I'd like to announce that the Toronto Area Photobloggers have now have a google group. If you would like to be kept up-to-date on the going ons in Toronto as well as discuss other photography issues in the city please feel free to join.

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I got this email the other day and I thought I would share it here.

I figured it's probably a question asked by a lot of people who are looking to set up a photoblog for the first time. My response to the email follows and I think I touched on a few basic points which I thought I would share. Of course this is a very basic primer, for people deciding if they want to start a photoblog and what things they should consider. It is not an indepth analysis of blogging software. Ultimately you need to find which one is the best match for you.

Hi Rannie, I was turned onto your website by Chris Klugman and would like to get more information on how the site works and how to get my own photo blog. I've been taking photos for years and now interested in showing my work to others and hopefully, one day, to sell my work. Any information or assistance would be appreciated.

Thanks

My reply

Okay basically most photoblogs run on some sort of Content Management System (CMS). Some of the popular ones include blogger, movable type, typepad, my-expressions, wordpress, pixelpost.

These can be broken down into two categories.

Systems that run on your own server space or services that run on someone elses server space.

Blogger, typepad and my expressions are all service that you can sign up for, with a minimal fee (blogger is free) and you can start posting right away.

http://www.blogger.com
http://www.typepad.com
http://www.my-expressions.com

Movable type, wordpress and pixelpost you need to install on your own server, a daunting task if you are not that website savvy. But this is always a good choice as it is much more flexible once you have everything set up.

http://movabletype.org
http://wordpress.org
http://www.pixelpost.org

http://www.photojunkie.ca (my site) runs on movable type and is a very popular choice among photobloggers, but that doesn't mean it is right for you.

There is no right or wrong solution, it all really depends on your situation and what you want to do and how much you want to spend. It also depends on your ability to install, or get someone to install, the CMS on your own server. Please note that there are a slew of other CMS options for blogging and photoblogging, the six listed above are just a sampling of the more popular options.

Here are things to consider.
- How much do you want to spend?
- What features are important to you?
- How much customization do you want to do?
- Hosted on your own server or hosted elsewhere?

All the software listed above can basically do the same thing, but there are advantages and disadvantages to each CMS. Check out the links provided for more detailed info on features and costs.

I would also suggest surfing around on http://www.photoblogs.org and checking out the various photoblogs online. Take note of aspects that you like and dislike about each site (not necessarily the quality of the images, but based on site usability and features). Also take note of what CMS they are using. It usually isn't that hard to figure out as
most people include that information at the bottom of their site or on their "about" page. If you know your really want a site like "X" chances are the CMS they are using may be right for you.

That aside, once you have your CMS set up, publishing to your site is fairly easy. Basically you upload your photo and input and accompanying text, titles and categories (if applicable)and hit publish. If everything is set up properly, then the CMS will update your website placing your newest photo on the main page and create the appropriate archive pages for that photo.

Most photoblogs are set up with a one image a day format, only showing the most recent image on the many page with navigation buttons available for you to surf backwards to see older photos.

There are also sites that feature more than one image on the main page, often showcasing several images from the past few days for your visitors enjoyment.

My question to you is the following? Are you looking to create a regular portfolio site? or do you want your site to be more fluid, showcasing new work all the time. Both methods showcase yourphotos, but in a very different manner...

Of course there is so much more I can get into here. but this is a short primer to get you thinking about how you want to set up your own photoblog.

Once you have decided exactly what you want and how much time effort and money you want to spend, I can point you in a more clear direction.

Cheers
Rannie

Did you know there was a mailing list for the Toronto Area Photobloggers? Well now there is. The list is a quick and easy way to interact with other photobloggers in and around Toronto.

Often people discuss things happening in the city, buy or sell items, or ask general questions which are usually answered fairly quickly.

For more information on the list or to sub or unsub from the list click here.

One of the cool features on blogware is being able to create your own profile once you have signed up for a reader account. Creating a profile allows you to share a picture of yourself and other info such as your website address and your email. Also your profile is global, so you can leave comments on any other blogware site and they can reach the same information.

I was talking to Davin last week about being able to update you profile. And now it is one step easier as there is a hyperlink in the title bar allowing you to update your profile. Click now, it only takes a minute or two to set up.

Here is a TIP. when you add your website address, flag it as Public.

Did you know that you can subscribe to the Toronto Area Photoblogs site. If you have a reader account, it's quick and easy. In the header bar there is a hyperlink for subscriptions (or click here). You will then be given the option to choose which parts of the site you want to subscribe to.

You can easily choose the whole site, if you want to be notified of any new postings, or you can be more specific and choose specific categories (ie, just be notified about TAP events).

The nice thing about the blogware system is that you can decide between email notifications or subscribe to one of the many RSS feeds.

Feel free to steal this.



Please save it on your own server. All links can point to http://toronto.photobloggers.org

Also feel free to design other buttons if you like.

You can request to be added to our blogroll at anytime.

There are two way to be added to the blogroll, leave a message on this post or email your requests to photojunkieATgmailDOTcom .

Please indicate that you are a photoblogger.

Please note that it still may take  a few days for your request to be processed.

Posting to the Toronto Area Photblogs site is open to anyone listed in the blogroll and is highly encouraged.

It's all a matter of opening up a reader account and sending us your account name.

Setting up a reader account also enables you to leave comments to any posts on the site.
Once you have set up your reader account  leave a comment here or email us at photojunkieATgmailDOTcom with your account name.

Did you know that you could post pictures on the Toronto Area Photoblogs site? It's plain and simple. And it's a great way to share your photos with a large audience.

Here is how you do it.

Login into blogware at http://www.blogware.com/admin or click on "post new entry" at the top of the TAP page.

At the top of the Blogware page, choose a post type. In this case it will be "photo". Browse through your hard drive and select which photo you would like to upload.

All photos should be a maximum of 700 pixels wide. Anything over will automatically be resized. These should be jpg files.

You can also upload a group of pictures by saving them all in a zip file. If this is the case, you will choose the zip file to upload. Blogware will automatically post all the pictures as individual posts into the "album" you have choosen.

On the right hand side of the picture upload page, choose "photoblog" as the album. In the future there will be more category options especially for group events and such.

Click "Add Photo"
Add any Photo Captions and other descriptive text as you see fit.
Any new photos will appear on the main Toronto Area Photoblogs site on the left sidebar. Also you can view the whole album by going to http://photojunkie.blogware.com/blog/Photoblog

Happy Posting!!!