I'm really enjoying my 365 project. Currently behind, as I only have film cameras and have a backlog of film to develop, but it's great fun. I'm following themes on a calendar, which is a completely new (and welcome) discipline to me.
Much as I love seeing all the photographs, there is something a bit magical about a picture that arrives through the post, with a stamp on the back. It's the difference between an email and a handwritten letter..
Would anyone be interested in a postcard exchange? If a group of us swapped addresses, we could each create a run of print(s) and send them to each other, sometime within, say, the next six months. I'd love to have a collection of prints at the end of the year from other 365 project members. It wouldn't need to be anything grand or lavish, just a 6x4 or 7x5 print is enough.
Interesting, but the way I found 365 was because Mrs. smith got my name and address on Postcrossing.com and saw in my profile that I liked photography. That sight sends postcards all around the world and I love it.
I will give it a bit longer to give everyone a chance to see it, then I'll collate a list of participants.
@pandorasecho I had a look at Postcrossing; it's a lovely idea but I am thinking more along the lines of postcards produced by us from our images rather than commercially produced ones.
Interesting idea - would need some advance notice in order to get cards printed - are there services that make postcards? Shutterfly and others make greeting cards with envelopes, not sure about postcards...
@mikegifford Am I missing something with Postcrossing? I thought the idea was the website chose a random person to send a postcard to. The majority of the people on that site don't seem to be photographers, and I don't think you can specify someone who is also on 365project.
@northy I wouldn't worry too much about finding somewhere to print the postcards. I would imagine a local photo printing place could do acceptable prints for very little. And if you have cards already, those are fine too. It's you sending the postcards, so it's your rules as to what they are.
I'm playing with cyanotypes at the minute. I think I'll send you all one of those if I can do good ones. Looks promising so far, but I need to practice....
@northy - shutterfly makes postcards. Louise @Weezilou sends out postcards all the time and she gets hers printed at shutterfly. the quality is excellent, too!
I am going to leave it going for another day or so to give everyone a chance to see this thread, and say if they want to join in. Then we need to all put our addresses down somewhere.
However, should we limit the size of the group exchange group? I'm not wishing to pry into anyone's circumstances, but I don't want people to worry about the cost of sending out hundreds of postcards. I suppose if there isn't a strict time limit you don't need to pay for it all in one go, but still, it might add up.
Also, how are we collecting addresses? Are you happy to send me your email addresses, so I can send you links to a Google document that everyone can view and add their details to? If so, send a message to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk.
@chris667@summerfield Great idea, Chris, one (as summerfield said) that I've entertained for a long while! I'll throw you some ideas I've used as I've been a part of art art exchanges for years (though nothing recently).
1> When Shutterfly offers 10 free 5 x 7 cards, You can design them as 2 postcards and cut them apart, voila! Your photo art on one side and use an internet (old) postcard design and place it on the top of inside. Put another photo on the bottom of the inside, and make the back the postcard address side. This will cut your costs, and the paper is a nice quality.
2> Seeing how many people signed on to take part (and I considered it as soon as you posted this!) You MAY want to consider breaking this into groups of 10-12. I've discovered that people have the best intentions, but it can become overwhelming (and costly). We LOVE receiving, but there's the obligation to return the favour. Join a small group (you can post the names & addys of said number for "Group 1", "Group 2" etc, and when you finish taking part in the first, join a second if it's going well!
These are just my suggestions as I know from experience there will be some who sign on and don't see it through to completion. Not cynical, honestly, but it's the most fun when everyone is into it 100% and an abbreviated group at the outset makes it easier to get going.
Would love to hear what everyone thinks of this format (though use whatever pc plan you'd like) and I'd love to be on board! Swaps are always fun and a lovely new idea for 365 members!
@Weezilou those are great suggestions. I certainly get the idea of limiting the group to two or more smaller groups, and 10-12 is probably a good size.
With regards to your suggestion with the postcard, that's great. However, I hope people won't be afraid to try something new.
You've got willing members, Chris! To err on the side of caution, I now further suggest that everyone wishing to take part send you (via your posted email address here) our mailing addresses including our email. Collate them into groups of 10-12 or 50/50 if no more join in just now and send the lists to the players of each group. That part shouldn't take you excessive long (cut & paste :) and we'd all be appreciative. I photographed some of the postcards I have on hand, and plan to use that as a part of my day's photos if anyone cares to see what I've done. I'm sure you and others out there can get very clever, and I may even add some collage as well to kick it up a notch ; )
Hoping I'm not hijacking your site, but I so like this idea, I'm ready to get underway! Here's how I made postcards, plus an additional idea for a pictorial postmark if they're available:
@Weezilou, you're not hijacking my idea at all! To back up what your husband says, don't share your name and address on the forum. I look forward to seeing your card!
@inthecloud5@catsmeowb@suesouthwood, no problem, just send your names and postal addresses to my email address 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk so I can add you to the others.
1. When you send your email, I need your POSTAL address, so everyone knows where to send your postcard.
2. On Friday/Saturday, everyone will get a list with 10-12 addresses they can send a postcard to. All being well, they will get as many postcards as they send.
3. No time limits, and no rules regarding production methods or subjects. All I ask is it's your own work and not a bought postcard.
4. I hadn't planned to make this more than a one off, however if people like it maybe we could do another.
5. I hadn't thought about a specific time limit. Shall we say the end of March?
6. Cutoff is Friday morning. I can't add more addresses after I've made the lists, so make sure I have received your details by then.
I will be in touch with you all on the weekend, so we can get started. Excited about this now!
thank you so much and also, thanks to everyone for the suggestions as to where to get postcards printed. i used to make my own when i had a darkroom but no longer have one. looking forward to this so very much!
I'd definitely be interested in doing this as a recurring thing, and/or maybe even doing stuff like sending out postcards for birthdays or swapping for holidays.
@andrina@shutterbugger@merrelyn OK, glad to have you along! Send your postal address to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk - please do it today because I'm compiling and sending out the list tomorrow.
The same goes for everyone else. Please send the address you want your postcards to arrive at, everyone wants to make a start! I have to cut off entries to the postcard exchange tomorrow, so I can send the addresses out Friday/Saturday.
@merrelyn I'm going to look at what snapfish offers. i use them for books and know they have cards not sure about postcards though! I'l keep you informed :)
@chris667 I emailed the other day - but suspect I didn't put my user name from here - it's the Po Box in Abu Dhabi. If you haven't got it, let me know and I'll resend. Sorry for any confusion. Thanks
If you thought you'd like to do this, this is your final call!
I am going to work in about four hours, and when I get back I'll compile lists. I can't add extra addresses afterwards, so to avoid disappointment, please send your details today.
Im sorry, I didn't send one. I've been overwhelmed for the moment by some work related stuff and never got back to it. Good luck and have fun this time everyone. Maybe I'll get in another round when I have more time
Everyone else: I'm compiling the list now, so am closing the entries. It seems there's an appetite for this sort of thing, so I imagine there will be another. Or start your own!
Rats. I wish I had seen this before. If there is a next time, I'd love to participate. In the meantime, maybe Dixie @pandorasecho would like to exchange cards with me as a warm-up ?? :-)
@mcsiegle@pandorasecho It looks like this may be becoming a recurring thing, so feel free to send your postal addresses to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk and I will add you for next time (plus send you a copy of what I'm printing at the minute, as I'm making loads!).
@chris667 Hi Chris, I did my order with VistaPrint and I think it will be fine. I designed the address side so i could add the name of my pic and Studio. I look forward to getting them to start writing...:-) and sending them out.
@nanderson Don't you have your list of addresses? I emailed you with them on Saturday. Let me know if not and I can send them again.
@stefneyhart I had to split everyone into groups to make it manageable, so I've closed the groups this time. But it looks like it is going to be a semi-regular thing. So if you want to send your postal address to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk, I will add you for next time.
I received my first card! A sweet one from @linnypinny, that I just love. I dropped mine in the mail yesterday so hopefully they'll reach their destinations soon. Thanks again, @chris667, for organizing this!
The standard of the postcards I have received so far has been really good. There's a lot of thoughtfulness and creativity that went into them, and I hope we can continue afterwards if there's enough interest.
I am away working until next weekend, but when I get back the things I ordered to make my prints should have arrived. If the postage faeries are behaving, everyone should have their postcard by the last week in March - even those of you as far from me as Australia and the US!
@kwind@mamacrow : a bit late for this round - I have split everyone into smallish groups, so everyone could afford the postage. But if you send your postal addresses to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk I will add your addresses to the list for next time when I get back from my business trip.
@pistache As above, send your address to me, 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk. I will add it to the list. And send you one of mine from this time!
I've received a few postcards already! :D My Shutterfly prints arrived a few days ago but I'm not very happy with the quality. I'm going to be requesting replacements and waiting to see how I like the Amazon prints. Hopefully one of the sets ends up nice!
@chris667 First, thanks so much for the awesome card. I love black/white and abandoned places, and this capture was perfect for me! Secondly, thanks again for this great idea - I've loved it and, yes, please include me for another round!
Hi Chris. Yes I really enjoyed doing this, but have only received 7 out of 12 cards. So, I would be happy to do it again, but possibly put a time scale on it, as I don't know whether these have been sent and got lost/delayed in the post, or whether they never got sent. I know for a fact that one of mine sent in February never arrived in USA (I have sent her another one today).
@suesouthwood Sorry you didn't get them. I like to think the various postal services in our respective countries can be a bit flaky, but perhaps they just got a bit distracted.
I will give everyone a different list of people to send postcards to this time.
@suesouthwood I received about 7, thought I sent 12. It happens... I was delighted with the ones I received, and have since started following some of the people!
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
Anyway she invited me to follow her here. Now I do both
I will give it a bit longer to give everyone a chance to see it, then I'll collate a list of participants.
@pandorasecho I had a look at Postcrossing; it's a lovely idea but I am thinking more along the lines of postcards produced by us from our images rather than commercially produced ones.
@northy I wouldn't worry too much about finding somewhere to print the postcards. I would imagine a local photo printing place could do acceptable prints for very little. And if you have cards already, those are fine too. It's you sending the postcards, so it's your rules as to what they are.
I'm playing with cyanotypes at the minute. I think I'll send you all one of those if I can do good ones. Looks promising so far, but I need to practice....
i'm interested; count me in
I am going to leave it going for another day or so to give everyone a chance to see this thread, and say if they want to join in. Then we need to all put our addresses down somewhere.
However, should we limit the size of the group exchange group? I'm not wishing to pry into anyone's circumstances, but I don't want people to worry about the cost of sending out hundreds of postcards. I suppose if there isn't a strict time limit you don't need to pay for it all in one go, but still, it might add up.
Also, how are we collecting addresses? Are you happy to send me your email addresses, so I can send you links to a Google document that everyone can view and add their details to? If so, send a message to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk.
1> When Shutterfly offers 10 free 5 x 7 cards, You can design them as 2 postcards and cut them apart, voila! Your photo art on one side and use an internet (old) postcard design and place it on the top of inside. Put another photo on the bottom of the inside, and make the back the postcard address side. This will cut your costs, and the paper is a nice quality.
2> Seeing how many people signed on to take part (and I considered it as soon as you posted this!) You MAY want to consider breaking this into groups of 10-12. I've discovered that people have the best intentions, but it can become overwhelming (and costly). We LOVE receiving, but there's the obligation to return the favour. Join a small group (you can post the names & addys of said number for "Group 1", "Group 2" etc, and when you finish taking part in the first, join a second if it's going well!
These are just my suggestions as I know from experience there will be some who sign on and don't see it through to completion. Not cynical, honestly, but it's the most fun when everyone is into it 100% and an abbreviated group at the outset makes it easier to get going.
Would love to hear what everyone thinks of this format (though use whatever pc plan you'd like) and I'd love to be on board! Swaps are always fun and a lovely new idea for 365 members!
With regards to your suggestion with the postcard, that's great. However, I hope people won't be afraid to try something new.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Great idea! Thanks for the suggestion!
@lynnz @jennyp @nanderson @olivetreeann @claycameras @clearday @gilbertwood @pandorasecho @fearinnocent @wag864 @susie1205 @365anne @ingrid2101 @emrob @linnypinny @northy @milaniet @vera365 @mikegifford @brett101 @summerfield @swwoman @swwoman @lynnz @jennyp : Send your postal addresses to my email address and we'll get everything started.
To answer a few questions:
1. When you send your email, I need your POSTAL address, so everyone knows where to send your postcard.
2. On Friday/Saturday, everyone will get a list with 10-12 addresses they can send a postcard to. All being well, they will get as many postcards as they send.
3. No time limits, and no rules regarding production methods or subjects. All I ask is it's your own work and not a bought postcard.
4. I hadn't planned to make this more than a one off, however if people like it maybe we could do another.
5. I hadn't thought about a specific time limit. Shall we say the end of March?
6. Cutoff is Friday morning. I can't add more addresses after I've made the lists, so make sure I have received your details by then.
I will be in touch with you all on the weekend, so we can get started. Excited about this now!
A recurring once a quarter thing might be good, maybe worth thinking about after we've done the first one :)
Off to think about what to send people. I'm looking forward to receiving mine as there are so many fantastic shots uploaded here every day.
The same goes for everyone else. Please send the address you want your postcards to arrive at, everyone wants to make a start! I have to cut off entries to the postcard exchange tomorrow, so I can send the addresses out Friday/Saturday.
I am going to work in about four hours, and when I get back I'll compile lists. I can't add extra addresses afterwards, so to avoid disappointment, please send your details today.
@featherstone26 Yes!
My email is dixiedoodle44@charter.net if you want to exchange postal addresses
@stefneyhart I had to split everyone into groups to make it manageable, so I've closed the groups this time. But it looks like it is going to be a semi-regular thing. So if you want to send your postal address to 365projectpostcard@betterbitter.co.uk, I will add you for next time.
The standard of the postcards I have received so far has been really good. There's a lot of thoughtfulness and creativity that went into them, and I hope we can continue afterwards if there's enough interest.
I am away working until next weekend, but when I get back the things I ordered to make my prints should have arrived. If the postage faeries are behaving, everyone should have their postcard by the last week in March - even those of you as far from me as Australia and the US!
How's that? :-)
UK 365ers should have something by Wednesday, the rest of the world may not get them until the start of next month.
Would anyone like to do another round?
I will give everyone a different list of people to send postcards to this time.
I will email everyone that took part last time. In the meantime, I'll start a fresh thread.