Hello everyone,



I am very happy to announce that an idea we've had in the back of our minds for a good while has finally been brought to life! Today we're officially unveiling the PentaxForums Exclusive Gallery, which is conceptually similar to Pentax's PPG. At first, we wanted this gallery to also appear fancy and have cool effects, but we found that other solutions wouldn't offer the level of integration that this one did. So, let's jump right in to what we're looking at here.

Our Exclusive Gallery will become a collection of only the best photos taken by our users. Only PentaxForums.com users will be able to submit to this gallery. We will also be imposing certain quality standards to make sure the photos are at their very best.

To submit a photo to the gallery, simply click the 'upload' link in the upper gallery toolbar, or click here. The submission form is the same as that in our other gallery categories, so you should already be familiar with the controls. The following will be required of each photo:

• JPEG format and compression at 90%-100% (9-12).
• A resolution of at least 1024x700 (WxH or HxW) pixels; preferably around 1500 or 2000px on one edge
  
• Full EXIF left intact in the file, if digital
• Manual addition of EXIF metadata, if film
  
• A photo description and complete camera/lens fields
• If you choose to place copyright text in your photo, please do so in the lower-right or lower-left corner only
• No added frames, borders, or drawings
  
• Taken with a Pentax camera (no exceptions)
• Limit 2 submissions per user day (to be fair to our judges)
  

If your photo conforms to these regulations, it will then be evaluated by the site staff. If the photo is good enough, it'll be approved into the gallery; if not, we'll simply move it to a regular category. You will be able to submit as many photos as you'd like until 10 have been approved in the gallery. This limit is currently going to be in place so that every photographer gets about equal exposure, but may increase in the future.

Why this is going to be better than the PPG:

• Not a slow flash-based gallery
• Large resolutions will be available for your viewing pleasure
  
• Comments can be made
• More great photos will be posted!
• Feedback on your photo will be e-mailed to you once a decision has been made
• The approval decision will be made within 1 week at most (apply to be a judge)
  
• Status tracking at https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/galleryapprove.php?do=status and updates on status via e-mail
• It's integrated with your favorite photo forum
  

And, best of all:

• If 5 or your photos get approved into the gallery, you will be invited to become an Exclusive Gallery judge

So, why wait? Upload your best now!

A note to newbies: the gallery is accessible through the 'photos' button in the navbar. Simply click it and then select 'User Photo Gallery' from the menu.

Enjoy, guys! I'm very excited to be bringing you this.

Photos accepted into the gallery will also be tagged as "exclusive" in gallery searches and listings, and within the exclusive category, supersized thumbnails will be shown!

[rawr]

I presume one of the rules is that the image submitted was taken on a Pentax camera?

[Adam]

Yup. I've added that to the sticky.

[Ira]

I think you guys would be better off choosing the photos yourself as you see them posted in various sections of the site.

I foresee a lot of pissed off members submitting stuff that's not approved.

[vizjerei]

I am getting the following error message when I try to upload the photo:

Sorry, vizjerei: No Item or Item is Now in Moderation Queue - Check Back Later

[builttospill]

I tried to upload a photo and I received the message: "Sorry, builttospill: No Item or Item is Now in Moderation Queue - Check Back Later"

Did my photo make it through? Thanks.

Edit: Oops, I should have refreshed the screen first, it looks like I'm not the only one.

[CraneGuy1]

When will we be able to start submitting photos?

[Adam]

I am getting the following error message when I try to upload the photo:

Sorry, vizjerei: No Item or Item is Now in Moderation Queue - Check Back Later

I tried to upload a photo and I received the message: "Sorry, builttospill: No Item or Item is Now in Moderation Queue - Check Back Later"

Did my photo make it through? Thanks.

Edit: Oops, I should have refreshed the screen first, it looks like I'm not the only one.

You guys are both good to go

[tuco]

"Full EXIF left intact in the file"

What if you can't comply? A person using an Open Source image editor that was not compiled with the EXIF module will not have EXIF metadata in their file. Common on a OS X pre-made binaries. And of course PF has a lot of film shooters.

[builttospill]

You guys are both good to go

Thanks.

[Adam]

If it's a film shot, no EXIF is needed of course. If it's a digital shot, and was there in the original, it's got to be there.

[tuco]

If it's a film shot, no EXIF is needed of course. If it's a digital shot, and was there in the original, it's got to be there.

So these people are not allowed to post process and have to submit camera JPEGs?

[poochie99]

Love it! Thanks!

[m8o]

So these people are not allowed to post process and have to submit camera JPEGs?

I post process everything from raw of jpeg if I didn't have it, and have exif in everything that hasn't been thru an old Paintshop Pro, Paint, or whatever crude image processor I might have that stripped it. But please don't equate 'pp-ing' in general to necessitate not having exif.

[Adam]

So these people are not allowed to post process and have to submit camera JPEGs?

Of course they are, but they'll have to find a way to get the EXIF information back in there. There are plenty of GNU tools to edit photos while preserving EXIF (i.e. GIMP), and also scripts that can add EXIF to a JPG. I actually used jhead myself for the EXIF tools here on the site.

GENERAL METADATA OPTIONS

jhead -te file
Transplant Exif header from a JPEG (with Exif header) in file
into the image that is manipulated. This option is useful if
you like to edit the photos but still want the Exif header on
your photos. As most photo editing programs will wipe out the
Exif header, this option can be used to re-copy them back from
original copies after editing the photos.

Why would this be a problem if a winning photograph were in question?