your street photographers, we've got a whole new forum for you now
SmugMug Corner Recap
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/04/smugmug-corner-recap
A walk-through of our first 28 SmugMug Corner interviews (with over 300 photographs!)
April 2008 Bling
http://www.photographycorner.com/blog/2008/04/april-2008-bling
See who came away with PhotographyCorner awards this month
April 2008 PotM Winner
http://www.photographycorner.com/photograph-of-the-month/2008/04/spring-lamb
Richard Peters won the April Photograph of the Month with a great shot of a lamb bouncing in the grass
CCC#47: Digital Darkroom #2 Winner
http://www.photographycorner.com/contest-corner-challenge/contest-corner-challenge-47-digital-darkroom-2
Tyger won our 2nd Digital Darkroom contest with his photograph composite "Forgotten Railway"
CCC#48: The Path Winner
http://www.photographycorner.com/contest-corner-challenge/contest-corner-challenge-48-the-path
Just announced a couple of days ago, Ben Jacobi (aka shutterbug2007) won his first CCC with his leading-lines photograph "Ghost"
The Corner Blog
http://feeds.feedburner.com/photographycornerblog
You're subscribed, right? If not, you're missing out on all the Corner news
Picture Relay
http://www.photographycorner.com/forum/showthread.php?t=55218
One of the most popular threads at the Corner - if you're not taking part, find out what you're missing out on
The Corner Calendar
http://www.photographycorner.com/forum/calendar.php
Ever confused about what contests start and end when? Check out the Corner Calendar to find out all the important PhotographyCorner-related dates you need to know
PhotographyCorner Resource Center
http://www.photographycorner.com/resources
Hundreds of articles, tutorials and product reviews in there (and I'll be adding a couple dozen more over the next month!)
7) What's Your Plan?
It's always good to know where you're going - that way you know what you have to do in order to get there. The Corner is part of your path to becoming a better photograper. For some, it's just learning the basics so that they can take better photos of the family at the beach; for others, photography is their career and the Corner is a place to show off their best shots, hone new skills, and even help some beginners learn the ropes. Most people at the Corner, however, fall somewhere in between. You want to do more than take "decent snapshots" at the beach with the kids, but you're not quite ready to quit your day job and do photography full-time. You want to keep the day job, but maybe sell some prints here and there, take some good shots, maybe even get published (or win a contest at the Corner). It's a good place to be - but where do you want to go? What's your plan from here? You don't have to decide right now, but maybe take some time to think about it. What are your (photography-related) goals? Where do you want to be (photography-wise) in a year from now? in 5 years? What are you doing to reach those goals? Even if all you want to do is "become a better photographer" (and there's nothing wrong with that), what are you doing to make that happen? Are you trying new techniques? Reading new articles? Taking classes? Participating in Premiere Projects? Entering contests? Take some time this month and think about where you want to go, and how you want to get there. Maybe even write it down on a piece of paper and stick it next to your computer, or in your camera bag. If you keep working on it, who knows where you'll be in 5 years.
See you around the Corner,
Tim L. Walker
www.PhotographyCorner.com