We were at a breakfast stop, on our way to another Fine Day Out. Jim, Iris and SnowCat humored me and let me setup the shot.
I don't know for certain...but I'm guessing that two of those three 14s are as clean today as they were in that photo.
(Unless Jim has gotten sidetracked)
I have a hard enough time getting people to submit photos with a high enough resolution and in the right orientation. Perhaps I should do the cropping before I post them to the contest. I'm not always in a spot to do that right away though.gixxerjasen wrote: ↑Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:25 pm I was looking over some of the shots and was wondering about aspect ratios and wondering if maybe that should be a requirement for next year's submissions. Make folks crop them to be like they'd be in the calendar, and it'd save you having to do that work if it's done ahead of time. Some photos I see look really good but if they have to be cropped it could affect the end result pretty drastically.
Finding time to go through the four or five (thousand) photos I've taken and choose two was a bit of a challenge...
Understood, however I was hoping to take some burden off of you. Plus, it would make the submitter think about how it's going to look and instead of submitting a wide shot that looks beautiful, they'd see how it looked cut down, and so would the voters. Unless of course you have the option of printing with a wide shot and borders. I'm not sure how all that works for the particular vendor you use. Just a thought, and definitely don't want to put more work on you, just less.DesignFlaw06 wrote: ↑Wed Nov 28, 2018 11:04 pmI have a hard enough time getting people to submit photos with a high enough resolution and in the right orientation. Perhaps I should do the cropping before I post them to the contest. I'm not always in a spot to do that right away though.gixxerjasen wrote: ↑Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:25 pm I was looking over some of the shots and was wondering about aspect ratios and wondering if maybe that should be a requirement for next year's submissions. Make folks crop them to be like they'd be in the calendar, and it'd save you having to do that work if it's done ahead of time. Some photos I see look really good but if they have to be cropped it could affect the end result pretty drastically.
All good points. For now, the borders and accents that I add to each image to an extent can compensate for various issues with the image. But it is an evolving process. In an ideal world, I'd like to have users upload their own images and crop them correctly all through the site. That's a ways off before that happens.gixxerjasen wrote: ↑Thu Nov 29, 2018 12:00 am Understood, however I was hoping to take some burden off of you. Plus, it would make the submitter think about how it's going to look and instead of submitting a wide shot that looks beautiful, they'd see how it looked cut down, and so would the voters. Unless of course you have the option of printing with a wide shot and borders. I'm not sure how all that works for the particular vendor you use. Just a thought, and definitely don't want to put more work on you, just less.
Don't worry. It'll look good.
I tried to help by picking out two for you.Tyler wrote: ↑Wed Nov 28, 2018 11:57 pmFinding time to go through the four or five (thousand) photos I've taken and choose two was a bit of a challenge...
You're such a giver, Dean...
One could argue that I am the artist and you're buying into what my creativity deems appropriate.Hppants wrote: ↑Thu Nov 29, 2018 9:15 am Regarding the cropping issue, although I'm not complaining, I'd like to be able to present my submission the way I want to see it in the calendar. Of course, I'd need to do that in the correct aspect ratio, and meet all other technical requirements (no photoshopping, etc). The truth is - no one does it this way. Rider Magazine made it clear to me that I must submit my photographs in raw format with a minimum resolution and NO altercations what so ever. Furthermore by submitting, I was agreeing to let them do whatever they want with my pictures. These conditions are commonplace among publishers of all kinds, including digital ones. The pictures that were included in the magazine article I submitted were cropped a little, but the overall presentation was pretty close to what I sent. In that case, I got lucky.
I am a firm believer in allowing the artist (writer, photographer, sculptor, painter, etc) express the piece and the subject creatively without interference. Once that is done, let the admirer, voyeur, and viewer decide for themselves, and let the votes fall where they may. However and again, I fully understand that this is not a democracy and we all agree to play by whatever rules Tim sees fit.
Regardless and above all that - I can already see that this will be the VERY best calendar we have had. I'm disappointed that I didn't get a shot good enough to make the cut. The irony for me is that where I usually fail in the photography department (the technical part) didn't bite me this year. What got me is that I didn't do enough riding to get to a place that offered me a decent canvas. And that has led to disappointment WAY BEYOND not making the calendar.
Looking forward to a better 2019.
These photos are just the tools that I use. It's a little late this year, but next year, I will include a template file that everyone can download. Those savvy enough will be able to use it to get their image how they would like it. 
