Could i just ask, who is it that decides which photo's get through to the top 5 in the weekly theme? Just curious as i post in almost every week and never reach the top 5, though i believe my photo's are at the standard, in comparison to winners i have seen in the past.
I hope i don't seem to be difficult or any thing, it is just disheartening at times when i have worked really hard to produce a photo for the weekly theme and never seem to get to the top 5 vote. If the case is that an individual picks their personal choice for who gets through then that seems a little unfair, as personal preference is widely varied.
Any one else feel like this as well? If some one could explain the process to me i would be very grateful.
I don't know the answer, but I think it is up to Ben the founder of 365. If I am correct he takes a lot of different things into consideration like most fav's, times viewed, etc. I could be totally wrong, but that is my guess. I was selected once and I have no idea how or why I was just really, really happy. Just keep posting and I bet when you least expect you will have a top 5.
@shezzyj i always hate when the theme is taken so literally and thinking outside the box really just does not rate. I gave up participating because it was making me think there was something wrong with my photos when ultimately it comes down to one persons personal preferences. Do not let it get you down.
I think the theme is there to motivate you into taking a different type of picture every week... I wouldn't be too hard on yourself. I think your photos are great!
I don't really think of the themes or challenges as something to win. I use them to generate ideas through the year. There are several shots of mine that I would never have thought to take without the weekly theme (a shot of some jump leads springs to mind). I wouldn't take a lack of being picked as a judgement on the quality of your shots. Some themes have hundreds of entries.
Haha! I gave up on those theme pretty quick. You should see it as an inspiration for taking your shots. It'll keep you off the street :-) no more, no less. Ross doesn't share my taste anyway altough that's not fair to say. Haven't looked at the weekly theme for ages...
@shezzyj Your shots seem to be pretty original and out-of-the box, and the Weekly Theme decisions seem to err on the side of safe and tame. For example, Theme - Tiny Things. Over 700 entries and THREE of the top five pics were insect macros. That's right about when I lost interest in Themes. :)
Use the theme topic as a personal challenge or idea for a photo, but in the end, shoot for you. If you get caught up in the Top 5 - Weekly Theme - PP - Top 20 game around here, it'll drive you crazy, and it certainly won't do anything to make you a better photographer.
I consider the weekly theme a platform for imagination. YOUR imagination. By submitting your photo, it gives more people a chance to see you, your work, and your world. Sister, art is subjective and sometimes it's hard to embrace that. Be you... and show us wha' 'cha got!
I don't know and I don't care.. I'm on here for more than 2 years and my pictures are as good as far as I'm concered but I really don't care..that's not why I post my pictures in the first place.
Screw the themes. Nice to get some inspiration from them, but it really doesn't matter if you reach the top 5 or wotnot. You got some great shots! Don't be disheartened.
Hello, yep, I pick the top 5, I don't claim to be perfect, but I do my best to pick a good selection, obviously I can't be impartial, everyone has a different opinion of what they consider a "good" photo.
The themes are there to encourage you to take shots and give you ideas, not to put you down because you aren't good enough or anything silly like that. 99% of people can't be in the final 5, It's nothing personal. Keep on taking great shots and one day the odds are you will be picked eventually.
If you fancy it, try picking your own final 5 now, go look at all the temptation shots http://365project.org/tags/theme-temptation and pick 5 photos that sum up temptation, don't just look and think there are loads of good ones, pick 5 that really show temptation and are within the constraints of the theme. Then email me ross@365project.org with your quantifiable reasoning as to why your suggestions are better. You can choose next weeks finalists.
Also if anyone has any other more democratic way to pick a winner from the hundreds of entries (that don't just favor popular people, #favs, #comments etc) please email me your suggestions.
@shezzyj : I can feel your pain. In fact, I have just decided to give up on theme entries. I never made it to the Top 5, no matter how hard I tried. Especially the last two pictures I entered (for the low key theme and for the temptation theme) got lots of positive comments, but they weren't picked. I know I shouldn't feel discouraged and just take it easy. But I feel I have no chance, so I'm giving up on it now...
@shadowdancer you do have a chance, what is the famous quote?
"Winners never quit and quitters never win".
Trust me, i'm not conspiring against anyone, just picking the photos that stand out and my simple brain can relate to the theme. If I am as bias and "inside the box" as people are making out that I am, game the system and take that style of photo instead.
@shadowdancer just looked through your photos and this photo genuinely was #6 in my selection http://365project.org/shadowdancer/365/2012-05-31 but i already had the woman on the bed one and didn't want everyone to think i was just posting photos of seductive women!
@shadowdancer You have amazing pictures ShadowDancer.... I just followed you. Don't give up on the themes! I never thought I had a chance with so many great photographs and I nearly died when I went to vote for lowkey and I was there. Keep at it because one day when you do make it, it will mean more :D
"If you get caught up in the Top 5 - Weekly Theme - PP - Top 20 game around here, it'll drive you crazy, and it certainly won't do anything to make you a better photographer."
That is SO true. It's day 160-ish for me, and I'm just starting to get that...
@Scrivna Having just had to pick 5 finalist for the Street Photography challenge from a single page of entries, I seriously do not envy you trying to choose 5 from several hundreds. I found it incredibly difficult.
When I started posting in January 2011 I had no idea what this site was about or the social side of it at all. I had decided I wanted to take a photo a day for a whole year and one of my daughter's friends directed me to 365 project. I then discovered a whole world of challenges and themes and fav's and the PP. I don't ever take photos to attain fav's, get on the PP or into the top 20. I always enter the themes as a way to stimulate my own imagination, give me ideas and also love seeing how other people interpret them. Try not to get hung up on 'winning', it won't do you any good at all. Take photos for your own enjoyment and, if you like being involved in this project, as a way to interact with like minded individuals. Don't get me wrong, I love it whenever a pic of mine is fav'd, when I get onto the PP and into the top 20 (this has happened 3 times and I'm still amazed that any of my shots was worthy) Ross very kindly chose a shot of mine for the top 5 once and imho there were many, many other shots far better but art is subjective and he obviously considered it was top 5 worthy. Anyway, enough of me wittering on. Just keep entering the themes for your own enjoyment and maybe one day you'll be chosen.
As far as I'm concerned, entering the themes is a fun thing to do and a way of inspiring me to take a shot I otherwise might not consider. Lots of us enter the themes for these reasons and without actually considering the chance they might win or even be chosen for the top five. Agree with what @humphreyhippo says and congratulations to Ross @Scrivna for doing such a sterling job. It's his baby after all and he can run it how he wants.
Thank you every one for your advice and encouragement. I honestly did not mean to sound like I was saying there was something wrong and biased about the competition, I genuinely just wanted to know how it worked. I love taking photos and do get great inspiration from the weekly theme competition, but at the end of the day it is just that, a competition! I am very competitive myself so I do invest in it a fair bit.
@Scrivna Thank you for explaining it to me, I am happier now knowing how it works and appreciate how difficult it must be for you to pick just 5 from hundreds of entries. I hope you don't feel I was making a dig at what you do because that wasn't my intention and I enjoy participating every week.
The discussion was maybe a moment of disappointment that I didn't make the vote but not a reflection on how the process works. I will continue to enter as I am nothing but more motivated to produce more creative shots!
Thanks again every one, if you feel how I did I hope it turns to motivation instead like it did with me :)
@shezzyj I liked your temptation photo a lot (you're the only one I stopped to fav while browsing pages of entries!) and I think you're doing great stuff routinely, so hang in there! Just knowing how things work is good, so don't feel bad for asking! And, yes, I don't envy Ross's job of having to pick finalists for each theme. what a boggling task!
@shezzyj I'm also feeling a little laughter bc I thought I stood a chance in being in the final five with my dog/ice cream cone photo, but then I saw the finalist with the dog eyeing the bunny and it was way better, so my hopes (unlike yours) were a little misplaced. Lol. Still liked having the inspiration, though!
@rockinrobyn That's sweet thank you so much :) I am glad my discussion hasn't been misinterpreted as a bitter attack against Ross! He's doing a great job and I did just want to know how it worked.
@rockinrobyn I literally just went and commented on your temptation shot! It was nice to see a light hearted interpretation of the word. And it is also obviously amazingly cute ^_^
I wouldn't say the other was better, it was a totally different shot. But that i suppose is what is meant by the term personal preference!
I like doing the themes because they give me some new ideas to try. I like looking at how other people interpret the themes, as well. That said, this week I probably won't be submitting a theme photo because I can't think of how to get a shot that involves dancing...at least, not yet.
I wish I better understood what drives people to seek perfection, perhaps I could instill some of that into my own life! I see it in Shez, Robyn, Caryn, Marlboromaam and others (just a reference point for conversation, ladies, not a "top 4" selection), but honestly having walked throuh life merely hoping to please myself once in awhile, and not striving too hard toward that, and, over the course of a lot of years on the planet I have to say, that judging myself critically but fairly, there may have been a total of 3 or 4 photos I have taken in my life that I could say to myself, "If you accomplished absolutely nothing in your life but having taken this photo, your life was worth the living." Never was that because of what the photo meant to someone else, but because of what it meant to me. I love perfectionists. I admire perfectionists. I have not entered any of the theme contests, but have enjoyed photos of those who have. My advice to you Shez, is do it for you, do it for joy, do it for the love of doing it, and don't get trapped into thinking the value of your art (and I see your photos as art) is set by another's appreciation or lack thereof.
I love this project. The thing I like most is what I saw someone post early on in my doing this "your project, your rules, have FUN!" So that's what I try to do. Sometimes I try the themes. I even made pp once, which totally surprised me! I hope people like my shots, but they're my shots and I liked them and that's what matters. I'm no expert, junior novice is me. This project has helped me think outside my little world and I see art and beauty in far more things than I did before! So do the theme for yourself. Like what you do and I am sure that one day it will be top 5. But don't berate yourself when your not. Your photos are good! :)
@lynnb@dauber Thank you both for the lovely advice. It is nice to get an insight on your process!
Although I will disagree just slightly if I may. If i made it just for me I wouldn't post my shots on a social networking site, I would keep them in a private file on my computer or maybe a photo album. I could do the project alone and just for me, but I am human therefore naturally seek approval in my achievements from others. When I fail I want to work harder to get that approval which makes it all worth while when I finally get it.
In hindsight, I was disheartened earlier, but now I am driven to do better. That is why I do the weekly challenge and is the reason for 1/7 of my shots! But I enjoy the competition, nothing wrong with that. The other 6/7 photos are for me and also to share a bit of me with others.
Competitive instinct is natural and nothing to be ashamed of.
I've been taking photos and posting them here for a year and a half. I enter almost all of the themes with at least one entry, possibly more. I've been in the top 5 once (didn't win - came in 2nd or 3rd).
Don't let it get you down. I view the themes as a way to stretch myself photographically and to give me other ways of looking at things. If you make the top 5, that's a bonus. I never expect to win.
Heck, I've never even been in the top 20 shots for any week since I've started posting.
@webfoot I had a look at your photos and if it is any concelation I would vote for you in the top 5 :) especially your floral shots, they are wonderfully colourful!
What a pain in the butt that would be to have to pick 5 out of hundreds, when all of them are bound to be top quality from the start. @scrivna is doing a great job of it. And he still rolls with it when someone picks a theme like "Green", which eventually had 889 entries. Ugh, no thanks! :)
@grizzlysghost ha ha ... I was pretty new and not yet familiar with the site then, but I remember seeing SO MANY green photos! I think it was what first clued me into the weekly themes! :)
@Scrivna Howdy. I appreiciate your diplomatic approach to this subject. Your response tells me that what is being said, matters. KUDOS for keeping connected and involved with the concerns of the people. It's good.
I know from many years experience as a picture editor in real life (now long retired) how difficult it is to choose a handful of pictures from the hundreds or thousands submitted every day - and that was in the pre-digital age when the time and facilities required for making and delivering prints placed severe limits on the number of submissions possible. It must be many times more difficult today to make a selection without upsetting anyone, so well done @scrivna for taking on an impossible task, but it is after all, just for fun, and an opportunity to see how others think, rather that a competition which by definition can only provide one winner and create many disappointed 'losers'. Having said that, I must say that I often wonder what some of the finalists have to do with the theme, but it is interesting to see how different minds work, and there is always something to be learnt from the exercise.
@Scrivna I don't envy your job selecting 5 pictures out of hundreds...there are so many amazing photos on this sight everyday! I am inspired by your themes and find some of them very tricky. I am inspired by the examples I see and the people I follow. 365 is amazing it has changed my life. Keep doing what you are doing....Sorry I called you Ben :)
@tthompsonca yes I look at each photo, it has nothing to do with number of favs etc, that way i try to keep it from being the same popular people again and again.
@dauber@webfoot I agree with your perpsective about photography. If you are not enjoying photography for all that it is, then why would a person ever take a picture?
Judging pictures, after determining the technical things are good (i.e. exposure, horizon, etc.), is still subjective. The only way to get more objective qualities and less subjective aspects into judging is to have 3-5 people judging these pcitures. If more three judges, the high and low scores should be eliminated in determining a final score.
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Use the theme topic as a personal challenge or idea for a photo, but in the end, shoot for you. If you get caught up in the Top 5 - Weekly Theme - PP - Top 20 game around here, it'll drive you crazy, and it certainly won't do anything to make you a better photographer.
The themes are there to encourage you to take shots and give you ideas, not to put you down because you aren't good enough or anything silly like that. 99% of people can't be in the final 5, It's nothing personal. Keep on taking great shots and one day the odds are you will be picked eventually.
If you fancy it, try picking your own final 5 now, go look at all the temptation shots http://365project.org/tags/theme-temptation and pick 5 photos that sum up temptation, don't just look and think there are loads of good ones, pick 5 that really show temptation and are within the constraints of the theme. Then email me ross@365project.org with your quantifiable reasoning as to why your suggestions are better. You can choose next weeks finalists.
Also if anyone has any other more democratic way to pick a winner from the hundreds of entries (that don't just favor popular people, #favs, #comments etc) please email me your suggestions.
"Winners never quit and quitters never win".
Trust me, i'm not conspiring against anyone, just picking the photos that stand out and my simple brain can relate to the theme. If I am as bias and "inside the box" as people are making out that I am, game the system and take that style of photo instead.
:-p
And as for picking 5 pictures out of hundreds.... I don't envy you for that job; I don't even think I could do that. ;-)
"If you get caught up in the Top 5 - Weekly Theme - PP - Top 20 game around here, it'll drive you crazy, and it certainly won't do anything to make you a better photographer."
That is SO true. It's day 160-ish for me, and I'm just starting to get that...
@Scrivna Thank you for explaining it to me, I am happier now knowing how it works and appreciate how difficult it must be for you to pick just 5 from hundreds of entries. I hope you don't feel I was making a dig at what you do because that wasn't my intention and I enjoy participating every week.
The discussion was maybe a moment of disappointment that I didn't make the vote but not a reflection on how the process works. I will continue to enter as I am nothing but more motivated to produce more creative shots!
Thanks again every one, if you feel how I did I hope it turns to motivation instead like it did with me :)
I wouldn't say the other was better, it was a totally different shot. But that i suppose is what is meant by the term personal preference!
Although I will disagree just slightly if I may. If i made it just for me I wouldn't post my shots on a social networking site, I would keep them in a private file on my computer or maybe a photo album. I could do the project alone and just for me, but I am human therefore naturally seek approval in my achievements from others. When I fail I want to work harder to get that approval which makes it all worth while when I finally get it.
In hindsight, I was disheartened earlier, but now I am driven to do better. That is why I do the weekly challenge and is the reason for 1/7 of my shots! But I enjoy the competition, nothing wrong with that. The other 6/7 photos are for me and also to share a bit of me with others.
Competitive instinct is natural and nothing to be ashamed of.
Don't let it get you down. I view the themes as a way to stretch myself photographically and to give me other ways of looking at things. If you make the top 5, that's a bonus. I never expect to win.
Heck, I've never even been in the top 20 shots for any week since I've started posting.
Thanks for the kind words
Judging pictures, after determining the technical things are good (i.e. exposure, horizon, etc.), is still subjective. The only way to get more objective qualities and less subjective aspects into judging is to have 3-5 people judging these pcitures. If more three judges, the high and low scores should be eliminated in determining a final score.