I don’t consider myself a great photographer, but I do like to drag my camera around when travelling.  Last summer my wife and I had a wonderful trip to New Orleans, and one day I might even get some of my pics of the French Quarter and the swamp printed and framed.

So, it came as a surprise last week when I ventured into my Flickr account for the first time in a while and noticed that I actually had an email in the mailbox.  Truth is, I hadn’t really paid much attention to the mailbox icon before.

Seems that someone – specifically the good folks that produce Schmap City Guides– had noticed one of my photos from a Boston excursion my wife and I took last summer and was looking for permission to include it in their latest offering on Beantown.  Immediately, I saw huge windfalls of cash – maybe I could even retire!  But alas, further reading saw no offer of huge royalties

From: Emma Williams

Subject: Schmap: Boston Photo Short List

I am writing to let you know that one of your photos has been short-listed for inclusion in the fifth edition of our Schmap Boston Guide, to be published at the end of this month.

http://www.schmap.com

Clicking this link will take you to a page where you can:
i) See which of your photos has been short-listed.
ii) Submit or withdraw your photo from our final selection phase.
iii) Learn how we credit photos in our Schmap Guides.
iv) Browse online or download the fourth edition of our Schmap Boston Guide.

While we offer no payment for publication, many photographers are pleased to submit their photos, as Schmap Guides give their work recognition and wide exposure, and are free of charge to readers. Photos are published at a maximum width of 150 pixels, are clearly attributed, and link to high-resolution originals at Flickr.

Our submission deadline is Sunday, September 14. If you happen to be reading this message after this date, please still click on the link above (our Schmap Guides are updated frequently – photos submitted after this deadline will be considered for later releases).

Best regards,

Emma Williams

I was too late to grant permission for the next edition, but was only too happy to share for upcoming versions.  In fact, it was kinda cool to think that a photo I took might actually be used by someone – for anything!

Only through the power of web-based sharing could this have happened.  The new world is connected and opportunities abound.  What if a student dreamed of a career in photography?  The ability to use SN sites to share / promote their work is powerful – very flattening!

tags: technology, education, whipple, learning, schmap, boston