[Mik3ymomo]

Originally Posted by dcstep

Coyote Hunts In Snow - Explored' by David Stephens, on Flickr

Nice Job on this Photo making it to Flickr's Explore page. I feel that is a significant honor for any photo.

If you look at the statistics on how many photos are uploaded per day and how many make it to the Explore page it's truly amazing and significant.

For those who do not know why this makes Daves photo so special let's break it down.

There are 1.4 million photographs uploaded onto flickr each day, meaning a photograph has a 0.03% chance of being chosen for EXPLORE. Flickr picks the top 500 most interesting photographs of the day from around the world and features them on EXPLORE. Factors influencing the selection include: visual composition, number of views, number of likes, number of comments, interesting content...

It's been said that up to 8.6 million have been posted in a day so it changes the odds significantly. Either way I wanted to mention it and give Dave this credit.

Mike

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Mik3ymomo

Nice Job on this Photo making it to Flickr's Explore page. I feel that is a significant honor for any photo.

If you look at the statistics on how many photos are uploaded per day and how many make it to the Explore page it's truly amazing and significant.

For those who do not know why this makes Daves photo so special let's break it down.

There are 1.4 million photographs uploaded onto flickr each day, meaning a photograph has a 0.03% chance of being chosen for EXPLORE. Flickr picks the top 500 most interesting photographs of the day from around the world and features them on EXPLORE. Factors influencing the selection include: visual composition, number of views, number of likes, number of comments, interesting content...

It's been said that up to 8.6 million have been posted in a day so it changes the odds significantly. Either way I wanted to mention it and give Dave this credit.

Mike

Thanks Mike.

I've had 44-images Explored over the years. I'm proud of them all, but don't necessarily consider them my "best." As many as I've had chosen, I can't really tell you how they really do it. I think that they have a group of people assigned to pick the 500 and this is done fairly early in their "posting day", which doesn't coincide with our East or West coast times. Anyway, the selection includes images that have not had much time to develop statistics of any kind.

I think that there are people involved and not just an logarithm because I'll run hot and cold. After going for months with nothing selected, then I might 3 in a 6-week period. So, I'm guessing, people tend to rely on reliable sources, but can only do that so much, because they're instructed to spread it around. I think that a logarithm may pull up a few thousand for the selection group to pick from, but I really do think that people are involved.

I've had some selected in the bottom 100 (say number 455) and have it drop off the list by the end of the day. So the list is dynamic and, I guess, logarithm-controlled after it's initial setup and the number of views, Faves and Comments can get you booted off, if not sufficient.

Here's an album with all 44 of mine, included those booted off by the end of the day:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dcstep...57628407953379

[Mik3ymomo]

Wow 44 photos Explored!? That's amazing really.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Mik3ymomo

Wow 44 photos Explored!? That's amazing really.

I've been on Flickr since 2007 and have around 3,300 "Public" images. I've stored the JPEGs of over 11,000 images. Anyway, I guess that I am very pleased that 44 out of 3,300 is actually a decent ratio, given the odds of even being seen are pretty low.

In the last year or two, Flickr went kind of crazy with how they counted "views." It used to be that someone had to click on your image for you to get a view. Now, if your image is on the first page of a Group, then you get a view when someone just opens the Group. I guess that I can see there point, but a click shows way more interest than merely opening a page with 50-images on it and yours is one of the 50. I've got almost 3.3 million "views" now, but they really depreciated the meaning of that when they went to the new, more generous system. It took me years to get the first million, but now it's only month for the incremental millions.

Still, I like Flickr a lot. I've found some really fantastic photographers there, among lots of riffraff. I've become friends with people around the world and it's a pretty nice tertiary back-up system to my HDs at home and work. They display well and make it easy to share via BBcode, HTML and a couple of other methodologies.

Dave

[M_Six]

Having your pics in groups adds tremendously to the exposure. I recently posted a ho-hum pic of my watch in the G7x group and it is now one of my most viewed images. I've seen some pics that were in 20 or more groups, so they get thousands of views even without being Explored. I'm wondering if being in a large number of groups increases the chance of an image being Explored.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by M_Six

.... I'm wondering if being in a large number of groups increases the chance of an image being Explored.

I don't think that it helps or hurts. I've seen it suggested to post to "no more than three groups" to maximize your chances, but I think that's BS. I see no correlation in my own stuff.

[Itsed65]

Kestrel on a Wire by lennycarl08, on Flickr

[dcstep]

Ed, nice light on the kestrel.

[dcstep]

Beautiful Coyote Poses by David Stephens, on Flickr

[M_Six]

Wow, that is a beauty, DC.

[dcstep]

Thanks Mark.

[Itsed65]

Yeah, very nice.

[Itsed65]

Half a coyote

Coyote #37 by lennycarl08, on Flickr

[Mik3ymomo]

Took this tonight
All I want for Christmas is a 3rd Gen RX-7 by -mik3ymomo-

[M_Six]

^^^Sweet. Nicely done.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by Itsed65

Half a coyote

Looks relaxed and healthy, although not as fat as mine. Of course, mine need winter coats, so that may account for some difference.

[dcstep]

Love that RX-7 Mike.

[Mik3ymomo]

Originally Posted by dcstep

Love that RX-7 Mike.

Thanks Dave. I'm going to try again tonight and stop down the Apreture and get more DOF on the car. It will also give me more time to paint the car. Then I will take another shot and manually rack the focus all the way out for the Bokeh on the Christmas lights and use layers to brush the out of focus lights into the painted car layer.

At least that's the plan
I may also try this same technique one last time with the 200 F2 and see if I can pull it off IN CAMERA. But that's a logistical nightmare with the camera so far from the subject. Even with the timer I have to get to the car quickly and light it before the shutter closes.

Might be better with my alternate technique of using a wide angle and layers in PS.

Maybe I will have something to post tonight if I make it out again. May also bring out some other Exotic cars but the mud is a deterrent lol.

Thanks for looking.

Mike

[dcstep]

Looking forward to see how it works out.

[Itsed65]

Yeah, I noticed they are all a bit scrawnier out this way. All the wildlife have had a tough time with the drought.

[allachie9]

Elsewhere on the internet we have been discussing the onset of winter, and remembering winters in recent years.

This was our house, when I lived in Charlestown of Aberlour, on Speyside, famous for it's single malt whisky. A near neighbour had just been down with his tractor and snowplough to clear the road. You can see my garage, in the background left side of picture, but my car didn't go out for a few weeks.
Taken in January 2010.

House_Jan_2010 by Alan Butterfield, on Flickr

[dcstep]

Ordinary red-tail hawk shot in incredible high-country evening light:

Red-tail Hawk by David Stephens, on Flickr