TE photobook: the return

[InasiaJones]

Daniel,

If you want to have this last advice, take the lead and build-up the project like you see it, that's it.

Just like for the organization of a TE meeting, someone build-up a precise itinerary, make some deals with hotels, restaurants, museum and then, present a definitive plan.

You don't argue, you just decide if you go or not. Participants don't say: "We should eat at noon, another one at 13h00 and another one at 15h00". Every steps are decided by one single person and we stick to the plan. The ones who like it jump in and have a lot of fun, the ones who don't like it stay home.

For this project, if 20 persons agree for a multiple theme books, then another one will say one book horizontal. Then a second one will tell you 4 books vertical. Then the next one will say it should be blue. Then another one will say it should be bilingual. Then another one will ask for an hebrew version and then soft or hard cover, with folio or no folio, table of contents at the end or beginning, photo of participants in colour or B&W. etc.

You will end up arguing for weeks with each and everyone (of course, everybody is well intentioned, that's not the problem), concerning each and every possible details and you will loose your enthusiasm in 2 days.

What you should do is call the shot. Totally, decide every possible details, no questions asked, because there will always be someone to say the opposite of the majority, there will always be someone who will see the world differently. We are 69 502 members, so even if you have the most logical solutions, even if you think about every aspects, even if you try to involve everybody, even if you are democratic about participation, you can be sure that others will see it differently, will try to complicate things, will judge you for making proposition or not taking theirs into account. It will never be a win-win situation.

Just do it your way, have a strong plan and propose it as in: "Who gets in, who stay aside". Not as "What do you think if...".

You'll get a big headache or an heart attack.

This is your project. Lead it. People will follow you, me the first.

André

[elihesamian]

All the night is passed with a strong words :
coffee coffee coffee coffee...
table table table...
book book...

At the morning I had a good breakfast at the table with a coffee and looking at a coffe table book :)

Yes,Coffee Table book Andre :)

***

the concept : just a year is good,2008,2007,2006,...

but we are still in 2008,therefore I suggest for 2007,then in future I hope in 2009 can make the concept of 2008.

Don't hurry for such a project,select and ask a member for manage it and making a team.

***

about cover,I can do it,but I know dear Andre is a professional in it,Therefore I ask and beg him for drawing cover.
let him to centeralize his mind and ideas for it,if he has time for 2 or 3 then...vote his works.

***

agree : 3 categories : People , Places , Architecture and Landmarks.
if need,then ...Poeple # 2 and....

***

less words in the book is better.

***

Count me in for whatever I can do for the project.

***
Good Luck
Mohammad

[elihesamian]

...
Agree with Andre about Daniel for leading the project.
...
M

[feather]

I agree with most of what Andre has said so far and also with Davids' idea about 1 big book. Until you know how many people want to participate, leave the actual number of books to be published until the last minute. As long as the categories suggested are adhered to for chapters in a big book, it would be a simple matter to place the entries in separate books if the final number calls for that. Do you all think that each individual spread should be from the same country and/or have some other strong link to tie them together? Also, I presume we would have to avoid the spreads going cross-category. I can envisage some people might have a portrait and a landscape from the same place that fit together quite well. Another pitfall to avoid?
Kath

[stego]

Forget the maths mambo-jambo... I also got confused while I was writing it. LOL!

I agree with Andre that Daniel should take the lead and decide everything. My experience taught me that democracy isn't the best system for making a project go on. All of us that are giving ideas should accept happily that they aren't accepted and the project leaders shouldn't feel obliged to read every suggestion and even less to try to keep everybody happy.

This doesn't mean that we let every work to Daniel. I offer my expertise: I work in IT and I think I can take care of mostly anything related with technology, from searching for on-line services to help us and configure them to build up a website from scratch if we find we need such thing, although this can pose me serious problems time wise.

I aligned with Daniel's suggestion on using the TE point system, because I think it is better trying to avoid that people see their participation rejected after they have submitted their photos. I thought that maybe setting a criteria based on TE points could avoid that too many crap was received. Then, if the received submissions at the end are all "good enough" we wouldn't need a voting system, which is something that can be a little complicated to set up if we don't find any free or low cost on-line service that can be adapted to our needs.

Hey, but I don't insist on this issue... It was just an idea...

It's not clear to me what is the use of the voting system in Andre's mind: we will decide with it which people get in or are left out? authors will appear in the book sorted by number of votes?

I totally disagree with the latter. The order of pages should be random or chosen by the designer based on artistic, aesthetic, geographic, whatever criteria he finds better suited to result well graphically.

I like the idea of one big book better than two thinner separate books. I don't think that we should impose any rule on the relation between the photos of the same author (like "same country"). It's up to the author choosing the most "harmonious" ensemble. Perhaps it's a good idea reserving a period to allow discussions and suggestions among the participants. We all know how important are others' suggestions and critiques sometimes. That said, the designer can have the last word, having the authority to impose his opinion if the necessity arises.

That brings me another issue that is that I find that it should be allowable to present more "candidate photos" than the number of photos by person. If this a group project, if I am not sure which of my photos deserve to be in the book, why not letting the community decide for me? This would require a voting system, of course.

[stego]

Categories:

Maybe we should consider adding a 3rd or 4th "mixed category" for those who want to include photos from different categories. There can be many of us that are more talented for landscape but are very fond of "that special portrait" and it's a bit awkward that it can't be in the book because of a too strict rule.

[Davids]

Jase,

the flaw in my proposal of "who pays is in the book", is that the book could end up with a low standard . . . and I completely agree with you to raise the question about this.

To make a long story short . . . why not ask Adam if he wants to be the final judge? . . . together with a few members he thinks that could help him? :)

[Davids]

bugger . . .
that's JOSE :)

OEPS

[crhieatt]

Why don't we all put our photos on the internet - then we wouldn't need a book!

- or am I missing something?

[jrj]

Colin
I think we are on Internet...but if you don't have a coffee table book, which is kind of important to some...
I'm not sure I have a coffee table myself, but the day I have one I sure want a book there...
See you in the book...