PHOTO ASSIGNMENT: The Rules!!**

“This is as thread where we can debate and change rules for the PHOTO ASSIGNMENT.


PHOTO ASSIGNMENT:

1. Various "assignments" will be made. Look for threads with PHOTO ASSIGNMENT in the title. A date close to the current day means it's the current assignment.

2. People will post constructive criticism of the shots posted here. However, Trail Talk being Trail Talk, it may get off topic or a snide remark may be made. Be prepared for that. No, we will not be sued for mental anguish perceived to have come from a bad criticism. Buck up.

3. This category starts today, Wednesday, March 14, and will run until Monday, April 2. Yes, that’s a long time. The time period may change as the PHOTO ASSIGNMENT categories continue. At least at first, let’s give people time to find this and do a photo.

4. You will have until noon (forum time) on Tuesday, April 4, to finish up critiques and voting, since voting will be done all along and not just at the end of the assignment period. (More on that below.)

5. You do need to go out and take a NEW photo, not simply posting one you’ve already taken. (Or definitely be prepared to be shunned! You’ve been warned!)

6. Ideally, photos should be posted to an album on this website, www.backpacking.com.
You can do that by going here: http://www.thebackpacker.com/pictures/ Go to the section labeled: Create an Album. You must be a registered member on the website to post an album. Also, you may want to compress your photo’s size some or post it so it’s not high resolution. (We do want to see it; we don’t want anyone being able to swipe your prized photo off the web. And we are not responsible if they do. Cover your butt yourself on photo quality: good enough to see well, but ideally not straight off a 10-megapixel camera with no work done to reduce the file size. A good, free program to keep track of photos and downsize them can be found at www.irfanview.com)

7. Here is how you post a photo (thanks, Tilt, from years back!):

A. Have two windows open on your computer screen, one on this thread, with the reply (“Post a Message”) box, and the other with your backpacker.com photo album. You will get to it by “Browse Albums” and your name. Or, just bookmark it. You may also want to print out these instructions at first.

B. Open up a page with the one photo on it that you choose to post to this thread.

C. In your reply box, copy and past this code:
(IMG SRC="http://www.thebackpacker.com/pictures/users/lizs/21cy71ch/mhan4bx.jpg" WIDTH=450)
To clarify, there is a space between IMG and SRC. There is also a space between .jpg+ and WIDTH. ***YOU DO NEED TO REPLACE THE PARENTHES. Replace ( with < and replace ) with >

D. Now go to the photo you have up on screen. If you have a PC, right click on it with your mouse and a box will come up that says “Properties.” If you can’t do that, or have a Mac, find a menu item on your toolbar at the top of the screen that has “Properties” listed under it.

E. Use your mouse to highlight and copy the HTML coding designated by “Address (URL)” given under “Properties.” (At least that’s how my PC gives it.) It is specific to that photo.

F. Go back to the coding shown in No. 3, which should be in your message box. Highlight everything between the quotation marks and replace it with the coding you copied from your photo. That should post it. (If not, please call Tilt! LOL!)

8. ANOTHER OPTION: I think it’d be nice to keep postings consistent as mentioned above. However, you could provide a link to a photo album such as Webshots. Just keep in mind, having the photo right on the thread makes it easier for all of us.

9. Also, along with your photo, please list UNDER IT:
A. Photo Title (make it short and sweet, please)
B. Your TT name
C. Location of photo
D. Date taken
E. The camera equipment you used (Ex: digital or 35 mm scanned; flash; speed/aperture if you have that; any unusual or noteworthy circumstances)
F. Anything else you might like.

10. NOW COMES THE FUN PART: critiquing and, due to popular consensus, VOTING for your favorite photo. The photo with the most votes gets to pick the next category. (And if we find one person consistently winning, this rule may change. We want participation, not domination – well, most of us, that is)

A. You can critique at any time. Please FIRST LIST THE PHOTO NAME, so we know what you’re talking about and can refer back to that photo. (I don’t feel we need to repost the photo each time… but that may also change if people like that.) Tell what you like… what might have been done better. Be positive.

B. Then, I think this might work (but can certainly be changed). As opposed to voting for your favorite shot – which requires waiting until the end of the photo assignment posting period -- let’s vote on a subjective score of 1 to 10. You are looking at the photo, voting on what you think that specific, perfect shot would look like and how the shot you’re viewing compares. 1 is a low score and 10 is a perfect score. I’d think quite a few shots would score in the 4-7 range, to give you some basis for starting. No, do not give half points! LOL!

C. If we end up with a tie at the end of the critique/posting period, we will have a vote specific to those photos involved.

D. The winner will get to pick the next assignment (and maybe put it on your resume?? Hehehe…)

11. There will be a new PHOTO ASSIGNMENT thread for each assignment, so one specific thread does not get weighed down with photos (to help our dial-up and otherwise bandwidth-challenged friends.) Please, winners, title them: PHOTO ASSIGNMENT: (date posted, including year – because we want to see if photos are getting better with time)

12. Rules may be revised as this goes on. (I can be bought off. LOL!! J/k)
last edited: 3/14/07 11:11:16 AM”

“Great job, Queenie. ;)

The first photos posted will be up for a long time. The last ones will be (duh) up for a short time before the voting ends.

Wouldn't this mean that the early photos get a lot more ratings than the latter?

Maybe we should restrict to comments/critiques during the posting period, then have the rating/voting period for a week after submissions have closed.”

“It's about time!



(kidding)”

“Ok, what is the photo assignment?”

“Hmmm, good point.

I'm basing some of this on watching the photo contests Sequoia does on "the other side." She posts all of the photos at once, then has a voting period. I don't have time to do that, unless someone else wants to. I'd like to see this easy running, on its own. (yet some -- a whole bunch!! LOL! -- of rules are needed even to do that)

My idea was to be going for the critiques and learning, feeling a contest was secondary. But I know a lot want a contest.

If you do it at the end, people will be judging the photos against one another, I feel. Plus, it's a lot easier to just vote when you view it.

Maybe say a photo needs to get at least five comments? And once getting that, the votes received would be averaged by the scores given? It encourages people to get them in earlier or, if getting in on the last day, getting off e-mails to their friends to vote? And if doing that, maybe allowing half points, so as to help in averaging the photos?

Maybe we need something, too, that if we spot a person's TT friends "loading up the ballot box," a disqualification can be made? LOL, you just don't know what will happen until it starts. Another reason I like critiques and not a contest. :-)

I see I did leave the date stuff in above (was trying to get all that out for a generic posting of rules, whoops!). I thought perhaps a period from March 14, today, to Monday, April 2, and then allowing till noon on WEDNESDAY (not Tuesday, as above) April 4. That gives a couple days to continue votes and looking.

LOL, hope to iron some of this out before the first assignment gets posted.
last edited: 3/14/07 11:30:33 AM”

“LOL, hope to iron some of this out before the first assignments gets posted.”
lizs
12:28:14 PM
3/14/07

Oh, ok. I was confused by the timeframe being posted. I thought I missed something like the actual assignment.”

“lizs = Photo Nanny ;-)”

“I did think of the "minimum number of ratings to qualify" idea, but I think that opens the door for an inferior photo to win, either by fluke or (less likely) by deliberate manipulation. (In fact, if I cared about winning, I would post on the last day. I know I won't win if my photo gets a full vote, but maybe with just five votes I would get "lucky.")

And, I don't know why "judging the photos against each other" would be a bad thing. I know the contest aspect of this is secondary, but isn't that the point of having a contest?”

“Oh...one photo per person, right? Has to be, I think.

Unless...we allow one "original" (new) photo and one "favorite" (from whenever) photo per person. Maybe have a winner from each of those two categories.

(See, my thought is that since I was the one who originally said "keep it simple," I am sorta obligated now to make it as complicated as I can.)”

“OK, assignment is posted in another thread. A pretty broad subject (don't take that wrong, Stovey!!! >8-O)

Fritz, I know there are a lot of things that can happen. Let's see how it goes this first time around as I posted the assignment and rules on the other thread:

http://www.thebackpacker.com/trailtalk/thread/47445.php

Also, I had hoped to just leave this open to both new and old photos, to keep it simple. People seemed to want new photos. So new photos it will be.

As noted, you can post an old photo, but it won't be in the running. There are plenty of photo contests where you can dig up old photos to enter.

**The Photo Nanny has spoken (thanks for the title, Net Nanny! ;-P)”

“ARGH ---”

“Now just what does lizs think I would think about? ;-)”

“Tilt! Had I known you were around I would have consulted you on this. I really don't want them blaming you. :-)

It took me three or four tries in replacing things to get that code up there. LOL! When I first posted (I hadn't previewed it), there was my photo! LOL! DOH! The next try I had a nice big box with a red X in it.

:-)”

“Maybe the categories could take into consideration the pixel count of the camera.

My little 1.3 Mpix can't compete with the big boys.”

“Stovey, that reminds me of something my 14-year-old son said yesterday after his team finished second in an academic competition:

"The only reason they won is they are geniuses and they know everything!"”

“*chuckle*

Ok, no toy cameras.
last edited: 3/14/07 12:04:17 PM”

“Geez, cut with the excuses before you've even taken a photo, Stovey!!!!! LOL! Give yourself some credit!

Good photos come first and foremost from the eye and talent of the shooter. That was the objective of the (ill-fated, lol) pass-around camera project.

It's the composition... the light of day... etc, etc.

If you're looking at a magazine shot, yeah, chances are pretty darn high a very good camera took that picture. They need that quality for reproduction on paper. So, first, let's learn what makes a good shot by looking and critiqueing... and learning. Then go get the big bucks camera and shoot.

:-)

also, you can note the 1.3 MP HINDRANCE (lol) in comments under your photo. Mere whining won't get you a good score from me (take that to the out-of-context thread ;-)) unless you've got a great photo.”

“outphuckingstanding lizs!

thanks so much for your time and effort”

“Do I need a wide angle lens, lizs? ;-)”

“can we photoshop?”

““Maybe the categories could take into consideration the pixel count of the camera.

My little 1.3 Mpix can't compete with the big boys.”
StoveStomper
12:59:12 PM
3/14/07

It shouldn't matter SS. An image that is 640 x 480 pixels is only 0.3 Mpix. Mpix don't realing matter that much until you start printing images.”

“Tough break, Wang ---”

“

The winner should at least get a Kewpie Doll or something ---



look out below....................



A Brief HTML Cheat Sheet 2.0


Note --- So that the examples were not interpreted as actual code, extra spaces were strategically inserted. Basically, there shouldn’t be extra spaces between the angle brackets: no space after a < and no space before a >.

You’ll see in a second ----



This bit of code launches a new browser window with the linked page displayed:

< A HREF="the URL of the webpage" TARGET="_blank" >what you want to call it< /A >


For example,

< A HREF="http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020324.html" TARGET="_blank" >The Cat's Eye Nebula< /A >

gives you this:

The Cat's Eye Nebula


to display an image:

< IMG SRC="the URL of the image" >


to display an image with different dimensions:

< IMG SRC="the URL of the image" WIDTH="999" HEIGHT="999" >

You may prefer to only specify the height or the width, and automatically maintain the aspect ratio of the original (and avoid winding up with squashed or stretched images). Widths much over 450 pixels can trash a thread, but if the original is less than 400 or 450, it’ll be fine as is. If an image is smaller, say 200 pixels, and you set the width=400, strange happenings will result, VBG. Just play with various numbers using the [preview] option until you get the desired result.



This code displays an image that's also a link to a page in a new browser window
(click on the image itself and another browser window opens with the webpage in it):

< A HREF="the URL of the webpage" TARGET="_blank" >< IMG SRC="the URL of the image" >< /A >


… and with different dimensions:

< A HREF="the URL of the webpage" TARGET="_blank" >< IMG SRC="the URL of the image" WIDTH="999" HEIGHT="999" >< /A >



Once you've got it in your head where the URLs and things go, you can put together a cheat sheet with yor word processor. Just paste these doodads into it and save it... (then replace all the parens with angle brackets!). Then you're all set: paste in the line of code, then the other stuff.

Link:
< A HREF="" TARGET="_blank" >< /A >

Link to a Headline (slightly larger font):
< font size=3 >< A HREF="" TARGET="_blank" >< /A >< /font >

Image, centered:
< center >< IMG SRC="" >< /center >

Resized Image (300 pixels wide):
< IMG SRC="" WIDTH="300" >

Image that's also a Link:
< A HREF="" TARGET="_blank" >< IMG SRC="">< /A >

Resized Image (only 75 wide) that's a Link…
< A HREF="" TARGET="_blank" >< IMG SRC="" WIDTH="75" >< /A >


(… handy for displaying a smaller version of an image (thumbnail) that’s linked to a full-size version elsewhere.)




If you want to display an image you find on the net. You need to get its URL (that http://www.yadda-yadda.jpg)

Right click on the image. A 'Properties' information box should appear with the Address (URL). Highlight the URL, then [ctrl-c] copy it and [ctrl-v] paste it into the line of HTML. If the ‘Properties’ widow doesn’t appear, that’s a clue that the owner of the image (or whoever runs the website) does not want you messing with it ---.

Unfortunately, with Webshots and some other websites, you may obtain the URL and post the HTML only to see the dreaded little box with the 'x' in the middle. To avoid that, you must save the image to your own computer, then upload it to your own webpage or somewhere like Photobucket.com.

There are many more options for storing photos on the ‘Net where they can be displayed from… For any questions about That, Consult LIZS, or one of our other resident shutterbugs.


--- Please behave and don’t infringe on anyone’s copyrights ---


This thing isn’t copyrighted by ANYBODY, so feel free

(besides, I stole most all of this from Violin and Bitpusher)



ex animo ---

tilt… Tilt… BLAM



postscript:      All standard disclaimers apply….

now Go in Peace, and Sin No More”

“lol, yes, that's what I had copied... and perhaps adapted for here.

Trust me (she said, winking) -- mine works.”

“I had been meaning to re-do that... and since I had to go through and put the spaces in ANYway ---

I thought I might as well hit 'em with the whole shebang!

(#!)”

“how bout if I send an "OFFICIAL" Nowslimmer camo coffee cup........(of course you'll get it in the usual roundabout manner..by way of Nimblefootz livingroom) j/k.......”

“i don't have a spring trip planned for another week and a half, can i just try it out with two old spring pics? and then i'll post real ones later?

on last weekend's PCT backpack i couldn't bring my camera because it's too heavy.”

“bump”

“You'll have to get an Official Ruling on that.”

“My first dumb question: Do we have to post it to a TT album first or can we just post it within the thread?”

“dang, where's a judge when you need one.”

“what if i post them, and they can just take them out if they want?”

“There's another thread with the first assignment in it:

http://www.thebackpacker.com/trailtalk/thread/47445.php

People wanted to have to go out and take new pictures, so we'll try keeping it to that at first. I made the first category broad. You can just hike around your block or a local park, if you want. It tests skills with what you're given. (Which, again, is why I'm de-emphasizing the contest aspect and wouldn't even do it IF it were left up to me: It's the learning aspect... anyhoo...)

Maybe at some point, say in the dead of next winter, we'll choose to let old photos be entered. Until then, nope.

Ruby, you can post from wherever. A photo does have to be on the web, however, to post as I've given... I think! Webshots won't allow you to copy it in full size. I don't know about other online album services. Also, if you have them posted on your own web space/site, I would think you could post a shot.

"what if i post them, and they can just take them out if they want?”

Who is "they?" If you mean the possibility of someone grabbing your photo online for their own uses, that's the risk you take. Some websites say right in their Terms of Service that anything you post becomes theirs (such as the Backpacker magazine website, whether or not they enforce it).

I'm not sure what the rules are here. But, personally, while I'll post what I think are some of my best photos, I always downsize/compress them, so a person trying to "steal" a shot should hopefully be stuck with a very pixely, awful version of the shot if trying to print.

It's up to you what you do.
last edited: 3/15/07 12:49:54 AM”

“no i just have two pretty ones i want to share from my first backpack ever. but not for the contest.”

“TU”

“Pamela, maybe put them on the thread that SuperTroll posted? Or do a thread remembering your first backpack.”

“sounds good. i hate rules! bend 'em!”