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Messages - ljooc
26
« on: March 18, 2010, 08:20 »
same here, it is now 14 days and counting. In the past it was 1-4 days at most. I am not sure if it is really growing pains. It would be nice if they fix a day a month like 123rf.
27
« on: January 19, 2010, 21:30 »
Simsi
tks for the instructions as well, it works like a charm now, I am using PC and since modifying the host file it has worked every time.
JC
28
« on: January 05, 2010, 18:12 »
I submitted my W9 in Dec soon after they made that annoucement and they validated it the next day. I am a US resident. I have also requested payment via paypal and that came through fine since with 0% withholding, guess I am the lucky few.
If you are so unlucky as to have 28%-30% withheld because you are not a US resident/no ITIN no/did not submit W8, depending on yr country's tax treaty laws with the US, you should be able to get some relief from having to pay that tax twice, by that I mean be given a credit against your tax liability (if you include yr stock photography income when filing tax return in your own country). I am a tax preparer by profession but I am not an expert and definitely not in the area of foreign tax treaty laws. Best to consult your own tax professional/CPAs/Attorneys in yr country.
JC
29
« on: December 22, 2009, 19:35 »
I have such a long way to go  . I just want to be better in my lighting techniques/take perfectly isolated shots esp and if time permits do some documentary photography of interesting people and subjects/places $300-500/mo would be nice, and pay for some of my gears, sigh
30
« on: December 19, 2009, 20:18 »
for the watermark, what I do is when I have an image ready for export, I select Edit -> edit watermark, type in the text u want, and save as a preset, give it a name.
then when u export, when the export menu pops up, scroll down and under the section titled "Watermarking", select the yr watermark file you want and hit Export, the exported image should have the watermark on it.
31
« on: December 19, 2009, 17:27 »
I can concur the program is large, and yes importing photos take forever. I have had to give up on using it a few times especially when the file folder contains large # of RAW files
What I found most useful is the Watermark tool, where one can create/edit watermark, save as preset and export with the preset.
32
« on: December 19, 2009, 17:14 »
I use Smugmug since May 09, like it thus far, I have the Power Package, good user interface, uploading a breeze, unlimited photos/galleries etc. You should definitely go with the Pro package that comes with yr own watermark, and allow you to set pricing, plus admin/assistant access, and a host of other useful pro features. For the price, you can have a professional portfolio showcase up and running in no time, as soon as you finished uploading images (with meta data) literally. If you enable external links, your images will be searchable on google image which adds to visibility, always a good thing.
I have a blog but on a blog one can only post a few images and even that search engines do not always index older blog entries and ppls expect a story with each image post (takes too much time). With Smugmug, the possibilities are endless: one gallery per client, tailor made, style, theme, as many photos as you like...
If you need a referral code for Smugmug, here it is ElJRFqKD8LPhA
jc
33
« on: October 19, 2009, 10:06 »
after having the best month at 123rf in Sept, with an EL, Oct has fallen off the cliff. Loading their webpages has always been painfully slow, that might have further contributed to the very poor sales since Oct 1.
How are sales for everyone else in Oct so far?
34
« on: October 09, 2009, 09:46 »
very nice, congrats, perfect photo for the announcement!
35
« on: October 02, 2009, 12:19 »
I think it is awesome that a Latin American country won the bid this time around and Rio de Janeiro definitely deserves to be chosen as the 2016 host. It is exciting
Congrats to all residents/citizens of Rio and Latin America
36
« on: September 23, 2009, 17:53 »
I use Rawshooter (I have the Rawshooter essential 2006 version), it is a freeware, can't remember where exactly I downloaded it from. It has made my post processing a whole lot faster. I have even gone back to my old RAW files of the past 2 years and cleaned those up.
You can select to view all your Raw files as thumbnails/or larger size, you can sort them (and delete the bad ones). Any post processing you make to the image is saved as RW settings, once you are happy with the result, you do the conversion, essentially it duplicates the RAW file and convert the copy, converted image (in tiff) is saved in a separate folder. Your original RAW file is intact.
If I can locate the URL where I downloaded the original software from, will post it here later
37
« on: September 21, 2009, 08:53 »
thanks Idambies
Have not quite decided if I am upgrading to Pro package just yet or exploring other options. If I do, will use yr Discount code
38
« on: September 19, 2009, 11:40 »
update:
now that I have disabled all external links on Smugmug, the two images no longer appear on the TagCentral link. It looks like the feed grabs a screen shot each time?
it does not solve the larger issue though.
if you have images on Smugmug, make sure you DISABLE EXTERNAL LINKS (under tools, customize gallery)
39
« on: September 19, 2009, 10:55 »
Adeptris, Elvinstar, and others, Thanks for your insight/info, this is definitely an eye opener for me (you would think I would have known since I knew about Ctrl+Print Screen and Snagit), I have been careful to post only watermarked images on my blog, and even that sparingly and none on Flickr and thought RCP on Smugmug was suffiicent until now. A rude awakening for me indeed. I just turned that particular Smugmug folder private for now and disabled all external links for the remaining folders. The reply from Smugmug suggested the same (what do I expect ), get the Pro package or upload an already watermarked image. The question now do I upgrade to Pro package, or pull all my work off Smugmug and just show selected watermarked images on my blog only, I have to give this some thought now.
40
« on: September 18, 2009, 23:17 »
if you right click on the image posted on their site, you can select Save As, so the image they posted can be saved.
41
« on: September 18, 2009, 20:59 »
yes, they do (Pro package), I only have the Power Package (which offers right click protect and disable print option, two features I thought were critical to start). I could have added my own watermark before I upload the photos but that defeats the purpose.
The Pro package is the one that offers the added watermark as an added feature
what puzzles me is that this guy is able to post a copy of the image with the link, how the heck did he get the image in the first place when you can't right click to save on my Smugmug gallery
It looks like I will need to migrate to the Pro package, I am waiting to see what Smugmug has to say about it.
42
« on: September 18, 2009, 20:15 »
I came across this site while searching to see if my photos are used anywhere. http://tagcentral.net/?tag=crayonhttp://joochianglee.smugmug.com/Other/Still-Life/7812213_tFzw3#505866851_AMkgKI have a Smugmug account and posted a couple of my photos there. All my albums have right click protect. Two of my photos (crayon and color pencils) appeared on the site, links are provided, but the images on the page can be saved by anyone if they right click!!!! I never sold any print downloads on Smugmug so needless to say I am furious as to how this is even possible. I just emailed Smugmug for an explanation. Note photos from a few other Smugmug galleries are on the page as well and that is only for the tag "crayon". Does anyone (any techie) know what Tag Central is about? and how they could "hijack" a copy of the Smugmug image?? please shed some light JC
43
« on: May 25, 2009, 10:15 »
The last time I requested for a payout about 3 weeks ago, it was pending for 5 days (business days). When I emailed them about it, I received a standard reply of how it could take anywhere from a week to a few weeks....... Anyway, half an hour after I received that reply, the money was sent by Paypal.
In the past it has always been 1-3 days at most. The last one was the longest. I am in the US.
Try emailing them if you have not.
44
« on: May 13, 2009, 07:50 »
I have about 200 images with them, I think I made payout only 3x since joining them a year and a half ago. Sales definitely have fallen off sharply. It was steady until Feb this year, March not a single download, April 2 dns, May so far none.
Like Madelaide, I have always gotten no less than $0.50 and many times $1/download. In the past I have had a few $3.
Am not sure what is happening to that site, they are probably having a tough time competing with the big ones in this tough economic climate. I have not uploaded any new stuffs for a long time. I would agree uploading has always been tedious i.e. categories/keyword as mentioned by someone. I like the low payout though
45
« on: May 08, 2009, 10:21 »
I don't think microstock has made me a better photographer, unless you mean better in the technical sense, then I would say perhaps yes. I now know what most microstock sites want, good isolated images and they are boring, dry...and you can crank them out with little or no creativity...it is a business to me (and they pay pittance for all that effort) that is the only way I look at microstock now.
I now do photography more for my own creative pursuit. I no longer think about stock when I shoot, most days, I leave my digital camera behind or I bring along my film cameras/and the Holga as well and I would shoot mostly film/slide. I enjoy it a whole lot more and am much happier with my photography
46
« on: April 23, 2009, 08:04 »
I started with a blog/photo blog of sorts, then a little while ago decided to sign up with Smugmug (was debating between Smugmug and Winkletdesigns and doing it myself using say Gallery 2.0, but I like features offered by Smugmug - right click protect, no print option, etc) My experience has been that a good blog actually does work to generate interests and referral traffic, as long you keep it interesting and fresh My URL's are: http://socalislandgirl.blogspot.comhttp://joochianglee.smugmug.com
47
« on: March 21, 2009, 08:41 »
- Merge layers, intensify original colors locally by soft light layers in orange and black, not by increasing saturation (= noise).
Good tip, thanks, that explains why my resulting HDR images have so much noise, because I increase saturation as opposed to intensifying the orange and black locally. jc
48
« on: March 20, 2009, 08:40 »
totally, can't agree with Konstantin Sutyagin more. Here is a good example of communicating with your suppliers (contributors) and letting them in on issues facing the company/industries and asking for feedback before acting.
I only have 100 photos on Alamy and only been there for 6 months, have not sold a thing, but Alamy's management has my utmost respect!! as compared to you know which one making swift unilateral decisions every few months.
49
« on: March 04, 2009, 08:37 »
If you are open to getting a non-Canon, check out the new Tamron 18-250 Di-II f/3.5-6.5 IF Macro. I got it a few months back and like it (most as an all around lens) The reviews have been quite good even by pros. Nearly all my landscapes are taken with this lens (I don't use the macro function as I have the 100mm f/2.8 macro). I actually got a re-furbished version from an Amazon partner and it came with a one year manufacturer's warrantly still for only $339 with free 2 day UPS shipping when a new one costs $479 or more. I called the company to find out what conditions, and why re-furbished before I placed the order. Turned out it was a lens they had rented out for a job but upon its return they serviced and put it back in the box. It was as new.
On a normal day plenty of light, the lens is very fast, otherwise, I shoot on tripod most of the time even outdoor, I find it balances my Canon 10D rather well.
On my blog the landscapes were all taken with this lens.
sorry to hear about your mishap. This depressing economy is certainly leaving its mark in every corner. Thanks for sharing your insurance claims experience, now we know.
jc
50
« on: March 03, 2009, 09:45 »
Pixart, Astrocady,
thanks for the feedback,
Maigi,
ah, that seems to be the case for me, if I don't use Denoise, and on smaller files, it works most of the time, still crashed at times. I think I saw your post/communication with Topaz on a web forum on the issue and they said they are working on it and no news todate. I am surprised I have not seen more posts on the "crash" issue on the web.
It is a shame, the software is nice if only they fix the bugs.
so you ended up buying the license then?
jc
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