Matt Jameson

Tired of Picasa? Sick or Microsoft Image viewer? Can't afford Photoshop Elements?

How bout' a free program, that does everything you need - and takes mere seconds to begin using once installed. It's called IrfanView and its the bee's knees!

Skeptics chime in "Yeah but isnt free software unstable?" The instant answer: It can be, when it's new

But I personally have used IrfanView for the past four years, and can assure you its stable, solid, and glitch free. You can download it from www.download.com or www.tucows.com both great free software portals that only offer stable software at quick download speeds.

So how popular is it, compared with competing software (stats are for December 2008):

It's an easy to use image viewer and editor that supports all major graphic formats and makes resizing images a breeze! IrfanView is 100% free!

IrfanView can re-size photos, touch up color, crop photos, save in numerous formats or convert to numerous formats, adjust resolution, batch process (edit multiple photos at once), and even allows for advanced features such as color matching and .gif transparency (for images with single color backgrounds).

Here's a screenshot of how simple the edit menu is:

Resizing is also simple:

Its great for MLS, becase once you use it to resize one photo - it will remember the dimensions you entered. So resizing additional photos is a breeze. Plus, if you need instructions a great FAQ is available on www.irfanview.com

Check it out, its free, its simple - you've got nothing to lose!

Attention Windows users: Is this you?

If so: How does FREE TECH SUPPORT sound?

Too good to be true right? Well thanks to numerous social networks and computer user forums - its now easier than ever to get free tech support when your stuck.

How do I know? Well, because Im the guy local Southern Oregon Realtors call when they get stumped.

It's quite impossible for me to keep up on all the newest changes, operating systems, software, and hardware. But I still manage to answer the constant barrage of questions I get. I can do so, because I use Google as my cheat sheet.

What most folks have yet to realize, is that Windows user issues are so common - that numerous indexes are available online describing - and in many cases solving - common and uncommon computer issues and software bugs.

That being said, the important thing for you to do is to determine which source of tech info will best match your level of technical knowledge. For example:

If you only use a computer because you absolutely have to, and are not very comfortable with them in general than you need Google and Yahoo User Groups. Why? Because these users submit the fixes which helped them, but they submit these fixes in actual English - as opposed to computer jargon.

If you have a general comfort level, but do not consider yourself a genuine techie, consider tech support forums and FAQ lists

If you consider yourself comfortable and versed in computers, and are comfortable with tech jargon, consider Microsoft.com and their "Knowledge Base" articles.

So, how does it work? Well the next time you have an issue or error - give this a shot:

Hypothetical Scenario 1: You're trying to perform a mail merge for mailing labels, and send out letters to your clients. You perform the merge, but your labels come out missing zip codes!

Go to Google, and type in: mail merge, missing zip codes

Here's what you get:

Notice how in green - you can see where the information comes from. This is how you determine which source will best match your level of computer knowledge. For example the third result from "allexperts" is probably not for most users. This is prone to have tech jargon and limited descriptions. While "eggheadcafe" is more geared toward the average users knowledge. Here's another example...

Hypothetical Scenario 2: You just installed Norton Anti-Virus, and when you restarted your computer you received an odd error message in Windows. It says: "Windows Protection Error. You need to restart you computer. System halted." What they heck does that mean??

Well believe it or not is a VERY common error for users to receive. Try typing the exact error message into goog with quotations marks like this : "Windows Protection Error. You need to restart you computer. System halted."

Here's what you get:

See the first two results from a website called Annoyances.org? This website is built specifically for users who are not techies. It offers several resultions for this error in common language and even offers step by step instructions. Pcguide.com will be for medium level users, while windowsbbs.com will be geared toward techies.

So to sum up, then general rule is - the simpler the website name sounds, the simpler its advice and instructions are likely to be. Any tech sounding name such as "experts", "techrepublic", "developers" etc are going to be much more technical.

If you're searching for even simpler instructions (the Cliff's notes of computer help) try http://answers.yahoo.com. Simply type in your question and you're off on a quest to fix the problem yourself - AND AVOID THE BILL!!!

If you still cant find your answer, then consult the pros. But remember, spending a few minutes trying to solve your own issues could save you a lot of cash - and it gives you a warm MacGuyver like feeling to know you just fixed you own computer issue.

Good morning AR,

Something that came up recently in conversation here at Chaparral Realty Group, and has also come up numerous times while teaching my Digital Photography Composition class to agents:

HOW MANY PHOTOS SHOULD I TAKE / POST TO MLS?

On one hand many brokers post to MLS with around four to six photos - while sometimes you see agents posting rediculous amounts of photos including mutliple angles from each room and even pictures taken from the crawlspace in the foundation.

Thus the conversation sparks: how many photos would be consider enough without being overkill.

Well think of it this way. Lets get hypothetical for a moment: Suppose you were planning on renting a home, and had searched for your new place online. You find a few websites featuring available rentals that have numerous details to help you decide if this rental is right for you.

If you were to see a listed rental with 30 pictures, pictures so detailed that you felt like you had already seen the home in person: would you take the extra step to see the property? Chances are, if you felt like you saw enough from the photos - you could make your decision based simply on the photos alone. But this is a VERY BAD thing. Why? Well for one major reason, photos often have a habit of making things look less spacious than they really are. Often times bad lighting, bag angles, and even horrible colors can cause a home to look less than it's best in photos.

The basic concept here, is that if you give them too many photos - they'll often find a reason NOT to come and view the home. "I like the house, but the living room looks really small, and the neighbors yard is atrocious. Lets look at some other homes."

SO, WHATS A GOOD BROKER TO DO?

Well, first off - we must determine how many photos would be enough to draw someone in to schedule a showing. In my photography class I teach Brokers how to take photos in such a way that they leave some mystery, or in essence they give the viewer a reason to want to view the home.

One way of doing this is to take photos that capture the essence of a room, but leave subtle hints about adjoining rooms. For example, take a look at this photo I took:

Notice how there are areas of the kitchen you cannot see? This makes the viewer want to see more.

Here's another example:

Notice how you see sneak peaks of the adjoining rooms, but never a full photo of any room? This again, is designed to create curiosity in the viewer. This causes the comment, "Looks great, I'd love to see the rest of the home"

One good rule to use when deciding how many photos are enough: Take at least one photo from each room that would be considered an asset to a home. This means, leave out that tiny 1/2 bathroom, and instead focus on the largest bathroom. Do we really need a photo featuring the cluttered garage of the current homeowner? Simply mentioning a 2 car garage is enough.

A second good rule is to consider your angles. See how this house photo features the best lines and architecture, while leaving out portions of the home?

This is designed to make the home look great, but also to cause the viewer to want to see the portions left out of the photo. Also when taking photos of the exterior of a home, angles help to accentuate the three dimensional quality of the home. With this home, if we shot it straight on - the viewer wouldn't see the depth of the covered porch and entry. This angle allows one to get a sense of how nice the front porch really is.

An old and true addage comes to mind. Accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative.

So to sum up: Take better pictures, and less of them. Leave out elements, in order to generate curiosity. Use angles to highlight three dimensional aspects. Leave out cluttered areas or tiny rooms.

ONE FINAL NOTE:

What about those owners who insist on taking their own photos? Well, be proactive - and offer to come and assist them in their photography. In some cases these owners are hobbyist photographers, or simply wish to assist you by thinking "since I live here, I know best which areas should be highlighted."

Mention that you can assist them to identify the best angles and rooms to feature. If you encounter any resistance to your ideas, just let them know that you have a lot of experience with what works and what doesn't - and that you just want to help them get the best possible photos in order to quickly sell their home. And also, offer some tips to them that you've seen in this article. Often times an owner just needs to see a visual representation of the concepts you are trying to get accross. Show them this article :)

(all photos shown are copyright of Matt Jameson, and were taken with a Cannon Powershot A570 with no special lenses or lighting)

Happy shooting!

-Matt

Hello Active Rain!

Long time reader, first time poster. So who am I?

Well, Im a technology and marketing trainer in Southern Oregon - and a part-time website and graphic designer. Check my "about me" area for a serious example of how to oversell your experience. Just kidding folks, although my about me area does run long - I am confident that Ill quickly prove to be a useful teaching resource for many here at AR.

My experience in 30 seconds:

Five years sales / office mgmt,
Ten years teaching, managing offices and performance improvement,
Five years design and marketing exprience, Successful home business owner,
and lately (last two point five years) Real Estate Trainer.

For quite some time I have used Active Rain to keep my ears open to the minutia of new technology available to Real Estate Brokers and Loan Officers. AR helped me to also see things from a Realtors or Loan Offices perspective - as you find a good bit of "venting" happening here. Its healthy, and often humorous. One thing about Real Estate. You don't last too long without a sense of humor.

Ive trained extensively with many agents in Southern Oregon to assist them in growing their business, in fact I've taught group classes at 80% of the Real Estate offices and Lending Institutions in the Rogue Valley. Just ask most Real Estate agents - chances are they've met or heard of the "Tech Geek at Lawyers Title". My program was called eBusiness - and it was a mjor hit.

Well, like many title company employees I found myself facing layoffs when the market began to shift early in 2008. So I simply did what I'd been teaching brokers to do for years - HIT UP YOUR DATABASE!

I sent out a mass email to my sphere of influence, and landed a great job within the week. After talking with many local companies, I choose to come to work at Chaparral Realty Group. Chaparral, at the time, was a new and growing company. I saw the obvious risk in joining up with a new company given the turn in the market. However, what impressed me with Chaparral, was their willingness to embrace new technology.

The other VITAL difference I saw at Chaparral, was the attitudes. So many industry "pros" are in the doom and gloom side of things. The feeling here is different. I was constantly impressed by the upbeat nature of the brokers. What a perfect group to unleash my training upon (insert evil laugh here)

It didnt take long for Chaparral to succeed. In fact, we now (Jan, 09') are in the top five companies for listing volume. Blah blah blah...(insert canned success story and testimonials here)

I'm on AR to provide insight into some things that have worked well for me, as well as chat about tools that you might find useful to assist you with your business.
Im here to write blogs that hopefully teach you something and make you laugh too.
Im here to network with Brokers.
Im here to read about your experiences.
Im here to learn from others

Hell, expect some venting too! Signing off...

-Matt Jameson (Tech Geek)