Just got an email this morning. PLEASE send in some photo's of you Fiero to complete this years line up for the Calendar. This has been a LONG standing tradition, and I for one would hate to see it go away. There is a 30% chance my car will be completed enough to try to get a photo to them to try to help. It is in the paint booth at this very moment.
They are allowing people to send in pictures via email this time, so no need to have to send in a CD!
From their email" Last Call For The 2015 Fiero Store Calendar Before we make the final decision to scrap the 2015 Fiero Store Calendar due to a lack of submissions, we thought it would be wise to give everyone one more chance to save what for us has been a fun tradition. If you would like to help save The Fiero Store calendar, please send us your picture on CD or email your submission to info@fierostore.com by Friday, August 15th.
Here's the issue. From what I've heard.....and again what I HEARD from others is that their calendar is really poorly presented. Word of mouth helps or ruins many product sales and I don't think too many people have any interest in sending photos to them any more. Sure, the regulars such as yourself and a handful of others will send in photos but many others simply stopped. There are no details on the cars or owners...just photos. Other members on here have made professional looking calendars for sale with vehicle details and details on the owners and have sold TONS of them.
[This message has been edited by IMSA GT (edited 08-01-2014).]
My Fiero is somewhat apart, so not pic ready. Trying to get it ready for Fierorama.
I have a calendar. It's a shame, but some of the cars pictured have sold. My calendar has first name and state. Yes, more info would be nice. Whatever the owner is willing to provide.
I was wondering how those pics got on there. I had no idea that they were even looking for pics. I wonder how many other people didn't know.
Another thing, is that those cars on my calendar are very nice. Some of us just have OK cars. Who wants to be the ugly car on the calendar?
The last calendar I got from them a couple years ago featured two cars per page, so to make them all fit, the photos were small. If my photo were good enough to send in, I would want my car featured on a single page especially since I lose the rights to the photo. Also, as a buyer of car calendars, I want the month to show me one nice big photo, not two half-sized ones per month. Perhaps if they did this they would already have enough photos to make a great calendar. Just my opinion.
The last calendar I got from them a couple years ago featured two cars per page, so to make them all fit, .
Yes, this is odd that they are short images this year, when they had 24 a few years ago. Also that calendar did say the name of the owner and the city and state they lived in.
[This message has been edited by 2.5 (edited 08-04-2014).]
I really believe few would pass up a chance of their car being on a calendar if their name was not on it. To be honest I would rather not have my name on it.
Second this was not well know to many as My self and others never really knew much about it until I got a recent e mail from a recent purchase.
Three I know with dealing with the media and magazines that most times the majority of the photos sent in are unusable. People just do not know how to take pictures. Even I will take a lot of them and discard 2/3 as not usable.
Fourth quality of the photo. In this age of cell phones some photos are great many more not so much. They may look good on your phone but in a larger photo they can look pretty crappy.
If anything I would take away from this from past experience is that the fact they did not get many photo's of new and different do to many people not knowing and the greatest reason poor quality of the photo's they received.
God know the quality of the photo's I have seen from my work sent in leave much to be desired. If the car is good there is a dead tree in the background. Or if the photo is good the car looks like a winter beater. The two never line up as much as you would like.
Color also plays a big factor. In the media and Catalogs they love bright colors. Black cars have a hard time making many stories. Red, Yellow and other bright colors play well. For our Catalog most often It is the color not the content that makes the cover.
I really believe few would pass up a chance of their car being on a calendar if their name was not on it. To be honest I would rather not have my name on it.
I sent one in but I don't believe it will make the calendar . I mean the car looks good to me but well it is silver, and people do like bright colors. Then there is the fact I don't get out to get a good picture of the car with a nice background. Topped off with the fact I am not a professional photographer to get a quality photo. I give my chances to be slim to none at best but at least I sent one in. If they like the car but not the photo they could always ask for a new picture, or for it to be resent at a different quality.
Well considering they were asking for photo's in more than J pegs may have stopped many as few people use TIFF and other methods they requested.
While the J peg looks good on the web it pails once you put it into print.
The real secret I have learned is you do not have to be a pro for a good photo. You really only need to put some planning and thought to it. You need to look and plan for a site that compliments the car. If you have a black car do not use a black top parking lot. Or if you are dealing with a back ground do not leave poles and dead trees in the background.
Look at how the pro photogs take photos and what they use and it is a great guide to what can be done.
Also go for late after noon and late evenings shots and get the light low down. Unless you have a good flash system the lower the light the better detail on the sides. And always keep the sun to your back.
A little though and planning can make a great photo. The key is just don't stand in the driveway and take a photo with the basket ball hoop or trash cans in the back ground and expect it to be chosen.
Granted about the name thing, but it isn't a full name. Last year's calendar had 1 pic per month.
Suppose the calendar was first name (or car nickname) and state, year of car, engine or special feature. It's nice to see what Fiero people have done with their cars. It's also nice to see people in your own state, and compare condition.
Granted about the name thing, but it isn't a full name. Last year's calendar had 1 pic per month.
Suppose the calendar was first name (or car nickname) and state, year of car, engine or special feature. It's nice to see what Fiero people have done with their cars. It's also nice to see people in your own state, and compare condition.
Today it is so easy to track information down. I had one guy just had part of my info track me down on my car once. He was a ok guy but you do get the wacko's and the people trying to sell something let alone those who would like to steal. I so not think someone would try to do a vin swap on my Fiero but it has been done on other cars.
I can enjoy the cars and never really know who's car it is. It does not hurt the appreciation of what they did if they are from Maine or Nevada or make it better if they are from NC or ND.
Some people take selfies to make them feel better others like me could care less if our name is on it and in many cases would prefer it is off anymore.
Most good calendars have one photo per month. My GM Performance has one and the Summit Racing one I have only has one photo per page. It also has no names either. year and make and that is it.
I would not mind if they put the details of the car as it adds to the interest of the car.
FWIW - after last year's deadline was extended, I helped a few locals send out the appropriate digital files, printed pages & release forms... and only one was accepted and printed in the Calendar (Kev's Black 85 GT, on the road coming back from Indy). I am going to go back through my pics from the past year or two for options... maybe even resend a couple from last year.
I truly think the lack of submissions is 95% due to them originally requesting files by mail. Sorry, it's 2014 now... digital file transfers (even for BIG files), are simple and free. Don't want to use up all your inbox storage? Have people submit files via WeTransfer.com (or another similar, free service). Oh, and make the release an online form with a space for initials & a checkbox for "I understand..."
Also, a technical note (from a graphic designer, and large format printer) - file format (JPG, TIFF, PSD, PDF, etc) is not directly related to quality. You can have a top quality JPG. You can also have a very low grade, crappy TIF. The file format is all about compression... not quality! Resolution is the key...
Also, a technical note (from a graphic designer, and large format printer) - file format (JPG, TIFF, PSD, PDF, etc) is not directly related to quality. You can have a top quality JPG. You can also have a very low grade, crappy TIF. The file format is all about compression... not quality! Resolution is the key...
And just to add another technical note:
Most people think you need some high end camera, with all sorts of equipment to take a photo for publishing. Well, guess what.....You don't! Most of today's smart phones can take more than a good enough picture to use for a calendar. Grant it, you are not going to take any award winning night shots, but if you have decent light, it's no problem. Getting the lighting, angle, reflections, composition and such correct are the key to a good photo, and not restricted by the camera you are using.
As an example, Here is a photo taken at sun down with my 2 year old Samsung Galaxy, S3 which has an 8 Megapixel camera:
Keep in mind, this photo has been reduced in size. It is only one third the original size of 3264 x 2488 the phone took it at!
This photo was taken in Frazee, MN at Camp Shipman
[This message has been edited by JohnWPB (edited 08-05-2014).]
what's the deal with it, can the submission form and pic be sent with mail or does it have to be a CD? when yes in digital form, how to sign the submission?
what's the deal with it, can the submission form and pic be sent with mail or does it have to be a CD? when yes in digital form, how to sign the submission?
They are now accepting submissions via email. For the release form, I would think it best to print, sign & scan or photograph - and include as an attachment with the photo submissions!
We receive a dozen or so automotive calendars each year from our vendors and other industry sources. With only a few exceptions, most of them display year, make and model. However, most of those calendars have a more diverse collection of cars. It seems arguably fair to say that our presentation is within the norm and the decline in calendar submissions has very little to do with the manner in which people's personal information is displayed (or not displayed). We will certainly continue to monitor opinions and do our best to produce an attractive, reasonably priced calendar with the understanding that there will always be room to improve.
We get many calls from customers who are concerned about their privacy and rightfully so. We take the security of our customers' personal information very seriously and we struggled with the decision to include geographic information. We decided to use it because people seem to enjoy seeing Fieros from around the world. Plus, customers can instruct us to print whatever name they want on the submission form, which sometimes results in some entertaining pseudonyms. It's probably a sign of the times, and perhaps we're a bit paranoid, but when it comes to publishing identifying characteristics about people and their cars, we are clearly erring on the side of caution.
Compliments to hyperv6 for making some very accurate observations about the submission process. The ease (or lack thereof) of the submission process seems to be the most likely reason why submissions have declined. Since we started accepting electronic submissions, the volume of images has gone up, but the ratio of useable images has certainly gone down. You simply can't print a quality full size calendar with only one car per page using 35KB .jpg files. We understand everyone's frustration and we do the best we can to educate, but this kind of photography has yet to become common knowledge. Hopefully this will get easier with each passing year. For future calendars, we will likely continue to accept emailed submissions that are accompanied by a signed and scanned (or photographed) submission form.
The good news is that we will likely have enough images to produce a calendar this year. Thanks to everyone for their enthusiasm and constructive criticism.
We receive a dozen or so automotive calendars each year from our vendors and other industry sources. With only a few exceptions, most of them display year, make and model. However, most of those calendars have a more diverse collection of cars. It seems arguably fair to say that our presentation is within the norm and the decline in calendar submissions has very little to do with the manner in which people's personal information is displayed (or not displayed). We will certainly continue to monitor opinions and do our best to produce an attractive, reasonably priced calendar with the understanding that there will always be room to improve.
We get many calls from customers who are concerned about their privacy and rightfully so. We take the security of our customers' personal information very seriously and we struggled with the decision to include geographic information. We decided to use it because people seem to enjoy seeing Fieros from around the world. Plus, customers can instruct us to print whatever name they want on the submission form, which sometimes results in some entertaining pseudonyms. It's probably a sign of the times, and perhaps we're a bit paranoid, but when it comes to publishing identifying characteristics about people and their cars, we are clearly erring on the side of caution.
Compliments to hyperv6 for making some very accurate observations about the submission process. The ease (or lack thereof) of the submission process seems to be the most likely reason why submissions have declined. Since we started accepting electronic submissions, the volume of images has gone up, but the ratio of useable images has certainly gone down. You simply can't print a quality full size calendar with only one car per page using 35KB .jpg files. We understand everyone's frustration and we do the best we can to educate, but this kind of photography has yet to become common knowledge. Hopefully this will get easier with each passing year. For future calendars, we will likely continue to accept emailed submissions that are accompanied by a signed and scanned (or photographed) submission form.
The good news is that we will likely have enough images to produce a calendar this year. Thanks to everyone for their enthusiasm and constructive criticism.
Thanks for posting guys - I, for one, am glad to see your presence here on PFF - especially when talking about your products!
We receive a dozen or so automotive calendars each year from our vendors and other industry sources. With only a few exceptions, most of them display year, make and model. However, most of those calendars have a more diverse collection of cars. It seems arguably fair to say that our presentation is within the norm and the decline in calendar submissions has very little to do with the manner in which people's personal information is displayed (or not displayed). We will certainly continue to monitor opinions and do our best to produce an attractive, reasonably priced calendar with the understanding that there will always be room to improve.
We get many calls from customers who are concerned about their privacy and rightfully so. We take the security of our customers' personal information very seriously and we struggled with the decision to include geographic information. We decided to use it because people seem to enjoy seeing Fieros from around the world. Plus, customers can instruct us to print whatever name they want on the submission form, which sometimes results in some entertaining pseudonyms. It's probably a sign of the times, and perhaps we're a bit paranoid, but when it comes to publishing identifying characteristics about people and their cars, we are clearly erring on the side of caution.
Compliments to hyperv6 for making some very accurate observations about the submission process. The ease (or lack thereof) of the submission process seems to be the most likely reason why submissions have declined. Since we started accepting electronic submissions, the volume of images has gone up, but the ratio of useable images has certainly gone down. You simply can't print a quality full size calendar with only one car per page using 35KB .jpg files. We understand everyone's frustration and we do the best we can to educate, but this kind of photography has yet to become common knowledge. Hopefully this will get easier with each passing year. For future calendars, we will likely continue to accept emailed submissions that are accompanied by a signed and scanned (or photographed) submission form.
The good news is that we will likely have enough images to produce a calendar this year. Thanks to everyone for their enthusiasm and constructive criticism.
We receive a dozen or so automotive calendars each year from our vendors and other industry sources. With only a few exceptions, most of them display year, make and model. However, most of those calendars have a more diverse collection of cars. It seems arguably fair to say that our presentation is within the norm and the decline in calendar submissions has very little to do with the manner in which people's personal information is displayed (or not displayed). We will certainly continue to monitor opinions and do our best to produce an attractive, reasonably priced calendar with the understanding that there will always be room to improve.
We get many calls from customers who are concerned about their privacy and rightfully so. We take the security of our customers' personal information very seriously and we struggled with the decision to include geographic information. We decided to use it because people seem to enjoy seeing Fieros from around the world. Plus, customers can instruct us to print whatever name they want on the submission form, which sometimes results in some entertaining pseudonyms. It's probably a sign of the times, and perhaps we're a bit paranoid, but when it comes to publishing identifying characteristics about people and their cars, we are clearly erring on the side of caution.
Compliments to hyperv6 for making some very accurate observations about the submission process. The ease (or lack thereof) of the submission process seems to be the most likely reason why submissions have declined. Since we started accepting electronic submissions, the volume of images has gone up, but the ratio of useable images has certainly gone down. You simply can't print a quality full size calendar with only one car per page using 35KB .jpg files. We understand everyone's frustration and we do the best we can to educate, but this kind of photography has yet to become common knowledge. Hopefully this will get easier with each passing year. For future calendars, we will likely continue to accept emailed submissions that are accompanied by a signed and scanned (or photographed) submission form.
The good news is that we will likely have enough images to produce a calendar this year. Thanks to everyone for their enthusiasm and constructive criticism.
Thanks for the heads up. I sent my disc last week. It is the black 1985 with gold wheels.
Getting the right size photos and the time to do it was a rush here as I only found out a day or so before the deadline. Also I am not all that computer savvy and had to figure out how to convert my J pegs.
Sorry I was not real happy with my results but I hope you can fine one suitable for use in the ones I sent. I will hit the road this fall and get some better Photos for next year earlier. I can do better than what I sent but I did not know the deadline would be extended.
If you want me to reshoot any I can do it and e mail it.
I resent mine a couple times , playing with the computer to get a higher quality. Then I printed the release form, filled it in and scanned it in the computer , then added it as an attachment to the email. I hope my car makes it in , I like the idea of it being in the calendar ( told my son I would buy him a copy ). already planning for next year in different locations to make better pics.
