Hi Members,

On a regular base there are members who can't log-in. The solution is quite simple. In the log-in screen you'll see the log-in credentials and below that part is the part you can use when there are problems. Just put in the name you have been using to sign in and the used e-mail address. Then Phodia will automatically generate a new password. With that password, sent to you by e-mail, you can log in. After that you can go to My Podium, Change Password where you can change the received password into a password of your own. And then everything should be functioning as usual.

Theo, is still working on Phodia3 and I can assure you that it will be a very beautiful third implementation with several improvements.

I can report again that the atmosphere on Phodia is a very positive one and that there are no real irritations and together we should guard that mood and keep it that way.

With the help and ideas from Harold and Manu we have a new welcome-mail and maybe for other members nice to see that there's even a small manual in. For some members having difficulties navigating on Phodia here are the copies of that new mail in three languages.

gr. Rob :-)

Phodia3

Currently Phodia3 is under contruction. In this new version of Phodia there will be a lot of improvements.

Everything will be reprogrammed and the design of the site will have a metamorphose

The main improvement will be speed, this is achieved by the use of Ajax, not a God or soccer team but JavaScript.

1. Showcase(completly new and will replace the old showcase)
2. Monthly theme
   • There will be some improvement in how the result be shown
   • Voting will be done after all pictures have been uploaded
3. Photo edit
   • Better access
   • Also possible with picture out of the normal uploads (after permission by maker)
4. Better access to the photo categories
5. Mail functionality improved and debugged
6. Workshops
7. and much much more

As things look now Phodia3 will be launched in the weekend of 15 May.

Greetings Theo!!!

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Hello Mirjam and thank you for allowing me to interview you.

• • Q:Am I right in saying that you are relatively new to photography.
  • Mirjam:You could say that Lawson although I have taken many snapshots. I visited so many countries during the period I worked for KLM and just from this period alone I have about thirty albums filled with memories of the trips I have made.
• Q:What made you take up photography as a hobby.
• Mirjam:This came out of another hobby of mine. I have been painting for quite some years now and since I prefer to paint people and animals, I needed to take some sneaky shots from friends, family and their pets, in order to surprise them later with a finished painting. I then started to become more interested in photography as well and two years ago I joined Fotocommunity hoping I would improve my images with the advice of other members. This did not work out the way I expected it to, since most members just give you compliments and I only learnt by watching other member’s uploads and by comparing them. I also asked for the technical information of a picture in my mails to them. Among others Harold and Sue did help and advise me a lot for which I am very thankful. In the meantime I did a photography course, which I finished this January. Through Phodia I have learnt more in a couple of months than with FC in two years. Together with the magazines I buy on a regular basis I now feel more certain about my uploads and find I have improved myself, although I am learning more every day.
• Q:Like a lot of us in Phodia, has using your camera become more of an obsession than just a hobby.
• Mirjam: I agree 100%. This really is an obsession for me. The job comes first of course, but in the few hours I have left, I have to take care that I don’t neglect my social life or my house. I even sleep less hours because of this and spend too much time on the computer. I did some planning in my agenda but it didn’t work.
• Q:Do you have a favourite photographer that has been an influence on you.
• Mirjam:No, not just one favourite photographer. The ones who influence me are the ones who touch me with their images. I honestly find, that the feeling a picture gives me, means more to me than the technical part and secondly. Like art in general, it is just a matter of personal taste.
• Q:What type of photography do you enjoy the most.
• Mirjam:It could be any kind, as long as it moves me or it makes me look at it over and over again. The creative possibilities editing gives us nowadays enriches photography and I like it, but photographers should not just upload edited pictures and show the same trick over and over again. I love experimenting with it, but for me it should just be a part of the uploads. If I have to choose a certain type of photography, then the subjects are people, animals and nature in general.

• Q:Do you always have a camera in your pocket when you go out just in case that special something happens.
• Mirjam:Being on the road a lot, I always have my camera with me in the trunk of the car. Sometimes I forget it and then….this special something does happen and I feel bad.
• Q:Are you a member of a photography club.
• Mirjam:Yes, I am a happy member of Phodia and still a member of Fotocommunity since I have some FC friends there, who are really loyal and I like to stay in contact with them, at least for as long as I can combine them.
• Q:Are you a person that can get up very early in the morning to get a sunrise or some special shot.
• Mirjam: No problem, but I find I just do this in my free time, being away from home on a weekend or during my holidays.
• Q:As a photographer, are you a patient person who is willing to wait for the right light.

• Mirjam: I am not so patient in general. Always in a hurry, but I am learning.
• Q:Is there one place in the world where you would love to be able to visit to photograph.
• Mirjam: The world is so beautiful. I have been lucky to visit many countries in my jobs. There are many places I would love to return to and you know, beautiful places, you can discover them sometimes just around the corner. If I must mention a place then it would be the countries with the northern lights or the wildlife in Africa.
• Q: Are you a technically minded person when it comes to photography.
• Mirjam: No…not at all… Important for me is the feeling I get when looking at an image. But one can’t do without it, so…I have to improve myself there
• Q: Do you have any ambitions in Photography.
• Mirjam: The only ambition would be, that I want to keep on learning and improving myself and being happy with friends who share the same hobby.

Thank you again for your time in taking part in this interview and giving the other members of Phodia an insight into Mirjam the photographer.

Places to Visit

This month we visit the hometown of one of our Phodia Members, Bryan Crute, and I am very grateful to him for taking the time to show us around this beautiful part of England.

Places of interest within one hour of my home in Peterlee, Northeast England.

by Bryan Crute

Peterlee was built as a New town in the heart of the then, east Durham coal field. No colliery exists today but the coastline still has some reminders of the past waste dumping and scaring still remains on some of our beaches at the sites of these coastal mines. The coastline is rugged limestone and is a great place to look in rock pools for sea life and there are still long sandy stretches of dune covered beaches 5 miles from my home. Castle Eden

A 20 minute drive brings you to the historical city of Durham, a cathedral and castle city which affords loads of photographic opportunities.

A place well worth a visit. I took Sue and Harold there for the day.

A must for visitors to my area is the Beamish Open Air Museum, you need good walking shoes on, but the visit is well worth it. Set in a 1900 theme with trams, steam trains and a drift mine. Everything that was in this area at the turn of the last century Beamish

For bird watchers or photographers, within 20 minutes drive is Washington wild fowl park.

And a more natural location set in the heart of industrial Teesside is seal_sands.

Here is a quick list of other worthwhile places to visit Hartlepool historical quay.

Everything circuit for both cars and Bike.

Monthly Theme

The March Monthly Theme 'Still life' was won by Chuckie. His photo 'City skiline' won with an average rating of 7.2.

Following this is a picture from Sue Thompson

Typically English with an average of 7.1

Third with also an average of 7.1 (slight difference) is Marjon with her Dutch design

Congratulations Chuckie on your win.

The Photo Link Reference Library

I love using the Internet (you notice I don’t say surfing the net as I am too old to surf) to look at the work of photographers from around the world. By looking at their work I can enjoy the scenery of countries I can only dream of visiting, and I can also learn more about the composition of shots and get ideas for trying out on the landscapes where I live.

But mostly I just enjoy admiring their work.

The first link I show you is from an Italian Photographer whose work I admire greatly, see what you think.

Another photographer whose work I enjoyed looking at was the Belgian Bart Heirweg. His style in both landscape and wildlife is really moody . I love his use of light, colour and DoF and especially his use of slow shutter-speed in his landscapes. I am very jealous.

Steve McCurry is probably my favourite street Portrait Photographer. A man who’s work inspired me to eventually visit India, a country I had always wanted to visit and when I did go with my wife 2 years running, we both fell in love with the people and the country. One day I would hope to go back and try to capture a little of what this great people photographer time and again captures in the strong colours and faces of the people who live there.

Finally the last link I have included this month was sent in by Ken Piros, and I found them fascinating and I thank Ken for taking the trouble to send links to the newsletter, something I ask other members to do. If you send links to me, then they will be included in future newsletters for all members to enjoy.

Kens Links is called

burn is an evolving journal for emerging photographers

The Newsletter Desk

Hi Members

In the Phorum last month Ken Piros mentioned a good idea which we would like to follow up. His suggested asking the members to write a short 1-3 sentence explanation of the best Tip or Trick that has made a difference in their photography or advice they would give a new person just starting out.

Ken submitted the following suggestions as an example;

Get comfortable with your equipment; you have to get to know your camera. Most cameras have many features that you may not use, focus on the features that will allow you to produce the style of image that mostly interest you. But don’t get hung up on the technical specifications – it’s the person shooting that matters.

I am sure we have many members who have some trick or advice they could share with members. So let’s hear from you. You can either post your ‘Tips and Tricks’ in the Phorum or send them by email to newsletter@phodia.net.

Another thing that Rob recently brought to my attention is that some members delete their pictures when they receive critiques on an upload. That is a pity because we all can learn something from those critiques. They are a good learning curve and can be used to open up discussions. It is one of the important parts of Phodia but that's all impossible when the photo is deleted.

Regards Jenipher

Raw Tales

by Colonel Arbuthnot

It was back in the Indies where we had that guy, large, full of muscles, mean and ugly as ugly can be, they called him Raw.

When I was asked for a new article for this newsletter I remembered him, I could tell you lots of stories about Raw but in this issue of the Phodia Newsletter I will tell some different Raw tales.

The Converting Tale

When you use a digital camera the light that goes through the lens falls on a chip called CMOS or CCD. It actually converts light into electrons, the more light the more electrons it will produce, and the more electrons the more electricity you get.

When a CMOS or CCD has 10 megapixels, it means it has 10 million places where the light can be converted to electrons. No light will result in no electrons and will become black; a lot of light will result in lots of electricity and will become white.

This result would give you a black and white picture but most of us want colour.

The Mosaic Tale

Before the light hits the chip it goes through a filter, this filter has three layers a red, green and blue. Every layer has squares and when placed over each other they will give you a so called Bayer pattern, it has 25% red, 25% blue and 50% green.

It has more green because the eye knows more green tints andpaolodefaveri green has a larger part of the spectrum.

The filter and the chip will give information about intensity and colour of the light (a red filter only show red, a blue filter only blue and a green filter only green). Because the camera knows where each receptor is on the chip it can make a mosaic of light and colour information and writes it to a file.

The JPG Tale

The information which the camera has by now can be recorded and that's what is called a RAW file.

There is no adjustment or anything else done by the camera it is just the recorded light and colour information of your captured scene.

When you don't record that data the information is transported to a second chip in your camera, in this chip your RAW data is being converted to a new file, the JPG file, In this process you lose a lot of your original image data

The plus Tale

1. RAW gives you the most of light and light is what you use
2. You will have more abilities to adjust your picture when editing it
3. When you don't record that data the information is transported to a second chip in your camera, in this chip your RAW data is being converted to a new file, the JPG file, In this process you lose a lot of your original image data.
4. The ability to bring back shadows and change highlights

The minus Tale

Unfortunately, this powerful set of tools that are RAW does come with some negative aspects as well.

1. RAW files are bigger than JPG files and will need more space
2. So far there is no standard RAW format, every developer has their own format; sometimes different formats for different cameras, even within the same series.
3. Due to these several different formats most post-production software needs to be updated to support the latest format/cameras.

The digital negative Tale

To overcome the negative side of the many different RAW files, Adobe provides the Digital Negative format (.DNG). When you copy your picture to your computer, use the free DNG converter. It has the potential to become the standard in RAW files and it will in most cases give you smaller (without loss of detail) RAW files DNG

PS. I never saw Raw again, I heard he got himself involved in drugs, ended up in concrete and was dumped to the bottom of the ocean.

Editorial

by Jenipher Baker

What makes a good community? A question I have asked myself a lot over the past few weeks and in relationship to Phodia, I still haven’t found an answer. I think it is a good question; one we need to find answers for if Phodia is to be a success.

Phodia was and still is envisaged as a site for sharing a common hobby, photography. A site where members can upload photos, partake in giving and receiving comments. A site where we can openly give constructive critic where needed or to give praise on good photo. In many cases this is being done by a small group of members and I am happy to say this small group is slowly increasing.

Unfortunately though there are still too many members using Phodia as a site where they think they can upload a photo, then just sit back and wait for comments or constructive critic to improve their art. That is not how it should work. Sharing a common interest in a community like Phodia is a two way street………..giving and receiving comments with the common goal of sharing our hobby and improving our art. For me this raises the questions, do we respect or have interest for photos other than our own?

Making Phodia a good and friendly community requires interaction and participation and in my opinion this is not happening as much as it should

A few questions come to mind;
What do we need to do to improve the community spirit?
Is the Newsletter being read by the majority of members or just a very small minority?
What can we do to improve the participation and interaction between members?

In an attempt to answer some of these questions we have included a survey in this month’s issue.

1. General information on the members, for example; age, working or retired etc.
2. More specific question on Phodia, for example…..how many hours do you spend per week in Phodia, number uploads, do you participate in the Monthly Theme, Photo Edit.

Clicking this picture will you redirect to the survey

The survey won’t answer all the questions that many members have been asking themselves. It will be used as a guide to see what kinds of members are being attracted to Phodia and how the members are using Phodia.

Interaction and participation lies solely with the members and it is up to the members themselves to help make Phodia the successful site that it deserves.

The survey is anonymous, every mail contains an unique code which will be used with a click on the banner, the code is not linked to any member credentials

English version of the welcome letter

Hi --New Member-- and welcome to Phodia.

Set out below are a few guidelines and hints to help you navigate through Phodia.

As we are an international site, the common language used is English.

When uploading a photo, the longest side should be no more than 1000 pixels and the upload size should not exceed 600kb. For a profile picture the upload maximum is 150kb.

You can upload two photos a day and up to 10 photos per week.

When writing reviews we try to help with constructive comments and suggestions where needed to help in furthering everyone’s hobby. Your reviews on other member’s photos are always appreciated as will be any constructive comments you may care to offer. If you have a question on a photo, do not hesitate to ask the fellow members for help or advice.

On the top right of the screen above the yellow headings you will find details of the status of Phodia, regarding members and guest online.

Under the yellow button, My Podium, a drop down list will appear. This list includes everything you need for managing your account.

By clicking on Reviews/ Mails you will find the following useful information: mail received and sent, reviews received, reviews on the reviews you have given, the last review you made. A click on a review will take you to the photo.

As a member you are also able to participate in the Phorum, a place to exchange views and obtain information on what is happening in Phodia as it develops. We also have a Showcase, Photo Edit and the Monthly Theme. Please read the attachment to find out more about these and how they work. Any further Information can be found in the Manuals under the Home Button.

A monthly Newsletter is sent to all members by email and can be also be accessed online under Home, Newsletter then the month.

Enjoy your time with Phodia reviewing and receiving reviews in a community whose aim is to provide a site for sharing and learning.

The more you review the better for learning and hopefully an improvement of the Hobby for us all.

We hope to see some fine captures from your hands and wish you a lot of fun on Phodia

When you receive a photo mail from another member, it will appear in red on the same line as will a chat request. New entries in Phorum, Photo edit, Showcase and Monthly Theme also appear in red. Just click on the red highlight and it will take you into the section.

Best regard, Rob

Dutch version of the welcome letter

Hallo --Nieuw lid-- welkom op Phodia.

Hier zijn wat richtlijnen en tips die je zullen helpen je weg te vinden op Phodia.

Omdat de site een internationaal karakter heeft is de voertaal Engels.

Als je een foto upload denk er dan aan dat de langste zijde niet langer is dan 1000 pixels en de totale upload niet groter is dan 600kb. Voor een profiel-foto geldt een maximum van 150kb. Je kunt per dag twee foto uploaden tot een maximum van 10 per week.

Als er Reviews geschreven worden proberen we elkaar te helpen met constructieve kritiek en waar nodig met bruikbare tips om op die manier elkaar te helpen een betere fotograaf te worden. De door jou geschreven Reviews worden gewaardeerd als ze de zelfde doelstelling hebben. Mocht je een vraag hebben over het maken van een foto of de bewerking ervan schroom dan niet om hulp te vragen aan de andere leden.

Om een commentaar te schrijven moet je de Review-knop boven de foto aanklikken. Als je naar de volgende foto wil gaan moet je Next aanklikken, Overview laat je alle foto's zien. Met de Mail-knop kan je een mailtje sturen naar een ander lid. Als je een foto wil bewaren als zijnde een persoonlijke favoriet moet je een keer op de Favorite-knop klikken. Daarmee veranderd die knop in een groene knop. Mag de favoriete foto openbaar zijn klik je nogmaals op die knop die dan in het blauw veranderd. Onder de foto onder in het Review-scherm vindt je de Save-knop waarnaast aan de rechterzijde de vertaal hulpen zijn ingebouwd die tevoorschijn komen als je er met de muis overheen gaat. Deze zijn beschikbaar voor Nederlands en Duits.

Aan de rechter bovenzijde van je scherm net boven de regel met tabs, zoals Home, My Podium etc, kun je lezen hoeveel leden en gasten zijn ingelogd op Phodia. Op deze regel zie je ook of er een Photo-Mail voor je is van een ander lid en dit verschijnt dan in het rood net zoals dat ook gebeurd met een Chat-Request. Nieuwe uploads in Phorum, Photo Edit, Showcase en Monthly Theme verschijnen hier ook in het rood. Klik op zo'n rode regel en je wordt direct naar de betreffende rubriek geleid.

Onder de knop My Podium, die geel oplicht bij gebruik, zal een scherm uitklappen met diverse mogelijkheden om je eigen account te beheren. Als je Reviews/Mails aanklikt ga je naar een volgend scherm waar je kan zien of je een mail hebt verstuurd of ontvangen (geel scherm). Hier kan je ook zien of er gereageerd is op een upload van je (rood scherm) en door wie er dan is gereageerd. Hier zie je ook eventuele reacties op door jou gegeven Reviews net als de laatste door jou gegeven Reviews (blauw scherm). Als je op deze meldingen klikt wordt je direct naar de betreffende foto geleid.

Als lid kun je ook gebruik maken van het Phorum, een plaats waar gegevens worden uitgewisseld over van alles en nog wat en waar je op de hoogte wordt gehouden over ontwikkelingen op Phodia. Daarnaast hebben we ook de Showcase, Photo Edit en Monthly Theme. Lees de bijgevoegde PDF's en het zal je snel duidelijk zijn hoe een en ander werkt. Onder de Home knop kun je meer info krijgen die dan onder de Manuals knop is te vinden.

Er is ook een maandelijkse nieuws brief die per e-mail wordt verzonden en ook gevonden kan worden onder de Home knop en dan naar Newsletter knop en dan naar de Month knop.

Geniet van je tijd op Phodia door het geven en ontvangen van Reviews en op die manier actief deel te nemen aan deze community met het doel iets te leren of door te geven over fotografie. Op deze manier worden we er allemaal beter van.

We hopen veel van je mooie werk te mogen zien en wensen je veel plezier op deze site

Vriendelijek groet, Rob

German version of the welcome letter

Hallo xxxxxxxx und willkommen in Phodia

Es folgen einige Richtlinien und Tipps die Ihnen helfen sollen durch Phodia zu navigieren.

Wir sind eine internationale Website und die verwendete gemeinsame Sprache ist Englisch.

Beim Hochladen eines Fotos, die längste Seite sollte nicht mehr als 1000 Pixel und die Upload-Größe sollte 600kb nicht überschreiten. Das Maximum für ein Profilbild ist 150kb.

Durch das schreiben von konstruktiven Anmerkungen und Vorschlägen, wollen wir Hilfestellung geben und unser Hobby fördern. Auch Ihre Bewertungen sollen dazu beitragen Hilfestellung zu geben und das miteinander zufördern. Wenn Sie eine Frage zu einem Foto haben, zögern Sie nicht, die Kolleginnen und Kollegen um Hilfe oder Rat zu bitten. Um eine Anmerkung zu schreiben klicken Sie auf das Review Kästchen das über dem Bild erscheint wenn Sie es öffnen. Mit Next kommen sie zum nächsten Bild, Overview zeigt wieder alle Bilder, Mail – damit können sie eine Mail an jedes Mitglied schicken. Auf Favourite können sie klicken wenn ihnen das Bild so gut gefällt das sie es in ihre Favoriten nehmen möchten. Einmal klicken und es wird Grün damit ist es in ihren persönlichen Favoriten, 2x klicken dann wird es Blau und ist in den öffentlichen Favoriten. Unter dem Review Kästchen sind auch Übersetzungshilfen für holländisch und deutsch.

In der oberen rechten Ecke des Bildschirms über den gelben Überschriften können Sie sehen wieviel Gäste und wieviel Mitglieder oneline sind. Wenn es neue Nachrichten gibt, werden diese in rot auf der gleichen Zeile angezeigt, wie eine Chat-Anfrage, Neue Einträge in Phorum, Photo Edit, Showcase, Monthly Theme und Mail. Klicken Sie einfach auf den roten Highlight und es wird Sie in den Abschnitt bringen. Unter den gelben Knopf, My Podium, erscheint eine Liste. Diese Liste beinhaltet alles, was Sie zur Verwaltung Ihres Kontos benötigen. Durch einen Klick auf Reviews / Mails finden Sie folgende nützliche Informationen: E-Mail empfangen und gesendet (gelbe Box), empfangene Anmerkungen, Anmerkungen zu Anmerkungen (rote Box ) Ihre letzte gegebene Anmerkung (blaue Box), wenn sie dort klicken kommen sie wieder zum letzten Bild das sie angemerkt haben und können so ohne suchen fortfahren Bilder zu schauen und zu kommentieren.

Als Mitglied sind Sie auch in der Lage, im Phorum, ein Ort zum Gedankenaustausch Informationen darüber zu erhalten, was in Phodia geschieht, wie es sich entwickelt und sich auch daran zu beteiligen.Wir haben ein Showcase, Photo Edit und Monthly Theme. Bitte lesen Sie den Anhang, um mehr darüber zu erfahren und wie es funktioniert. Alle weiteren Informationen können Sie in den Handbüchern unter dem Home Button finden.

Ein monatlicher Newsletter wird an alle Mitglieder per Email zugeschickt und kann auch online abgerufen werden unter Home, Newsletter und dann den Monat.

Genießen Sie Ihre Zeit mit Phodia beim empfangen und bewerten von Bildern in einer Gemeinschaft, deren Ziel ist es, eine Website für den Austausch und zum Lernen zu vermitteln.

Wir freuen uns auf ihre Bilder und wünschen ihnen viel Spaß in Phodia.

Mit den besten Wünschen groet, Rob