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Topic: The Art of Technology
Replies: 117 Pages: 8 Last Post: Sep 2, 2005 8:59 AM by: James Michael Lawrence

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Susan Esbjornson

Posts: 4
Registered: Feb 17, 2005

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 7:59 PM

I do have Photoshop Elements and a scanner. I make sets of photo cards to sell and have been hand assembling them with real photos. I would like to be able to put thumbnail photos of these images on an index card that gets tucked in back so people can see what is in the package. I have tried, but don't seem to have the ability to do this with this program. Am I missing something?

Kathleen Heideman

Posts: 19
From: Minneapolis
Registered: Feb 4, 2005

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 7:59 PM

Technology can be, er, unpredictable. Any tool can break. That's part of the reason that I encourage people to take classes, learn proactively. Otherwise we end up trying to learn about something AS WE SIMULTANEOUSLY NEED TO ACCOMPLISH IT -- creating maximum stress.

Is this last-minute-learning unique -- our approach to acquiring new digital skills as artists?

I hear a lot of software/hardware marketed as "easy" or "streamlined" etc. This sets up some false expectations. I'd never wait until the night before a bronze pour to learn about working with hot metal, for example, or assume that a bronze project is going to be simple, or foolproof!

Stacy Turos

Posts: 8
Registered: Feb 4, 2005

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 7:59 PM

My aunt has a web-site with all of her oil painting. She has increased her sales and has reach buyers in countries that normally wouldn't have seen her work.

Colin Rusch

Posts: 1,435
Registered: Oct 16, 2002

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:00 PM

We have gotten a lot of anecdotal evidence of people selling work because of contacts they've received through mnartists.org, but we don't have any statistics right now. However, we have averaged about 80,000 user sessions per month over the last few months. If you are regularly uploading work, you are sure to have some people looking at it.

Colin

Jesse Hemminger

Posts: 18
From: Minneapolis
Registered: Aug 23, 2004

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:01 PM

Most people will come to your site through some OFF line avenue. Having business cards that include your website. Telling people that you meet in person to check you out online... Include your web address at the bottom of every email. You can have your email program do this automatically, it is usually called a signature.

Message was edited by: Jesse Hemminger at Feb 17, 2005 8:03 PM

Eric Ishii Eckhardt

Posts: 13
From: minneapolis
Registered: Oct 21, 2004

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:02 PM

John,
As far as people finding your site it really depends on how well you get listed on search engines and how many people link to your site.

One of the best way to generate interest in your site is to participate in online communities like this one.

Colin Rusch

Posts: 1,435
Registered: Oct 16, 2002

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:04 PM

It is isn't so complicated. Artists are posting their work on E-Bay and getting mixed results depending on the work and how they price it and how well they advertise the fact they are selling anything.

Colin

> John there was a good thread about minnesota artists
> selling work via EBay. Do you know anything about
> that Colin?

R. Pavlenko

Posts: 7
From: MPLS.
Registered: Feb 17, 2005

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:04 PM

I have a web site and when people call me for info about my work I suggest they look at my site for examples. Another way that I get people to my site is with a card that our art building puts out with our building web site. It has links to the artists web sites in the building. I put my meb address on my business card. I've also had people google me and find my web site.

I'd like to know what you can do to attract people to your web site by how the site is constructed - or listed - or whatever. Any ideas?

Jesse Hemminger

Posts: 18
From: Minneapolis
Registered: Aug 23, 2004

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:05 PM

Online communities is a good way to promote your site. But I think the search engines are secondary to one-on-one direct promotion of your site to people you meet.

Kathleen Heideman

Posts: 19
From: Minneapolis
Registered: Feb 4, 2005

COTF
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:06 PM

Incase this interests anyone (since many of us are educators as well as artists): there is an annual FREE one-day symposium for educators called Classrooms of the Future, coming up in May.

COTF XI
A day of presentations, workshops, and discussions about issues and applications of technology in instructional settings in higher education.

http://www.associatedcolleges-tc.org/cotf

Jesse Hemminger

Posts: 18
From: Minneapolis
Registered: Aug 23, 2004

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:09 PM

Google (and other search engine) placement can be important so that if you meet someone and they remember your name and they Google you later, they will actually find you.

Google placement is dependent on links to your site from other sites. Every opportunity you have to get someone to link to your site, you should take it. And you should return the favor by having a links page on your site.

Stacy Turos

Posts: 8
Registered: Feb 4, 2005

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:10 PM

Susan,

This can be done. There are a few steps.
First you would create a new file the size of your final card.
Next you would resize the individual photos to the "thumbnail" size. (Image menu - resize - image size).
Then you must select the small image (Select menu - Select all)
Next you have to copy the small "selected" image and paste it into your card that will have many thumbnails.
Repeat for each image.

Stacy

Colin Rusch

Posts: 1,435
Registered: Oct 16, 2002

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:11 PM

Rebecca,

http://searchenginewatch.com/ is a good site to learn more about search engines and how to work with them.

Also, everyone who is posting links, if you post them as the final thing in your post. the last letter will be truncated. Besure to add a return at the end of the link.

Colin

Eric Ishii Eckhardt

Posts: 13
From: minneapolis
Registered: Oct 21, 2004

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:11 PM

I know a lot of people use Blogs as self promotional tools. Since most blogs self publish to special lists that are indexed better by search engines. In addition most blogs are text and not flash so their content it marked up better. I find the vast majority of my traffic comes from links that other people post (on a ratio of 10-1) and about a quarter of the references are from search engines.

Tools like mnartists work well as most artists names are indexed quite high on google (especially after our latest redesign) but the more links you have and the more active you are online the more times people will find you by accident.

john david Wilson

Posts: 5
Registered: Feb 17, 2005

Re: The Art of Technology
Posted: Feb 17, 2005 8:12 PM

where's the thread, and no, I don't know him.

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