[Leica] Some suggestions for whoever adopts the LUG yearbook

[jshulman at judgecrater.com (Jim Shulman)]

First, my congratulations!  It?s been an amazing project, and I?m thrilled
that someone will be continuing the tradition.



1.       Your first decision will be whether to make the yearbook as
inclusive as possible, or to have restrictions.  I opted for the former,
given the list?s very inclusive standards: nobody is vetted to join, and
virtually all topics related to photography, home life, travel, health,
etc. have been encouraged (with the exception, really, of political
diatribes and a few other points, which are moved to the LUG forum).  Since
most of the posts these days concern cameras and lenses other than Leica
(given the virtually demise of film, and the prices of Leica
cameras/optics, which have zoomed far in excess of the CPI in the past
fifteen years), and since I?ll be darned if I can tell the difference
between a Leica image and a Nikon image from a one meg .jpg, I decided to
open it to all images irrespective of apparatus.  The only restriction was
for images taken during the calendar year, since it is a yearbook, after
all.



A more restrictive policy, based on cameras/lenses, or judged images might
make for a more pointed book, though with far fewer images.  The greater
the number of images, the higher the sales. That only matters insofar as
interest in the book, as well as dollars for any charitable cause (the
current book has a $7 surcharge, with last year produced about $450-500 in
donations).



2.       Have patience.  About ? of all entries typically have something
awry, such as wrong image format, unreadable images, incomplete captions,
etc.  Expect a lot of communication back and forth among the
participants?especially confirmations of captions.



3.       Blurb or not?  I stuck with blurb.com, due to its simplicity and
my disinclination to learn another book software program.  These days there
may be other choices.  If you choose to stay with blurb.com, I will give
you my account passwords, since book sales are cumulative, and any back
issues purchased plus new books purchased would go toward a payment.
Blurb.com only sends a check when there is at least $25 in a given
quarter?s sales.



4.       LUG members or LUG plus other participants?  I?ve invited
photographers I?ve known, both personally and from other active photo
groups, to participate.  About 20-30 images in the current book come from
those sources?and many of the non-LUG participants purchase books.



5.       Remember?when in doubt, a person will opt not to send any images.
You really should consider making it easy as possible, since a printed
image is considered to be a commitment, which may intimidate many.  We live
in a facebook/snapchat world, where people post images with the belief
(however misguided), that the images will disappear or be forgotten not
long after a post.





All best wishes for the project?s continued success,

Jim Shulman

Wynnewood, PA