Tag: SmugMug

Photo by Joe WilcoxJan 1, 202012:07 am

Introducing ‘Flickr a Week’

On Jan. 1, 2015, I started ambitious publishing project “Flickr a Day“: One image, from a different photographer, each and every day. Curating compositions proved to be an engaging educational exercise that I like to think (somewhat) improved my tradecraft. But the process also consumed more time than expected. For purpose of respecting copyrights, I only chose Creative Commons-licensed pics, but many of the best were All Rights Reserved.

Five years later, time is long past to revive a project that I immensely enjoyed compiling and hopefully some people enjoyed viewing. Like the original concept, one Creative Commons-licensed photo from a single shooter will be shared once, with some background—and, where appropriate, additional storytelling—about both. But unlike 2015, 2020 will be less frequent: Twice weekly; occasionally something extra to mark current events or special occasions.

Photo by Joe WilcoxApr 23, 201810:04 pm

Call Me Surprised About SmugMug and Flickr

My preferred, and favorite, photo-sharing site is SmugMug. The family-owned operation is long profitable by defying the Internet’s predominant axiom: Free. SmugMug relies on a solely subscription model, where customers pay, and, as such, doesn’t collect user information for profit nor are there annoying advertisements.

But for the longest time, I haven’t used SmugMug—for what may seem like the strangest of reasons: My art isn’t good enough. The service has matured into a collective of professional photographers, and I don’t feel comfortable keeping my images among theirs (although many of mine remain from the past). I grudgingly use Flickr instead. Instagram isn’t an option, for the same reasons I rebuke parent company, and data-collection whore, Facebook.

Photo by Joe WilcoxJul 9, 20065:45 pm

SmugMug, Finally

Back in February I praised photo-sharing site SmugMug. I sporadically and half-heartedly uploaded photos there, as I pondered Flickr. I was strongly attracted to Flickr’s community—everybody seems to hang-out there—appeal. Last month, Thomas Hawk joined Zooomr, which created another quandary. Thomas’ Zooomr support simply couldn’t be ignored.

After weighing Flickr’s community and Zooomr’s Thomas endorsement,, I’ve decided to stick with SmugMug and really start using it. I spent part of the last two days adding new photos to my SmugMug site. The decision comes with angst, because Flickr and Zooomr also appeal to me, for different reasons.

Photo by Joe WilcoxFeb 1, 20067:09 pm

Look Smug in the Mug

One of the great benefits of my job is opportunity to speak to people running some really cool companies. Today I got the grand tour of photo-sharing site SmugMug. I had strongly considered setting up shop at Flickr, for which I had already plunked down $24.95 for a year’s Pro service. I probably will upload some stuff to Flickr, mainly stock images for my blog posts. Externally hosted images would make for less work should I ever move my blog to a new host. Looks like SmugMug will become my main photo flat. I’ve already started moving in.

SmugMug is one of the best photo-sharing sites I have seen. Tools are excellent for amateur or pro photographers. Technology is modern, fresh, and easy. SmugMug also is a successful family business, something you don’t see much in high-techdom. My temporary SmugMug site is up and running. I plan to use a domain, if I grow to like the service as much as I expect to.