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Photo Assignment frequency.....

Forums New posts

Should we keep the Photo Assignments active?

  • Yes

    Votes: 7 63.6%

  • No

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Maybe - with the following changes (discuss)

    Votes: 3 27.3%

  • Make them once a month?

    Votes: 3 27.3%

  • No opinion

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    11
  • Poll closed .
I have pictures that I would use for some of the assignments but some are not taken in the time frame given. My last one was a good example just not snapped during the limited period of time. I have very limited time working full time plus and have a ton of irons in the fire.
 
kickstand~prophet said:
I have pictures that I would use for some of the assignments but some are not taken in the time frame given. My last one was a good example just not snapped during the limited period of time. I have very limited time working full time plus and have a ton of irons in the fire.
Click to expand...

That's one of the comments I have heard by more than you - you've got archive shots that meet the subject/assignment criteria, but no time to go create a new shot within the specified time period. I hear 'ya....

The reason we have two threads at the moment for each topic is so we can have the assignment thread where archive pics ARE allowed. This can be a showcase of your prior work outside the date parameters, as well as give inspiration to others on maybe a concept they want to go shoot.

Then we have the entry thread for the actual entry that is an image created within the specified time frame. The reason behind the specified time frame is to get people out and shoot on a regular basis with varied topics. If archive shots were allowed for the entry thread - in my case - I could probably go at least a year without ever picking up my camera. The date criteria forces participants to not only think of a concept which meets the assignment criteria, but also to execute that shot and get it posted in time. Rinse, lather, repeat.

We've been at this for several years now, so all discussion is good regarding this..... Keep it coming folks - this is an evolving sub-forum of what TWT offers.


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unfortunately, the job is kicking my butt, leaving me little time for fun stuff like this. I' say try it for 6 months, and if it doesn't work, try something else.
 
M38A1 said:
OK folks.... I've been thinking about this. Honest. :-)

I'm sort of rolling around a little format change that on paper looks like this. The ideas stem from the comments above as well as a lot of PM's and face to face time with members on this little corner of TWT.

Highlights (draft of course....)

1. Have three threads per assignment (strictly because of technical constraints of the forum software) to include a) Assignment, b) Entry, and c) Voting

The Assignment thread would remain the same. The chosen image creator gets to choose the next assignment keeping that portion intact. The Entry thread would stay the same as currently, but 'might' be limited by a total number of entries. ie: get it in before the slots are filled for consideration/voting. And the third thread would be the Voting thread where the images submitted in the Entry thread would be moved to the voting thread and everyone/anyone could vote on their selection. ie: the entire body of TWT votes on what they perceive to be the best image submitted for that assignment.

This leads me to the second point
2. Create a Voting Poll that would remove the critique/comments by the person judging the current assignment. In many respects, I rather enjoy reading the critiques and 'why' the judge thought those things. On the other hand, if we went with a voting poll format, we'd lose out on the critique aspect which I think has been beneficial (for me at least) in understanding how I could do some things different. The poll would be a specific date range, votes hidden from view until the poll closed, The userid would be the name in the poll corresponding to the image displayed, and voters choice would remain anonymous.

3. The Assignments would run for the entire month. We'd allocate roughly three weeks to get the assignment up and entries submitted. Then the last week, the Entry thread would be closed and the Voting poll created with a close date of the last day of the month. By moving to a full month for the assignment, hopefully we'd get more participation and for sure - we'd eliminate the "I ran out of time / didn't plan the time well" excuse. By moving to a voting poll, we eliminate the uncomfortable position some are placed in by having to critique others work.

Yeah, it's a bit more overhead for me, but I'm just tossing it out there.

I'm thinking we might get a lot more participation if it were opened up for three weeks to shoot, as well as removing the critique component.

What say 'ye?


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I like the sounds of this.
I doubt we'll extend the voters much beyond those that read the threads anyway, but it's worth a shot.

I enjoy reading the critiques. I attempt to use them to improve my shots (when I get to play)
I'm not well versed enough to offer (what I feel) are useful critiques, it usually winds up being "I like the way this one catches my eye" or "that <thing> just didn't work for me" which are practically useless for technical corrections.
 
1TallTXn said:
I like the sounds of this.
I doubt we'll extend the voters much beyond those that read the threads anyway, but it's worth a shot.

I enjoy reading the critiques. I attempt to use them to improve my shots (when I get to play)
I'm not well versed enough to offer (what I feel) are useful critiques, it usually winds up being "I like the way this one catches my eye" or "that <thing> just didn't work for me" which are practically useless for technical corrections.
Click to expand...

Nathan I agree with you, for the most part. I to enjoy the critiques, and will challenge that "just didn't work for me" is the start of a very good critique, but just a start...

If a person writing the critique would elaborate on the that "feeling" it would be awesome. To me there is no right or wrong, just so long a message is conveyed. I actually enjoy finding out what did or didn't work for the viewer. I don't need someone to say... "I feel the image is out of focus in the foreground and the exposure could be increased by 1/3rd of stop". I would be happy if the person critiquing would just say, "your picture is blurry on the bottom and its kind of dark".

I like the idea of putting the images to a vote, and just thinking outloud, we have the "critque my photo" sub-forum that we could utilize to get specific critiques.
 
I hate the choosing part and the reason behind it part of when picking a winner. It's what turns me on really. My reasons will be different than most others. I'm not or will be a techco picture taker or put much effort into picture taking. When a subject comes up , and I run across something I deem worthy of a shot, I'll shoot it, look at it in LR6, try not to get too crazy with it and enter it. I do, always have one of my camera with me, G15 in the truck, G16 in the tank bag, and the XS50 and GoPro 3 for occasional stuff ;-) Very very seldom use the phone for pics.

But, love looking at other peoples work, not so much as an inspiration, but just the beauty and subject of it.

As to why the numbers dropped off from when this was first started? Have no idea. I think most of those people were like me. More point and shoot rather than techco and putting much planning into their pics.

Liking the way you have it now Scott, but what ever change you wish to make is fine with me. I'll still contribute my point and shoots and stuff when I run across something within the subject matters horizon.

Thanks for all you have done to keep this going.
 
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I have thoughts similar to those posted earlier:
  • Like the critique comments
  • Don't think that my critiques are up to scratch (but I try)
  • Have learned a lot from critiques of all the photos in each assignment
  • Have learned a lot from the assignments in which I have participated
  • Like the idea where everyone can vote
  • Am appreciative of the work that Scott puts into this

Each time a new assignment is posted I begin planning my shot, however most of the time I don't follow through with the execution of the plan (for many reasons). I usually don't post photos that are snap shots. I do see a bit of traffic generated to my photos from TWTex, so I think there are more than just our handful of participants that might vote.
Whatever direction is chosen, I'll continue to post with the same irregularity that I have in the past.
 
Some additional perspective worth exactly what you've paid for it.....

The critique part likely turns more people off than is realized. Some don't take it well, some can't give it well. Those that can't take it just don't participate. On the other end, I hate reading how "all images submitted were excellent" and "it's so hard to choose" - rarely have I seen an assignment that stood up to either form of critique.

Add to that, if you actually win then it becomes more involved than ever. No drive-by entries that happen to fit the time schedule. Yes, a little selfish to not want to give back more than you take but it's getting harder and harder to meet those obligations with the creative level this thing has attained.

If a voting format is enacted, I would suggest that the entries be kept anonymous until the winner is proclaimed. Email the photo to the "coordinator" - have all photos sized the same size for balanced viewing - open the poll with no identifying information and let the voting begin. After the winner is announced then open the thread for critique by all rather than one person.

Once a month assignments are plenty but I'd lean toward a variable cut-off that coincides with (example here) first Monday of each month. This would allow a full weekend beforehand for the stragglers to get the entry submitted. Yup, a coordinator would be busy for that time period and maybe once every other month would be better with one month "off".

I haven't submitted anything in a while but try to follow each assignment. It's time for a reboot of some sort if greater participation is the goal.
 
txbanditrydr said:
.....but it's getting harder and harder to meet those obligations with the creative level this thing has attained.
Click to expand...


Great observations in your full post...

The above snippet made me smile a bit, yet I also recognize how some might not participate due to this.

I have to smile because this corner of TWT is working as designed - get people to take better images. When I (and others as they have told me) go back and scroll through the beginnings of the assignments, we had a ton folks participate and although the shots were good - they have no doubt become better over time. And I think (or would like to believe) that is due to the participation, discussion, critiques and such of the photography sub-forums.

On the flip side, I think many don't participate anymore because the quality of the images has in fact increased and they don't believe they have an entry which will 'win'. This isn't about 'winning'. It's about learning from others, learning by doing/experimenting, and just taking photography seriously for the art form it can be.

If everyone who had an interest in an assignment simply went out and tried their best, I'm sure they will have learned something along the way about that particular assignment which is the goal. Keep learning, keep at it - and the overall quality of images will increase. Are those who participate at different levels in the journey? Sure. But we ALL started somewhere and with a little work, we can all elevate our abilities.


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Haven't forgotten about this!

Just checking/doing a little research on some technical questions at the moment.....
 
I honestly hadn't had the time to get back into it (as I type this at 1am while playing PS4!). I just need to start carrying the camera around like I used to and keep track of the threads.
 
charrito said:
I honestly hadn't had the time to get back into it (as I type this at 1am while playing PS4!). I just need to start carrying the camera around like I used to and keep track of the threads.
Click to expand...


:clap: We've missed you!
 
M38A1 said:
That's one of the comments I have heard by more than you - you've got archive shots that meet the subject/assignment criteria, but no time to go create a new shot within the specified time period. I hear 'ya....

The reason we have two threads at the moment for each topic is so we can have the assignment thread where archive pics ARE allowed. This can be a showcase of your prior work outside the date parameters, as well as give inspiration to others on maybe a concept they want to go shoot.

Then we have the entry thread for the actual entry that is an image created within the specified time frame. The reason behind the specified time frame is to get people out and shoot on a regular basis with varied topics. If archive shots were allowed for the entry thread - in my case - I could probably go at least a year without ever picking up my camera. The date criteria forces participants to not only think of a concept which meets the assignment criteria, but also to execute that shot and get it posted in time. Rinse, lather, repeat.

We've been at this for several years now, so all discussion is good regarding this..... Keep it coming folks - this is an evolving sub-forum of what TWT offers.


.
Click to expand...

Even when I am busy I could have took another picture. But the one I had taken earlier was perfect for the subject matter. Had several of course that were decent enough to use. Like a dummy I did not re-read the rules.:doh:
 
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