PlaymoFriends
Creative => How-To => Topic started by: Rasputin on January 01, 2009, 18:11:56
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I had a few questions to people reading and creating picture stories . I have been experimenting with the text options and am trying to find what is easiest for people to understand and that has a consistent flow. I noticed Tim W. uses bold text on top . I used to do plain text . Bill uses text on the bottom of the pictures with regular text .
The reason i am asking is there is a very wonderful influx of stories right now and would like to ask the readers what they prefer and or what is easiest to read / understand ? Actually there are so many picture stories going right now i have a hard time keeping up with the adventures. I find myself not wanting to post comments in the middle of a story . So thank you to all who are painstakingly entertaining us :wow:
PS: i have never attempted a poll so my apologies if it is all screwy :-[
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Hello Rasputin :)
Great idea ! Its a difficult one to answer to be honest and i dont know how to explain why i go to the top of the picture instead of below. I think its because i tend to look at the top first before going on to the picture below, it shows me what is being said before seeing the picture. I tend to use bold text to define the 'story' text as opposed to my none story related rambilngs at the start. I guess it also highlights what is being said a bit better than the normal font. I know when i am using different colours i have to make them bold to stand out more but that's probably just my screen or my eyes and others may find it irritating :lol:.
I wouldnt worry about coming in with a reply half way through someone posting a story. I tend to post place holders now so that it doesn't disrupt the flow. These are spaces for replys that i will be filling myself. If anyone comes in they take a vacant one at the end and not half way through the story. If i see a new thread i won't reply to it if the thread creater is still viewing it, so i dont pop in and disrupt their flow. I wait untill i am sure they have finished before going in. Chances are when i have finished a story off i leave a little thank you at the end to show i am done.
I hope this helps, like i say i am willing to change for whatever the majority prefer.
Tim :wave:
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Excellent idea regarding this poll Rasputin :wow:! I have noticed the differences too! It will be interesting to see what everyones preference is! Depending on the out come I will be changing my caption position & type to what the majority likes! I always figured it was easier for people to read it @ the bottom of the picture due to habit, & how I read captions under the pictures in magazines, & newspaper articles :-[. Plus you have brought another important issue up about bold or regular type. This should be interesting!
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I have to agree with Bill, I am used to reading the captions under pictures in books and magazines. It also allows me to scroll down through the picture and then read the caption.
Gepetto
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I prefer the text below the photo for the same reasons as Gepetto and Bill. Another option is to have the text on the photo itself.
A problem I find where the photo is "incorporated" into the post full size, is that often some of the photo is out of sight until you get to the bottom of the post and can use the horizontal scroll bar.
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Gordon , When i load pictures i have many options to resize
640 x 480 ( message boards )
800 x 600 ( 15 inch monitors )
1024 x 768 ( 17 inch monitors )
1280 x 1024 ( 19 inch monitors )
1600 x 1200 ( 21 inch monitors )
optimize without resizing
I usually use the 15 inch or 17 inch (if there is a lot of details) Check here (http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/index.php?topic=2810.0) for size diffrences
what size monitor i guess is a different question that may need to be asked .
The "having to scroll over " situation is annoying to me sometimes if it is a large post so i would also like to know what size is optimum for people ?
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Hello Rasputin :),
As for picture sizes i tend to go 640 x 480 all the time now. It doesn't mention monitor size but 640 x 480 tends to be suitable for all, even those on 15". I am not sure if anyone has any problems with scrolling across the screen when they are trying to view my pictures though. It would be interesting to know if anyone does have this problem with mine.
I have a 17" monitor myself and i do have problems with pictures set at 1024 x 768. This means i do have to scroll across the screen to view them properly. I have only just realised whilst writing this what it means when it says suitable for displaying on a 17" monitor. I think this is referring to you viewing it on a 17" monitor using a picture viewer, for example looking at it after you have taken it off the camera. When it comes to message boards and forums there is the border's to contend with, which reduce the amount of space on the screen for the picture.
I hope this helps...
Tim :wave:
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Maybe I'm a bit to generel (or even maybe to restricutive) in my considerations not only referring to photo stories posted in a forum but also installed on Web pages ... anyway my thoughts about:
I personally distinguish between two types of photo stories (at least those I make): the "real" photo stories (according to my understanding) and the illustrative or documentative one.
The first type does not need any caption because everything is included within the photo itself e.g. in a comic book style with speach bubbles (e.g. cf. here (http://www.jr-x.de/playmobil/projekte/abs.php?page=1&lang=en)). Arrangement is quite simple because you can post photos one after another (either on one page all or in a squence of pages, each single on one page).
This is the one I prefer because everything is compact and it's quite clear who is speaking an acting. I also like each photo to be presented on one page because you are not mislead for a preview by a simple scroll. Possible drawback: if during setup you do not have in mind where the bubbles later will be, there might be some details of the photo hidden; but if you are thinking before on the storyline and the setup this can be avoid quite easily.
For the second type -- illustrative/documentative photo story -- I use captions below like (as already said) in books. Reason for me is, that at this kind of photo story the picture itself stands in the foreground (e.g. cf. here (http://www.jr-x.de/playmobil/projekte/bbq.php?lang=en)), i.e. it could stand for itself and the viewer only get's some additional information by the caption, so it is not important if he reads it or not (e.g. because he/she imagines by viewing the pics his/her own interpretation or "story").
(For me it's quite "exhausting" to read photo stories where photos' content only differ slightly and you have to read a large paragraph of text below or on top of the photo to understand the picture -- in my eyes this is less a photo story but more a -- for sure also a good -- general story with illustrative photos where the text stands in the foreground; making a photo story I try to avoid this)
About the scale of the photos I use 580 x 387 pixels for presentation. This results from my general homepage layout and the fixed photo relation of 3:2. I think this size (round about) is still big enough to see all details but also can be integrated quite well into a homepage or to be posted in a forum. Because we are speaking about a photo story, in case there is the need to focus on any detail within this photo you easily can add another photo with exactly this detail view, so there is no need for a higher resolution.
The original photos I always shot with the highest camera resolution (and afterwards scale it down to the presentation format). Big advantage with this is that you can crop quite easily or even focus on some details without re-shooting the photo again. And if you have to do some retouching this is quite esaier in higher resolution photos and becomes after rescaling more invisible than when doing so directly in the presentation format.
Apart from more disk space (what those days isn't really exepensive anymore) I see no disadvantage in using highest resolution.
Pesonally I do not like to scroll (in the sense of scrolling down a page) when reading a photo story; I just want to "turn a page" or at least have the single pics be arranged like in a comic book. So personally I like a gallery-styled presentation where each photo is presented on one page and by click you move to the next picture.
Anyway, in a forum environment such an presentation is actually a littel bit difficult.
Refering to what Tim_W said about posting comments inbetween still posting the photo story, maybe it might be an option to post photo stories in the PlaymoFriends gallery: opening for each single story a new folder; navigation between pics can be done via the navigation; you can add captions; photos will be scaled/shown in a reasonable size automatically; continuing the story is still possible by adding photos and no comments will inbetween. Presenting the story would be in that way, that you post your pics in the gallery unhurriedly just as you like and just open a thread with a reference/hyperlink to the story. So comments would be on one place separated from the story itself. Just an idea ...
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Hello Everyone :),
It seems as though everyone has different ways of making photo stories and in my humble opinion none of these are wrong. There are going to be people who like it done one way and those who like it done another, you can't please everyone all the time. What i can say for certain is that photo stories done in any way take a lot of time to complete. I can usually spend a couple of hours in the garden taking pictures and setting up different scenes. Then another couple of hours trying to sort out the pictures i need or feel are needed to get the story across and in what order they need to go. Then on top of that i have to add any text to the story to bulk it out or explain whats going on. This has to be thought through, it doesn't just happen by magic. You need to sit down and work out what needs to be said and how to say it.
I don't happen to have much knowledge of taking pictures. Infact i just stick the camera on macro function and get them in focus and snap away. I am not the worlds best writer either. A lot of what i learned went out the window when i left school and that wasn't much to start with anyway. If people don't like what i do then that is perfectly OK with me, but i don't think its fair to start picking deeper holes in anyones work. At the end of the day its content for the forum, it makes this place worth visiting. I try my best to make my aspect of the hobby informative for all. If changing the text style and the way i place it on my pictures keeps people happy then i will do it without any problem.
Kindest Regards Tim :wave:
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Hello everyone!
I am going to agree with Tim_W in this matter. The task of setting up the scenes, making the individual pictures, choosing the final photos, arranging the photo's order, writing a text to go with the story, trying to make it interesting for everyones tastes, being as factual in subjects as possible, takes much time, & dedication! Especially when you're like me, not very computer suave! I don't know anything about speech bubbles, or how to consider nonfiction or fiction story types, I just like to do the photo stories in the fashion that I have learned with the help of Rasputin, & the kind reviews from faithful readers like; Tim_W, Gepetto, Rasputin, Playmofire, Firechief, Martin Milner, Abbot Hamilton, to name just a few, have given me inspiration to do more! The original questions that were asked was, where to place the text, & whether bold or plain text is preferred! Anything else may require me to sign up, & go to computer classes to learn more ways of doing projects, & then it seems like a job, not a hobby! As I noted earlier in the thread, I would like to know the majority's preferences as the text position, & type so I can make it easier for inspirational readers to enjoy. Those are the only subjects that I can easily change. BTW Tim, your projects are "spot on" :wow:!
Bill
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I would not want anyone to feel that where they place their captions in any way 'diminishes' their story or the time and energy they have expended in their creation. I would continue reading these stories even if the text ran up the sides, but we are creatures of habit and some things come more automatically to us than others (but we are also able to adapt quite readily when the need arises).
I am hoping the comments in this thread are taken as just a technical discussion of possibilities and not a judgement on the right or wrong way to do something that should be a 'labor of love' and not a graded assignment.
Everyone obviously puts a lot of time and thought into these projects and it is like looking into another person's workshop, very interesting to see how they perceive and work on things even if our perceptions and tools differ. The end results speak for themselves.
Gepetto
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Yes my intent is only to find what the majority finds easiest to read and understand . I am not looking for criticism on anything other than where and what type of text . I enjoy everybody's stories and was really just wanting to adapt my layout . I do not read magazines or comic books so i have no idea what and how they are laid out as an industry standard . I hope to someday be able to learn speech bubbles but for now i am limited to conventional text.
Tim W sorry my mistake i meant Little Jo you are far ahead of my abilities and i appreciate your comments but like many others i am "computer illiterate" 8}
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Tim W sorry my mistake i meant Little Jo you are far ahead of my abilities and i appreciate your comments but like many others i am "computer illiterate" 8}
Hello Rasputin :),
No problem ;D :). I was going to say my skills with the computer aren't that far ahead of your own, and then i saw your correction :) :)9
Tim :wave:
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I got the impression that I can read in the last posts a slight flavour of "disharmony" or "displeasure" or maybe only a misunderstanding about my contribution to this thread. Just to prevent any discussions in the wrong direction, I retract my comment from above. I didn't want to start any negative public judgement on other's work, how they present it, or about their computer abilities -- or even any further discussion about that. I'm far from this.
I thought comments on "Picture story text-style and location" are welcome and so I just wanted to share my personal general thoughts about photo stories; and because these are my thoughts for sure these do not have any objective universally validity, just a personal point of view. I totally agree with you Tim_w: there is no wrong way, just personal tastes. Also suggesting posting photo stories to the gallery instead to a thread was only a suggestion/idea (I've also posted in the past photo stories regularly to threads so this spontaneaous idea was no criticism).
In case I have offend sensibilities of anybody, made somebody "force" to have justify himself/herself about his/her work respective how he/she presents it, or make somebody feel that I judged his/her work as not valuable, negative, not laborious, or worse, I'm sorry for this and appoligze for. That was not my intention of posting here.
I only can agree that making a photo story is a lot of work to elaborate all the details, think out storylines, create setups, customize equipment/items, select and arrange photos, ... and finally post all the stuff for publication.
p.s.: Just preventative and before reacting on specific words or missleading sentence contstructions: I'm not a native English speaker ... you can judge me on my German but not on my English :-[
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(For me it's quite "exhausting" to read photo stories where photos' content only differ slightly and you have to read a large paragraph of text below or on top of the photo to understand the picture -- in my eyes this is less a photo story but more a -- for sure also a good -- general story with illustrative photos where the text stands in the foreground; making a photo story I try to avoid this)
Hello Little Jo :),
No harm done and no offence taken :). I think the only thing i 'misunderstood' was the paragraph that you wrote above. The reason i took a slight displeasure was that you had used small text to allmost hide what you were saying or to highlight you were not comfortable in saying it. That's the impression i got from the text size you used anyway, i guess it gave off a similar reaction to people using capitals for shouting. I don't know if that's just my reaction alone or that i am probably reading too much into it. Suffice to say it was the text size that caused a slight 'annoyance' for me. I guess the other thing that needs to be taken into account is that myself, Bill and firechief have been the only ones to post extensive photo story's of late. I guess you can't blame me for thinking that it was partly aimed at me :lol:
As i have said no offence has been taken and their is no damage done. At the end of the day we are all friends here, with the same passion for Playmobil wether that is modern theme's or historic themes like Romans.
Kindest Regards Tim :)9
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that you had used small text to allmost hide what you were saying or to highlight you were not comfortable in saying it.
Ah, ok, misunderstanding: I'm not using small size text for hiding something or naming things I'm not comfortable with, neither in business nor here. Instead, I use small font size in a footnote manner (typically footnotes in books are also printed in smaller font size): for remarks, additions, or comments to the main post, which only provide background/additional information and also can be omitted reading (like with footnotes). If this leads to misinterpretation I'll not use it anymore.
So this was only a small note inbetween with a personal point of view. No offend, as I said: I retract it; just forget it.
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I knew you did not mean to cause any disharmony Little Jo and I hope this misunderstanding will not keep you from posting your opinions in these matters in the future. I value your artistic and technical expertise in any language. :) :wave:
Gepetto
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Hey Ras
I like speech bubbles, done up in power point.
As for caption text for a photo-story without speech bubbles, I recommend that you keep the text short and place the text beneath the photo, so that the reader must pass his eyes over the photo to reach the text. When I read a photo-story, my primary interest are the photos. If the text runs too heavy, I skim or skip the text.
If you get rid of the photos, and the story still makes sense (ie. it reads like a prose short story), there is probably too much text...*
* Do I need to add the disclaimers that this is my own opinion?
-Tim
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Hello Everyone :),
It seems as though everyone has different ways of making photo stories and in my humble opinion none of these are wrong. There are going to be people who like it done one way and those who like it done another, you can't please everyone all the time. What i can say for certain is that photo stories done in any way take a lot of time to complete.
Hello Tim,
I have noticed your way with words in several past discussions ;).
Now to the matter at hand. I will quote what I originally said because I think it said it all to be honest. Unfortunately I am going to go back on that seeing as a few people have shared their opinion's and constructive criticism's on the photo story's that have been posted of late ::). The thread was originally intended to discuss text placement and to a lesser extent picture size. Rasputin has even gone as far as saying this himself and I know he didn't intend for it to turn out like this. It seems as though some people can't help but digress even futher into the realms of what they feel is the right way and the wrong way to do a photo story. It is clear that some of this is being aimed at my latest batch of story's. I allways try to be diplomatic and give credit where credit is due but when no one else bothers why should I ?
Speech Bubbles and Large Pictures:
Personally I am not a fan of speech bubbles in photo story's. I think adding a great big speech bubble coming out of a Klicky's mouth not only distracts the eye it spoils a very cleverly put together picture. When I look at a story with speech bubbles my eye is drawn away from the klicky and the background to the speech bubble. I end up not looking at any of the fine detail in the pictures and simply find myself reading the text. It works in comic book's and such like but not photo story's. Add to that pictures so big they mess up the forum page layout so bad that it compensates by adding a scroll bar and you have a recipe for disaster. In the end I usually see the one half of a picture that the forum has struggled to fit into the screen and leave the thread. I don't even take the time to skim through down to the bottom. I have a 17" monitor and it still can't cope with it. The rule of thumb is 640 x 480 repeat it to yourself over and over again and you won't fail ;).
Small Pictures:
I have noticed that some people use the forum to host their pictures straight off their computer (like I used to). Because the forum is hosting the picture and that takes up valuable space the pictures are displayed a lot smaller than normal. Infact a hell of a lot smaller than some of the 17" monsters that are posted here. I find people tend to skim half of these small pictures not even bothering to click on them and that is such a shame. I allways click on every small picture there is so i can view it in its larger form. The people who have added them deserve that for keeping them large enough to view without messing up my computer screen. They also deserve it for taking the time to add them for us to look at and share.
Paragraphs of Text:
I don't mind pictures with paragraphs of text, infact i really like it. It demonstrates to me that the person who is creating it is passionate about what they are doing. If i am interested in a subject i will quite happily spend hours reading it. If i am not interested in a topic i will still read it out of respect for what the person has done. It gives me an idea of their aspect of the hobby and what they get out of it. It shows me they have taken time to sit down and work things out, plan how things go together.
And Finally:
I think people are loosing sight of what actually makes this forum what it is. Without people providing content, whatever that may be and however it is presented this forum would be nothing. When Playmoboard split into two separate forums back in 2005 Playmofriends took with it some of the best and most active people in the Playmobil hobby. It is here they carried on this work and made the forum what it is today. If you don't like my work then don't even bother looking at my threads. If i want criticism constructive or otherwise I will ask for it :)9.
Tim ;)
No Disclaimer Required ;)
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I like all Playmo-stories. Can't say that I prefer one style of captioning over another.
I think it's great that different members have different styles of presenting things - it's usually a true reflection of their personalities which adds to the whole photo-story experience.
Being short of time, however, I have to admit that I sometimes skim text if there is a real lot of it and just try to read the stuff that is the most relevant to the storyline. Very naughty of me, I know. :-[
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I venture this post with some caution, but I do feel that Tim_w has misinterpreted some remarks as being aimed at him personally rather than simply being comments on the technique of creating a picture story. In this, he does himself and other contributors to the thread a great injustice, although in saying this I am well aware that reading what is written on a screen leads to a far lower level of comprehension than when reading the printed word on a page in front of you and so misunderstandings like this can easily arise in a screen-based debate.
In opening the thread, Rasputin is wanting to find out from members the optimum placing of text in stories so that they are as easy to read as possible, that is, it is a technical discussion on "how to". A further technical question, having to scroll across the screen to view all a picture is then introduced by me.
Little Jo extended the discussion, but still keeping to the theme I believe, by drawing a distinction between a "real" photo story where the picture is self-standing by the use of speech bubbles and the documentary type photo story where the picture requires some, usually brief commentary under it. He also introduced what I found the interesting idea of moving through the story by "turning pages" rather than scrolling down a screen, expressing a preference for this, but noting that in a forum it is difficult to do this. He also suggested presenting stories through the gallery which separates story from comments.
The next major post for purposes of my reply is Timotheos's where he says what style he prefers, adding that if there is a lot of text he tends to "skim" read and concentrate on the pictures, and suggesting that "If you get rid of the photos, and the story still makes sense (ie. it reads like a prose short story), there is probably too much text...". Possibly, this last idea comes across as a rather "throw away" statement and so may be open to misinterpretation, but it is, I think, a statement which has some logic in it. Maybe if it had been written something like as follows this would have been clearer.
" In fact, it could be argued that if you can get rid of the photos and the text still makes sense, then it is more a prose short story than a photo story."
In none of the thread up to this point do I see any criticism aimed intentionally at any member, although members may find general comments which may apply to their approach to photo stories, but there is a big difference between this and directed personal criticism.
Because of the sort of problem which has arisen I tend to steer clear of discursive threads where people express personal opinions or other preferences, certainly when tensions appear, but in this case I have stuck my neck out because I do feel that there is a risk that a number of strong contributors to the board may be put off from contributing in the future which will be a great pity, especially if we remember Rasputin's words at the start of this thread:
"The reason i am asking is there is a very wonderful influx of stories right now and would like to ask the readers what they prefer and or what is easiest to read / understand ? Actually there are so many picture stories going right now i have a hard time keeping up with the adventures. I find myself not wanting to post comments in the middle of a story . So thank you to all who are painstakingly entertaining us :wow:
Well, that's my personal view, now no doubt fire and brimstone will rain down on me from all directions.
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Hello Gordon and Everyone
I agree with you in everything you have said Gordon, we are very good friends and i can accept your words of wisdom whole hearted. I have apologised to Little Jo for the slight misunderstanding and why it occurred. Wether he accepts that apology is up to him and i expressed that there was no real offence taken and that if anything it was a misunderstanding. I was quite happy in the direction that the thread was going, until Timotheos added his 'opinion' to the thread. I think he chose his words very carefully indeed and knew just how they would come across when read. Infact i knew exactly how my words would come across when i wrote them, i read through them enough times. The bit about the 'disclaimer' on sharing an opinion simply poured fuel on the flames. I only hope that he is happy with the way he decided to approach the thread after i had allready apologise to Little Jo. It was clear that certain emotions were running high and in my opinion Tim's contribution started the whole thing off again. I haven't got a problem with people having an opinion but when it borders on 'criticism' constructive or otherwise it should be left out unless someone specifically asks for it.
I only hope that Rasputin does not feel that this was in any way a result of his posts. Rasputin had a very valid point for starting the thread and i thought it was a great idea. He was also very diplomatic in his approach (something i intentionally lacked in my last post). I had noticed the differences Rasputin highlighted and was eager to find out which method of text presentation was favoured by everyone. I am more than willing to add any text to the bottom of future pictures but what is actually written and how much was not the topic of debate.
Tim :wave:
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I venture this post with some caution, but I do feel that Tim_w has misinterpreted some remarks as being aimed at him personally rather than simply being comments on the technique of creating a picture story. In this, he does himself and other contributors to the thread a great injustice,
Hello Gordon :)
I left the last bit off your quote because i agree with it, but it wasn't relevant to my answer below.
I just wanted to add that i didn't feel that the comments were only aimed at me. I singled myself out so as not to single anyone else out. I was trying to be diplomatic and not bring anyone else into this, but it obviously didnt work as well as i intended. I must stress that i felt it was aimed at a couple of other people that have posted, not just me :). As i have said it is not my place to involve anyone else in this debate.
Kindest Regards Tim :) :wave:
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Thank you Gordon, I feel your post stated the situation very well and I appreciate your sticking your neck out. :wow: :wow:
Gepetto
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Hi Gordon,
Thanks for explaining what I meant. Ras, a friend, started the thread, so I was simply responding to him with my opinion. I hadn't read Tim W's post and regret that he mistook my post as something directed at him.
And, yes, I was mildly teasing Little Jo for feeling the need to add a disclaimer to his post. Little Jo is a really terrific, nice guy. And, I thought he was being faaaaaar toooooo nice, but clearly I was wrong! :'( :'( :'(
I'm a small-time, published fantasy author. The industry is brutal, and I've learned to think like my (mostly rejecting) editors. If the story doesn't immerse the reader from the get-go, the reader isn't obligated to finish. Because my attraction to photostories lies primarily in the pictures, if the text doesn't immerse me, I skim to the next picture.
However, a one or two line caption always gets read by me. I consider myself a middling writer, so I write my photostories with my own criticism in mind--the reader may very possibly get bored, so I'd better lure him/her by keeping the text short and keeping the illustrations interesting.
-Tim
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Hello Everyone,
I didn't realise photo story's were looked upon in such a detailed manner. Right up until this thread began to discuss our 'preferred' methods I allways looked at and appreciated what people were doing regardless of how it was done. I appreciate that any photo story takes time to complete and is a very laborious process. At the end of the day it provides content for Playmofriends and makes this place something very special. All of the different story's give a great flavour and variety to suit different people's tastes.
As most people started expressing their opinions regarding photo stories in general i thought it was about time i expressed mine. I am tired of trying to be 'nice' and 'diplomatic', because it doesn't work this day and age and it is not appreciated. Unfortunately when i expressed my opinion in my post below Tim's reply i chose to do it in a way i now regret, because that's not me. I have apologised to Little Jo for the misunderstanding on my part (because that's all it was) but unfortunately even though i used plenty of happy faces and smilies it does not seem to have been accepted. This is not my fault and i can't do any more about it.
At the end of the day i post my photo story's because i hope they are going to make someone happy or teach them something. I don't do it for fame and i certainly don't do it for fortune. I am not an illustrator and i am far from ever being a writer, so people should expect some mistakes. I have my own style and a certain way of doing things. One of the many thing's i did agree with Little Jo on was the fact that there are some story's that need a paragraph of text (i forget the words he used). I guess when i make such story's i shouldn't call them story's at all, because they are not and i think this is where confusion comes in. I think i need to reiterate here for anyone that has failed to read my apology to Little Jo properly is the fact that the only thing i misinterpreted in his post was his use of small text. By and large i thought he put things quite diplomatically and it was very well worded indeed considering English is not his native language.
I gave up posting photo story's along time ago for similar reasons as these and it was only through my project with Bill that i got back into them. I promised Bill i would do a set of story's for the forum involving the adventures of his firefighters here in the UK and it was a great inspiration. I really started to enjoy sharing my work with the forum again.
Unfortunately the way this thread has turned out for me has made me come to a regrettable decision. After i have finished the series for Bill i will no longer be posting anymore photo stories for Playmofriends. Infact i am in two minds wether to continue posting anything at all.
Tim :wave:
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Little Jo extended the discussion,
I whished I haven't done so looking at the ongoing discussion ... :-\
Footnote: Just wanted to bring in a personal point of view and some ideas ... anyway I learned to re-read more carefully with others point of view in mind, what never can be wrong.
Nevertheless this didn't "dislodges" me and still I keep continue posting my contributions (as long as the moderators didn't say I misbehaved and have to leave). In first line I'm doing customizations and photos for myself (and to be published on my Web site), and posting here is for sharing with the community so (1) that people who want and like can "participate"/get inspired/have joy/or even hate with it and (2) to make this forum a success and make it "live" by adding content.
Wether he accepts that apology is up to him and i expressed that there was no real offence taken and that if anything it was a misunderstanding.
I think I have to post this urgently just to make this clear: Yes, for sure I do. Sorry, for leaving a doubt about this (and reacting "late" -- I had to isolate our attic yesterday so there had been less time for posting).
I assumed and than was shown that it was obviously a misunderstanding. Nothing more to be said from my side. Forgotten.
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Uh, anyone care to discuss Cricket? I hear it is on the wain, but still smashingly popular in India and Pakistan.
-Tim
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What the hell . I loose my internet connection for not paying a bill and i miss all this in 3 days 8}
Come on now everyone this is a toy and pictures we are talking about . I surely did not want ( and i think nobody else does ) want members to stop contributing post's, treads and most of all pictures . why not tell me santa and the easter bunny do not exist . I eagerly look forward to all and any pictures and comments in this place . If not for us do it for them . I do not care if you take off the gloves with me sometimes i need a good whoopin :omg::whip: but not the children 0) seriously send me your address's and i will send some wine and we can all have a virtual drink together :**:
(http://img401.imageshack.us/img401/2874/p1010077mg3.jpg) (http://imageshack.us)
These are the ones that will utterly be disappointed as this is where
they are gaining inspiration for their own projects
How is the size ? 640x480 and text ? bottom, normal size, bold
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Uh, anyone care to discuss Cricket? I hear it is on the wain, but still smashingly popular in India and Pakistan.
-Tim
The industry is brutal, and I've learned to think like my (mostly rejecting) editors.
Hello Tim ;D,
If that's the best you can come up with i am not at all surprised your editors reject most of your work :yup: :lol: I tell you what just for you i will hang around for a bit longer, maybe you will be able to learn something from me afterall. Even if its only getting your pictures to fit the screen ;) :lol: I can do a 'How-To' guide if you like, after all we are all friends here ;) :)9
Tim :)9
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I tell you what just for you i will hang around for a bit longer, maybe you will be able to learn something from me afterall. Even if its only getting your pictures to fit the screen ;) :lol: I can do a 'How-To' guide if you like, after all we are all friends here ;) :)9
Hi Tim_w,
The how-to sounds great.
On the serious side, none of us are enemies here! :lol: :lol: :lol:
I'm seriously not an anti-Christ lacing all my posts with malicious innuendoes! :lol: :lol: :lol:
Ras is the anti-Christ. He killed a man with his bare hands once. Honest!
-Tim
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Ras is the anti-Christ. He killed a man with his bare hands once. Honest!
-Tim
I heard he'd thrown him out of a window!
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I heard he'd thrown him out of a window!
Were there any witnesses :hmm:?
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Not anymore! ;) Why? Do you know sumthin'? :hmm:
Gepetto
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Not anymore! ;) Why? Do you know sumthin'? :hmm:
Gepetto
No, but the last guy that did is sleepin' wit the fishes :evilplan:!
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640x480, standard text underneath, works best for me.
Bold text doesn't improve readability, and more than putting it all in capitals would.
Speech bubbles can work nicely in some stories, but like others I feel thay can also detract from a nice picture, plus I lack the technical know how and the time and patience to do them.
I'd rather see the full picture rather than have to click on thumbnails, as I've said before now. i find the thumbnails take me out of a story and interrupt the flow.
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No, but the last guy that did is sleepin' wit the fishes :evilplan:!
blub ???
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You will have to talk to my Lawyer. I do not know what or who you are talking about :-X
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You know? After this topic was mentioned, I think I remember seeing Rasputin's avatars picture on the Playmobil City's post office most wanted bulletin board :toot:!
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Bold text doesn't improve readability, and more than putting it all in capitals would.
OMG! OMG! >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(
This is clearly a personal attack against me. Especially considering my text is always bold (never craven, timid, or ambiguous).
What's the frequency, Martin? What's the frequency?
Fortunately, Rasputin, Anti-Christ, has promised me wealth, women, and an earthly kingdom in exchange for reciting devotional poetry dedicated to him every night before I go to sleep (it's a pretty sweet deal).
Ras, I want to be the "Earthly King" of England, so I can destroy Martin Milner, or at least have him lock himself out of the house on a rainy morning when he steps out to fetch the newspaper and his wife is on a business trip so she can't let him in. And it has to happen two days consecutively because he probably keeps a spare key and needs to have left the spare key in the kitchen after having let himself in the day before.
>:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D >:D
I never thought that Devil / Russian worship could be so satisfying!
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Oh yes, the sweet taste of revenge can be such a rewarding and lasting joy of the mind, but be warned, it is very addictive and may consume you ;)
On the lighter side of life , i am surprised that it is no easier to read bold versus plain text . What would one consider using bold for then . Yelling or important statements ???
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On the lighter side of life , i am surprised that it is no easier to read bold versus plain text . What would one consider using bold for then . Yelling or important statements ???
When I was working there was one member of staff of used bold, as it is designed to be used, to draw attention to important points, to shout, as Ras put it, in the intstructions she wrote for schools. (And she could shout, even when she was talking normally, although she was really a very pleasant and likeable woman.) Each year some new problem rose or else teachers ignored her bold instructions relating to a previous problem. As a result, every year there was more bold type and less normal type and the effect of the bold type got less and less, partly because it lost it's "shouting" effect but also, like capitals, it is less easy to read in large quantities.
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When I was working there was one member of staff of used bold, as it is designed to be used, to draw attention to important points, to shout, as Ras put it, in the instructions she wrote for schools. (And she could shout, even when she was talking normally, although she was really a very pleasant and likeable woman.) Each year some new problem rose or else teachers ignored her bold instructions relating to a previous problem. As a result, every year there was more bold type and less normal type and the effect of the bold type got less and less, partly because it lost it's "shouting" effect but also, like capitals, it is less easy to read in large quantities.
My point exactly.
"Why can't you hear what I'm saying? Am I not shouting loudly enough?"
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What I learned as an amateur writer doesn't necessarily apply to a visual, non-professional medium like photostories--
The "learn to write" books stress avoiding visual cues like bold or italics. All-capitals is an absolute dead end. The choice of words ought to convey the emphasis. Writing books even frown on exclamation marks as a cheap shortcut.
These books can run extreme, however (they have to be extreme to sell copy). My second-cousin, an English teacher, found my use of exclamatory sentences without exclamation marks jarring. [ ie: "You are mad, mad," he said. ]
That being said, multiple exclamation marks or multiple question marks are considered amateurish.
"What!? What?? What!! WHAT?"
But, our application, cartoon photostories, has less burden of "professionalism". If you want ten exclamation marks for comedic effect, I'd say it is appropriate.
But, yeah, crazy bold and italics all over the place can get hard to read. And multi-colored fonts are a drag.
We had a department secretary who would send snotty training reminders to the entire department in a rainbow of font colors, bold type, italics, different fonts, and anything an elementary school girl could dream up.