Photo Contest Support

[bradl]

I don't know if this even needs to be a topic, but if so I thought I'd go ahead and create it now to serve as future support or meta-discusssion about the monthly photo contests. 

I've been enjoying the photos so far, so I'm thankful for your support by participation  

[Dianne]

Great Idea!

NEVER can get enough of Cairn photos!

I thought I saw a note about October's contest could include costumes??? Halloween?

Today we dropped by our local Goodwill and they had racks and racks of costumes. 

In the toddler/child section I found one that could be adapted for Katie.

A few years ago I dropped in to our Goodwill just a few days before Halloween. It was like a boisterous party as the local high school and college students had descended to pick out their costumes for the upcoming gatherings. Such fun. So much posing, comic drama and  laughter! 

Enjoy!

[bradl]

October will indeed be a costume-themed contest  

[bradl]

Note to self for next year (or for any date-specific contest): set contest time window to run a week past the target date so that day-of photos still have time to enter and get some eyeballs. 

[sanford]

Hi Brad,

i just wanted to send this note of appreciation re the photo contest.

Although I'm gratified that Ruffy has won a number of first prizes, I am concerned that so many wins might discourage others from entering. But having said that, I also want to continue to contribute entries in the hopes that it will inspire others to do the same. 

(However, my dilemma might resolve itself because I'm starting to run out of pix in my archive)!

I'd also like to add that I find all the entries so endearing, I'm frustrated (in a good way), that I can't vote for more than 2.

Thanks for establishing this enjoyable feature, and for your attention to the upkeep of Cairn Talk. I hope the contest catches on as more folks discover it.

Wishing you all good things in 2020!

[bradl]

Thank you, I appreciate the kind words.

I too hope it catches on as time goes by. I really hope folks will come to see it as a low-key and friendly way to share their favorite photos on the regular, with the competition framework just an excuse and a means. The cure to your archive problem is of course to take more photos  

I share your feeling about the number of votes aspect. I also want  to vote for every one. At first I think I started with five votes each but what I noticed was that with low numbers of entries that led to massive ties and there was no way to stratify the results (as low-key as the results are).

One thing I have learned over the years with this forum is patience. Some things take months or years to reach critical mass or find their footing and even the successful things ebb and flow.  I do like to tinker though so I'm always open to tweaks and adjustments that might make things work better or be more engaging.  

Let's make 2020 a year full of Cairn sharing  

[bradl]

As an experiment to see if we can get more entries and more vote participation I've also added an additional contest that will run all year long. CairnTalk Cairn of the Year  Hopefully *everyone* will enter.

[sanford]

4 hours ago, bradl said:

One thing I have learned over the years with this forum is patience. Some things take months or years to reach critical mass to find their footing and even the successful things ebb and flow.

I had those same thoughts, although mine were based on no experience whatsoever! Also, I assume it takes time for folks to discover features they've never used before. Most of us are creatures of habit so we just keep returning to the familiar... not considering new options that arise.

As for your mention of "patience," for me, the life-long struggle continues. As the saying goes - "Lord give me patience, but give it to me NOW"!

P.S. I like the idea of "CairnTalk Cairn of the Year". For me, past contenders might have been Elsie and Dempsy on the farm, or Idaho Cairns Bonnie and Sammie. Perhaps also "Cairn Photo of the Year"? (But it might be too cumbersome for folks to scroll through 12 pix)

Edited January 1, 2020 by sanford

[Sam I Am]

Ok am I losing it or is my grey hair showing.....I can’t find where to post  a new pic on photo contest?

 

and Sanford post away...I love all your photos!

[bradl]

Browse -> Photo Contests --> Active Contests.

You'll get to the same place following the View All link under the photo competition block on the front page.

[bradl]

Some guidance on the Cairn of the year contest ... intended to be a dog and each entry title should be the name of the dog.  Don't forget there is also the monthly contest where pretty much anything goes (er, dog-wise ) 

The contest pages always include a link for the rules for each specific contest but I see I should update some of the collateral pages that reference COTY (Cairn of the Year) since a couple of the links bypass that extra info...  My error ...  I'll work on fixing that once my work weekend is over...

[bradl]

Oof, or maybe I should just relax and let Cairns be Cairns! I will edit titles to be dog names but let entrants be who entrants are. Carry on all you cute Cairns.

[Kathryn]

OKay, tried to get in the swing of things and think I did it wrong already.  Posted an Oban/Angus shot in "yearly" contest.  How can I move it to the regular contest?  This is all so confusing!

[bradl]

No worries. It's not technically possible for me to move an entry from one contest to another (although that is an excellent feature request that I will make to the developer). I'd just enter the other contest with the same photo. I can delete the previous entry. Easy peasy.