New Series: Ask Ron

Readers like you have made this blog bigger than I had ever dreamed it would be. To thank you for all you’ve done, I am starting up a new series called “Ask Ron” where YOU are the center of attention.

What is Ask Ron?

Simply put, this is your way to ask me a question about Photography or Photo Editing and I’ll answer your photo on the blog for you and others to see the response. You can remain anonymous if you like, but I’m looking for real world common problems to which I’ll provide advice on how to solve the issue.

Show me your ugly messed up photos

Got a shot that came out blurry, too dark, too bright, too orange, etc… then send it to me and I’ll give you my 2 cents on what could be done to improve it / fix the problem. In fact, in some cases if the fix is an easy fix I may just video myself fixing it for you and post the result on the blog.

Rules & Guidelines

Here’s how it will work – just send me a link to your photo or send it to me via email (JPEG only and < 5MB please). Many times I need the metadata that is in your photo to understand what went wrong, so please do not strip that out (i.e., don’t use Minimize Embedded Data in Lightroom when exporting). Links should be from services like Zenfolio, Smugmug, 500px, Flickr, etc… NO FACEBOOK or G+ links! You are free to password protect your image, but I’ll need to download it for posting to the blog if it is going to be part of Ask Ron. I do this because I don’t want broken links down the road because you decided to move your file or discontinue your service.

Photos should always be JPEG with the sRGB color space (if you don’t know what that means, then you are probably okay).

The rules are subject to change. There is no purchase necessary to participate and no prize will be awarded for participation.

To submit a question or photo, simply visit http://ronmart.zenfolio.com/contact.html and click the email link to see my email address for the blog. Please use it, but don’t abuse it.

FAQ

Does this cost anything?

Nope

How often can I submit a question?

Once per week, but if your photo is selected you are ineligible for 3 months

What about the rights to my photo?

Well, for starters I want to see your photos that need help so odds are they aren't ready for your portfolio anyway right? With that said, I only plan to put the photo on my blog (and its image server) for the purpose of the article. It won't be used for anything else. You retain the rights for your photo, but you release me to use it for the blog article.

Why are you doing this? What's the catch? Aren't you only in this for the money?

I wish this blog paid well enough to where I was only in this for the money, but that's far from the truth - my day job pays me a heck of a lot more! I'm doing this to repay my loyal readers for supporting my blog over the years by posting links on other forums and using my links when making purchases. There's nothing in this for me beyond less sleep and making someone happy.

How often will Ask Ron appear on your blog?

I'll try to do one response a week - time permitting, so realistically we are probably looking at a maximum of about 40 per year if this takes off. If it doesn't then the series will fade way without fanfare.

What if I'm not from the United States?

Who cares, neither is my wife! I've got readers in 180 countries - it would rock to be able to do an Ask Ron for at least one in every country so foreign readers send me your photos! I especially love ones that show me your beautiful cities and people! (oh, and broken English is fine – do your best)

You already answer my questions via email now. Will that change?

Yes! It's becoming unpractical for me to answer so many questions via email, so I'll try to funnel responses to Ask Ron articles. I still might take one or two here and there if they interest me, but generally speaking I'll only answer questions that pertain to the blog and its articles or offers moving forward.

I'm worried about being embarrassed. What are you going to do to keep from saying this is my photo and it sucks?

If you like you may keep your photo anonymous. I can't guarantee anonymity as you might have something embedded in your image metadata that I might miss, but I'll do my best for those that request. If you don't request it, then I may say your name so be sure to request anonymity if that is important.

Can I send you a link to my portfolio and let you pick an image to talk about?

No. You may submit one photo per the rules and guidelines stated above. A failure to follow the rules will result in your mail being deleted. If you want that, then consider my Portfolio Review Service.

What types of photos are allowed or excluded?

Anything is allowed as long as it isn't illegal (i.e., child porn). However, I'll use my discretion about what gets posted to the blog, so in some cases I may blur out part of your photo or crop out the offensive part to keep from upsetting my readers. From there, it's your call.

What if you can't fix my photo?

I'll do my best to tell you how you could do things better next time to get the results you desire.

This is awesome. What can I do for you in return?

Do what you’ve already been doing – spread the word about this blog to all of your friends. Post links to your favorite articles in your responses to questions on other forums (but please don’t just spam them – you’ll get banned), social networks and in email to your friends. If you don’t feel comfortable doing that, then just read the articles here and use the links when making a purchase.

Disclosure

This is not a contest – you don’t really win anything other than a response. If you make a purchase using links on this blog, I may get a commission.