To write or not to write when posting photos on Steemit? I guess this thought has crossed, at one point or another, the minds of many fellow photographers on the platform. I personally rarely make a post if I don't have a story to share along with my photos. I also like reading stories.
[IMAGE: https://steemitimages.com/DQmRGGkqVkf9VsGczGwkaVftVg7TXyKcEkvx5doeB2WiF9D/P1180476.jpg]
Recently, I stumbled upon a new Steemian who was publishing pictures with little to no text in the body of the posts. Beautiful photos, I must say. So, I advised him to add a paragraph or two to his posts, thinking that he can step up his game that way. Curiously enough, another person replied to my comment saying that he's super tired of seeing photographers filling their posts with banalities only because they must have something written. He had a good point - sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.
[IMAGE: https://steemitimages.com/DQmRM4BMnGumyKkjBQNnWePSP4QXWeGri4kGnNXu8b6bdGB/P1180479.jpg]
Having said that, I still think that the inclusion of text is a prerequisite for engaging with the readers. So the question for me is "What to write and what not to write when drafting a photography post?" What I most often do is write a bit about the process of taking a photo - how I approach my subjects, what hurdles I encounter, and how I overcome them. What I don't like is describing what's in the photos in such detail that there's hardly any room left for interpretation. Maybe that's what @kryshen meant when he said that many photographers write banalities.
[IMAGE: https://steemitimages.com/DQmRvZB6LVv5SCc1xoWYLMNKGqAE78Zru93hiTj23eaPJMh/P1180482_1.jpg]
I wonder what your thoughts are on this? Would you reward no-text photo posts and leave comments? Am I doing a good job at avoiding banality? Don't be afraid to criticize me :)
I hope you enjoyed my collection of doorbells.
Dan
[IMAGE: https://steemitimages.com/DQmNfLx9SH725etv7oJjuLF2BmGCvRA1zURAcVdCb38A2dX/P1160272.jpg]
You hit the nail on the head - I struggle with this constantly. I still have not found the perfect balance. I'm a photographer first and foremost, and I do enjoy writing little paragraphs with it to share how I experienced that moment or why my eye was attracted to something. But sometimes I wish for a 'photo only' (better and more interactive than the ones we have now) website on the STEEM blockchain too.
I now started to write little anecdotes without pictures in them. See how that works out. Maybe I'll end up sharing either (almost wordless) photo essays or anecdotes without pictures.
It's a constant experiment.
Thanks for sharing your struggle, we're not alone at least ;-)
Well, yes, you have a good point. If you have already established yourself as a vital part of the photography community on Steem, you can do such posts every once in a while. But as a new user, you need to engage with the community as much as possible.
By the way, I have been thinking for a while about starting a #NoExplanation weekly series where I post an abstract photo and ask people to interpret it :) What do you think about it?
Thanks for your feedback, man!
Ok, I'm not a photographer (Well, I take pictures - mostly of beer :-)). Perhaps some of the question is who your audience is. I really enjoy having some context with the pictures. I love listening to heavy blues. It's great hearing an emotional ten minute piece. To me, ten minutes of instrumental music leaves a gap somewhere. Even one minute of vocal in there gives some understanding, a framework of sorts that gives it all extra depth.
My vote, continue the dialogue with your photographs. I feel they add considerably.
Interestingly enough, I think a novel telling the story of each doorbell would be a fantastic idea. Have fun. :-))
Hey man, you make such a wonderful comparison with music :) I quite often listen to post-rock precisely because it doesn't have lyrics - I can interpret the songs in my own and unique way. But then again - depending on my mood - sometimes I only want to listen to songs that have vocals. So, After reading quite a lot of comments and the thinking about it, I came to the profound conclusion that it all depends. :)
Thanks for the feedback! I will continue to do what I have been doing so far :)
By the way, the idea about the doorbells is indeed fantastic! Thanks a lot for it; if I have time one day, I might try to write a couple of stories.
Oh well. Each to their own @irreverant-dan. 😁
Personally, I like to add the story behind the photograph if there's one to tell. Not so much the technical detail, because there isn't any as I use my phone, but what I was doing, why I was there etc.
Generally, I find that's what creates true engagement. However, I can see that it totally depends on what you photograph and if you see yourself as a photographer first and foremost, which I don't.
I find it hard to comment meaningfully on photographs that have no story behind them. You just end up saying the same sort of things over and over.
Having said that, I really like your photographs here. Great composition. I love photographs like this of ordinary objects that turn into art in their own right. 😊
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this, Gillian :)
> I find it hard to comment meaningfully on photographs that have no story behind them. You just end up saying the same sort of things over and over.
Very good point. I often find myself staring at some splendid images and wondering what to say. And at the end, I don't say anything because a short "Great image!" sounds like spam. Haha. I still write that from time to time, though!
I am glad that you liked the photographs. And as some other people here mentioned, there are a lot of stories to be told about these doorbells :)
Not being a photographer I've never really given this much consideration... I guess the issue only really arises because of the limited nature of platform as just a 'linear style' blog which does kind of 'demand' photos and text...
If you had more display options pictures only would probably seem more acceptable.
Nice photos of doorbells.. was that a deliberate inversion of the concept of banality of words into photos, although ironically you could probably pair those up with some nice evocative stories....
Very clever, and truly irreverent.
@ablaze | May 13, 2018, 9:41 p.m. | Votes: 1 | [
VOTE ]
For me, I do like a little bit of text, it doesn't have to be a thesis, but I do like some text, maybe just describing where the photo/photos were shot... There are some photos which are.....just wow.... in these cases, you can probably get away with no text, but I still feel less engaged with the poster... When someone writes a few sentences or a couple of short paragraphs, I feel more engaged, like I know them a little better through their style of writing..
I always like to see a bit about a photo - where it was taken is always important to me. And that can be dropped at the end of the photo with the camera stats.
I find writing difficult so I use quotes to create a mood or a theme. Other people's words.
If someone posts just a photo I'm not a fan. Or if they post dozens of photos, I am even less than a fan. Too much is too much sometimes.
I guess it comes down to personal choice. Are you blogging with photos or are you posting your photos like an art gallery - each still needs "something". I don't believe there is a right or wrong....just what works for the individual.
Too much text from you? or from anyone ?
Your posts are perfect. You put just the right amount of text information between photos and if I have a question I can ask - so it's a win/win. You try to engage your viewers which I like.
As for long text? I don't like it. What do I consider long? More than 10 minutes of reading. There are a lot of great posts on Steemit that are long and would do better to break the post up into a series.
But, to answer your question for real....I don't follow people who write too much text or post too many pictures. 😇
Nooooooooooooo. Does that answer your question? lol.
I remember someone asked me about this a while ago - somewho who did post that much and I opined that I thought it was a tough burden to put on their followers. Would he expect them to upvote every one of them, two of them? Or make them have to choose and worrying about offending. So I talked him down to two a day.
Personally, I don't know where people get the time anyhow. I have a hard enough time posting once a day and then replying to comments and then visiting other people's posts. Now that I am curating, it's even harder. Something has to give :)
When I encounter a lot of photos or a long post full of information I tend to skim unless I am interested. And that doesn't happen often on here. So yes, I believe out attention spans are shorter than years ago. Everything is instant. So why wait?
I visited that person's post who said he didn't think it was necessary to add content. And I looked at a number of his submissions. Beautiful photography but not inviting. Words are warm and an absent of them seems cold somehow.
Steemit isn't an art gallery with an anonymous name pinned on a photo. It's a social interaction platform as well as a place to make some money.
This photographer isn't branding himself. He isn't making much from his attempts - which is too bad bc like I said, he's very talented. If he added something, anything like where the photo was taken or why or something it would provide a conversation starter of some sort.
So I gave this a lot of though can you tell??? :) It was a very good question Dan. A really great one.
I also liked the idea of #noexplanation for a weekly challenge thing. It would be similar to that 7 day black and white one where we just posted a photo without explanation. Remember that one?
Hey, look at you! You are such a detective :)
> Steemit isn't an art gallery with an anonymous name pinned on a photo. It's a social interaction platform as well as a place to make some money.
I think this sums up very well what Steemit is at the moment. That might change once we start seeing different apps (like Appics, which was mentioned by @interpidphotos) that are based on Steem. Until then, we gotta write and interact with one another :)
Oh yes, I remember it! Maybe the idea of not explanation got stuck in my subconsciousness back then. By the way, I ended up adding text to all of my photos :)
Hrm... I get annoyed when I see photos with no text. I've come across many a post where there is nothing to tell you where it was taken, what it is, etc. Even on sites like ViewBug and Flickr, I'll at least write a brief description, so that interested viewers have at least a basic startin gpoint to find the information.
Nice photos, too! I remember using those push-calls in Spain. They're not very common here. The first one looks like it could use a little repair job!
Thanks for your feedback, Mark! Now when I think about it, I am less incentivized to upvote photography posts that have no text whatsoever. When you visit photography exhibitions in the real world, do you prefer seeing descriptions or stories next to the photos? :) The last time I visited an exhibition, I was annoyed by the A4 prints with explanations next to the images.
I'm happy that you liked the photos. Most older buildings in Sofia have such rusty (and probably not functioning) doorbells.
The exhibitions I like best in the real world have a card with a short description. Obviously, there needs to be a balance and the focus should be on the work.
On Steemit, I think it depends on your post, what you write, etc.
hat I'm more on the fence about is whether or not to include camera settings in my posts. On one hand, it does that it's not just taken from a Google search. On the other, is technical jargon and meaningless to non-photographers.
I have the same opinion as the photographer you mentioned. If you are posting travel photos it is natural to write about them, but if you want to post your photography work, I seriously think that text is totally unnecessary. If photos accompany or illustrate the story, OK. Flower photos-ridiculous to write about, most of the information is already written on the internet and you can easily find them, animals-same, street photography is self-explanatory... and so on... I think that photo section need to be separated from the main platform...if you look at the portfolios of professionals you don’t have explanations, photos are the best representation of their work. I write about my photos just because it is expected on this platform, but to be honest I hate it! That’s just my opinion...
P.S. just like in literature everyone has their own interpretation of a photo, too many words spoil the fun and artistry.
I really agree that you should write something - it's not instagram! But I can also appreciate that's difficult for photographers who express themselves through art, not words - it must be really frustrating. However, I don't think it can hurt to write a few lines just saying what the photo was about, how they (god forbid) feel about it, and so on. It's just a nicer experience and will likely land them more upvotes anyway, surely? Unless they are relying solely on bid bots and don't care about community interaction at all, which is kinda sad.
Saying that, I also like a series of photos that tell a story, which is better than just one too. And sometimes it's refreshing - reading gets pretty labourious too!
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts on this @riverflows! I appreciate it :)
Well, I am also more likely to upvote authors who put the effort into writing something. It doesn't even have to be a description of the photo - just some context as @interpidphotos wrote in his comment. And just as you say - I sometimes think that those who don't write anything don't care much about the community.
By the way, compared to other traditional social media sites and apps, Steemit is a quite laborious platform, at least at present, because most of us are both authors and readers. So, one should probably take that as well into consideration when posting :) You have to strike a good balance between not saying enough and saying too much in your posts.
I was just about to tell you that I am sick and tired of the "easy" job photographers have of putting old work on line to score a few cents. I seldom therefore upvote YET ANOTHER monochrome sunset or a favorite pet sniffing a tulip in your garden. But you change the game somewhat. Your photos DO speak tomes in and of themselves. They ARE little stories for they appeal to the imagination. (#soyrosa has the same knack). Few words ABOUT the photographs are at all necessary.
However, it may well be a case of there being TWO camps, so your idea of splitting off a photo-only section makes sense (although it sort of already exists with birds of a feather flocking together and not appreciating non-photographers visiting with their curious observations).
There are some of us who are better at reading words, and others only need pictures.
I am personally wary of photography (in galleries, museums, awards) since it can become too much like eye-candy and this means many young people are losing their sensitivity for narrative; things have to become very instant for them; they need total pictures which give factual proof of what is.
It takes an artist to use photography to teach us to see how subjectively we see, by training us to look at the works you make objectively. Only then will the photos start to talk and tell the stories you hoped they might tell. Your words are then a great service to us.
There are photographers like yourself who very much work on projects and assignments, self-reflecting, uncovering, exploring, to give us a Gesamtwerk, which may be hard to appreciate for its two dimensional proporitions. Photos then are careful choices that mean to share and care: they mean to form communities with their communications and inspire and stimulate others. Right or wrong, you may need to have to share your angle before we can all see it that way.
> I was just about to tell you that I am sick and tired of the "easy" job photographers have of putting old work on line to score a few cents.
In my early days here, I used to publish both old and new photography, but as I quickly run out of photos, I had to start going out and taking pictures in order to do a blog post. All of my recent posts have photos that are new and exclusive to Steem; that's how I create value for the platform.
> many young people are losing their sensitivity for narrative; things have to become very instant for them;
Would you agree that instant gratification is a much broader problem? I have the feeling that it affects (negatively) all types of art and aspects of our lives.
Thank you so much for this comment @sukhasanasister! What you said means a lot to me 🙇
