What I’ve noticed… — recommendations

No, I’m not paid for this. Definitely not!

While looking around, I just found some good stuff. So, here we go.

An excellent blurb photo book:

KobietaOtwarta -- Open Woman

K o b i e t a O t w a r t a

Open Woman

By auleytner/bell/drzazgowska/janik

Yes, sometimes I’m thinking about buying a self-made book. This one really amazed me. Sensual, outstanding images in a very classy and straight design, with polish and english texts. Well done!

 

SirHenryB, one of my dear flickr contacts and a photographer with an eye for essentials, created calendars with very nice captures.

around in europe with sir henryb -- calendar 2010

sifnos by sir henryb -- calendar 2010

You can preview both, the book and the calendars. Splendid captures are to be found there. Here are just some of my favorites:

by Sir HenryB

by Sir HenryB

by Sir HenryB

by Sir HenryB

It’s worth a glimpse!

Outstanding Flickr galleries

Flickr has this wonderful Gallery facility since a few weeks. The idea is great: You can’t add your own photos but those of other users. Images you love. You create something like an exhibition — a max of 18 pictures per gallery, curated by you. A tribute to the oustanding, remarkable work of others.

I’d like to link to some of the galleries I’ve noticed.

Magic Light (3) - a gallery curated by nigel_xf

Magic portraits (2) -- a gallery curated by nigel_xf

The way -- a gallery curated by Phillip D

Flowers 6 -- a gallery curated by epicnom

28. TĨNH. -- a gallery curated by nguyentuong.linh

on the road -- a gallery curated by mat56

Amazing Landscapes -- a gallery curated by Katherine Maidle

And here’s one of my galleries:

Flowery Part -- a gallery curated by kunstgriff

…not available… Come on, Flickr, move your a**

I love Flickr! Yes, I do! Smart people there, excellent photos now and then, I have my own groups, and my images are on a good way.

The latter however causes trouble now and then. I’m invited to certain groups, very often high-quality “admin invite only”.  Guess it’s something to be proud of!

But Germans are restricted. I’m pissed off (sorry for that term, but I really am!). Tired of having to read this instead of viewing the group’s content:

Ursula von der Leyen, aka “Zensursula“, the German family minister (Bundesfamilienministerin) , wants to ban content that might be harmful to minors, such as pornographic stuff or contents glorifying violence.

To point that out: Porn related to children is disgusting, it’s a crime and against the law. The idea to protect children is respectable and very important.

But the realization is very poor. Even IT experts have to admit that this is not the appropriate way. The German law has severe collateral damages. There’s a smell of censorship. Or, to be precise: This stinks to high heaven, like the dead skunk in the middle of the road. On the one hand, the censorship in Eastern Europe and Asian countries (China, Burma) is impetuously criticized, on the other hand Germany does  the same nowadays. (And it’s not the only questionable development…) The German content restrictions could be used to restrict any other content, too.

Flickr as well is affected.

In the “Flickr pro Additional Terms of Service”, you can read this:

9. OBJECTIONABLE MATERIAL

You understand that by using Flickr pro, you may encounter content that may be deemed offensive, indecent, or objectionable, which content may or may not be identified as having explicit subject matter. Nevertheless, you agree to use Flickr pro at your sole risk and that Flickr shall not have any liability to you for content that may be found to be offensive, indecent, or objectionable.”

No, German pro users can’t. It is not a question of your (or mine or anyone else’s) personal responsibility –  it is restricted by Flickr.

Apropos restricted: You can mark your content or your group as “restricted”. What does that mean?

“Your photostream is unsuitable for children, your grandmother or your workmates. (We recommend this setting if you’re not sure of the difference between moderate and restricted, just to be on the safe side.)”

Flickr recommends this setting if you are not sure. So some (or maybe many) do it. But a German user can’t switch to this kind of content even not with a pro account which you use “at your sole risk”.  The Safe Search filter can be set as ON or Off, that’s all. OFF means:

“I take full responsibility that I’m comfortable to see whatever turns up.”

Whatever turns up. Aha! Restricted content — even if it was declared as such by mistake — will not turn up on German screens.

Flickr itself says in the Community guidelines:

“Don’t upload content that is illegal or prohibited. If we find you doing that, your account will be deleted and we’ll take appropriate action, which may include reporting you to the authorities.”

There is obviously a differentation between “probably offensive, indecent, or objectionable” and “forbidden” content. The Terms of Service (TOS) and the Community Guidelines say that clearly. Why do German users have to wait in front of the door? Aren’t we a democratic country?

It is so easy to take legal action in the U.S. You can switch off your brain and try to use your microwave as a dryer for hamsters — as long as it is not stated explicitly that you must not do it, your chance to win the case is extremely high. Flickr / Yahoo is an American company, and rumor has it that they were afraid of claims of recourse or something. So they decided to restrict certain content for Germans.

“Note: If your Yahoo! ID is based in Singapore, Hong Kong or Korea you will only be able to view safe content based on your local Terms of Service (this means you won’t be able to turn SafeSearch off). If your Yahoo! ID is based in Germany you are not able to view restricted content due to your local Terms of Service.” (Source)

No explaining words, no statement, nothing. Accept it — or leave it. Even for those with a pro account the rules have been changed without further notice. OK so far, legally seen, but poor business conduct.

There are groups opposing this on Flickr, but it seems as if nothing’s gonna change.

All that remains is to write funny little messages like this in the future.

Due to me being from Germany (a democratic country), Flickr has certain queer restrictions.  Therefore, this group is “not available” for me, and I can’t comment on something.

And one last thing: I’d like to cite a German user:

“Ich bin deutsche Staatsbürger und 50 Jahre alt, wie Sie zweifelsfrei an den Daten der Kreditkarte sehen konnten, mit der ich meinen Pro-Account bezahlt habe, dessen Leistungen Sie einseitig und empfindlich eingeschränkt haben, worüber noch zu reden sein wird. Aber kommen Sie sich nicht ziemlich dämlich dabei vor, mir vorschreiben zu wollen, welche Bilder ich ansehen darf und welche nicht?”

I admit, the problem is not really new. But just today, I received about 20 invitations — half of the groups are … guess, you guessed it … NOT AVAILABLE.

All my images (see portfolio) are grandma safe, G-rated, and I don’t have a clue about why groups with questionable content should send me invitations. I’ll be damned if I know. But even if they did show a little more skin than usual or something like that … maybe you out there could tell me the reason why those groups are rated as “restricted”! (If they weren’t I’d be able to see the groups.)

Being from Germany, you’ll see “NOT AVAILABLE”, this is so frustrating. Here’s a selection of invitations I received today:

[The Spot], Quality Black & White Images, Dances With Light ~An Admin Invite Gallery ~.

Some links:

Discussions in Flickr’s help forum (1 / 2)

Diskussion im deutschen Help-Forum

“Keine Zensur” Flickr group

Sperrungen von Internetinhalten in Deutschland (Wiki)

So funktioniert die Kinderporno-Sperre (Stern)

Statement Stewart Butterfield (Flickr staff, Flickr co-founder)

More links are available (not “not available”) here.

You would love these in comments — Flickr’s cutest awards, part II

…continued from part I…

The Pyramid (Admin invite only)

++ Energia Positiva ++ 3M's ++ (admin-invited only)

**HARMONY**

Nullerz Gallery (Admin invite Only)

Kissed By Light

BEST PEOPLE'S CHOICE

Magic Unicorn : The Very Best - by Invite only

pH-Value(50+FavOnly!)

Vernissage (admin. invite only)

Finest Nature - Admin invite

✢~ Legacy Gallery ~✢ by Invite Only

Nikonaward.com! Invited photos only

Fine-ART photos (Invite only)

Express yourself

Da Vinci Memories - INVITED images only

… to be continued…

Awarding is a difficult matter — Flickr’s cutest awards, part I

Some awards are… hm, better not talk about it! (I denied sending my photos to some groups due to their award being so … let me call it unhandsome.) But some are cute. Beautiful. Pieces of art. A little weired. At least very special.

Here are some of the best far! You’d love them in your comments…

Lunar Village - Pool is closed

***Quotidiae**Everyday objects

a MoMeNTaRY LaPSe oF ReaSoN

The Light Painters Society Gold / 25 + Fave Admin Invite Only

The Master Light Painter 50 + Faves

The Light Show group

Nature's Garden (Invited only)

NATURES ~~GREEN PEACE~~ AWARD

Nature's Best Shot

! The BEST of Black & White Photography

***Ineffable***

*ARTISTIC Photography* (Invited Only)

kunstgriffs KUNSTgriffe {my faves / outstanding INVITED images}

kunstgriffs KUNSTgriffe H♥ll Θf Fame ☼ {admin-invited}

…to be continued…

My favorite Flickr groups, part 1

Favorite Flickr groups, part 1:

kunstgriffs KUNSTgriffe {my faves / outstanding INVITED images}, Peace awards, Flickr Hearts, Heart Awards, *Music To My Eyes*, A+++Photo, Double Dragon Awards

My favorite Flickr groups, part I.

kunstgriffs KUNSTgriffe {my faves / outstanding INVITED images}:

Number of members & images: 280 members, 2,045 images.
Required number of awards: 3.

Step-up group: ☼ kunstgriffs KUNSTgriffe H♥ll Θf Fame ☼ {admin-invited}
Requirements for step-up: Herrlichkeit Contest winners, 7+ kunstgriffe awards.

Peace Awards:

Number of members & images: 9,706 members, 125,866 images
Required number of awards: 5

Step-up groups: “Platinum Peace Award” INVITE ONLY (w/ 6+PeaceAwards), *WORLD Peace Hall of Fame* INVITE ONLY (w/ 10+ Peace Platinum awards), PEACE WINNERS CIRCLE (INVITE ONLY!) (contest winners).

**Heart Awards**:

Number of members & images: 19,499 members, 312,442 images.
Required numbers of awards: 5.

Step-up groups: **Platinum Heart Awards** (Only with 6+Heart Awards Invitation!), **Platinum Hearts Hall of Fame** Photos With 10 Platinum Hearts.

Fl♥ckr Hearts:

Number of members & images: 27,224 members, 482,896 images.
Required number of awards: 5.

Step-up group: S♥per ♥ Hearts – Qualified Pic ONLY (w/ 10+ Flickr Heart awards).

*Music To My Eyes*:

Number of members & images: 17,858 members, 308,935 photos
Required number of awards: 5

Step-up groups: *Artists of the Year* (Admin-invite only) (with 10+ awards), Artists Of The Year Platinum Hall of Fame (with 10+ *Artists of the Year* awards)

A+++ Photo:

Number of members & images: 29,191 members, 479,803 images
Required number of awards: 3 (exactly 3)

Step-up groups: .Super A+++ Photo (with 5+ awards)

“Double Dragon Awards”:

Number of members & images: 17,368 members, 333,725 images
Required number of awards: 3

Step-up groups: *** Platinum & Gold Double Dragon Awards *** ( Invitation ) (5+ Double Dragon Awards), *** Diamond & Gold Double Dragon Awards *** ( Invitation / Invitación ) (5+Platinum & Gold Double Dragon awards)

Platinum & Gold Double Dragon Award

Diamond & Gold Double Dragon Awards

…to be continued…

Ansichtssache 2: Grundlagen der Bildgestaltung: Perspektivwechsel

Bildgestaltung: Wechsel der Perspektive

Stichworte:

• Aufnahmestandpunkt
• Perspektive

Auch wenn man über ein Zoomobjektiv verfügt, sollte man das nicht überstrapazieren. Es soll einen geplanten Bildausschnitt so umsetzen, wie er gedacht ist, und nicht nur dem Ausprobieren verschiedener Brennweiten dienen. Die Überlegung, von wo aus ich welches Bild aufnehmen möchte, bleibt auch mit einem Zoom nicht erspart!

Entscheidend ist und bleibt der Aufnahmestandpunkt. Fotos vom selben Fleck mit unterschiedlichen Brennweiten aufgenommen bringen selten neue Aspekte; man kann dann lediglich aus einer Reihe von Bildern das passenste auswählen (was aber auch schon etwas ist). Nachdem wir uns aber für eine Brennweite entschieden haben, die uns richtig erscheint und die wir beibehalten, bringt ein Standortwechsel eben diese neuen Aspekte; die so entstandenen Bilder wirken unterschiedlich, irgendwie immer wieder neu interpretiert.

Global and Lunar villages are closed forever

This is an obituary.

global_village__closed

lunar_village_closed

Two of the best Flickr groups, two of my personal favorites, have closed their pool forever. It has been a wonderful time. Well organized and moderated groups, indeed. Never had any difficulties to find excellent captures to hand out the required awards. Never had to wait too long to receive the step-up award. Global Village still has 19,857 members but the pool is closed. 19,857 homeless flickrists.

No doubt, I’m gonna miss them.

As it is to be read in the discussion thread, something changed. The “post & run” mentality — a problem not only in these groups — increased. The most motivated and commited admins & moderators can’t cope with that. It’s time-killing to check all submissions and to ban all rule breakers. Flickr should be a place to show photos AND to appreciate the work of others. It’s a place to share photography. But it seems as if  the easiest rules are to difficult to follow. (A shame that we need rules — it should be taken for granted to show your appreciation. It’s good Karma: Give something, get something.)

Thanks for the good time! Farewell, Global Village. Farewell, Lunar Village.

Oh, one last thing: the Lunar Village invitation for qualified pics with 7+ Global Village awards was a piece of art. Some Flickr group awards are — to put it mildly — an insult to your eyes: too large, too gaudy. The awards in these two groups were just right. I want to keep this very special award forever. Here we go: enjoy this masterpiece which will never be given out again. It’s part of Flickr’s history.

F-Stop Tutorial by Dave Arnold

Dave Arnold, a talented photographer and Flickrist from New Mexico, presents the F Stop tutorial. (The … as if it were the only one on this planet… )

Starting with these meaningful introductorily words

“A short and easy course on what an F stop means to you in basics with an emphasis on humor.
This album is dedicated to SusanA, who made me a bald man over night.”

he tries to clear up the secret world of F stops. A well-proportioned amount of humor is included (“some people say Tomato, some people say Tomatoe”), but first of all a large amount of knowledge (“If in the beginning of time, whoever thought up these “f-numbers” had just expressed them as “1/5″ or “1/20″ instead of just “5″ or “20″, we’d
all have saved ourselves a lot of cerebral infarctions”). Knowledge combined with humor – everywhere in David’s explanations. (If you are the unfunny type of human, you should definitely stay away from this tutorial.)

A randomly, but carefully selected preview of Dave Arnold's F-stop tutorial

Wanna know what a tomato has to do with the aperture of lenses? Well then … go ahead. This way, please. You’ll see an amazing slideshow then.

Ansichtssache — Grundlagen der Bildgestaltung und der Goldene Schnitt

Bildgestaltung: Goldener Schnitt, Linien und graphische Elemente

Klar, auch ein Schnellschuss kann ein wunderbares Bild ergeben. Manche haben ja genau das zu einer Kunstform erhoben.
Erlernbare Grundlagen eines überlegten Arrangements aber sind neben der Beschäftigung mit technischen Grundlagen wie Belichtung oder Schärfentiefe der Schlüssel zum guten Bild. Viele Unwägbarkeiten der Technik nehmen einem die modernen Kameras ab, aber für ein geplant gutes Bild ist die Beschäftigung mit dem Bildaufbau unabdingbar. Das gilt für jeden Kameratyp.