434 Posts and Counting
Hi Folks,
Amazing, isn't it? When I started this forum back in September, 2004, I didn't really know what to expect. I had just "discovered" blogging, so I decided to create this forum, invite some friends, and just see what happens.
Now, nineteen months later, we have over 400 pictures on the forum, with many very interesting and informative comments and articles along the way. I never imagined that the forum would grow like this, and frankly, I almost pulled the plug on it a few times.
I am very happy that all of you decided to join in on the fun, and I want to say that I fully understand the ebb and flow of participation on the forum. And the beauty of all this is that it's all free! I just ask that you give me some feedback once in a while to let me know that you are still enjoying the pictures and still interested in the forum.
Questions for you:
I do want to ask you this though, is Blogger.com still the right venue for our forum?
Or should we investigate other types of photo forum software?
As the number of pictures in our gallery grow, it feels like there is really no organization to all the pictures, or is that just the nature of a blog based forum?
How do you like the look and feel of the forum? Is it still satisfactory?
Even if there was a facility to organize the pictures better, how would we do it? I'm not sure if there is a good way, other than just leave it as a chronological sequence.
Do you still want to keep our forum private? Or should I publish to web directories and search engines? What are your thoughts on this?
Do you know anyone who might be interested in joining us? If so, please go ahead and invite them to check us out, and if they want to join, just send me an email.
When I have time, I really enjoy going back through the archives viewing the pictures and comments. There are a lot of nice shots on the forum.
One thing is obvious, because of my obsession with photography, my picture posts probably outnumber everyone else combined by a factor of 10 to 1 :). Maybe I should not post so many, especially so many at one time. They probably scroll by before anyone has a chance to get a good look at them or comment on them.
Thanks for reading, and Happy Shooting!
Warren
Obligatory Picture Post:
"Modern Church, Japantown", Nikon D100, Tokina 17mm
Amazing, isn't it? When I started this forum back in September, 2004, I didn't really know what to expect. I had just "discovered" blogging, so I decided to create this forum, invite some friends, and just see what happens.
Now, nineteen months later, we have over 400 pictures on the forum, with many very interesting and informative comments and articles along the way. I never imagined that the forum would grow like this, and frankly, I almost pulled the plug on it a few times.
I am very happy that all of you decided to join in on the fun, and I want to say that I fully understand the ebb and flow of participation on the forum. And the beauty of all this is that it's all free! I just ask that you give me some feedback once in a while to let me know that you are still enjoying the pictures and still interested in the forum.
Questions for you:
I do want to ask you this though, is Blogger.com still the right venue for our forum?
Or should we investigate other types of photo forum software?
As the number of pictures in our gallery grow, it feels like there is really no organization to all the pictures, or is that just the nature of a blog based forum?
How do you like the look and feel of the forum? Is it still satisfactory?
Even if there was a facility to organize the pictures better, how would we do it? I'm not sure if there is a good way, other than just leave it as a chronological sequence.
Do you still want to keep our forum private? Or should I publish to web directories and search engines? What are your thoughts on this?
Do you know anyone who might be interested in joining us? If so, please go ahead and invite them to check us out, and if they want to join, just send me an email.
When I have time, I really enjoy going back through the archives viewing the pictures and comments. There are a lot of nice shots on the forum.
One thing is obvious, because of my obsession with photography, my picture posts probably outnumber everyone else combined by a factor of 10 to 1 :). Maybe I should not post so many, especially so many at one time. They probably scroll by before anyone has a chance to get a good look at them or comment on them.
Thanks for reading, and Happy Shooting!
Warren
Obligatory Picture Post:
"Modern Church, Japantown", Nikon D100, Tokina 17mm
posted by Warren T. at 5:35 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
I very much like the clean geometry of the way you composed this - you really know how to put a wide-wide-angle to good use. The fellow sitting there (in just the right spot, too!) keeps it from being TOO much of a geometry thing.
-- SteveR
Oh, I forgot to respond to your questions!...
My first reaction is that Blogger is OK - easy enough to use and suits our purpose at least for now. But I haven't given any alternative any thought.
I do like the look & feel.
Facility to organize the pictures better - that's a good question - it would be nice if there were a way to have a "gallery" area in addition to the chronological blog
Private or Public - I'm ok either way.
Going back thru the archives is indeed a pleasure!
As far as your photos - I say, Post Away! I always at least look at every one, even if I don't always have time to comment.
Finally, I'd like to thank you Warren for starting the forum and keeping enthusiastic about it. I'm happy to be a part of it.
Best regards,
SteveR
Hi!
I like the geometry of the pic. Good shot.
Now for answers to your questions:
1) I guess Blogger is still the right venue. I don't know of anyother unless you want to go full blast and create your very own webpage, html and all.
2) No organization to the forum? True. Bad? Nope. I know that there are monthly themes, but I like the fact that we don't stick to it all the time (in my case, at all). People don't always have the time to stick to a theme and well, a nice shot is a nice shot.
3)I like the way the forum is setup. The feel is informal and I like that. It's not stiff. There's room for something different and that's fun. It's structured but not too structured.
4)I say keep the forum private. It's gonna get too crazy if anyone and everyone gets involved and starts posting.
5)I get the feeling my friend at work still hasn't contacted you about the forum. She's currently taking classes (for video stuff) and I think she's kinda busy.
On the whole, I really appreciate you telling me about the forum and encouraging me to participate. It's gotten me back into something I really enjoy. I've never been good at visual art stuff and this is something I have some ability at.
Thanks man. This has really provided me w/a creative outlet.
Ej
I don't think it's possible on blogger, but I would love a gallery or filter feature that produces a link that filters by contributor, so that I can view all posts by a single contributor grouped together.
Also, the search feature is broken on this blog. I'm not sure why, but it would be a handy thing to help navigate through all the pictures.
Eric, what I meant about making the forum public is to have it listed in search engines and other blog directories. By doing so, we'll have many more viewers who may make comments. But only the forum members will be able to post pictures. I already have the forum linked on my personal blog, and it's part of my signature file. I think I'll just leave it fully private for now, more cozy and open this way.
That's true. Only the people you "invite" can post on the blog. I forgot. If that's the case, then I say have it listed on search engines. Never know what you'll get.
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