Timothy Ciulla

Tumblr Review - It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a "Liger"!

I have a new favorite tool online and it's called Tumblr. Why is it my favorite? Because it's free, flexible, easy, I can put whatever content I want on it, and it connects to my twitter account.

If you're wondering what tumblr is, here's a quick primer: Tumblr from my perspective nicely bridges the gap between a full-on blog and twitter because it is well suited for quick, multi-media posts. Actually, it's a lot like a blog but with Twitter-like qualities. Or it's like twitter but in 3D. It's a "Liger" of sorts.

Here's my tumblr site so you can see what I mean - Matt Sweet.

Here's what makes Tumblr fun to use. First off, It took me about two minutes to sign up and get running. An easy signup is a must for me. Secondly, I can choose my own "skin" or style sheet for my tumblr page. There are stock styles that are very easy to pick through. However, unlike twitter, Tumblr allows the more adroit user to choose a "custom HTML theme". This is a killer feature but one that should be wielded with care as it can be very powerful (or damaging).

Here's what I did. I did a search for tumblr themes and found one that I liked. In a few minutes, I was able to copy the html code for the theme and paste it right into my tumblr site. Very cool. From there, I can edit the style and appearance of the page to suit my fancy (via CSS edits in the code that I copied and pasted). So I added a custom background and a description tag for the header part of my page. No problem. But wait, it gets better...

Tumblr allows you to use Google Analytics to track the traffic on your site. And they make that easy too. Just paste your analytics code in the "Description" field where you update your tumblr settings. Here's a link to a previous post regarding how we used Analytics to improve our corporate site. My final tweak included adding a Disqus feedback form to the site. This was a little tricky, but the instructions that Disqus provides are understandable and easy to follow (Yes, I read the instructions but there were only 3 or four steps). What does the feedback form do? It enables users to make comments about the posts that I put on the site, making tumblr a bit more interactive and blog-like.

The cherry on top with tumblr is that it ties in to my twitter account. What does this mean? It means that when I post something new to my tumblr page, it will send out a tweet to my twitter friends by default. This tweet will indicate what type of post it is (photo, audio, video, text, or quote), and include a link back to my tumblr site. Very cool! What a great and easy way to drive traffic to my site.

I almost forgot. there's one more cherry on top. Tumblr let's you use your own domain name if you like. Now that's useful stuff! Imagine using tumblr as a site for a high end Real Estate listing. Imagine using it for a micro-local neighborhood blog. Imagine sharing your art with the world.

Enjoy!

Matt Sweet

Ticor Title

IT Marketing

Ok a pre note, I should call this blog a blog by a grammatically challenged person, as I'm sure you will notice, punctuating and spelling are NOT my strong point and spell check can only go so far my fingers seem to find other keys lately as well , so In stead of stressing over it I'm just going to embrace it and just say, well I cant spell worth a darn so I hope you get a chuckle out of what I'm sure to be many errors and just accept that if you chose to read my blog.

Let's talk a little about cameras

I'm not a professional photographer nor have I taken any photography classes since high school a long long time ago! But I am an avid photographer and armature graphic designer, I have shot somewhere between 20,000 and 40,000 pictures in just the last 3 years alone, I have helped advise with listing photos, shot a few weddings, a few events, some senior pictures countless family photos and more, so I thought id share some tips and give some advice from the perspective of a self taught everyday person.

Now if you're a realtor you know a listing book doesn't sell the home, or does a listing flyer but it does project an image and look and in a web sight or mls listing the right pictures can help to give a look that might keep someone from ruling out looking at you listing off hand.

Your camera can make all the difference , the new compact cameras can do a very good job but there are so many its hard to pick and they just don't have that wow factor , although they are good cameras they just don't have that thing that makes the difference between a good picture and great pictures.

I'm a fan of Nikon, I have a Nikon D50, I also like the Cannon Rebel, the automatic settings on these cameras can make you look very good you don't have to know what every setting does, the fully automatic will do wonders, the smaller compact cameras are more so set up to shoot portraits they don't compensate for light and other features as well, with a full size camera you get such a better picture.

Now I know cost wise can make a huge difference, if you know where to look a professional camera isn't that much more than say the power shots that seem so popular today & I do have one of those too (great for just having a small camera to shoot some for fun pictures) , Ill give you an example when I purchased my camera 3 years ago it was almost $2,000 at the time and was a gift from my loving wife or honestly I would have thrown up! I know you've heard of the sites but often times we forget or don't feel it's safe. Craig's list is great for deals and you can see most items locally if you narrow your selection- www.craigslist.com , EBay is also great look at the ratings and for a power seller and read carefully the description and use a safe payment method like pay pal- www.ebay.com  , overstock is also a great one- www.overstock.com   , My camera (used) today can be purchased for between $300 and $500 and you can get a new one with multiple lenses (which Ill get back too) for around $500 to $700 and depending on the model it can be less or a little more for a major step up. Also once you have one you can replace the body and use your lenses for even less, the Nikon D40, D50, D60, D80 are all great cameras.

I would recommend picking up at least a wide angle lense as well, those sites have some good ones very cheap along with great deals on zooms (if you do get a powerful zoom get one with stabilization unless you plan to use a tripod )

Set you camera at the very best setting possible:  don't worry about file size the MLS can take up to a 2M picture now the main reason is its quality is so much better and it gives you options for cropping and keeping a great sharp look, and well they just look better especially in print projects and home books , postcards and more .

Shoot a lot of pictures:  shoot away you don't have to use them you won't be printing them so use that memory card, the more you shoot you have a better chance to get that wow picture out of 500 pictures I'll usually get 10 that rock! , my Nikon will shoot about 500 flash pictures on one battery.
You never know what you will get.

Crop: this is also why we want to set at the best quality, when you crop and blow something up it will still look good, look at your pictures does a part or something in the picture stand out or look good, keep that and toss the rest, this will give you some great pics and some neat sizes, most of the time you aren't printing them to photo size paper so on your web sight or presentation and odd sized photo can add something.

Lenses - I recommend getting a wide angle lense its very cheap,  this can help and get a great look,  but really for what your using it for the lense that comes with the camera will do a great job, but if you want a more powerful zoom those 3 sites are great and if you look Nikon sells display models for a fraction of the cost of a new one , now a side benefit is if you have the lenses you can easily upgrade for a fraction of the cost later and just get a camera body.

When you shoot use that zoom try different distances, when you shoot is there something in the room or on the house that stands out? Shoot that it doesn't have to be the whole room, but if you are shooting a small room that's where a wide angle can help.

Shoot form inside the room out, this is great with bathrooms

Bring a small step ladder a down angle can look very cool from a corner,

Shoot from the ground sit down and shoot up it changes your perspective

Turn off the flash - you'd be surprised what these cameras can pick up without a flash, that morning light through the window, the view outside through that bay window, and shoot with your flash on and off.

Get close- a nice close up shows some great details

Shoot that kitchen counter from the roof facing down it's a great angle and makes the kitchen look bigger, set the camera right on the counter it picks up great details of the granite and makes the counter look long

Turn on all the light and try it with them off

Try holding your camera level- shoot the cabinet's straight on and other fixtures

Don't be afraid to move stuff around a little

Take Vertical pictures - this totally changes the look and captures floor to ceiling and can grab a part of a room and cut out what you don't want

Change you focus point - this will make some stuff blurry it can be a great shot

Move the center of your picture off to one side or a corner - try not centering that fire place

Watch the suns light if it's a sunny day look where that ray of light is coming through the window and capture that.

Cant afford those flyby shots here's an easy way to get some great shots,  take a $25 extend-able tree trimmer cut the top off get a mini $8 tri pod pocket size,  duct tape it to the top , attach your camera extend out the pole focus push your button and hold the camera up , you can even combine it with a short step ladder , this will give you some great down shots, and even better with a wide angle lense ,  if you have multi level home try shooting that master bedroom deck from out side looking down , this is also great for big land shots .

Well this seems to be going on forever so im going to stop here
I hope this has given you some useful tips.

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This is my first post this is some great information I read and wanted to pass on ,

Have you ever walked into a home, readied for an open house and smelled it? Or what about when you enter the proud new abode that has just received "the works" by clients, now beaming new homeowners? We have all smelled it. In fact, it has become a calling card of a well-maintained cottage, recently updated rambler, or niche condo with "the works"- it is the new paint smell. But have you ever wondered why paint has that distinct smell - what is it? Well, it is the by product of volatile organic compounds. Hmmmm...organic, good, right? Not so much.

Volatile Organic Compounds or VOCs, for short, are emitted as gases from common everyday solids or liquids. The kicker is that VOCs are comprised of a variety of chemicals, some of which "MAY have short- and long-term adverse health effects", according to the Environmental Protection Agency. More and more in real estate, neighborhoods, communities, and even cities are working desperately to show their true colors - GREEN. While promoting environmentally superior conditions, access to the environment in all its forms (mountains, beaches, lakes, valley, etc.), and even the health benefits of living in one of these distinguished areas, according to the EPA "concentrations of many VOCs are consistently higher indoors (up to ten times higher) than outdoors."

So after you sell a potential buyer the environmental benefits of a new area, you walk them right into a new home overflowing with VOCs, emitted in paints and lacquers, paint strippers, cleaning supplies, pesticides, building materials and furnishings.

There is a better way? It is time look at the environment from the inside out.

A great product on the market (the product of some pretty revolutionary technology) has the potential for application in every home you show, sell, build, or rent - it is "The Freshaire Choice^TM" paint, and it contains NO VOCs. Freshaire Choice paint claims to be the only tinted paint on the market (now available in 65 different colors) with NO VOCs. Although other paints claim to have no VOCs, these chemicals are put back into the paint once color tints are added. Freshaire Choice paints are truly VOCs free, and certified by the GREENGUARD Environmental Institute (GEI), a well-respected industry-independent, non-profit organization that provides verification for low-emitting products.

How it works
Typically, when tint is added to a base paint, about 150 grams of VOCs are added back into paint. You get your nice "Nairobi Dusk" hue, but it comes with some bagage - VOCs. The Freshaire Choice paints use a pre-measured ColorFresh^TM colorant pouch, which dissolves into the paint base without expelling any chemical odor - eliminating that "just painted" smell.

For more information about The Freshaire Choice Paints visit www.freshairechoicepaint.com

That fresh paint smell, might be telling you something about the home, but now you know a little bit more about what it might be saying.

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