Howto Series | #1 — What makes a photography post irresistible

So this is my 2nd week as a Curie curator. Last week, I mentioned about messing up with my CS & AR points (more info here) so this week, I'm more careful with my content selection. No proposal until I'm 101% sure of my decision.

A scoring point of more than 2.5 and 100% will earn me more submission limit (i.e. 15) for the upcoming week. With me joining @curie, @smartsteem, and @newbieresteemday, I realized the dire need for great (if not good) content. While there are amazing contents out there, there are also lots of horrible ones.

So, to play my role in fighting bad content and uphold my responsibilities towards the ecosystem, I've decided to come up with a 101 guide (read: the how-tos) to creating exceptional content.
 

 

Bear in mind, that this is not a sure way or guarantee that'll you'll be selected by Curie or whatsoever. But it will definitely increase your chances of being selected, if not kept in view by curators.

You should also know that there are many curators out there who are watching you and could possibly keep you on their watchlist. Your content might not be noticed immediately, so please be patient.

As long as you're creating contents consistently, you will be rewarded someday, one way or the other.
 

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The Caveat

 

For this initiative, I will share the dos and don'ts when creating content on Steemit. Please note that these are only guidelines and at the end of the day, what curators or reviewers deemed as the quality content is quite subjective, although after I have personally experimented and studied closely a variety of epic contents; I am quite confident to guide you on this topic.

At the end of each post, I hope to create a space for creators to constructively feedback on one another's content. So feel free to submit your link so my partner (@maverickfoo) and my self will be having a look at it and constructively provide feedback to our fellow Steemians.

If you don't know yet, @maverickfoo is a great storyteller and crafts amazingly creative contents. Check his profile out to decide for yourself. I'm sure you can greatly benefit from his insights and feedback as well :)
 

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The Dos and Don'ts

 

Do: If you're a photographer, here's a great way to showcase your work

 

 

The Oomph Factor:
@garethb explains his techniques and methods in-depth in his area of expertise— photography. Succinct yet on-point, his post educates and the pictures hypnotically pull his readers in, leaving room for imagination yet allowing space for his readers to experiment and explore beyond their boundaries. Posts like this encourage experimentation and gather a cult of following from photo-enthusiasts.
 

 

The Oomph Factor:
@cinemaninja shares the ultimate experience with us via his/her video. This personal and intimate gesture allows the readers to connect with the author, thus making this content a great one.
 

Don't: Slap on a picture and call it a day off

 

 

The Yikes Factor:
I know what you're thinking. You're thinking of putting something (anything) up so you can eventually bid bots and buy votes for this specific post. I call this lazy and lousy content. This is outright content abuse, some might even call it raping the rewards pool. For Smartsteem, you will never even get whitelisted for this kind of content. And if I find out that these pics are not yours, I'll even blacklist you. (No, you won't get to appeal for blacklist)
 

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Tips for #photography posts:

 

1. Treat your Steemit account like your personal portfolio on your website. You won't create crappy content if it's your own domain, right? It's the same concept here. The thing about Steemit, it's not only a content creation platform but it kinda works like your portfolio book as well. Check out Neil Strauss' work on Steemit here. If you don't know who's Neil, he's the genius behind the bestselling love-relationship books like The Game, and The Truth. His Steemit account pretty much reflects on his personal work. Now that's his identity and you can create the identity you want on Steemit too.
2. Explain the mechanism of your work. Detail the process, document the details. Then, finally showcase the outcome of your work.
3. Use quality, clear pictures. If it's not a hell-yes pictures then don't put them up. You don't need a lengthy post for it to be good, you just need the right amount of details to justify the quality of your post. If it helps to have GIFs or video to document your work process, by all means, do it.
4. If your pictures have a theme, tell your readers about it. If your photos contain its origins, culture, and story, convey its underlying messages. That's what make exceptional posts— exceptional; themes, stories, and personalization.

 

More examples of great photography posts here: [1, 2, 3]

 

PS: You can also propose great content that you think is deserving. Remember, the more you help people, the more you will receive in return from Steemit. That's how it works. The community helps those who help others.

Disclaimer: Please do not spam me with "upvote for upvote" or "follow for follow." You don't have to beg for votes and follows if you're worth upvoting or following. If not you'll just risk being flagged/ downvotes. Also, this is my personal initiative just to help more Steemians improve their content creation and in no way, am I sponsored or entrusted with this task from any of the aforementioned entities.

 

Image credit: All public domain images are taken from Pexels, unless stated otherwise.
 
 

These days I mostly write on Steemit.
I still have my portfolio and personal sites— virtuallydebbie.com and debbieang.com.
But these sites will eventually redirect you to my Steemit blog.
Well, what can I say. If it’s good stuff, you can’t get enough of it :)
Follow me and I'll take you through my unpredictable journey— filled with wilderness, curiosity, and randomness.

PS: Join #steemitbloggers to unite with other bloggers and #sfg #steemgigs to partake in the freelancers' clan. Also, check out @kristyglas amazing divider below. Support her work by sharing as she puts in tremendous effort into creating pretty dividers for Steemians.