Frequently asked questions.

What's the big counter in the top right corner for?

At some point we have to cut off submissions to the project. The counter is counting down to that point. When submission closes, anything you've uploaded is in the running to be used in the book or on the DVD. That means you no longer have the ability to delete or edit your photo. Up until that point you can delete your photo and we won't use it in the book, but after the deadline passes, if your photo is still online, we'll use it in the book if it garners enough votes.

Once the counter reaches zero for the submission period, vote week begins! During this final week no more new photos can be added. Instead, it's up to you to vote for as many photos as possible to really shape the book/DVD into what you think it ought to be. It's the perfect time to get all of your friends and family to vote like mad for your photos. Once the vote week is done, the project heads to production phase. You'll still be able to view all of your photos, but you won't be able to cast a vote. It's at this time we start on the layout of the book. We take a look at all the photos you've picked as the best and put them in the book. Also when vote week is over, awarding of prizes begins. It'll take us a few weeks to get a hold of everyone, but keep checking your inbox (you did give us a valid email address, right?). We'll let you know if you're a winner. The last thing that happens when the countdown reaches zero is the contributor discount goes away. So, be sure grab your copy of the book/DVD before you miss out on the opportunity to save!

My login isn't working. Can you help?

Eek! We sure hope so. There's a lot that could go wrong with logging in. If you have your username and password wrong, you will see a message that says, "Login failed." If you didn't get that error, but still can't sign in, or if you already tried resetting your password, then it's likely an issue with cookies. No, not the chocolate chip kind — the kind your browser stores (required to use this site). We created a magic button to try and automatically fix cookie issues for folks so try that first.

If you tried our magic button are still unable to sign in, there are a few other things you can try. Our site requires that cookies be enabled, so if you have cookies disabled or have any kind of custom security settings for your internet browser you may need to change those to the default (or normal) levels and enable cookies. It is also a good idea to clear all cookies and cached files before attempting to log in again. You can usually find all of these settings in "Internet Options" in your browser's "Tools" menu. Another potential problem is any kind of anti-virus or firewall you may have installed on your computer. While these are generally a good thing and help keep you secure and bug-free, they may have settings which are preventing you from accessing our site. Try adding our address (http://www.capturecincinnati.com) to the "allowed" list in your settings.

What's a pixel, and how do I know if I have enough of them?

A pixel is a unit of measurement. It's what computers use to measure image sizes. We require your photos have enough pixels to print in the book. So what's enough? It would be best if you would upload images of at least 2000 pixels on its longest side, but we will accept anything that's more than 1 megapixel (although a 1 megapixel photo would have to print about two inches wide). To find out how many pixels your image has, open it in a photo editing, or photo viewing application. Most applications should have a straightforward menu system which should lead you to "image dimensions," "image size," or "get info." Once there, you should see the width and height of your image in pixels. Bigger (or more pixels) is always better, so just upload the largest available version of your photo. We will accept all photos (even really small ones, down to 1 megapixel), but a photo is more likely to end up in the book if it's bigger.

Should I upload one photo multiple times and put them in different chapters?

No, you shouldn't. Each photo can be entered in one chapter, and one chapter alone. Now if you've got a photo that's a little different and you want to put that in another chapter, that's fine, just don't upload the same photo more than once.

Is there a limit to how many photos I can upload?

Sorta. But it's for your own good. We don't limit the total number of photos you can upload over the course of the project, but we do limit the number of uploads in a single day to 30. The reason for this is simple: quality control. The benefit to you, the photographer, is that voters tend to dislike photos that look similar to other shots they've seen. We watch voting trends and the bottom line is the fewer photos you submit, the more likely voters will like your stuff. So choose your best photos only!

Can I delete my photo?

Yes. There's a delete button on your photo edit page. You can delete it any time you'd like before the deadline passes (see top right countdown). At that point we start laying out the book so your photo can't be taken out of production.

What's a gold star?

We want you to publicize your photos. We want you to get oodles of votes. To help you, we created a whole page dedicated to sharing yourself and your photos. At the top of the share page, you'll find a box ready to accept email addresses (separated by commas). Enter your friends, your family, people you work with... whoever you think would be interested in voting for your photos. You get credit for each real person you email. The email you're sending contains one of your photos and a link to signup and come vote for your photos. If a person clicks the link in the email and signs up, you get a gold star! It's a way to know that a particular person signed up as a direct response to your share. Fun huh? Along the way we'll be doing some challenges for shares and gold stars. Keep track of your shares and gold stars on your user profile page. Oh and don't try to trick the system by signing up bogus email addresses and such. We've got computers tracking all sorts of site activity, so we'll figure out who's trying to cheat and give them a kick in the pants (and off the site).

What about attribution? I want my credit!

We understand, and we agree. Everyone deserves proper recognition for their contribution. In the book, on the DVD, in promotion, and on the website, your photo will always be credited to you. In addition, we provide a way for you to promote your website, if you have one. Simply fill out the website line on your user profile page. Our plan is to include all photographers names (and their websites) in the book.

Can I steal photos?

Ha! If you think you should steal, perhaps you ought to leave, or go hang out with the fishy types. Using someone else's photo for anything is not okay. Photography is an art, and it takes a lot of work. If you want to use a photo for something, pay a photographer. Don't loot photos here!

Will you edit my photo info?

We'd prefer not to, but we will be looking for grammar and spelling mistakes. We're human too, it happens to us just like it does you. Otherwise, we won't be changing the information about your photo. We'd ask that you pay special attention to the details in your captions. If your caption tells us your photo is of your cousin Sally, we pretty much have to believe you. So far as the details of your photo, the caption you give us will appear "as-is."

How much post-processing can I do to my photos?

This is an art book, so we're open to some amount of digital enhancement, but we'd prefer not to get into the "digital manipulation" realm. Don't turn your photo of a dog into a photo of a dog eating your uncle George. Don't spend 45 minutes in your photo editing application making an unrealistic scene. Don't make your photo look like a painting. Just don't mess with it too much. Use your own judgement but remember that other people have the ultimate call, and they're not going to vote for a photo that doesn't look real. Cropping, toning, contrast, removal of dust spots are all examples of appropriate digital enhancement.

Why is the vote flow so random?

Because we hit the shuffle button... and because random is fair. Every photo uploaded deserves a fair shot at getting views, votes, loves and comments. So when you vote for a photo, you are taken to a completely random photo. Vote for that photo and another random one is presented to you. That way, views (and thus, votes) are spread around evenly. There is one caveat, however: the vote flow does not include photos that fall into the bottom half, score-wise, as determined by the voters. It takes some time to fall into the bottom half, though. We give each photo a fair shot at the start, but if it gets a bunch of "nix it" votes without getting some "dig it" votes, the voters don't like it so it's pulled from the vote flow. It's still accessible in every way other way. It still shows up on your profile page and you can still share it with your friends. It can still be voted on too, so it would be a good candidate for sharing. Ask your friends to vote for it so it can get back in the vote flow! Why do it this way? It's simple: if a photo is nixed consistently, by a large group of people, over the course of time, there's no reason for that photo to be a part of the flow. It's only going to garner more "nix it" votes, so why go through the trouble?

What's this "greatest" and "freshest" thing?

It's the way we sort photos to make them easily viewable for you. Freshest is really simple. In any given list, it's the most recently submitted photos. They're new and need your support! Greatest is a little more complicated. We have a complex algorithm that determines which photos are great. It's a combination of a lot of variables. What variables? It's a secret. If we told you, would it make the contest more fun? Probably not. This isn't supposed to be a numbers game. This is supposed to be fun. The basic principle behind Greatest is that photos people dig are great, ones they don't, aren't. Now get out there and start voting for photos.

What are the specifics of the algorithm?

It's a secret, but the principles are easy to understand. Everyone gets a fair shot at winning prizes and getting published in the book. The algorithm takes all possible variables into account to ensure everyone gets a fair shake. Whether you enter your photo at the beginning or end of the contest you've got an equal shot at winning and getting published. You'll see this reflected in each chapter's "greatest" photos: the best photos from any given chapter are a mix of photos that have been up for a while and photos that are new to the party. The basic thing to remember is that views are good, but they are better if they turn into votes. Oh and of course "Dig It" votes are good, and "Nix It" votes are not so good... but you figured that out on your own, right?

Where's my stats?

We give you all sorts of numbers so you can generally gauge how your photos are doing (but keep in mind this isn't supposed to be a numbers game). On each one of your photos' pages, you'll see three numbers. The first is views, which is the total number of times the photo has been viewed, although we do account for gratuitous refreshing and such. The second number is how many loves the photo has received. Loves are nice, but it doesn't impact a photo's score the same way votes do. A photo's score is based on a super-secret algorithm. The third number is the number of comments the photo has generated. Also on your user profile page we tell you your top three photos as decided by the vote (note that you must have at least four photos uploaded to see this because... well... how much sense does it make to show you a top three when you only have three?), as well as show you all of the activity on your photos.

What's this green box on some of my photos?

On your profile page we give you a chance to see your photos ranked by number of votes placed. We don't tell you whether or not those votes are "dig it" or "nix it" votes on purpose. We don't want to turn this contest into a numbers game a math wiz could win. It's about photography, not math! So, to show you which of your photos people generally like the most (at least recently), we highlight it with a green box. See it in action in the votes tab on your profile page.

Who can see my stats?

You. Only you - unless you have someone looking over your shoulder. We show you your views, total votes (both up and down), and comments for each photo on each photo's page. We also show you your top three photos (as decided by everyone else) on your profile page. This is info only you see.

What's this about a special contributor discount coupon?

We want to say thanks for your help. Whether that help be in the form of photos you've uploaded, or votes you've cast, we want to be sure you know how valuable you are to us. If you upload one photo or more, or vote for 150 photos, you'll receive a coupon worth $5 off the book. Go ahead and use it on every book you buy. Plus, you can combine it with the pre-sale discount, which means you can buy the book and DVD for $15 off the retail price! This offer is good until the project closes (October 01, 2008).

So is there two different $5 discounts?

No. There is only one discount, but we provide two paths to get there. You can either upload a photo and get the $5 discount OR vote for 150 photos and get the $5 discount. You can't combine the two.

So there'll be photos from The Enquirer in the book?

Yes. Our photographers work very hard to document our area. Over the past year they've captured many significant events, important people, breath-taking scenery, and so on in pictures. It seems fitting to include their pictures in the Capture Cincinnati book. We've put their photos into the normal flow of the website. We hope you'll vote on them just like you would any other photos. At the end of the project, we'll put the photos you think are best in the book (from both the public and The Enquirer). Note that newspaper photographers are not eligible for any of the prizes.

Can I vote for a photo more than once?

No. Don't try to cheat either.

Is the voting system legitimate?

Yes. You can't cheat. We've built in all sorts of ways to ensure a fair vote. And don't think we're not checking things personally. Computers and algorithms are great, but at the end of it all, we've got folks looking over votes to make sure everything is square.

Can I sign up more than once?

You think that'd be fair? Come on, don't be fishy. Sign up once. Vote for your own photos once. This is a fun contest where cheaters won't prosper. We've got schemes to track fishy folks. Our computers keep track of all sorts of site activity. When something seems off, a little birdie tells us who's doing what, and how long it's been going on. We'd hate to do it, but we may be forced to remove a user, or group of users, if said birdie informs us of cheating activities.

What's on the DVD?

Everyone! It's the biggest photo party of the year and all contributors are invited. The best photos are going in the book, but we think every contributor has at least one photo that's worth looking at. So, we plan to include at least one photo from everyone on the DVD. It's going to be the type of DVD you pop in to your DVD player, kick back, relax and take it all in. It will be split up into chapters and have a nice bit of music as a backdrop. The DVD is included with the book, so the pricing you see includes this great photo party DVD.

When will the book be available?

Soon! That's sorta vague huh? The current ship date is scheduled for November 24, 2008, so you'll be able to give a copy of the book/DVD to all of your friends and family for the holidays. We'll keep you updated on the ship date if it changes.

When does the pre-sale discount end?

This may change, but plan for the discount ending on October 01, 2008.

FYI