Creation first posts: pic or linky?

[L-space]

During my time here on Eurobricks I have seen a lot of great MOCs and MOD come by. However I fear that I have missed some other great ones because some people just post a link in their first post instead of a pic.

When reading a first post I almost never click the linky immediately. Maybe if I see the topic come by a couple of more times I am tempted to click.

I for one take great pride in the first pic of my creations be it MOC or MOD. Almost all of my first pics have a custom background and title. First for me personnaly to sort of set the creation in its natural habitat and second to persuade others to view the other pics. An added bonus is that I am getting better at photoshop very new creation.

So what great creations did I miss and what do you think about it?

[Stauder]

I have a more or less same policy, if the poster can't be bothered to post at least one preview pic that links to his Flickr/Brickshelf/MOCpage/Whatever then I can't be bothered to look. I think there should be a rule of a 1 picture minimum when posting MOC's or whatever really.

The first impression is what counts, and if all you see is either

http://www.igotsmylegopicsherebutwontactua...8934ibelazy.jpg

or

Click me!

Then I am not impressed. The only times I do click is if I see really good comments or it is one of the great builders of our time.

Also, I think this belongs in the "Website and Forums" Section.

Stauder.

Edited June 11, 2009 by Stauder

[L-space]

I have a more or less same policy, if the poster can't be bothered to post at least one preview pic that links to his Flickr/Brickshelf/MOCpage/Whatever then I can't be bothered to look. I think there should be a rule of a 1 picture minimum when posting MOC's or whatever really.

The first impression is what counts, and if all you see is either

or

Then I am not impressed. The only times I do click is if I see really good comments or it is one of the great builders of our time.

Also, I think this belongs in the "Website and Forums" Section.

Stauder.

A rule is maybe too much, but a heavy suggested guideline would do it

And you are wright it should be in "Website and Forums" Section, my mistake. Could a mod move it please?

[Teddy]

I prefer a pic in the first post.

So I always put a pic in my first posts as well.

But i can imagine some people getting swamped with all the photos they have to put everywere.

Among most lego sites there is no uniformaty on the pic size.

Some are 800x600 others are 640x480, and others 400x300.

Personally, I make my pics 800x600 for EB and wen I find more time I'll scale them for other websites as well.

I nearly always post them on EB first.

Then there is the managing of mocpages, flickr, and brickshelf.

Since time is sometimes thin I recently only updated my brickshelf folders.

And I seldom check my mocpages and flickr acount.

All in all managing all your photos can be a very time consuming activity.

So preferably a pic, but I can imagine people getting a bit swamped with scaling and managing all sites and therefore posting a link.

Edited June 11, 2009 by Teddy

[SlyOwl]

It's a pretty common standard for mods to add a picture to the first post, be it linking to a new set/news or a MOC/MOD.

The only time this doesn't normally happen is if the picture is waaaay too big...

On a personal note, I only really look at the first few photos of any MOC, unless it really appeals to me, and will only explore a link if it is to Brickshelf. I can't get my head round the MOCpages interface (or most personal sites), and if it's on Flickr, the likelihood is that I've already seen it in "My Contacts' Photostreams".

I make my pics 800x600 (or smaller), and then use the different sizes you're given on Flickr on sites where there are size limits.

[prateek]

if there is a link i usually don't click so i don't comment

[Tom Bricks]

At least a few pictures and a link are better than nothing. I don't usually click on links too. This is a great example: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=29930 (I know just what you wanted a link )

Two pictures and a link to a gallery, the creation was good enough that I looked through the whole thing.

P.S. how many people clicked on my link?

[Corvus]

Interesting topic.

Pics in the topic are a must for me. I find that it's more eye-catching and flows much better than clicking on a link and waiting for it to open...click...load...click...load... and so on. Having the pictures simply flow with the description of the MOC or MOD is much easier, and is even more important on a review, when there are many pictures and you are following a detailed description of the build.

[Shadows]

Personally, I won't look at or index a MOC that doesn't include a posted pic, even if it's just a thumbnail. There's really no excuse for it. That doesn't mean you have to include 87 of them, or that they need to be 2180x1556, those are equally annoying.

Bottom line: It's your creation, sell us on it. Give it the best presentation possible for maximum response. That means a reasonably sized pic or thumbnails and some description.

[Peppermint_M]

I always add a picture to my MOC posts. I even spent ages going through the tutorials so I could get it just right.

As I (currently) use MOCpages, I find the first picture for each MOC is the right size for a decent picture that I can turn into a link to a larger photo. If I am particularly pleased with my model I will also add thumbnails to each of the other photographs (Left, right, top/front/side views).

I don't follow links as a rule, but I do sometimes click through photo thumbnails.

[Shine]

I generally use a 100x100px thumbnail with a unique-looking bit of the MOC in it.

I'd always rather there be a link or thumbnail instead of a 150x150+px image.

[Eilif]

I generally don't give it a look if I don't see a pic. A few reasons.

1) Most time's it seems the link is to a really huge pic, and my computer isn't slow, but it's not the fastest.

2) Linked pics seem to be much more likely to be blurry and poorly taken.

3) It's an odd sort of quid-pro-quo, but if they can't take the time to size and deeplink, then I just don't want to be bothered.

I know it sounds harsh, but a good example is another forum that I visit that has TONS of MOC posts. You can sift through tons of crap there simply by not clicking on links. If a person's work is good enough to warrant the communities time, then they should take the time to properly present it.

[CP5670]

I put up a single 640x480 image for my MOC threads, which links to the Brickshelf gallery, along with a short description that is usually copied out of info files I have on Brickshelf. This does a reasonable job of "selling" the MOC without taking a lot of effort. The actual pictures on Brickshelf range between 1280x960 and 640x480, depending on how close-up they are taken.

Like others, I also tend to ignore MOCs that lack any preview picture at all, unless the thread has a lot of responses and seems to be something out of the ordinary.