Channel 4's Big Art Mob

More good web stuff coming out of Channel 4 in the form of Big Art Mob - "a collective effort to create the UK’s first comprehensive survey of Public Art" and part of the wider Channel 4 Big Art Project. Users are encouraged to upload photos (or videos), captured using their cameraphones and tag their location so they can be added to a national map. All the usual Web 2.0 staples are there including comments, Google Maps integration and tagging (though no ratings - presumably they decided art is above ratings). With the exception of some rogue HTML tags on the About page, it's a pretty slick implementation - the functionality of the take-away widget (embedded below) is particularly nice.



Related fabric of folly posts:
JPG Magazine & Picture This
Photo Friday
The joy of Creative Commons

JPG Magazine & Picture This

As much as I love Flickr (and believe me I do), there are times when the size of the community (25 million monthly visitors according to Compete) and the sheer volume of photographs being shared (2 billion and counting) feels a bit overwhelming. So, it was with some delight that I stumbled upon not one, but two, smaller (and more focused) online photography communities this week.

First was JPG Magazine which has been producing a bi-monthly print magazine since January 2005, initially via self-publishing site Lulu.com but more recently as a fully-fledged news-stand title (in the US at least) from 8020 Publishing. The emphasis is very much on quality rather than quantity with users encouraged to upload only their best, high-res shots (no more than 10 per day) and then assign them to themes, some of which are earmarked for forthcoming issues. The JPG community then votes on the submissions with the editors having the final say on what makes it into the mag. If you're lucky enough to get a photo printed you get $100 and one year's free subscription. Nice.

My second discovery (via Hilary) was Channel 4's new photography project Picture This. A joint-initiative with Flickr, the site has more of an educational bent with a focus on improving users' photography skills through mutual feedback. The other manifestation of Picture This is a television series which starts on 6th January at 7pm on Channel 4. Much like Photo Friday, users are invited to upload their best shot in response to the week's theme (week one is Self Portrait) with the added incentive that the judges will pick out some to feature on the show. The site is full of Web 2.0 goodness including commenting, tagging, rating and seamless integration with the Flickr API (it even pulls in the EXIF data).

I've just submitted one of my photos so why not head on over and proffer some (constructive) criticism? Alternatively you could visit my JPG profile page and check out some of my favourite snaps.

Analysing my Facebook friends photo grid

They say a picture paints a thousand words and if my Facebook friends photo grid is anything to go by, they may just be right. Below is a screencap of the aforementioned grid (something of a Facebook easter egg, which you can view by selecting '---' from the Friend List dropdown) and a round-up of some recurring motifs, which give a (potentially worrying) insight into the psychology of some of my nearest and dearest:

14 hats
8 pairs of shades
7 babies
4 guns
3 glasses of wine
3 pints of beer
3 false moustaches
2 weddings
2 donkeys
1 dog
1 cat
1 monkey
1 canada goose
1 baboon
1 real moustache
1 suit of armour
1 Beth Ditto's arse

Hmm...

The best compact superzoom in the world?

Before heading off down under last month I decided to treat myself and replace my ageing Pentax Optio S4 (which has an erratic flash, a dead USB port and a failing zoom) with something a bit more fit for purpose. Top of my list of priorities was a decent zoom. The problem was that I didn't want the bulk (or the expense) of an digital SLR like the highly rated Canon EOS and Nikon D series but I couldn't find a compact camera with an optical zoom to write home about. That was until I stumbled upon the Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ1. Boasting a 10x optical zoom (equivalent to a focal length of 35-350mm) the DMC-TZ1 is still only 4cm deep. This is due to the application of "folded optics technology" which allows the zooming to occur horizontally within the camera. Factor in Panasonic's Mega O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) technology, a Leica lens, a 2.5 inch LCD display, a High Sensitivity mode with a fastest speed of ISO 1600 and a widescreen (16:9) option and the decision was made. I ordered the DMC-TZ1 from purelygadgets.co.uk for a bargainous £158.75 (it's £299.99 from Panasonic's own eshop) and have been delighted with the results. I won't write a full review of the camera as that's been done by far more knowledgeable folk than me. What I will do is post some photos from my trip which give an idea of how the DMC-TZ1 performs in real-world conditions.

Macro mode:



Widescreen mode:



Optical zoom:



Fireworks mode:



Capturing movement:

The MOO MiniCards have landed

At last my MOO MiniCards have arrived from across the pond and they're just as dinky and cool as I'd hoped they'd be. For just $24.98 (about £13) MOO will print 100 of your flickr photos (all different if you want) onto mini oblong business cards with your contact details (or any other text of your choosing) on the reverse. I opted for 50 different photos - two copies of each - so I can keep a set and give the others away. It's a great example of what's possible with APIs. Right, I'm off to build a House of MiniCards!

Photo Friday

Thanks to Pikesville for pointing me in the direction of Photo Friday, a simple but rewarding site which revolves around a weekly photo challenge. Every Friday a new theme (normally just one word) is posted on the site which users are invited to interpret in a creative and original way. Entering a photo is as simple as uploading it to your own website (or a photo-sharing site such as Flickr) and submitting the link to Photo Friday. The following weekend, users can vote of which photos they deem most 'Noteworthy', with a list of the top six published on the Monday. This week's challenge is 'Nerdy' which inspired me to snap my new white adidas (above) - even the soles are clean...!

The joy of Creative Commons

Delighted to have my first experience of the Creative Commons in action last week when I received an email via Flickr informing me that one of my photos had been used in an article on podcasting in the The Zimbabwean newspaper. Great to think that one of my amateur snaps can appear in a publication based thousands of miles away, that I've never even heard of, without the need for any legal shenanigans. Let's hope it's the shape of things to come.

The digital expectations of the younger generation

Nice anecdote from my mother who was finishing off a roll of film on her 35mm camera in the company of my almost 2 year old niece. After taking a few photos, my mother had to relinquish control of the camera to my niece who immediately turned it over and began inspecting the back with a look of puzzlement and mild irritation on her face. After a moment, the penny dropped and my mother realised that my niece was so used to digital cameras that she couldn't understand why she couldn't immediately review the photos on a built-in display. My mother tried explaining that the photos would come back in a few weeks time printed out on bits of paper but apparently it fell on deaf ears...

Flickr: A Day In The Life

Eat breakfast
Originally uploaded by dan taylor.

Partook of my first Flickr group posting yesterday under the heading 'a day in the life' whereby members were invited to post 5 photos from their day. Unfortunately 5 photos only got me as far as my train journey into work but it was good fun nevertheless. You can read more about it (and Flickr being bought by Yahoo!) on the Flickr blog.