A question for everyone.

What do you look for in an entry before you decide that its good enough to earn your vote?

I personally always look at the image big, then look to see how much of the original image has been changed/manipulated, and how much work has gone into creating it. Has the image changed dramatically?
Also i look at how well the blending has been done.

To be honest i pick it to bits and think to myself how long would it take me to create the same thing, or even if i am capable of creating it at all.
The initial wow factor also comes into it for me.

I never vote on the first day, as i like to give everyone a chance and i like to view each entry before i vote.


Anyway thats me, how about everyone else?

I normally vote the last day the image is open.
And look for artistry and feeling given to the image.
Normally only enter anon contest because the choppers name unwillingly influence my judgment.

YAY! A voting topic!

I say this over and over... Art is subjective. What you like, may not be what I like.

I don't care who you are... If I like your entry, I'll vote... if I don't, I wont. I don't care if it has flaws, we're all human and make mistakes... Its what we learn from them that counts. It IS that simple.

I tend to vote on the ones that really wow me first, either with their stellar work or great ideas.
Then I try to save at least half my votes for the end of the contest for those less advantaged who at least tried.

I will also comment/vote if I think something can be improved on easily, and 9 times out of 10 I'll even help you down the path.
If you only get "..." that means I was speechless

Sean stop doing that!!! ( beating that poor animal)

As regards to the voting I totally agree with you, Sean, that's exactly what I do too.

+1

As has been beaten to death, it is subjective. First off, does it make me believe and any of a thousand factors can ruin a chop for me. BUT, having said that, I will even vote on a chop hat has some obvious mistakes if it has something else that carries it and that something else can be beauty or humor. I also wait until day three to vote which sometimes undoes me. I will sometimes get caught up with no time to vote, and for that I apologize.

I guess, first you need an idea. Then, make me believe it is real, make sure the shadows all fall the same way for instance. Check the brightness and contrast, make sure they match the background. I don't give a flip if you use only the source. Cut and paste is great if it is done well, but doing it well is the key whether you use 10 sources or only the one provided in the contest. (For God's sake you people who only like "all source" chops, get over it. It takes just as much skill to find and combine a half dozen images as it does to play with one)

OK, I'm done now.

NEXT!!

Well I evaluate the candidates position on the issues at hand. I then check to see if they've held public office before and, if they have, I check to see if their voting record matches up to their claims.

I also evaluate if their position matches my own views on the nature of government involvement in the lives of citizens. If multiple candidates for the same office hold merit then it can come down to either a lesser-of-two-evils choice or a coin toss.

If you like it...vote for it. If not...don't.
If you run out of votes...that's your fault.
Wait till the last day...then pick the 25 best.
Nuf' said...now go STFUAV! (Shut the Fark up and Vote)

*insert beating the dead moose icon here*

Well said, and very true what everyone has said so far.
And yes i agree that as much work goes into entries that use external images as ones that dont, as long as all the pieces come together well.
Its the final image we are voting on, not how we put it together.

The reason i started this post was because i noticed it wasn't long before the reuinion comp had made 600 votes. This to me seemed a little too quick as with over 70 entries in the comp now, their has been some great late entries that may miss out on the votes because some are maybe not using their votes as wisely as others.
After all we only get 25 votes to divide up between them.

Oh and Sean!
Leave that poor donkey alone m8

---------OVER CAFFEINATED REINMAN WARNING---------

So - though no one ever talks about this topic here, it is good that we get some of this out into the light of day.

Voting, as it has been over the thousands of years that we humans have been doing it, is a private thing. (and by saying "doing it" I mean, of course VOTING and NOT "doing it" as Marco or ReyRey would think of it).

But, as it is my nature to do so, let's bring this "invisible purple elephant in the living room" into the conversation in a manor that, hopefully, will allow some understanding into this most PRIVATE of matters.

Voting. Look at that word for a moment. It's root is "vote", from the ancient Persian word "Vraknar" which, roughly translated, means "to chew the cud for the cattle". It's adjacent "ing" affixed to the "vote" adds a call to action to this ancient article. Together you get VOTING and you'll note this very very closely rhymes with BOATING. Which is NOT a coincidence at all, as "boat" derives its current meaning from the Texmexian word "Barto". As one might BARTO into the Great Receptacle of Life, the cattle that chews no cud will never truly appreciate the full benefits of Living a fulfilled life.

So you can see that, within all the Byzantinian whorls and wisps of linguistic ancestry, this thing we call VOTING takes on a much more deep and depthlike continence. One can quickly appreciate the importance and legacy behind this very personal and private act of giving one's all for the sake of the common artistry of this particular website, no matter what the cost to the individual.

Myself, I just look at the pictures and click the "vote" button if it looks pretty, or has breasts in it.

I've told this story here before but it bears repeating..

Subject: Election Day

OK... so the day was finally upon us! November 4, 2008 Election day!
So with that in mind here goes the story...

So my four year old had known for about a week or two that he would be going with mommy to vote. He's been so excited, in fact so much so that he has been laying into his sister about the fact that he gets to go and she has to go to school. So the day finally arrives! He is overjoyed he gets to see Democracy in action!
(or so we thought)

They get ready to get in the car,
and my son asks while being buckled..
Boy: "Mommy?"
Mom: "Yes honey"
Boy: "Don't we need to get our fishing poles?"
Mom: "Fishing poles?"
Boy: "Yes my Spider Man pole! We going boating, aren't we?!"

Gotta love the mind of a four year old!
Needless to say, he was not as amused as we were...
HAPPY BOATING EVERYONE!

Great story!



It's not easy for a 4 year old

© Norman Rockwell

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WHERE's THE BUTTON!??

WHERE'S THE BUTTON!??!?