How I handle contacts at Flickr
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Twitter itMany of you have added me as a contact at Flickr after you read my last post about Zooomr. You may also have noticed that I did not add you back. Please don’t think I’m ignoring you, but my contact strategy at Flickr is completely different from the one I used at Zooomr.
For one thing, I cannot and will not again dedicate a ridiculous amount of my precious time to a social networking site, no matter what it may do for me. The amount of time I put into Zooomr is much more than I’d care to admit even to myself, and I made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t do that again.
Another thing to keep in mind is that I make an effort to go through all of my contacts’ photographs. That means I try to view every photo they’re posting. I know that’s a rarity, but I consider it my responsibility. I’m not going to be a false contact that jumps on someone’s photo stream once in a while and comments on a couple of photos, then you don’t hear from them again for 6-12 months, if ever.
I’m also not going to collect contacts just so I can be popular, or so my photos can make it to Explore. I’m not interested in that sort of thing. It’s not me. I wouldn’t be true to myself if I did that. This is also why I chose to disable comments on all my photos. They’d gotten to be a distraction.
So, since my time is limited, and I do try to go through every photo that my contacts post, I can only have a limited number of contacts. I’ve found out that I can handle about 100 or so contacts, not more.
To make things even more interesting, I look for photographs that inspire me. I look for a high concentration of artistic or creative photographs in someone’s photo stream, not just a few here and there.
What this all means is that my bar is raised very high. There’s a high barrier to entry on my contact list. For me to add you as a contact, you have to be equal to or better than my existing contacts. I go through my contact list periodically and remove people that have stopped inspiring me, or who stop posting quality photos.
I also encourage my contacts to do the same with me. If you’re not inspired by my photos, take me off your contact list. There’s no reason for you to be frustrated with the photos I post. Life’s too short to be frustrated with things you can change.
Does that mean I forget about the people who’ve added me as a contact? No. I go through my Recent Activity regularly, and when I see that people not on my contact list have faved my photos, I go through their photo stream and look for photos I can fave. I usually go through 5-7 pages of photos, and make an effort to find a good photo. Sometimes I’m very pleasantly surprised, and I find that their photo stream is to my liking. Then I add them to my contacts.
I hope this explains my stance, and I also hope that those of you who’ve added me as a contact don’t feel offended. I explained this on my Flickr profile as well. Here’s my Flickr contact list. Please remember, just because I don’t add you as a contact on Flickr, it doesn’t mean you’re not my contact or friend in real life (as applicable). In this brave new digital age of ours, we’ve all got to learn the separate the virtual from the physical. If we’ve talked before, feel free to contact me at any time through whatever means I’ve provided to you (phone, email, blog). If you’d like to get to know me, a good place to start would be this blog, which is where I spend most of my time. Read my work, comment on it, start a dialogue, etc. Life is one big et caetera. It’s not limited to a contact list on a social networking site.
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Makes sense. I’ve been getting fed up with contacts that post the odd creative photo along with many that are just documenting their lives. I need to go through my contacts list and clear off those that no longer inspire me, as you suggest.
Comment — September 21, 2007 @ 2:38 pm
I’m the same way and have been ever since I joined Flickr. There are a few that I leave in even if they don’t inspire me simply because they are close friends or family and I love them. Otherwise, if they aren’t photographers that make me want to look at them over and over, I delete. I cull my contacts, favorites, and groups very often. I don’t have huge amounts of time and want to use it wisely.
Comment — September 21, 2007 @ 7:35 pm
I’m 100% in agreement. I wish I had a way to quickly remove contacts on flickr. As life progressed, I realized that I’ve just been on flickr for a long time, and so many of my contacts either aren’t even posting anymore, have switched focus, or have just kinda “moved on” (for lack of a better word). I’ve definitely not been on flickr a ton except here and there, but there are a few “dear people” I’d like to be able to still stay in contact with.
I found this post while trying to search on an easy way to cull contacts from my flickr list.
Comment — September 1, 2008 @ 11:48 am