MOT 2007 - Call For Photographers

[Theo]

Just a quick reminder that MOT 2007 Photographers must use a digital camera able to take photos of at least 5 megapixels resolution and submit the entire image, not a cropped version (take care with your initial composition).

Please make sure to carefully read all the requirement stated in the first post.

Thanks!

Theo

[blalor]

Kind of tangential to this discussion, does anyone have a copy of MC2 from last year that featured the NAMCC races at Gateway in St. Louis in June?

I'll be taking pictures for sure. I might even let MC2 use some of them, but it doesn't seem like they're offering much (if anything). Why aren't they sending one of their editorial team out to cover the event?

[AntiqueCarNut]

I'm interested in one of five for the auto road. I also have HD video and Vacucams.

[Sheenabea]

Theo, I have checked. It is a Kodak EasyShare DX7630 6.1MP

I guess mine makes the cut! Thanks!

[Theo]

Quote: Originally Posted by blalor (original)

{snip}....I'll be taking pictures for sure. I might even let MC2 use some of them, but it doesn't seem like they're offering much (if anything). Why aren't they sending one of their editorial team out to cover the event?

To All,

We have maintained a relationship with the founders of the magazine well before they began publishing it. They give us great exposure and have helped establish and publicize MOT as one of the four or five national MINI events in the country. In the last two years, we have given them a number of articles and photographs of our events.

Contrary to what you may think, I believe there are only two full-time, salaried people behind MC2. There are other folks involved in the magazine but they are volunteers or, at best, 1099 contract folks. This is not Road&Track, Motor Trend or any of the other corporate automobile magazines. MC2 heavily relies upon advertising to cover their expenses which, I might add, are not insignificant.

The MINIs On Top articles, and some of the other regional coverage, are written by a person who is close to MINIs On Top. That person spends 50 - 90 hours researching, writing, rewriting, reviewing photographs for submission, and coordinating information with MOT contributors and the magazine's editor. For that work, MC2 provides the writer with a symbolic remuneration which winds up being contributed to the MINIs On Top charity the next year.

So the general idea is to have a cooperative relationship with MC2. Yes, it would be nice if MC2 was big enough to have regional correspondents and photographers, and could provide thousands of dollars in sponsorships and compensation...but that isn't going to happen...yet.

It is, of course, each individual's choice whether they "contribute" to this relationship with their efforts.

Theo

[jwardell]

I don't want to sound like some jerk, but you must understand exclusive publishing rights is asking way too much. And you can't simply assume they will be "OK" with where else you put them. Not that they would, it gives them the right to turn around and sue you, even years later and management changes or something.
You don't think they will be published anywhere else, but think twice:

1. I publish them on my website
2. I publish them on flickr
3. I may even publish them on photo paper to hang on my wall, or to give to someone
4. Oh yeah, I publish choice photos on mini2 and nam as well.
5. Three years ago they were published in the Globe after signing a contract with the NY Times (globe owners), and two pages of fine print did not even request exclusive anything.
6. just when you think they wouldn't be published again, four of them are published on MINI's own web site, following a much simpler yet just as significant agreement (sadly not monetary, but MINI deserves them!)

Point is "publish" can be translated in many ways, and even when you think they are long forgotten, suddenly they are published, commercially, again.

Something more precise like "60-day exclusive commercial print publishing rights" might be more tolerable if you are worried about another mag, and even then it should only apply to those photos are selected to be published. And that's still asking more than most others.

Of course I am more than happy to submit my photos to MC2 for print in their articles, in support of their still-fledgling magazine effort. But if they are so worried about Roundel or someone else, maybe I should contact them. Perhaps Car and Driver?

Of course if they don't have you signing some contract/agreement, which they haven't in the past, they probably couldn't enforce any of this.

OK Folks, sorry for the banter, I just want to explain why it strikes a nerve.

And another thing: A five megapixel requirement is impractical, especially when most of their shots are printed in 1 by 2 -inch thumbnails. There are two megapixel SLRs out there that take phtots that blow away some 7 megapixel point-and-shoots. The overall quality is what really matters and is one of the many determining factors of a photo being chosen. It never makes sense to me if someone puts a hard requirement on resolution. Asking for JPEG Fine or RAW is more important than that but no one mentions it.

[jwardell]

And in response to theo's simultaneous post, to be clear, I am not expecting compensation from them, and am fully aware of their staffing and monetary situation. My issue was the fine print.

[Pamlico]

Since fine print is under discussion, is there reason to be concerned about releases from MOT participants who can be identified in the pics selected for publication?

[Theo]

Quote: Originally Posted by Pamlico (original)

Since fine print is under discussion, is there reason to be concerned about releases from MOT participants who can be identified in the pics selected for publication?

No. We are not operating at that level of concern.

In fact, I hope that the "fine print" discussions are behind us now, as I have contacted a number of those concerned folks and hope I have explained things well-enough.

Theo

[Theo]

With two weeks to go, I thought it was time for and update...

Directly after MINIs On Top, I will be on a 2.5 week trip to the southeast US. Therefore, the method of photo submissions has caused me some concern on two counts:

1) based on the deadlines I have received from MC2, all photo submissions will need to be in my posession by Sunday, June 24th;

2) I will be in the beautiful Smokey Mountains on a trail avoiding marauding bears on that weekend.

So, I have created a "MOT 2007 Photographers" group in my Flickr account to receive your photo uploads, and should be able to forward them to the magazine that evening. Here's what you need to do if you don't already have a Flickr account: PM me your email address, along with the exact spelling of your first and last names for photo credit. I will then email a Flickr "invite" for you to join the group. I believe you will need to establish a free Flickr account to join the group. Make sure you use something close to your real name for your Flickr account name so that I know from whom the image is being sent.

Once you have established your own account and have joined the "MOT 2007 Photographers" group, you can upload photos to your account and submit them to the group. I suggest going through this process and submitting one photo to the group. Then, email me (address will be in the PM I send to you) to let me know you have done so. I will check to make sure the photo is in the group and email you back.

Please try to do this as soon as possible so we can get all the issues sorted-out BEFORE MINIs On Top.

Also, those who wish to shoot on the Auto Road (and who have received one of the 200 spots "on the top") will be allowed to go up with the observatory group. Of course, you can elect to go up anytime after that as well. See me at the MOT Information Tent to get an Auto Road Photographer's Pass that will allow you to join the observatory group.

You are free to station yourselves at any safe spot on the Auto Road. Just make sure the spot : (1) allows you and your MINI to be well off the road, (2) provides good photo angles and composition for an "up close and gritty" theme to your shots, (3) allows plenty of territory for you and your MINI to move without an unexpected descent to the Base.

PMs are coming...

Theo

[jwardell]

Quote: Originally Posted by Theo (original)

You are free to station yourselves at any safe spot on the Auto Road. Just make sure the spot : (1) allows you and your MINI to be well off the road

I guess we'll have to get more creative this year if we want to capture Ivan's antics

You already know me as jwardell on flickr.

[snid]

New people with free flickr accounts, be aware that there are limitations on how much you can upload (per month?) with a free account. There are probably some other limitations that will get in the way (max photo size?)

So, umm... flickr might not be the best solution for this for some people.

[chs4]

Good point Jason. From the Flickr FAQ:

Quote:

How many photos can I upload for free?

When you have a free Flickr account, you can upload 100MB worth of photos each calendar month. This is a bandwidth limit, and not an amount of space that you have on Flickr servers.

Your bandwidth allowance is reset to zero at midnight in Pacific Time Zone (Flickr headquarters time) on the first of each calendar month. You can't recover any of your monthly allowance by deleting photos. If you have a free account, you'll see your limit on the upload page.

If you find yourself hitting your limit, try a Pro account. Or, you can shoot your photos at a lower resolution or resize them to be more "web-friendly" (like 300KB instead of 5MB).

At full-res my photos average around 3.5MB, so that's roughly 30 photos. If nothing else I guess it will make me more selective in the photos I submit.

[Pamlico]

Quote: Originally Posted by chs4 (original)

Good point Jason. From the Flickr FAQ: you can upload 100MB worth of photos each calendar month.

Picasa instead of Flickr perhaps? Allows 1 GB of storage so more dreck for Theo to dredge through while away . It's free so no upload restrictions. I don't use Flickr so I can't compare the two.

- dl

[GBMINI]

Quote: Originally Posted by chs4 (original)

At full-res my photos average around 3.5MB, so that's roughly 30 photos. If nothing else I guess it will make me more selective in the photos I submit.

That sounds like a benefit to me - a benefit for Theo at least!