Why aren't more pictures posted for Parks? - Wild Texas Forums: Parks, Travel & Recreation

Cajun Camper · 09-19-2006, 06:14 PM

I'm just wondering why many, if not most State park websites here in Texas and others, post very few pictures of their parks?

Here at the forum, word of mouth goes a long way and I can pretty well decide where I want to go. Otherwise, I'm looking for pictures to tell me, "this is where you should be." I shy away from many places because the park website provides little to no glimpse of their park. Where are the pics of the bluffs, lakes, waterfalls, swimming holes, hiking trails?

I'd love to hear opinions as to why this may be, is it a good idea, and anything else.

Would more pictures of more parks encourage you and help you decide better; or would the great scenic parks look great on the web, making the less scenic parks seem more dull?

Jamie

Shannon · 09-19-2006, 07:25 PM

The goal here at WildTexas.com was always to share more photos that TPWD generally shares in its park profiles, to help assist folks in planning trips. Of course, as Justin and I have travelled and camped less and less in recent years, we haven't been the source of photos that we planned on being ourselves. Enter the Wild Texas 'Your Photos' gallery where any member here can share photos of Texas parks and recreation opportunities. It's a step in the right direction, at least.

I think TPWD's state-funded website suffers from the same thing WildTexas.com (a privately funded website) does -- a lack of time and a lack of manpower. Someone has to take the photos, process the photos and place them online, and as soon as you upload one, in some ways, it's already outdated. Parks change, especially some of the ones that are flood-prone and go through repeated flood/drought cycles (Garner, Guadalupe River, etc.)

Cajun Camper · 09-19-2006, 08:49 PM

Thanks Shannon. My question was solely directed to State Park Websites. When I visit a State Park website, I get a lot of geographic description, but little to no photos.

I understand the time and effort needed to add photos, but to me it's almost like looking through the want ads for cars without pictures. The words look nice, but a picture is what really sells.

That's why I am asking for others' input. To me it's very hard to try and pick a state park to visit, that may be hundreds of miles away, solely by the description on the state park website. Show me breathtaking vistas, bluffs, rivers, trails, animals -- and I have one foot out the door.

Thanks again,
Jamie

rockhill · 09-19-2006, 09:41 PM

Well no one else has offered an opinion yet so here is what I think and or do. While it would be great to see more pictures, we all know the limitations on taking and posting. What we have tried to do is drive thru any nearby parks when we are traveling but not camping. With the park pass this drive thru is free, lets us see the facilities and even mark down the number of the camsites we like best. Nothing I dislike more than leaving town after work on Friday, hitching up the camper and driving a couple or three hours to a camp ground i am unfamiliar with. Trying to find a spot and get set up with out disrupting the camp ground can be a challenge. We all have met folks that failed in their efforts to not be disruptive.

But back to your question, while pictures stir the imagination, the description and geographic location are good enough for me.

Shannon · 09-19-2006, 10:27 PM

I don't know if it's been updated recently, but Laurence Parent's Official Guide to Texas State Parks offers some breathtaking photos of many/most of the Texas State Parks. Granted, few if any of the photos show the park facilities, but we've always found it helpful as an initial jumping-off-point when determining if a park we've never been to is worth a visit (based on drive time, etc.)

4everfrio · 09-20-2006, 02:35 AM

CC at times I go to yahoo images and search the park name. You can see the park from a different angle. For garner, I look for Garner State Park and Frio River. Many images come up.

~~~~~4everfrio~~~~~

We're both beast in the eyes of the Lord, when it comes down to it

campermom · 09-20-2006, 07:40 AM

I have a ton of pictures, but, since I'm techno-challenged, I don't know how to make them smaller. I've posted several shots of campgrounds we saw this summer, but have posted the limit for my account size. If someone could tell me how to make them a smaller size, I will delete the current ones and update.

I agree, it is like the used car trader without pictures.

PaulR · 09-20-2006, 08:25 AM

I agree about wanting to see more pictures, not just descriptions and maps of the facilities.

Thanks for the link to the galleries here. Definitely helpful, though it would be nice to have them filed under galleries of the particular parks...like was done with Big Bend and Padre Island National Seashore .

I'll have to check out that book.

Another option that may be helpful is one of the satellite imaging sites like maps.google.com or the Google Earth program. terraserver.microsoft.com isn't as good for satellite images, but one advantage it does have is that once you do find a place, you can easily switch over to a topo map as well...so those sources can help you even a little more than hand-shot pictures.

PaulR · 09-20-2006, 08:34 AM

Speaking of...I've got some pictures of the Devil's River SNA from a trip earlier this year that I could upload.

Is there any way to get a sub-gallery added like the others, or should I just dump them in the State Parks gallery and name them appropriately?

Cajun Camper · 09-20-2006, 09:17 AM

There are a number of free hosting places for photos. Some are easier to use than others and some make your visitors register before looking at pictures.

I think the easiest thing I have done is use Yahoo photos. I don't endorse any particular brand, but since I had a Hotmail, Gmail and Yahoo e-mail account I could pick and choose services.

When you register for a free Yahoo account you can use that e-mail address and password to login to http://photos.yahoo.com. There you can create and upload as many albums and photos as you like. No limit.

The upside is that you get the small thumbnails to preview, and a medium size picture to view, but lose the large, high-resolution image. You may, however, select their print at home option and print full-page pictures on a printer.

Long story short, I create lots of albums at yahoo and then just paste a link to an album or individual picture and not worry about uploading pics everywhere.

Here are 3 examples. One is to a picture, the other is to an album and the 3rd is to an album where I clicked 'View Slideshow' and copied the hyperlink to display the album as a slideshow.

1- Pic of Fountainebleau State Park on Lake Pontchartrain:
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jamieb...83.jpg&.src=ph

2- Album of same trip:
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jamieb...lbum?.dir=12e4

3- Album, after I clicked 'View Slideshow' and then copied the hyperlink:
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jamieb...=/12e4&.src=ph

Enjoy!
Jamie

PaulR · 09-20-2006, 09:27 AM

Thanks...but I was referring to the Gallery here. I was going to upload them here in hopes of adding to the catalog of existing pictures, but as I think it would be easier/preferable to view the images by park without having to search, was wondering if getting a Devil's River SNA sub-gallery would be possible.

Like you see here with Big Bend and Padre:

http://www.wildtexas.com/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/2

Cajun Camper · 09-20-2006, 09:36 AM

Sorry about the mixup. I was mainly offering an option for Camper Mom. One option is to upload them to an album on yahoo, have them do all the work of making the thumbnails and smaller images and you just save the yahoo image back on your computer and upload that.

Make sense? If the image on your computer is way too big to upload, then let Yahoo do the work to get the image a smaller size and re-save that image on your computer.

Just one idea.

PaulR · 09-20-2006, 09:45 AM

Gotcha. Sorry.

As far as resizing multiple pictures at one (or batch rotating as well), I like IrfanView. Free, very powerful, and pretty easy to use.

Shannon · 09-20-2006, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaulR

Thanks...but I was referring to the Gallery here. I was going to upload them here in hopes of adding to the catalog of existing pictures, but as I think it would be easier/preferable to view the images by park without having to search, was wondering if getting a Devil's River SNA sub-gallery would be possible.

Like you see here with Big Bend and Padre:

http://www.wildtexas.com/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/2

I will create sub-galleries as necessary once photos are uploaded. Big Bend and Padre got galleries due to the number of photos from those locales. In the next couple days, I will go through and see if there are enough photos of any other parks to warrant additional subgalleries.

PS: All the other photos sites mentioned are terrific. I will plug my personal favorite -- Flickr -- www.flickr.com

PaulR · 09-20-2006, 02:37 PM

Thanks. I'll go ahead and upload them.

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