Getting Work Seen

There are various websites available that display photographers’ work. Flickr is a site primarily aimed at amateur users that I have been using for the past 3 years. Flickr enables each user to comment on their own and other members’ photographs. Outside of my academic work I enjoy using Flickr to show my work and get feedback form other photography enthusiasts. It is also a great website for following my friends work and researching and developing ideas.
Visit Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/

Gawker is a website that I have recently discovered that have an artists section, this is their blurb about how it works.
“Participating artists will have a profile published and a select group have their works rotate across Gawker Media titles. In addition, Gawker Artists offers our readers the opportunity to exhibit artists' works on their own websites by becoming an exhibitor.”
The ‘Gawker Artists’ scheme is aimed at more professional practitioners than Flickr – and isn’t solely concerned with lens-based work - it provides artists with the valuable chance to gain recognition. The possibilities offered by ‘Gawker Artists’ are very attractive, in a few years when I have developed a bit more as a photographer I would like to consider putting my work forward.
Visit Gawker Artist at http://gawker.com/artists/

Whilst ‘Gawker Artists’ ostensibly offers more professional opportunities for artists, recently on Flickr I uploaded some images from my digital post production module and was approached by an online magazine to feature one of my images along side one of their articles. The email is shown below:

Hi Rebecca Blount,
Here's a personal note from julianw:
___________________________________________________________
We are doing a story on Japan's new "i-pod tax" and your photo would be an ideal addition to our coverage.
Would you allow us to publish the image or images indicated in this message, properly attributing them to you, of course? You would also be welcome to add other images to our coverage, or to contribute your own stories.
Thanks,
Julian

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NowPublic is a news sharing community that uses stories, photos, & videos from sources like you.

If you would like to learn more about this request, and the context in which your photo might be used, click on this link:
www.nowpublic.com/import/48239e5c5a83d1.91537869
If you do give your permission, your photo will always remain your property, and whatever license you have specified will follow its use on NowPublic.com
If you have any concerns about this, please contact our Quality Assurance Coordinator at quality@nowpublic.com

The PhotoShelter Collection is another website where photographers are able to show their work, however on this site photographs can be bought and sold.
‘We believe photography is an art and a profession, not a commodity. We are determined to restore diversity and freshness to this industry. We believe photographers deserve a level playing field and the majority percentage of their sales. Our community is open and growing by the hundreds every week.’ – PhotoShelter website.
This is another website that I am planning to join in 6 months or so, when I feel my portfolio is a little stronger.
Visit their site at http://psc.photoshelter.com/