Poll: June 2008 Cat of the Month
Wednesday July 16, 2008
Please visit their individual pages, then return here to cast your vote. The winner will be announced on Wednesday, July 23rd. Good luck to all these great cats!
Note: I've edited this blog to remove the bulleted list, which I've been told is the reason for some readers' problems with voting. If you've had a problem voting for your favorite cat, try it again now.
Comments
I think the picture of Mouse is a fine one, but uses patriotic imagery (US FLag) to invoke nationalism and bolster the votes. Wouldn’t it level the playing field if the photos were taken with a standardized background so that the cats would all be on an even standing? I mean some folks are real good at photography and are able to portray their lovedones in a more soothing light. Consider a standard white backdrop or something like that.
Really, Jiieghzain. Mouse’s photo was submitted in November of last year. Do you really think the flag was included in the hopes of being selected as Cat of the Week in June? Or that I chose it because of the flag outside the window? Or that readers will vote for it simply because of the flag?
You give us too little credit.
I mean some folks are real good at photography and are able to portray their lovedones in a more soothing light.
Exactly. That is part of the criteria for my selections of Cats of the Week. I have no intention of requiring readers to use a white backdrop as you suggest.
Give us all a break, please.
I want to vote for Buster but it will not let me vote. Hope this counts:) Thanks for your above comment, Franny, we all have minds of our own
Will not let me vote for the first two….I vote for Alfred. Thanks
I think Jiieghzain makes an interesting point. I voted for mouse earlier this week. After a mental reanalysis, I think I picked Mouse because of the patriotic backdrop. Would I have picked one of the other beauties if they had a similar theme? It’s hard to answer definitively, but I think, on a subconscious level that, yes, I would have. Hmmm….
For those having problems voting, please try again later. I had a similar problem and was able to vote when I returned to the page.
For Karhl: As Joanne posted, we all have minds of our own. The current vote tally does not support the theory that the “patriotic vote” is a real factor for the majority of those voting.
I voted for Mouse, but it was because of the story (I’m a sucker for animals who overcome hardship of any kind, and a BB lodged in the poor thing certainly counts). If I had been looking at the pictures with no stories, I doubt I’d have voted for Mouse since I couldn’t see his face.
Is airbrushing the pictures acceptable? It looks like one of them has had some work done.
S-
I am not able to submit my vote for either Buster or Malley, but for some reason was able to submit a vote for Mouse. Any suggestions?
Shenequa - I would imagine some photo shopping is done on these fantastic pictures. Otherwise, there would be some flaws.
I apologize to those who have been having problems voting for their favorite cats. I’ve edited this blog to remove the bulleted list, which I’ve been told is the reason for some readers’ problems with voting. If you’ve had a problem voting for your favorite cat, try it again now.
This is in response to Shenequa and Ron:
I have no specific rules against airbrushing or photoshopping. In the first place, I am not an expert on these subjects and it would put an undue burden on me to be able to judge whether these enhancements had been made.
I do object to the addition of frames and other embellishments, as I’d rather see the beauty of the cats emphasized than added artwork.
Probably most enhancements to submitted photos have been done by me. I almost always have to crop and/or resize photos. Also, I sometimes use a simple edit in PSP 11 to brighten or sharpen photos to display better on the Internet.
Hi i submitted the pic of MOUSE and i only cropped it and made it brighter thats the only photo editing i did to it. I also dont own any photo editing software other then Picasa which i downloaded for free and it is very limited in what you can do with the pictures.
Buster’s pic was not altered in any way when it was submitted, but it was shot with an extremley shallow focal plane which created the soft focus everywhere but his face.
Melissa and Buddy: Don’t worry about the skeptics. There’s always one or another “photoshop expert” who has to make snarky comments, although the ones here were very mild.