We'd like to attract more members. How did you find Light Art?

[admin]

Here's the thing.
Light Art is very young and new. I have loved photography as a means of self expression for a long time. No doubt, reading early posts from the "founding members" (you'll all get little 'virtual' award at the end of the first month in recognition), many of you feel the same way. I am sure that there are thousands and thousands and more.
How good is it to pick up a camera and just wander and seek, hunt, absorb new images?

Having set up the forum, I ran a few Google ads and listed with a few directories and got punted off Gumtree in most countries.
I'd like to understand how each of you found the forum and any ideas you might have as to how we can invite others to join us cost-effectively (that means for free). Any suggestions? Do any of you belong to other forums where you can slip in a plug or invite friends or local clubs? You know, friendly viral marketing.
As you know everyone can have a free gallery, We can provide dedicated boards. I even have a spare 2,499 light art email addresses to share.
Space is not a problem (bandwidth might be one day, but currently there is plenty)
And of course there is a simple common theme of loving the art and expression that photography provides.
Feedback welcome, assistance very welcome.

[Truckman]

Google is our friend... ...Ben

[Analog6]

What Ben said

[Joel]

I forgot sorry.

[Analog6]

I found a site called StumbleUpon where you can list sites you like.  I joined it specifically to put this on it and I can't work out how to do it!  If anyone else whose a member can do it, put us on, post a link here, and I can go and rate it high!

[bpsphoto]

I googled for I think photography marketing information, and Light Art was in the first five or six.

[david]

I googled photography forums and found you. There are ways to optimize code to make it "search engine friendly" that helps your rating on some search engines. I don't think the old meta tags that were once used do much to help with search engines today.

[admin]

I found a site called StumbleUpon where you can list sites you like.  I joined it specifically to put this on it and I can't work out how to do it!  If anyone else whose a member can do it, put us on, post a link here, and I can go and rate it high!

Thanks for the feedback.
I also went to www.stumbleupon.com and downloaded the little tool bar. You are right Odille, it is not intially intuitive as to how you add a site. But i think it did it from the "stumble through a site" once I had gone to this Light Arts url. BTW there are some good sites listed there.

[Dale]

Google for me too.  I have to say, I found a few that day and only post here regularly and one other.  I like the atmos here.

[admin]

It is kind of cozy here.
Slowly, but surely people are finding us.
None of the concrete has set yet, so plenty of room for input and improvement.
The structure is purely my first and second best guess, just a blend of the bits that I have seen around and liked along with stuff I made up in the shower. The really big point of difference is the people we attract.
I love the diversity of people from all corners of the globe discussing a common interest (and few diversions too).

[Analog6]

It is shaping up well (I have great inspirations int he shower too!) and the diversions are interesting.

[Dale]

(I have great inspirations int he shower too!)

That's worrying.

Yep, I like the way this place works and the layout is good too, covering most subjects.  Well done.

[Ross and Cher]

Mark

You are to be congratulated (and not just for showering  )! LAF is indeed taking shape nicely! We just need to encourage a few more of the 'wallflowers' to join the dance! The more everyone partcipates, both comments and photos, the more fun we all have!

To us - the purpose of being here is to learn - to participate, to see, and hopefully to give as much as we get in terms of ideas, inspiration and assistance.

Maybe you could share a bit more of your vision (preferably not of the shower variety) when you set out to launch LAF and how it compares to what is happening - A mad photographers blog/commentary on a daily/weekly basis ??

Really love the way you post by genre - gives us as individuals the choice of what we want to see, vs other sites that throw everything in together!

How do you/we want to move the site forward - from our point of view, the easy friendly atmosphere is a must, but the direction also needs to be set as to why everyone is here - are we looking for criticism (of the constuctive variety) and improvement or are we just looking to post pictures.

We are by no means experts, but wil happily comment on what we like in what we see, and probably to a lesser extent due to our inexperience, improvements, and would like to see LAF as a place where anyone from day one can do the same!

Always happy to help in any way, as long as it doesn't involve moving over to the dark side!!!


Cheers!!




Cheers

[admin]

Firstly, I must comment on how concerned I was to see Odille managing to use the words "inspiration in the shower" and "diversions" almost in the same sentence, but we won't go there.

Why a Light Art Forum? I tried to cover my view on the simple joys of wandering with a camera etc in my opening post, and I am only partly aware of why I would bother to set up another photography forum.
I had long wanted to try and bring together "my" version of the bits and pieces you see on the net, and I had come from a background that involved websites of one kind or another and figured I could cobble the basics together in the hope of attracting people who thought of photography as either an art form, or at least a form of self expression - and I think that can be achieved without adopting an exclusivist, self absorbed position on what makes a photograph art. If an image evokes a feeling, an emotion, a comment, a smile, even a cringe of discomfort it is a form of expression - and that is good enough for me.

In terms of direction and where I would like to see it go, is simple. I would like as much particpation and constructive critique as possible, so I guess from my perspective, we need to be able to feel free to pass comments in the spirit of growth, comparison, learing and a bit of fun. If you think an image is great say so, but if you think it lacking in some area, I think we need to willing and able to take critique in a postive manner. Critique doe not means trashing the work that some thought enough of to post for public scrutiny, but a suggestion here or there is just that.
None of it should be taken too seriously. Nor should a dinky forum become a point of distraction in anyone's life.
My altruistic goal is to have little local "Light Art" communities in towns and cities all over the world in a variety of languages, where people might get together for time to time, with at least the one common interest, being photography in all of its variations and forms. That would be fantastic.
In itself, that leads to us getting to know people outside of our day to day comfort zone, from places we may never see or visit.
That has to be a good thing.
There are no preconceptions on my part and I invite suggestion and criticism (and of course we can always put ideas to a vote via poll).
I intend to introduce some formal components of small digestible "how to" segments from working Pros, however we are still in the very early stages. I am not sure whether the current gallery is robust enough, but it has the basics and does have the advantage of creating posts automatically. (delete and repost earlier images if you want to generate a post - I'm going to).
There is no profit motive, it would take a massive amount of members to ever attract any significant sponsorship. It would be nice if the Google ads, which I hope are not too intrusive, generate a few dollars so we can put up a prize here and there.
The site has been live for just a few weeks and I am thrilled at the quality of particpation, feedback and attitude, so thank you all for joining. BTW we must be on the map - we had our first p**n spammer today, Odille (Analog6) was on the job and snotted him.

[Analog6]

See, a diversion already!

I think it is going to be a resounding success.  have you sent notice to magazines like Australian Photogrpahy, Better Photography, better Digital etc.  They nearly all have a little 'notes' type of column where they mention new stuff, including websites.

[admin]

No I haven't, but do do subscribe to these via my AIPP membership and have a met the editor, Peter Easterway a couple of times.
I need to get off my (moderately) fat butt and do that. You are right. I did send a request for inclusion in a British mag, Photo Pro, but as yet, have not heard back.

[Ross and Cher]

Mark

There is no such thing as a free lunch - just ask Paul Keating!!!

However, the asking price of a few small google adds is a very low price indeed!

Our view would be that although profit may be a pipe dream, you should at least be recovering your costs, if not your time!

Cheers

[admin]

I do the Google adword thing for the forum, but you very quickly get bid off from a small sensible amount per bid to much larger (some are over $1.50 per click for popular key words. Not a lot until you watch the counter wiz if there is no cap on it.

I have had some experience with the format and continue to to refine.
If any of you are posting to other forums, a plug or two is much appreciated.

[OZZI-BLOKE]

Hi all, I found the light art photography forum on ross and cher's flickr page. ( the link.)
Seems like it is a good setup to interact with other like minded people
about photography and stuff. I have only been into photography for nearly 2 years,
but I try to do alot of reading and internet looking to learn more.
At the moment I am using a little Fujifilm s5600 and shoot in RAW.
Mid to late July I will be getting a Pentax k20d and 18-200 sigma lense.
I use Photoshop cs3 Extended to process images, so hopefully I can be of some assistance to others and also get a few tips as well.
Thanks. -Paul.

[Truckman]

Welcome to you, Paul...Ben

[OZZI-BLOKE]

Yeah thanks Ben. good to be part of a friendly growing photographic community.

[admin]

Hi Paul,

Welcome and thanks for joining in. I see you've made a few posts already. Small we are, but a nice bunch of people, happy to share a a few images and ideas. there is still time put any sea / ocean / water way shots into our monthly theme comp, via the Gallery menu tab. Most minor issues have been covered in the FAQ, but if you have questions or ideas, don't be shy.

[Cygnus]

I also found this site on a google search. I lurked on a few forums before deciding to join a few. While this one is young, the quality of the posts shine. That will bring people on board. Word of mouth spreads quickly.

[admin]

Kind words Cal, thank you. I love the ecclectic mix of locations that people hail from. The internet is an amazing thing.
When I was a kid, I had a girl as a pen pal in Bethel Ohio, I'd write a letter and six or seven weeks later get a reply back and she seemed a million miles away. The world truly has become a smaller place. Now you can log in for a few minutes, catch up and get on with life.

Another amazing tool now if some of you have not yet been exposed to it is the latest version of "Skype". All of the echos and delays are gone and you can buy a dedicated headset and microphone for a few dollars at any electonics retailer. When I had a database connection problem with site a few weeks ago, I simple called the host in Utah, USA from my home office on the east coast of Oz and spoke for nearly an hour for about 40c (or whatever 0.007 Euro per minute is) - amazing. While I was logged on there were 8.5 million people connected! That is some serious traffic.

[OZZI-BLOKE]

How do I go about putting a link in my Flickr profile like Ross and Cher has on thiers.
It may encourage more people to have a look and join.

[Ross and Cher]

G'day Paul

From the Flickr menu, slect "You" dropdown & "your profile"

We ahve added it in the Describe yourself box, as well as a bit further down there is a box for your web address - just typing it in as www.lightartforum.com should create the hyperlink.

We also try and remember to add it in the description of each photo for those that don't look at the profiles!!

Cheers

[OZZI-BLOKE]

Thanks. I put it in the web box and it is in with my name and stuff.

[Ross and Cher]

Yep - just checked you out and it works!!! Cool! 

[admin]

Thank's guys.
Every bit helps 

[sthwales]

I found the ad on cardiff.gumtree.co.uk 

[admin]

Great, so people do visit it. I update on a few of their sites, but they don't allow you to post to more than a couple of cities at a time.
If anyone cares to give Light Art a local plug go to www.gumtree.com and navigate to your country and region.

The other useful promotion site that is booming is www.stumbleupon.com . You add their little tool-bar to you browser and rate sites and pages as you visit by clicking on small icons. Quite clever.

[JohnP]

Hi Mark. I found LAF in Gumtree Belfast.
In N. Ireland, where I live the best advertising is by word of mouth and it really happens here.
Now that I'm a convert I'm spreading the gospel.
So why doesn't everyone out there, tell their photographic mates, pals, buddies or whatever around the world and let's see what happens.
Here's to continued success. JohnP.

[Truckman]

Welcome to you, John...Glad you found us...Ben

[admin]

Hi John,
Again, welcome our group...and thank you for your favourable comments today on my portrait 'Max'.

I have since reworked that image again, with a new technique that I found on a CS3 photoshop filters website.
It works well for a grittier look.
After converting your RAW or JPG file to a PSD or TIFF copy
1. make a duplicate layer
2. filters > Other > High pass (set to 10px)
3. Select layer mode 'Overlay'
4. Merge down
5. Repeat the above step using a High pass setting of 5px
(the high pass filter has the effect of accentuating creases, lines, hair contrast -WARNING do not use on pictures of your 'significant other' if you value your wellbeing!  )
6. Merge down again
7. New duplicate layer
8. Apply Adjustment Layers > Black and white > select the tint box an adjust to suit your toning requirements (the default light sepia works prety well)
9. Apply Adjustment Layers > Brightness/Contrast and crank up the contrast a touch
OR
9.b Use Adjustment Layers > Curves to achieve a similar outcome
10. You may also choose to use filters > noise to accentuate the gritty feel

[Neal.D]

  Hi, i found a ad for the site on gumtree.ie, said it was a Dublin based community? Thought it was odd to
  be from Dublin, but not that it matters, thanks for having me.Neal

[Analog6]

As I noticed a photography section on my Cat-World forum, I have put a link there so hopefully we might get one or two members from there.

And welcome Neal - come tell us a bit more about yourself in Intros.

[Ross and Cher]

... Thought it was odd to be from Dublin, ...

Welcome Neal - be careful what you say tho - some of us are know to selectively quote!!!! 

That aside, I am sure you will find us a merry band - go forth and post!!!

[Open Shutter]

I found a ref to the site from a post on the Australian site dslr users which has become huge and a fantastic group it has maybe grown a bit too large for me to enjoy fully , i must say i agree with our site admin boss in that it is something hard to explain but totally enjoyable to go hunting for images with your camera and then bag one i know i have loved it since i was quite young and continue to do so
How lucky are we all to have the internet to share images and talk to one another i still have to stop myself for a moment every now and again and think how new (relatively) it really is,,
I am looking forward to seeing how it all progresses,

Good Luck to all

Norm

[tommykelso]

I found this forum through Gumtree Belfast. As u know, i'm new to photography and the comments i've recieved on my photos are helping me progress. LONG LIVE THIS FORUM!!

[admin]

Cheers guys and thank you for your positive comments

[sammy21]

i found it on manchester gumtree

[blackbox]

I think that it was Gumtree, that lead me here, someone somehow, the next thing you know bam!!....I will just say that as someone who has been involved in other groups of a Spiritual nature i sometimes just go quiet for a while, just to recharge the spiritual batteries.. .. ..

I've not been here that long and i've already learnt how to re-size my pictures.....the next thing is to learn to put my name on them ...

 ...John....

[admin]

Hi John,
If you are using Photoshop elements or similar, You can just select the type tool and type away.
You can also create a new transparent image say 150pk by 20px high, type your name and save as a .png with tranparancy preserved and copy paste onto your images as you go.

[admin]

It will be interesting to see if we get a trickle of new members ovetr the next 7 days. This morning my time 5th Feb 09, I posted ads including the new logo and the "Preserve Our Planet" to the www.gumtree.com sites for:
Cardiff Wales
Dublin Ireland
Belfast Northern Ireland
Edinburgh Scotland
Manchester England
London England
In the case of Edinburgh and London, I bit the bullet and paid for a 7 day top of the category listing.

Our also contacted the editor of our local newspaper with a bit of an overview of Light Art as a "local business" and details of the "Preserve Our Planet" competition and surprisingly had a prompt response expressing interest in running a piece from a journalist. They even sent out a photographer yesterday morning, so some time over the next a little piece will run. Our local Central Coast area is very geographically defined by ocean and bushland on all sides with a population of 350,000 served by this paper, The Central Coast Advocate (part of Rupert M's stable).
I will be very pleased if this results in a few members from this area (thrilled actually). If it works, I will try some papers in other cities, Can't hurt can it?

Is anyone willing to put up a listing in their local city for either, Gumtree.com (particularly in Aus for Gumtree). Craiglist in US or any other free classified service. I can email some text that you are free to edit and make your own style, along with a logo for upload. the whole process takes about two minutes and you can hide your email so that it is not visible in the ad. Your name is not published and you do ot need to leave a phone number.

[GitarStu]

Hi,

I found out about your site from an article in the Central Coast Express Advocate.

I love photography but don't get enough time to do it (I'm sure everyone will agree with that).

Looking forward to checking the site out more and seeing what others are doing.

Cheers!!

Stu.

[admin]

A little press goes a long way. I have a couple of people ring me today that want to participate in the "Preserve or Planet" comp but do not have computers (they are posting images ..in the mail) we've also had a couple of new members join from around our local area today too.
Thank you for visiting and joining. Post a few images, make comments, ask questions. We have a friendly bunch of people here.

[tommykelso]

Hey admin dude, email me some text and logo as i'm alway advertisin on belfast gumtree. I'll spread some news there!

[Analog6]

I've noticed they are coming in thick and fast, great stuff!

[Derek]

I found out about your site from my Sister who rang me about a competition mentioned in a Central Coast local paper. I was so impressed when I looked at the site, the layout, the apparent friendliness and helpfullness that I signed up straight away.
I think competitions are a brilliant way of attracting attention from those interested in photography. You could run comps from time to time in various categories i.e. Pets, sunsets, Juniors only and so on. An attractive prize could be donated in return for a banner add for the duration and/or mentioning the donater in any advertising.
Anyhow, thats my opinion for what it is worth. 

[admin]

Thanks Derek, the feedback all helps. The paper piece went well, we had quite a few calls including at least tow from peole who do not own computers anad are mailing prints which we will scan for them.
For such a samll community site (which is not a bad thing) the response has been good.

Now everyone, let's get some images up particularly in the comp.
The Books producers's Momento Pro, have kindly provided a big discount as a one off at this size will be several hundred dollares worth (if not more). They have also offered to do a smaller version to order if we get enough quality images to make a limited edition worth while.

[admin]

I placed some more ads on free classified sites today in the following cities. It will interesting to see if we get any members joining:

UK / Nthrn Ireland / Wales:
London, Essex, Plymouth, Leeds, Belfast, Dublin, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff

Canada: Vancouver
USA: LA, San Fransisco, New York

...Can only try!

[cloudyhua]

by gumtree, i just looking for some kind of group, then saw the advertisement about here:)

[Truckman]

Hi, Happy Christmas.
_______________________
outsource clipping path

Sniff, sniff...I smell spam... ...Ben

[bigbob]

SPAM ALERT

[Analog6]

The SPAM has been relegated to the rubbish bin where it belongs!

[BirdOfPrey]

I found this site via google, but I think it was a few pages back.....

[misscatherine]

Google for me too.  I have to say, I found a few that day and only post here regularly and one other.  I like the atmos here.

yes me too Dale...

[Taraboom]

Google; search terms: photography forum

[scottyea]

I found it here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/643645@N23/discuss/72157605078157585/

Thats the Tweed Valley Camera Club Flickr group. 

[aprillove20]

hi scottyea

thanks for sharing it, any ways  i'll visit the site after my work....