Picture of the Month - July 2012

Aug 2, 2012
by Ian Hylands
 
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Picture of the Month is an article showcasing the best Pictures of the Day from the month before. We take the most viewed photos from the previous month, and pick our favorites out of the top 10.<br><br>It's been interesting to watch the numbers of views that the POD's get over the past year. While the photos are getting better, the numbers are going down. As an example the Picture of the Month one year ago received 46, 271 views, and the number two photo had 43,913 views. Compare that to 34,790 and 28,091 this month. It's not a huge difference, but the photo views do seem to be on a downward trend, while video views are up. As a photographer this brings up a number of questions, but the biggest one is how can we get more views. I ask you, the Pinkbike viewers, a question. What kinds of photos do you want to see as POD?
  Picture of the Month is an article showcasing the best Pictures of the Day from the month before. We take the most viewed photos from the previous month, and pick our favorites out of the top 10.

It's been interesting to watch the numbers of views that the POD's get over the past year. While the photos are getting better, the numbers are going down. As an example the Picture of the Month one year ago received 46, 271 views, and the number two photo had 43,913 views. Compare that to 34,790 and 28,091 this month. It's not a huge difference, but the photo views do seem to be on a downward trend, while video views are up. As a photographer this brings up a number of questions, but the biggest one is how can we get more views. I ask you, the Pinkbike viewers, a question. What kinds of photos do you want to see as POD?

...
1. DHU SANTO TIRSO 2012 by josecampos - 34790 views


  2. Silver Star by jmart - 28091 views


Aiming down the sights
  3. Luke Ball aiming down the sights by chamakazi - 21570 views


printed in Freedombmx 106 behind the scenes video of this rather crazy photoshoot http www.pinkbike.com video 231398 more from my work at facebook.com hoelperl
  4. Maik Lochmann by airik - 18899 views


  5. Windham World Cup by davetrump - 17905 views


<b>Honorable Mentions include:</b>
  Honorable Mentions include:

"Artur Sliwa" by kopophoto. This is our first runner up with 22605 views, it would have made the top 5 if it had been big enough. Sadly 800 pixels doesn't quite do it here.

"Mountain of Hell" by aledilullo is another shot that ranked highly last month with 22156 views.

34 Comments

  • + 28
flag Xabbu (Aug 2, 2012 at 0:13)
 Always makes me laugh that whenever this comes round there is always 2-3 photo's I don't remember seeing Blank Stare
  • + 18
flag kjones6942 (Aug 2, 2012 at 0:23)
 Not that these aren't great pictures, they are, but i feel like there were better pics out there this month...
  • + 4
flag Joezoidberg1 (Aug 2, 2012 at 3:07)
 i think all of these were once my screen saver
  • + 7
flag Yippee-Ki-YayMF (Aug 2, 2012 at 4:09)
 @kjones6942 People say that every month!
  • + 16
flag ktmracing14 (Aug 2, 2012 at 7:53)
 Photo of the month should be based off of the amount of fav's not views.. If a photo has over 30k in views but only 400 favs, Im sorry but I dont think thats Photo of the Month material. There are photos from last month that have more favs but HALF the amount of views. Thats just what I think.
  • - 2
flag RONDAL (Aug 2, 2012 at 8:31)
 something made those 30k viewers click the photo to view it in the first place. whether someone chooses to fav it or not is largely irrelevant, something drew them to the photo to view it...which is exactly the question ian is looking to answer, how do they get views up. Ian, i'd be interested to see the yearly trend of views, and if its simply that time of the year where people are actually out riding their bikes rather than camped indoors at computer screens. it wouldn't shock me at all to see a dip in views and usage during summer months.
  • + 7
flag h-beck83 (Aug 2, 2012 at 9:08)
 people will click on a photo based on the number of views it has just to see what the hype is all about. This does not mean they like the photo.
  • + 3
flag takeiteasyridehard (Aug 2, 2012 at 10:32)
 Yeah, uve got it. Makes sense to me. Most faced photos next month please.
[Reply]
  • + 6
flag CarlWard (Aug 2, 2012 at 15:13)
 In my opinion pictures 1 and 4 are best there, they include something different and have individuality. I feel too many PODs are a DH guy in full gear kicking up some dirt on a berm with trees, a steep slope or a typical mountain scenery. This is of course just my own opinion so please dont hate.
[Reply]
  • + 5
flag Talkiet (Aug 2, 2012 at 2:47)
 I want to see awesome photos, not massive hucks. I check the POD every single day since you and your team started deliberately selecting them. If it goes back to awful photos of a huge jump, I'll not bother.
  • + 0
flag gavlaa (Aug 2, 2012 at 5:55)
 ooh heaven forbid- we would all be sooooo gutted if you didn't bother anymore. I'd cry myself to sleep every single night.
  • + 2
flag Talkiet (Aug 2, 2012 at 19:11)
 gavlaa - I refer you to the specific quesiton Ian asked in the text... "I ask you, the Pinkbike viewers, a question. What kinds of photos do you want to see as POD?"... So there you go. How about contributing to the conversation, not trying to take cheap shots?
  • + 0
flag gavlaa (Aug 3, 2012 at 7:14)
 Umm ok- but your threat to not check POD just made me chuckle- PB are never gonna please everyone and I think does a good job. I personally don't think it comes down entirely to photographic skill. A technically poor shot can still capture a great moment. POD is a balance of factors- and sometimes a big huck is good for a change. I like the fact there's riders and photographers working hard to get POD as it's quite an achievement in itself. This alone has already provided us with a wealth of stunning images from all corners of the globe and I'm sure it will continue to do so.

That better?
[Reply]
  • + 5
flag eivomedia (Aug 2, 2012 at 0:10)
 Sean from Sean Lee Photography nearly did'nt upload that pic to PB.. and now look at it. Straight up rad.
  • + 3
flag captyvatemedia (Aug 2, 2012 at 5:18)
 Should be top spot!
  • + 1
flag jumphilo (Aug 2, 2012 at 8:55)
 Yeah agree... one sick shot
[Reply]
  • + 1
flag bizutch (Aug 3, 2012 at 6:56)
 I don't think the #'s for Pictures would be down. If anything, I'd just think there were way more pictures in the catalog for people to see, so everyone isn't clicking on the exact same pic. How many total views of pics are there in that span and what was the percentage of views for the POD would be a better indicator. So many sites, so many pics, so little time. Big Grin
[Reply]
  • + 1
flag ian408 (Aug 2, 2012 at 17:44)
 If you go back and look at the numbers, I think you'll find the downward trend started about the time Facebook gained traction (and if you look at unique daily visits as well as registrations, I predict you'll see a similar trend). I've seen this with several photography sites as well. In regards to why video is picking up? I can only offer that making a good video is a whole lot easier today given the quality of video you can produce with the average dSLR and a GoPro.

About POD/POM, I am not convinced views are indicative of a great photo. The number 1 photo this month is OK but the number 3 photo is better. Why is that? IMHO, number 1 is too busy and the subject is lost amongst the foreground and background-a little bokeh would go a long way. That said, it's noteworthy because it would appear to be either a start or significant point of interest of on a race course. #3 is better (again, my opinion) because we have eyes (sort of), motion and action. I left out #2. It's good but we cannot see eyes or a face-in fact I'd say that #3 is only slightly better than #2.

Maybe POM is decided from the top 10 fave/views but only to get into the voting. Then rank have a set of guest judges rank them and decide from that (ie;most #1 votes, #2, etc.). Guest judges could be regular participants in the POD/POM forums.

That's my USD$.02.
[Reply]
  • + 2
flag abzillah (Aug 2, 2012 at 9:33)
 I think photos of the day should be posted on the front page of pinkebike. I often don't go past the front page articles and post.
[Reply]
  • + 1
flag mrkamot (Aug 2, 2012 at 22:30)
 maybe because there are more videos; a viewer only has a finite time to browse pinkbike and they choose videos simply because there are many more of them.
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  • + 3
flag bermkiller (Aug 2, 2012 at 1:36)
 What happened to the steezy bar hump photo???
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  • + 2
flag conv3rt (Aug 2, 2012 at 9:26)
 tricky question. I think the easiest answer is "variety". Surprise us.
[Reply]
  • + 3
flag luis-beri (Aug 2, 2012 at 1:27)
 portugal power!!
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  • + 3
flag Banan725135650 (Aug 2, 2012 at 0:57)
 3!
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  • + 0
flag adamlabarthe (Aug 2, 2012 at 15:37)
 A POD that makes me stoked is one that show a rider with balls, skill, or both.
[Reply]
  • + 1
flag Afl505 (Aug 2, 2012 at 12:30)
 haha I didn't see the landing at first on the first photo.
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  • + 0
flag billy-smith (Aug 2, 2012 at 9:23)
 photos of stuff that we cant or havent tried doing are always great to see!
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  • + 1
flag Moegly (Aug 2, 2012 at 7:32)
 All of them have good personality and focus, good shots!
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  • + 1
flag N-DUBRacer (Aug 2, 2012 at 10:37)
 #1 The first time I saw that I thought he was hucking 2 flat
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  • + 1
flag boo86 (Aug 8, 2012 at 2:30)
 No. 4 !!
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  • + 1
flag carlosparentee (Aug 2, 2012 at 2:59)
 1ยช skydive heeee
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  • + 1
flag BIGD11 (Aug 2, 2012 at 7:51)
 #2
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  • + 1
flag Railgunner (Aug 2, 2012 at 9:29)
 Really nice stuff
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  • + 1
flag ScottB-408 (Aug 2, 2012 at 0:06)
 All of these are killer!
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