SyncSnap a bust?

*blackcloudbrew* · 10-22-2009, 11:15 AM

I'm puzzled about why the SyncSnap appears to be a bust. I'm making that assessment in that we didn't get a profusion of images posted (only around 20 or so). Given the number of timezones, number of members of this forum, and number of photos posted for the previous weeks event, I just would have expected a lot more. Personally, I thought it was a great idea and would like to do it again. I just don't understand why we didn't get more participation.

Tim

Eruditass · 10-22-2009, 11:18 AM

Originally Posted by blackcloudbrew

I'm puzzled about why the SyncSnap appears to be a bust. I'm making that assessment in that we didn't get a profusion of images posted (only around 20 or so). Given the number of timezones, number of members of this forum, and number of photos posted for the previous weeks event, I just would have expected a lot more. Personally, I thought it was a great idea and would like to do it again. I just don't understand why we didn't get more participation.

Tim

I would have definitely participated, but I am camera-less as the White K-x has not arrived. I am surprised, too, it was a cool idea.

**Adam** · 10-22-2009, 11:55 AM

I'm sure the fact that the site was more or less inaccesible the evening prior definitely didn't help, although this shouldn't have prevented people from taking their photos, especially considering the email reminder I sent out.

We saw about 400 submissions for world Pentax day, so I agree- the 20÷ uploaded for the syncsnap just doesn't make sense.

I'd like to hear more thoughts from the community regarding the syncsnap, as I'm quite interested myself! Perhaps a thread will be more appropriate for the event in the future, instead of using the user photo gallery.

MRRiley · 10-22-2009, 12:04 PM

IMHO the main problem was the time chosen. Midnight GMT, while an easily remembered target, leaves Europe, the Middle East, Africa and over 2/3rds of the Americas in partial or total darkness...

Note that only the west coast of N. Am., India, the Far East and Australia were in daylight. That leaves a whole lotta nobody out in the middle of the Pacific to shoot photos (no insult intended to our Hawaian bretheren). Of course, people can take photos in the dark but it does take more work and planning. And for people in much of Europe it meant being up shooting in the middle of their normal sleep cycle.

Perhaps in the future there should be 2 syncsnaps.. one each in the eastern and a western hemispheres.

6pm GMT would work well for the west

and 7am GMT would work well for everyone from Europe to Australia.

Mike

*blackcloudbrew* · 10-22-2009, 12:35 PM

I would agree that the timing of the server move was a unfortunate factor. I'm assuming that it had to be done and that's that no point of mulling that one over.

However, Mike thanks for providing a visualization of the problem. It might have worked better with two times (just for round number purposes) at midnight and noon GMT as well. Clearly, there is no one perfect time and actually, one of the points in my mind of this was to see all around the world. I would have enjoyed seeing the images ordered by each timezone. I got luck in that my local timezone was 5pm but, I'd have gotten up at 3am too if that was my lot. Personally, I'd like to do this event again whether it's format gets modified or not.

Tim

MRRiley · 10-22-2009, 12:55 PM

Btw, the source for the maps I copied is Day and Night World Map.

You can enter any date/time and see the day/night zones... Maybe worth using when planning the next syncsnap.

Mike

*Ash* · 10-22-2009, 01:01 PM

There's obviously no perfect time, but considering the majority of forum members being American (just a guess), it's probably worthwhile trying again for when the east cost of the US has its golden hour of photography in the evening. At least then the west coast has some sunlight, not coinciding with office hours. Still leaves Eurasia & Africa out of the picture, but what to do?

MRRiley · 10-22-2009, 01:08 PM

Interestingly the best day/time to do this would be at 11am GMT on June 21st, 2010.

Maximum dry land daylight coverage... It'll be dark in OZ and NZ but just about everywhere else will be in either twilight or full daylight...

Mike

Mike

*DanLoc78* · 10-22-2009, 03:55 PM

I guess my original thought with this was to do it monthly at a different time so eventually everyone around the globe would get to do it at a decent time.

Adam, should we start creating notices for November? Or should be a twice a year thing? quarterly?

**Adam** · 10-22-2009, 03:59 PM

I'd be willing to give it another go next month, although if it doesn't attract more interest then, I think we may be better off just having a dedicated thread or HTML gallery for it (i.e. a page one of us makes on the site with the photos alone, similar to PPG), or running it at two different times of day.

*Ash* · 10-22-2009, 04:42 PM

Originally Posted by Adam

I'd be willing to give it another go next month, although if it doesn't attract more interest then, I think we may be better off just having a dedicated thread or HTML gallery for it (i.e. a page one of us makes on the site with the photos alone, similar to PPG), or running it at two different times of day.

Two different times sounds good - one for Europe, Africa and the Americas, and one for Asia and Oceania. Should be more people keen on the idea then...

Or if we went with Mike's 11am GMT, Aussies would either be doing night shift or setting their cams up with a timed shutter release...

*scatron* · 10-22-2009, 04:47 PM

I had every intention of participating, but then I forgot.

Arpe · 10-22-2009, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by scatron

I had every intention of participating, but then I forgot.

ditto for me. I even set alarms and everything, but wasn't home to hear them!

MRRiley · 10-23-2009, 05:33 AM

Originally Posted by Ash

Or if we went with Mike's 11am GMT, Aussies would either be doing night shift or setting their cams up with a timed shutter release...

LOL... Don't get me wrong Ash. I love all you Aussies.

I just looked for max dry-land daylight and thats what came up.

Maybe Adam needs to do a geographical study to figure out where the fewest PF members are located and try to jigger it to place that locality in the "night" zone for the syncsnap.

Mike

**J.Scott** · 10-23-2009, 08:05 AM

Figuring out the time I should snap was a bit confusing but worse was what I should snap at that precise moment.

Perhaps we needed more direction in this matter. Too many variables in experiments tend to make the results a bit wonky. Say, at the designated moment in time we all take a picture out our front door (assuming we all have a front door) or a self portrait (assuming we all have a head, of course.

)