Congress Pics

[strass]

I know that some people have already posted copies of their pics from Congress.

I'm just curious if everyone else has gotten theirs or not?

I need to put an ad together and am still waiting.

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Mine is waiting for me to pick it up at the post office!!

Need to go do that before I'm off for my massage!!

 

[strass]

Need to go do that before I'm off for my massage!!

Quite the rough day.

Anybody from the real world?

 

[Irish Hills Farm]

Need to go do that before I'm off for my massage!!

Quite the rough day.

Anybody from the real world?

HA HA

 

[Coventry Lane Farm]

I received my Congress pictures from Terri yesterday, Terri told me 3-4 weeks unless you put a rush on them for the Journal ad which had to be submitted for reservation by 8/15 at the registry.

 

[picasso]

We received ours yesterday. But only got 4 of the 5 that I ordered. I talked to Terri today and she said she would check into it and get the other one to me.

 

[dannigirl]

The kids that went with me and got the free one both got theirs late last week. Very nice job--as usual.

 

[Sharron]

I know that some people have already posted copies of their pics from Congress.I'm just curious if everyone else has gotten theirs or not?

I need to put an ad together and am still waiting.

We got the ones we ordered at Congress late last week, and the ones I ordered over the internet yesterday...if that helps Mike...wish I was more adept at this computer stuff...would post some of our Congress photos here for all to see...

 

[Boinky]

lisa did charlie go to congress? if so how did he do?

Kentucky obviously agree's with jet. he's gained quite a bit of weight since being here (basically off nothing..that's the worst part! after pounding it to him forever now) he should look good for nationals..woohoo.

 

[Lisa Strass]

Charlie did not go to Congress. (Charlie and Frank are both Classics in the Under Divsion.) But Charlie will be at Nationals!

 

[strass]

Light it up!

We did request a rush for the journal ad, so…they apparently sent our photos right to the journal despite the fact that they are reminded year after year that we do our own ads. Not sure how I am supposed to put together an ad if the pics are somewhere else.

The wife called and yelled at them (this is becoming an annual tradition) and they finally sent the digital copy for me to do the ad. Naturally, the requested editing has not been done. They won’t give me a digital copy of another photo (unless my wallet bleeds for it) to pull the needed repair parts off of so I’m stuck with random facing ears and such. Looks like we’re hosed again. We’re now supposed to pick the printed Congress pics up in person at Nationals (where we will begin the struggle for the pics for that Journal ad).

Speaking of editing: Why is it that we are expected to pay for fixes to a picture that the photographer could have demonstrated a little talent and taken right to begin with? I could fix them myself, but getting this particular “photographer” to release digital anything is like pulling teeth. So I'll have to fix them myself later the old fashioned way.

In stark contrast, one of the photogs at the local shows this year will sell you a CD of a few high resolution photos that have been repaired for free for about the same price this other one sells one printed and unedited pic. I told him (local guy) once that I was in a rush and all he asked was, “If the pics go to print, will you credit me for them?” I made him a pinky swear and he put them right on my jump drive for me. He actually seems more interested in people being happy with his photos than in making tons of money on every single little thing about them.

Sharron, I just need to show you a couple of things. Your ponies deserve to have their pics posted.

 

[txminipinto]

...cough...I hate to admit that I'm going to agree with Mike on this one. While I HATE paying top dollar for photos (I prefer my pics to be handed to me on a CD, instead of having to go throught the PIA of scanning them) if I'm going to pay top dollar, I want a picture I can enjoy. One of my biggest peaves, especially at Congress, is the center ring shots are so dark!

Jeff Kirkbride Photography does Pinto World and before anyone "turns up their nose" they also do all of the MAJOR National level competition shows for our bigger cousins. He charges an arm and a leg too, but at least I can see my black horses in the ring. Of course, sometimes the photographer can't help is the environment they have to shoot in. Until we move Congress to a brighter location, our shots will always be dark.

 

[ahrobertspony]

Jumping in here ... two things ...

First ... RESERVATIONS for ads were due 8/15 ... NOT materials. Accommodations for materials submissions have always been available for appropriately made reservations. Turning around professional photos by 8/15 was not in any way do-able. From my experience, any professional photos received in 3-4 weeks can probably be considered a rush job when the industry standard for years was 4-6 weeks.

Second ...

The Journal does NOT receive ANYONE'S photos any more .... Nor do we want them when other & better options are available. Instead, we get orginal, high res. electronic files so we don't have to spend time scanning photos and having them possibly not come out right. The electronic files are better and allow us to work better & faster. (Of course... as someone pointed out ... we do still have trouble when photos need to be multiple places at once ... something that happens dozens of times every Oct & Dec. issue so we'll do the best we can.)

FYI .... Each year, I say to the photographers (whether it's World, Congress or R Nationals) ... "take care of everyone else first & send what has to come to The Journal last." The CD has arrived but I haven't gone through it yet. I'm still dealing with the World Show. The photo organization can take days & days.

Each year there may be a few errors from Congress or Worlds or R Nationals, but when I buy 3-4 dozen pics alone and handle many others ordered by others, that is not unusual or unexpected given the numbers. In terms of rectifying errors and getting those errors turned around, I can absolutely unequivably say Washburns are the very best, most responsive and fastest I've EVER worked with ... hands down ... period. Of course, perhaps my experience isn't as vast as it could be ... that's only been with 100,000 - 150,000 pics over the years and 70-75 issues and 12,000-14,000 pages.

Many photographers can and will release elec. files like that to known and/or professional publications and designers. I often try to give the various photographers lists of known designers so they know it's okay to release electronic pics (IF their copyright & reproduction policies allow for tht), but I confine that to individuals who are submitting multiple pages for various other entitities. More & more people do their own work & I can't track all of that... so that list will probably stay confined to professional designers. After all, we're keeping copyright/reproduction factors in mind as well.

Given my experience in this industry and with a multitude of photographers I've worked with .... I have always said and will continue to say ... Washburn Photography is definitely in the upper echelon when all factors are considered ... capture rate, proof availability, pricing (w/ limited reproduction rights), turn around, availablility of pics, reproduction rights for publication, color, quality, etc. I have never worked with any better photographer and have certainly had much, much, much poorer experiences.

I am sorry for anyone having a poor experience. My recommendations would be this ...

1) Call about any errors as soon as you receive the photos. As with any human based business, errors are possible

2) Be calm, courteous & explain the problem. What was it my mom always said ... something about catching more flies w/ sugar????

3) Contact The Journal directly if you have concerns about your ads & submissions & time frames.

As I shared with some directly this week and for those who haven't heard this or may have misunderstood ... IF you made your advertising reservation appropriately and are waiting for pics still at the submission deadline or maybe now have a photo error that needs to be resolved, please contact The Journal. Yes, we requested materials by 8/29 ... and thanks to those who hustled to do that, paid overnight shipping, etc. For everyone else, yes ... we know you are just getting your photographs (just like everyone else). However, if we know that status of everything, we will work with you as much as we can. (Of course, we also expect you then to understand our production, printing & mailing difficulties.)

Extensions can be made if you have appropriate reservations. We deal with this EVERY year for Congress and then for Nationals regardless of WHO the photographer is. We can ... and will work with you. THAT is why the production schedules were changed ... to accommodate this very thing. Also, please remember, if you have a reservation, we'll especially work with those providing a "ready" ad. After all, we've got 150+ pages to worry about so we can customize your submission if you are working are your one or two pages ... allows us to worry more about the other 148.

Again ... if you have an issue with pictures, please contact Washburns right away as they will soon be leaving for Tulsa & R Nationals. If you need a few more days to complete your reservation, please contact Journal staff directly. You can reach Molly at 309-263-9304 or e-mail me directly. If you need an extension, have a question, please DO NOT post it here ... I don't check in here often.

AHR

 

[bingo]

I have to agree with Mike on this one. Rarely do I even see good pictures from center ring at Congress or Nationals. They are always way to dark to the point you can hardly see what the horse looks like other then a form of a animal. I know the win pics can be hard to get with the rush of the next class coming in but really I have seen and bought much better photos from most local shows.

It is disappointing to say the least.

 

[Lisa Strass]

Shouldn't be posting as I really don't have time right now, and I'm not feeling diplomatic... I believe Washburn is well aware of all these issues, so I don't want to hear anybody tell me to talk directly to them.

1) My "sugary", polite phone calls got me nowhere with Washburn. How many times should I call, be told I will be called back shortly. and yet never recieve a call? I understand people are busy. That is why I waited a week each time someone actually answered the phone before calling again. But time is of the essence.

2) I am happy Washburn is willing to work with The Journal and The Journal's select ad designers. What about the rest of us?

3) I don't understand why the statement, "[SIZE=24pt]I[/SIZE] need this photo for a Journal ad" is confusing every year.

I've seen lots of people posting their Congress pictures over the last week, yet still did not have the winning pictue of the Congress Stakes Pleasure Driving Champion, let alone anything else.

Going into LMS editorial now: I would have liked to have had several photos to cover our Congress wins this year, but because it is always a fight, I thought I would make it simple and just ask for a rush on one photo - a Congress GRAND photo. Yes, I do have it now, and I thank them for that.

 

[strass]

Simmer down Aims. Nobody is saying anything negative about you or the Journal. I strive to produce ads that both satisfy your desires and meet your timely needs. I, for one, truly appreciate the job that you do and the quality of magazine you put forth.

The Journal does NOT receive ANYONE'S photos any more .... Nor do we want them when other & better options are available. Instead, we get orginal, high res. electronic files so we don't have to spend time scanning photos and having them possibly not come out right. The electronic files are better and allow us to work better & faster.

Thanks for clarifying that. I fully agree with you that the electronic version of the photo is the one that is most useful in this century. It also is the most difficult one for us commoners to get from them.

Many photographers can and will release elec. files like that to known and/or professional publications and designers….. After all, we're keeping copyright/reproduction factors in mind as well.

Nobody’s trying to violate any copyrights. All I’m saying is that if obsessively defending their copyright (from us insignificant peasants WHO HAVE TO PAY FOR ALL THIS and aren’t trying to steal anything anyway) is their major focus, then let them keep their precious copyrights and we’ll go find a photog that focuses on actually giving Customers the quality that they need. Naturally, I’ll be happy to credit ANYONE who allows me to own a quality picture of one of my horses that I can actually use.

Extensions can be made…

And again, I think you do a wonderful job and have made efforts to accommodate time problems to the best of reasonability. Thank you. I love you. I am in no way at all unhappy with you.

 

[stormo41]

I've tried writting this a few times but the short and most simple thing to say is.

If you don't like it, don't buy it.

I work at a photography studio. Everyone wants perfect images and they want them fast. No one cares how much work or time it takes to properly edit a photo.

It's just sad, you may edit your own photos, but think they just photographed Congress how many orders do they have? more then just yours, how many horses did they photograph more then just yours, how many images do they have way more then just yours.

The photographer and the people working at the studio are doing the very best they can. They could get more work done if you didn't call and yell at them. It takes longer to understand what you want or what was wrong when you yell and there for longer to fix the problem. Just call and tell them what the problem is and they will work as best as they can to fix it.

 

[Lisa Strass]

I've tried writting this a few times but the short and most simple thing to say is.If you don't like it, don't buy it.

Believe me, I pass up a lot of them. Sad really.

The photographer and the people working at the studio are doing the very best they can. They could get more work done if you didn't call and yell at them. It takes longer to understand what you want or what was wrong when you yell and there for longer to fix the problem. Just call and tell them what the problem is and they will work as best as they can to fix it.

I'm guessing this is aimed at me, so I would like to correct a statement my husband made. I did not yell at anyone. I am not going to go into a detailed log of every message left and conversation between Washburn and myself on this forum for everyone to put their two cents into. As a reasonably intelligent person who deals with multi-million dollar projects daily, I believe I have a reasonable expectation of customer service, and I am not satisfied. Few things really really irk me, but telling me you will look into it and get right back to me, and a week goes by, and I hear nothing... well that will get me going when it happens repeatedly.

If you accept a job (I don't care what the job is), you are responsible to meet the expectations for that job.

 

[strass]

If you don't like it, don't buy it.

Or…how about…since we are allowed only one photographer per show…(look up the meaning of the word: monopoly) if I don’t like it, I try to take steps to assure that I can buy what I want on the future? This can be accomplished either by making my needs known and encouraging others to take similar action OR (since you think the work load that they committed to is too strenuous) by opening up discussion on finding someone else to be the photographer at the show who might have better resources and/or a more open schedule that would permit them to get more quality, done faster, and probably cheaper.

Don’t think for a minute that it’s just the lack of fixing the things they didn’t photograph correctly that perturbs me. I assure you that it’s also the quality of the photos themselves. I’ve been told that a photographer’s goal is to take a picture that doesn’t need to be edited.

I am well aware that I am not the only person buying these photos. Several others have privately expressed the same concerns to me. Most of these people do not want any form of conflict and I’m quite accustomed to being the faceman for those who, for some reason, cannot say the things they want to. I’m proud of those that have come forward.

Now, my youngling: A lesson in the business world. When I fail to produce quality work in a timely fashion, do you know what my boss does? He doesn’t call me to discuss his emotional concerns and hold my hand as he gives me a pep-talk. He YELLS at me and explains that if I can’t do it correctly in the time allowed, he will find someone else who can. I’m expected to know how to do my job and to find a way to deliver on the commitments that I’ve made in a manner that pleases my customers and keeps them wanting to come back to use my company’s services time and time again.

Another example: When I first got photoshop and was submitting something for the Journal, I asked Amy what she thought of it and she took the time to tell me how the cow ate the cabbage in regards to the quality of my work. Did this upset me? NO. I listened to her and took notes. As a result, the quality of my work has improved. I am honestly grateful that she took the time to tell me that I sucked. Not everyone cares enough to be honest. I'm now an official Amy supporter.

Anyhow…

This is really NOT the direction that I wanted this thread to go. When I take issue with someone, I prefer to express it directly to that person. I suppose, being a public forum and a very small horse world (pun intended) that I have done just that, but it’s not the way that I would have preferred to do it. For that, I do apologize to the discussed photographer.

One last thing…

I told my wife the other day that I was going to call and yell at them. Her response was, “I’ve already taken care of it.”

I MIStook this to mean that she yelled at them as I wanted to. It seems that I was wrong about my choice of the word “yell” and I assure you that she did yell at me for posting the wrong information. So…

Lord, I apologize for being an ignorant male and not listening closer to the things that women say.

 

[stormo41]

The wife called and yelled at them (this is becoming an annual tradition) and they finally sent the digital copy for me to do the ad. Naturally, the requested editing has not been done. They won’t give me a digital copy of another photo (unless my wallet bleeds for it) to pull the needed repair parts off of so I’m stuck with random facing ears and such. Looks like we’re hosed again.

Are you talking about transplants? if you are could not even imagine doing those for the price of a photo bought from an event. Our studio charges $30 plus for a head transplant on top of the SITTING FEE (that covers the sitting and $150 to use for prints). Event photography is a whole different ball game, you pay no sitting fee, there for very little retouching is done. it's just the way it is. Now i'm not saying that this particular studio and photographer are treating you that way they should in the lines of customer service. I'm just saying that from what i'm reading you are expecting way to much from this type of photography.