Monday, May 3, 2010

Resa's Great Idea to Post our Explored Photos

Here are my shots that made it to Explore. It is fascinating to me that the largest value of interestingness comes from the camera you used and not the content you shot. I have a Nikon D40 and a Sigma DP1. I've had 10 photos on Explore thus far out of which 7 were taken with the Sigma DP1. I've taken dozens of others with the Nikon D40 that are of similar content quality or better but don't make it to Explore. I am almost certain that part of the algorithm for Explore has to do with the camera you used (40%) + comments (15%) + faves (15%) + views (20%)... or something like that. All I am saying is that if you have a good eye, it shouldn't matter what camera you used.

Inspiration Point
My First Photograph With the DP1 (un-edited, straight from the camera) EXPLORED
Spring at Beebe Lake (for EarthDay) [Explored]
Empire Windows
Walking Down 5th Avenue
Super Bokeh Night

9 comments:

  1. I have no had any photos make it onto Explore. How sad. These are great though!

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  2. your 8th pic in this post, "empire windows", was my wallpaper for a whole month, love that picture so much!

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  3. Jaden, I am flattered on one but irritated on the other. You are saying that you downloaded my photo without my permission?? (is cool that you did that, I am kidding but I hate it when total strangers take my stuff and wallpaper them lol..)

    I'll do a topic on what the Licenses and All Rights Reserved mean for photos since copyright infringement has become a hot topic.

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  4. So what cameras generally make it into explore? and do you have any other basis for this theory other than your personal experience?

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  5. I have only had one photo in explore and it was not in there for long. I think its got a lot to do with groups. Were you posting the DP1 shots to different groups to where you post your d40 shots. I look on peoples photos who often make explore and most of the comments are always from the same people.Not sure if they are contacts or all in the same group. You need religous followers. Not great photos.

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  6. @poxsevod
    Flickr does not and will not ever tell you what goes into their algorithm that determines a good photograph. I am pretty sure they take a whole wide range of factors that would nominate a photo other than the ones I mentioned in my post. So that's my pure speculation. I have nothing to base it on other than personal experience. I think flickr's goal is to establish a way to justify good content through the algorithm they've created.

    @darbians
    It is "not [about] great photos." I can't agree with you more there. I've noticed that too. I have contacts that have made it to explore for every photo they upload. And other contacts that haven't. However, I look at photos from some of my contacts that are on explore and their photos aren't that good. I have contacts whose photos are amazing and should definitely be on explore but cannot understand why they arent. Yes, groups generally are in favor of explore's algorithm. However, I detest groups where you post and users will leave you glittery and sleazy comments with animated gifs that are way too cheesy.

    Explore is overrated at this point. If you don't get photos on explore does not mean that you are not a good photographer. Is just that you dont play by the rules of flickr and therefore will not be able to get any of your photos on it. Leaving comments, and tagging photos and joining groups where you participate and show that you are an active member will get you closer to Explore.

    So perhaps my claim about cameras isn't true. However, no matter how many groups I've joined and no matter how many comments I've received and no matter how many views I get on a given day since past September till today I have had 3 photos taken with a Nikon D40 that are on explore. I've taken really good photos with the Nikon D40 but I can't make it to Explore. From the moment I began using the DP1 I got on Explore and have been ever since.

    The photo of the tower reflecting on the water is nothing special. Or is it? to me it isn't. Anyone can go out and take the same photo a 100 times. Why did that one make it to explore and others didnt. I have much more interesting photos on my stream than that one.

    Ideally, whether you use your iPhone to take your photo or Canon EOS 5D Mark II it should not matter as long as what you took is a great photo with wonderful quality and substance. But that is not the case.

    A computer algorithm is not the same as a human algorithm............... I am going to leave it at that.

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  7. haha i will ask the next time I use one of your awesome pictures as a wallpaper bro!

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  8. Yeah, it really makes no sense to me.
    I believe your photos that made it into explore were deserving of that, but there are manymany other photos that I have seen that are not deserving at all.

    I don't think my photos are great, by any means, but I find them more deserving of explore (which I have not gotten) than some of the things that have gotten into there.
    I would show examples of ones that I think did not deserve to make it into explore, but I don't want to call people out, in case someone here knows that person, etc.

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  9. I totally agree with you guys... I also think that you have a better chance of getting onto explore if you're a Flickr Pro user, not just regular (like me) and that's really unfair. Most of the photos on explore are from people who have Flickr Pro...

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