Looking for divers interested in writing about underwater photography /helping put together a guide

[Ryan Ebner]

Hey fellow divers -

I am looking for knowledgeable, passionate divers who are interested in sharing their underwater photography knowledge with others. I am putting together a collection of articles on my site in regards to underwater photography and am looking for help putting together a beginner's guide to videography/photography. If any experienced diver is interested in the opportunity or anyone wants a little bit of extra publicity, please let me know. Any help is much appreciated!

Happy diving!

Ryan E.
rebner47@gmail.com

Dive Master - Northern California

 

[BoltSnap]

Is this specific to the US or do you want contribution from international locations (I am in Libya now)?



Burhaneddin Z Muntasser Photography | Facebookhttp://www.facebook.com/BurhanMuntasserPhoto

 

[KeithG]

Hi Ryan. Welcome to Scubaboard.

There are already a few scuba focused photo and video sites. Maybe you could share some additional information about your site as well as your thoughts and ideas about what would make your site different from existing ones?

 

[Ryan Ebner]

I'm sure you guys are familiar with the "Scuba Weight calculators" out there on sites like divebuddy or chochranescuba.... While those calculators are by no means an accurate way of determining the weight you need to achieve neutral buoyancy, those sites are still getting thousands of page views everyday. I've developed an IOS application that (once its released) will be the most advanced scuba weighting calculator in the world and takes into account quite a bit more factors than the other websites. From the 15+ people I've tested it with, its calculated their weight within two pounds. I am currently implementing that same calculator into a web version and I will soon be able to expand my unique visitor count exponentially. My goal is to improve my bounce rate by keeping visitors on the site for longer and keeping them interested in helpful articles and what not.

I understand there are quite a few scuba photography blogs out there, but my wish is to create a site that serves as a collection of diver experience, knowledge, and advice. Not only will it focus on one category (photography), but focus on other aspects like training, travel (tips to diving different parts of the world), beginner guide's to free diving, abalone diving, recreational diving, technical diving, etc. and quite a bit more. The site is pretty extensive and is meant to serve as your wholistic guide to diving - from purchasing your first set of equipment to traveling the world to put that equipment to use.

The reason I am not publishing the link to my website is because I am not ready for it to go public yet. It is still lacking quite a bit of content and therefore, is why I am looking for passionate divers to help me achieve my goal of launching this site successfully. While I do not have a lot of capital to pay each individual writer, I can put my web development skills to use. Many divers have a collection of photos that they wish to share with the world and I can help design/develop a website for those individuals to publish their content in exchange for a few articles written for my own site. Not only that (or if you currently have a site you wish to promote), under each article, there is an "About the Author" portion in which you can talk about yourself, and link to your own site or promote your own abilities (like being a dive instructor or underwater photographer).

Obviously, what I give you in exchange for your time and effort in putting together articles for me is negotiable and I am open to a variety of suggestions.

If this seems like something you would be interested in, please let me know and I can send along my email/skype/phone number for us to talk in more detail.

Thank you for your interest!

 

[Ryan Ebner]

@BurhanMuntasser I would love international locations! Are you interested in writing a few articles?

 

[RyanT]

Many divers have a collection of photos that they wish to share with the world and I can help design/develop a website for those individuals to publish their content in exchange for a few articles written for my own site. Not only that (or if you currently have a site you wish to promote), under each article, there is an "About the Author" portion in which you can talk about yourself, and link to your own site or promote your own abilities (like being a dive instructor or underwater photographer).

Seriously, not trying to be a jerk, just some basic education here....Good writing and photography are skills that take a long time to develop. Asking someone to provide those skills for free for you business is in pretty poor taste. I speak from someone who has worked as both a professional writer and photographer. The "publicity" thing is worthless. Getting a paid job because you have previously published work elsewhere just doesn't happen. I'm sure there are lots of talented folks who enjoy providing free content from their experiences, just don't pretend that somehow the "publicity" will be of value.

 

[Ryan Ebner]

Seriously, not trying to be a jerk, just some basic education here....Good writing and photography are skills that take a long time to develop. Asking someone to provide those skills for free for you business is in pretty poor taste. I speak from someone who has worked as both a professional writer and photographer. The "publicity" thing is worthless. Getting a paid job because you have previously published work elsewhere just doesn't happen. I'm sure there are lots of talented folks who enjoy providing free content from their experiences, just don't pretend that somehow the "publicity" will be of value.

First of all, I never actually tried to claim that the writer would be getting a lot of publicity. I merely mentioned that you may receive 'a little bit of extra publicity'. Never did I claim it was a valuable job. Additionally, if you had referred to my previous comments before trying to bash on my post, I offered to help create websites for divers interested in sharing their photos and experiences if they help me write a few articles. While I don't have a lot of cash to give out, I am offering what I can. If you were not interested in something like that, you could have simply ignored the post and not wasted your time trying to bash on me and the site I am trying my best to establish.

Thanks, Ryan E.

 

[RyanT]

My intent certainly was not bashing. As I said previously, I was just trying to provide a bit of education; I have no doubt that your intentions are earnest. I'm speaking from the side of the folks that produce content. You should understand that that the offer of "publicity" is simply a fallacy. Even a modicum of publicity is worthless for folks who value their hard-earned talents (e.g., writing and photography). And by that, I mean that no publisher will ever come knocking at your door because they saw your work somewhere. If folks want to share their experiences and talents, that's great, but just don't pretend that "publicity" in any form will benefit them. It just doesn't happen. To be clear, lots of talented folks are happy to provide their services for free; I hope you find some. I just want you to understand that, as you say, 'a little bit of extra publicity' is not valuable for talented writers/photographers.

 

[Ryan Ebner]

My intent certainly was not bashing. As I said previously, I was just trying to provide a bit of education; I have no doubt that your intentions are earnest. I'm speaking from the side of the folks that produce content. You should understand that that the offer of "publicity" is simply a fallacy. Even a modicum of publicity is worthless for folks who value their hard-earned talents (e.g., writing and photography). And by that, I mean that no publisher will ever come knocking at your door because they saw your work somewhere. If folks want to share their experiences and talents, that's great, but just don't pretend that "publicity" in any form will benefit them. It just doesn't happen. To be clear, lots of talented folks are happy to provide their services for free; I hope you find some. I just want you to understand that, as you say, 'a little bit of extra publicity' is not valuable for talented writers/photographers.

Thank you for your input Ryan. I see where you are coming from. I understand that gaining that experience takes quite a bit of work and not everyone is willing to share that experience for something other than cash. I am not necessarily looking for divers who are wiling to help write for free, but I am looking for divers who are willing to accept other forms of payment - like a new website which offers them the ability to share their photos/diving experiences with family, friends, and other passionate divers. I am sorry you aren't interested in something along those lines but either way, happy diving! Have a good day.