[photoptimist]

And that is different than what Irix want out of this contest in what way? That's exactly what they want here too! They are trying to build interest in their product while simultaneously finding cheap labor to advertise the same product.




Then giveaways aren't a bad idea by your own admission.




Maybe it sounds like a zero-sum game to YOU. But that part is all in your head. 'Weighted in favor' doesn't mean 'Entirely in their favor' it means 'Weighted in favor' nothing more nothing less.

IMO - The value of the borrowed lens is minimal since that has minimal value. The fun of winning is minimal since your reward is minimal. Exposure is a minimal, fleeting object that every company wants to give since it costs them little to nothing. Common Joes freely supporting a brand also costs the company nothing so again there is minimal value there too. So these events have high upside, low downside for the company.

Perhaps John Q Public thinks otherwise, then go for it. I'm not stopping them...





Well we both agreed to this before we discussed this. So I'm not sure what your angle is...


All I said (as a number of other folks here also said -- watch the Dipsoid linked comic [crude language warning though]) was Irix's proposed deal is a poor one for entrants. With all due respect, If you have a problem with how I feel then that is your problem, sorry. But you're not changing my mind on this matter and I'm allowed to hold my own opinion, even if it is contrary to yours.

The deal is an excellent one for a self-selected set of entrants. The cost to enter can be virtually zero -- for some it's only the couple seconds it takes to type a hashtag. The reward has a value of at least $100 (the approximate 1-month rental cost of that lens) and that ignores the subjective value of the fun of entering, competing, and potentially winning. The only open issue is the probability of winning which may be quite good for a decent hobbyist macro photographer (I.e., Irix' target market).

I'm not trying to convince you or anyone to enter the contest. How you feel is irrelevant to the fact that the contest is an extremely good deal for a select subset of people.

[Doundounba]

... that stunning bug picture was taken by an 'Uncle Bob'!

And Uncle Bobs would be the target audience, too, not pros.

Hey, I resemble that remark!

[clackers]

Hey, I resemble that remark!

Love your work, 'Bob!'

[swanlefitte]

Tom Sawyer will get you to pay him to do his work. Some find it worthwhile.
The 'Tom Sawyer' Strategy: How to Get Free Labor - CBS News

[clackers]

Tom Sawyer will get you to pay him to do his work. Some find it worthwhile.
The 'Tom Sawyer' Strategy: How to Get Free Labor - CBS News

Good article, Swanlefitte.

A professional won't give their work away like that, they have to eat, and they don't want to acquire a reputation for pro bono either.

But an Uncle Bob who's never been paid before? This could be the greatest acknowledgment so far of their talents. And it is one for the CV, a portfolio builder on the way to paid work, if that's their end game.

[swanlefitte]

Turns out this is called social tool use and is currently under study. For personal gain is categorized as Machiavellian social tool use.
storybreak stars<\/title><path d="M5.146 9.01l-.19-3.623 3.057 1.985.693-1.197-3.213-1.67 3.213-1.638-.693-1.197-3.056 1.953L5.147 0H3.76l.158 3.623L.893 1.67.2 2.867l3.214 1.638L.2 6.175l.693 1.197 3.025-1.985L3.76 9.01m21.386 0l-.19-3.623 3.057 1.9

It's been 2 days so don't feel to bad by expanding on eye old off topic topic.

[Wild Mark]

And the winner is?

[Doundounba]

And the winner is?

The names are right here - and they also reposted some of the shots used to apply... Not sure if anyone from PF applied? (I was almost tempted just to see, but in the end it just didn't seem worth it.)

[BrianR]

And the winner is?

Announced on Facebook and Instagram

[cyberjunkie]

Half of the pics are actually VERY GOOD.
The others just average, IMHO.

Despite the (very understandable) criticism, it seems that working for free is very fashionable these days
When I started taking pictures that I would have never shot for my own personal enjoyment, I was paid from day one.
I would have never ever done it for free.
Now there are a lot of photographers who are eager to get some media exposure, even if minimal, in exchange for unpaid work.
The world is going that way. It's not just about photography.
Just think of all the internships, stages, etc. that give no compensation at all. Most people would feel incredibly lucky to have at least the basic expenses covered...
Not so long ago this kind of situation was limited to some very specific fields, for example cinema.
I know a number of people involved, more or less successfully, in the world of cinema.
Most of them started with unpaid personal projects, but at least they were working for themselves and had plenty of fun doing it!
Even back then, professional photography was a very competitive world, but now the well paid jobs are fewer and fewer, and most of the times they land in the hands of a restricted number of well known professionals.
Fine art photography is a little different, though in the end it doesn't change very much. Affluent buyers would never acquire a great work by Mr. Nobody.
Even in the Renaissance it was a bit like that, nothing new. It is the extent of it that is impressive. The product is more and more the artist himself.
Just think of Andy Warhol.
I will spare you my considerations on why I think it's not necessarily a bad thing, and why I love the work of Mapplethorpe or D'Agata.
I'd be totally off-topic.
It would make sense, though. If the artist is the product, then media exposure is what you need to get there.
So under this point of view what seems to make little sense actually makes a lot of sense.
This is how the machine works, and we all embrace it, at different degrees.
The main difference is the level of awareness. Few are aware, most are not.

[swanlefitte]

To me the mushroom one is best. I see dead things as not worthy. At least 2 were dead things. Several like the mushrooms were at most 1:2 macro. Bottom line is the thread here has better as does several other threads. Show me your insects - PentaxForums.com

[longbow]

They're shipping !!! Mine will arrive Monday

[Mike.P®]

So any photos from this lens yet?

[longbow]

Here's one I'd posted elsewhere a couple weeks ago in the K-1 forum -

[joehenryd]

Here are some flower shots and my neighbor's cat. The lens has the contacts on lens mount for aperture control.