FTC and EU Rules Posting

Some of you have wondered about the 'tips' jar that you have been seeing on the sidebar the past four weeks. Others have wondered about the 'promotion' of Zazzle products during the past eight months give or take a month. Here's what's up.

The 'tips' jar was the easiest to do and answer so I'll  explain that first:

It started out as a technical question. If I did this, would that be accomplished type question to a coding problem that I was having. In short, the answer was "yes"! I accomplished a technical coding problem without having to call customer service at the host company, technical support at the IP and I didn't even have to call the tech heads in the San Francisco Bay area. Voila! the text was converted to an image and it appeared on the site. There was a second part that was more legal than technical and that require talking to a legal beagle and getting the help from the good people at Elon Musk's old company, Pay Pal. 

Part two came about when someone sent me a email message from my web site's inquiry form asking if they could at least, buy me a cup of coffee from the much increased business they had enjoyed from a posting that I had made about their company. Frankly, at the time, I did not know if I could do that or not and furthermore, the European Union (EU) had just announced that they were requiring information posted on sites like the US does if you receive money from readers. The legal beagle informed me that since all my income derived from this site, if any, comes in the way of royalties income and that is the end of that. But, to answer an earlier question, I could allow readers, who wanted, to buy me a cup of coffee, so-to-speak with a donation in the tip jar. Ever tried to toss money into a tip jar virtually when you are not virtually inside the computer? I can tell you, it bounces of the screen and aptly to Murphy's law, it's gonna land on the floor under the desk. So, that is were the PayPal came into play. Any donations to the tips jar would have to come from those that already have or were willing to set up, a Pay Pal account. And, they would have to send me an email first telling me that they were buying me a coffee through the tips jar and then, I could send them an invoice for say $1.50. When I was notified from Pay Pal that someone had sent me $1.50, then the cup of coffee would be "officially" purchased . To me, that made more sense than anything so I went with that idea and the fine people at Pay Pal were very nice to explain how it worked--just as I explained to you why the 'tip' jar was there in the first place. Done!

The final question that needs to be answered is: why all the promotion of Zazzle products? .

Here is that in a nut shell.

First, if you rely on stock images to generate you income just to defray the cost of running the website, its host, email, security, certificates etc.,etc. that portion alone would bankrupt a business in a heartbeat.  The average royalty on a stock image sold today is $0.27. Do the math and you will quickly see that you must have buyers in media who are buying your images totally and into the thousands per month. I have media buyers who buy my photos regularly, but not into the thousands per month. While there are those who claim that they make six-figures a year doing this, the truth be know that they are also selling their images as products, as exclusive rights an any number of other marketing ways allow and being paid by sponsorship to advertise on their websites. I do not allow paid advertising on my website at all.

Since I can control the type of image that I offer through agencies, or product services like Zazzle or Imagekind, I know their high quality of products and to suit the Federal Trade Commission and the EU, those 'sales' only produce royalties which I report willingly to the IRS each year  when I am sent a 1099 royalty income form. If  there is any incidental tax to be paid from said royalties, I am more than willing to pay up. My theory on that has always been, In other words-- you got to be making it if there is a tax bill--you get the jest.

Therefore, without reservation, I offer selected images to be made into product on a print-on-demand format for you to purchase. Usually, the royalty is a bit higher than the $0.27 from stock images. I earn $0.29  on each hair tie that I sell. That is more than the $0.27 per stock image. When a dealer orders 100 hair ties, I have made a whopping $29.00 as opposed to the $27.00  earned on 100 images. There fore, by a whopping $2.00 the hair ties earn more money than the images but it's still all royalties, not earned income.  So, this becomes a way to increase the revenue from a single image. Let's say instead of making $0.27 an image on stock to now a higher royalty category generated from a product purchase, the royalty revenue is like getting more miles per gallon from your car after a tune-up. It's really a simple strategy that not only works but one that I am satisfied with and that would allow me to support my website--which I enjoy working on in retirement as explained above.. All-in-all. I have always liked to keep things very simple and this allows me to do that.

Now. I will throw this in to let you know that since I mentioned email to buy me a cup of coffee, I do not sell email addresses. I do not build mailing list or any other form of privacy invasion scheme. Another reason why I use Zazzle and Imagekind and list with stock agencies and sites that have their own privacy rules is because their sites cover their operations. Those sites are more money-oriented than my little site that treads water from year-to-year. All I have ever wanted is to be able to pay expenses of car repairs and upkeep, put gas in the tank and enjoy a meal on the road now and then when I am out shooting. This is more weighted as a hobby than as a business, although the IRS classifies it as a self-employed business.

In my wonderings to keep my readers happy, I came across this out-of-the-way place yesterday that was interesting because the space is paid by the artist to do their creative work, be it for good or for bad. As part of the paint, a note to other artist said to whit: Non-paid wall, respect the work. I found that interesting as tagging has gotten such a bad name, yet, in a poor neighborhood where people want art and color and creativeness as much as someone in Highland Park, this place cried out that "we may be poor but we are still smart and have desires to be successful and creative".

Never knowing what you stumble upon, there were three young men  admiring the wall. I ask if it was okay for me to be there.They said,yes. I ask if they would mind if I tood pictures. They said it was okay.

The irony of the three young men was that they each had a camera more updated than mine.

The artist have paid for some of the wall space. The owners of the buildings should receive a community award.

edited 09-28-15: Since posting this article,  It has become a favorite of the month. I am also happy to report that both Zazzle and Imagekind have advised that both product and images have been sold. It always means more to me to have someone choose a product made with one of my images or choosing the image outright. The royalty earned from that image is just the workhorse to achieve that satisfaction that someone out there liked one of my images. Goal accomplished!

Oh! DelMontico You Hatter You

It has always amazed me how one thing leads to another. Then, there again, it should not amaze me at all when given the quantum physics of our universe. But, it still does. This season will be my 48th season of being a dress hatter, yet, living in Texas, there is less of that and more Western hats. Now and then, a few kangol caps and driving caps (Tony Romo) appear. My beloved Borsalino Fur Felt Fedora has started to show up,too. The Harris Tweeds are not as populated (I have one for rainy and cold snowy days).

With the hot Texas summers, I should wear more straw but the 'ol baseball cap (Michigan block M) is my favorite followed by the plain GAP and The Arkansas Chapter of Trout Unlimited (my brother is a noted fly fisherman). With a Masters of Theology under his belt, my youngest brother and I held up my mom's funeral an extra day while the fly fishing theologian drove back from Alaska--actually he was already headed back and was in Watson Lake Yukon when he reported in with us. Later, we discovered he had stopped to fly fish a couple of hours in Yellowstone. So when he presented me with that Trout Unlimited  hat, I teared up! Mom is most likely still laughing about that one.

So, I have been working on building a portfolio of  straw hats worn in the Dallas area. It is influenced by the culture of Mexico since before the days of the Alamo. Saying it is a bit out of place would be totally inaccurate. It is apart of Texas history that sometimes gets overlooked. That is why it has appeared on my project list for sometime and from time-to-time, I actually do find some great hats being worn.

While trying to find the exact description of one hat I photographed this past weekend, I ended up on my hatter's website. Hence the 'how one thing leads to another' prior. I have been purchasing hats from Delmonico Hatters on Elm Street  in New Haven, Connecticut for years.  It is almost a foregone conclusion now, that a hat purchase is in the cards for me. It is also the first time that where those hats come from has been revealed. The last trip physically made there was in the early 80's. Since then, it's been on the web all the way.

Since 1865 when John B.Stetson started producing his hat in Philadelphia--yes, Stetson's got there start in the East and not here in the West--Hatco has made and licensed those famous hats in the modern era. DelMonico were chosen to be recognized this year as the 'Dress Hat Retailer of the Year'. Dress hats are non-Western style hats that are commonly known as Fedoras. My hat!

Although, the Australian writer poet, Akubra is know for that famous 'Snowy River' Australian hat. And the more famous Lucas Film Ltd licensing of the 'Indiana Jones' Fedora is more recognizable. I have one of those for casual wear, as well. It's a Fedora. What can I say?

Thanks to four gracious gentlemen for sharing their headwear with me so that I can share it with you!

Sombreros at Bachman Lake

Now that's a Sombrero near Mockingbird Station

Straw Palm Hat at White Rock Lake

DelMonico Hatters

Had Fun This Afternoon

Greeting Card by sam6372
Look at more cards from Zazzle.

The next time you see one, you might want to re-think what you might be seeing.....Check out the card then send on to your friend. You do still know how to address an envelope and put a stamp on it....right?

Dallas, Texas - From orbit you can see just how big DFW airport is (it even has its own ZIP code). pic.twitter.com/L009LmXwwL

— Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) March 7, 2013

A Doug Parker prepares to land!

They Work Not In a Big Cathedral but do Cathedral Work

Most of the time, people do not stop to read the signs that the city is required to post for various reasons on projects underway. Generally, I read the projects post. A couple of days ago I was taken aback a bit when I came across one the size of the smallest yard sign at election time. It was a most interesting read. The posting was the formal post by the city. The work being done on the new trail improvements on the east side of the lake, as the lake follows Mockingbird and then Buckner Boulevard is also part of the work. The dog park revamp also got new stone work from these guys.The signs said: Small Business Contract.  I guess small businesses do not rank enough to have the big SWOPP sign postings, In fact, I almost missed the sign completely.

Then, as if the sky parted, there was this white sedan on the trail hidden by the tall prairie grasses. With camera in hand, my  route meandered around the water system put out to water the new sod that was being laid down. Then, as I got closer, I could see a human head level with my feet on the trail, only off the trail by four or five feet. Then, as I got even closer, there was another head. EERIE, I thought. Then the one head moved. In short, the two men were down in a drainage ditch with stone, chisels, hammers and mortar board. They were, hand crafting stone around the culvert below the trail were the hillside had natural drainage.  As it turned out, each man was on one side of the trail about 20 yards apart, but Martin, had come over to get a tool. The work on both sides of the trail was magnificent.

Here is part of their work

A master at his work!!

The car was the only clue but if you look closely, you can see the tops of their heads.

Martin waves

12Sept2015: Edit to correct the word train to trail. It had been corrected prior and shows corrected in master but not on the public side of the last two sentences of the article.

Maggie 2 Arch Complete

Early this morning, in the cover of darkness, the contractor raised and fitted the final center piece of the arch on the Margaret McDermott Bridge that crosses the Trinity River on the eastbound IH30 side. Now, work can begin at the transition bases on the other side of the bridge. There, the second arch will transition out of the bedrock skyward into the air along the westbound lanes of traffic.

Unlike Maggie 1, the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, also designed by Santiago Calatrava, famed Spanish Architect, the arch was placed by crane. Although it was a much shorter arch, but taller, the Maggie 2 center piece was raised much like an elevator to the top were it was bolted and welded into place.

 It was a bit after one o'clock this afternoon when I finished up my texture shoot and made my way down to the bridge, When I got out of the car, a local news anchor, was walking back to his car. I ask him when the arch was in place-- yesterday or this morning? He said that the work was done during the night beginning after midnight.  At 5 o'clock this evening, the news media had time-lapse of the raising. It seems that the local mainstream media all got heads-up on the event and the freelancers got nothing. And what we did get was after-the-fact.

 It is an insult to the freelancers who promote  the city as much and often-times more than the mainstream media, especially on events like this and  others likened to the move of  the Big Boy Union Pacific engine and all the cars and engines that were at Fair Park before the move to Frisco. But, that is the way the world works and Karma eventually will balance out those slaps in the face.

Former Mayor Tom Leppert,  knew how to promote the city using freelancers and he was a CEO of a major construction company.  Having said that, here are a couple of shots from this afternoons trip.

The eastbound arch is completed this morning.

A view of the east bound arch from the west side, where work will now begin on that arch.

The westside transition bases have been poured and cured for months, even before the floods in May.

Salute to Visitors Captured

The Fire Department at Dallas/Ft.Worth International Airport, on their way back to the station on the west side of the airport, passed by the outdoor observatory and viewing area at Founder's Plaza. As they did, they saluted  visitors with a blast from the water canon.

Thank! for protecting lives and property at DFW.

And before someone is quick to judge them as playing around......the dense smoke is at the training facility just beyond the fire station and they were out working to keep their training up to scale.