Dr. Linda S. Ralston's Blog (aka Utah Tour Doctor)
Follow Me
  • An Introduction - Who is the TourDoctor?
  • Linda Ralston's Blogs & Social Media
    • Electronic Marketing Secrets Blog
    • ePortfolio Best Practices
    • Responsible & Sustainable Travel Blog
    • The Resort/Hotel Manager's Digest
    • Index to Linda's Pinterest Boards
    • The Sabbatical Blog
    • Blog Feedback/Survey
  • Travel Advice from the UTourDoctor
    • Preparing for the Journey - Tips for Traveling Light
    • Avoiding Unwanted Guests - Bed Bugs!
    • Far East Travel Advice
    • Huangshan, China Travel Tips >
      • Huangshan Area Maps
    • Ahihi Bay Snorkeling Tips
    • Tips for being a Sustainable Traveler
    • Travel Planning Tips
  • Photo Galleries
    • Pomeranians: Teddy & Grace
    • Photo Gallery at Lahaina Luau
    • Snorkeling at Ahihi Cove
  • Recommended Reading
    • Electronic Marketing Books
    • Travel Related Books
  • Contact Information
    • Linda Ralston on Facebook
    • Linda Ralston on Pinterest
    • Linda Ralston on Twitter

Real or Fake Travel Destinations?

2/23/2013

2 Comments

 
Dar al-Hajar
Built as a summer residence in the early twentieth century, the impressively real Dar al-Hajar crowns a rock outcropping near Sana'a in eastern Yemen.
Picture
Molokini is a crescent-shaped, partially submerged volcanic crater which is very popular with scuba divers and snorkelers. You can see several tour boats located inside the crater. Unfortunately, the star island does not exist. So yes, you can travel to Molokini island from Maui. Please do because the sea life is amazing.
This is not a castle in Dublin, Ireland.  It is a digitally manipulated image.
The castle is Germany's Schloss Lichtenstein, and the island rock is James Bond Island in Thailand. Obviously, neither exists in Ireland.
Giuliano Mauri's
A Pinterest pinner called this as the Snow Cathedral of Norway, but although it is a real destination it is not located in Norway. It is a real living structure in Italy. Click on the image to check out the website that shows how it was developed.
2 Comments

Found on Pinterest but are they Real or Fake?

2/22/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
According to a pin on Pinterest, you can use food coloring to create these colorful oranges.  Really?  Even if you injected the food coloring into the fruit, it would never result in such smooth and even coloring particularly on the skin of the fruit.  Yet, this is repinned time and again . . . I sincerely hope no one destroys delicious oranges in an attempt to use food coloring to create this effect.  I assure you that this was indeed digitally manipulated using Adobe PhotoShop.  

Picture
In my previous post I asked why this was necessary with some of the images.  Allow me to continue this discussion with the question "Where do we draw the ethical limits to photo manipulation?" How much is too much, how far is too far? Obviously, it depends on the purpose of your editing efforts. Many times, I rush to capture a photo of a bird before it flies off to parts unknown or attempt to capture a waterfall at sunset.  The result may be a slight blur, underexposure or overexposure, or a crooked horizon. I am sure that we have all taken a photo of a child's first birthday and they close their eyes each time the flash occurs.  I love taking photos of my pets and the result is the "red-eye effect."  Things happen and Adobe Photoshop allows me to correct the errors without mis-representing an bird, animal, person, or destination.  Anyone seeing the images will have a true representation of what is real.  

Picture
What is the purpose when distributing an image that is not real?  For example, the above image has been altered to add a shrine in the middle of a limestone pillar located in Zhangjiajie National Park in Hunan Province, China. Visiting Zhangjiajie was a wonderful experience.  In fact, I have visited here 3 times and enjoyed it completely.  When I first saw the image on Pinterest, I questioned if I had missed seeing it.  So I sent it off to my friends at Zhangjiajie to see if they knew where this was located.  They revealed that the shrine does not exist.  Numerous pinners have pinned this image to their dream vacation boards, so I really hate to tell them that it does not really exist.  Again, I am left with the question why? Why would someone intentionally distribute an image that does not accurately represent the destination?


When I teach my electronic marketing students how to use Photoshop, the first lessons are focused on creating aesthetics, such as following the rule of thirds, straightening the horizon, or sharpening the focus.  When we move into the more artistic tools of Photoshop, the purpose is to create effective typography, combine images for advertisements, or create an original image.  In order to ensure that we are truthful, I stress it is important to reveal to the viewer how the image was manipulated. This is essential when preparing marketing images and messages, for example when working with travel images. In my next blog post I will illustrate several manipulated travel related images.  Will you be able to identify the real destination from the fake destination?
3 Comments

Can you detect the real Images on Pinterest?

2/21/2013

1 Comment

 
Leopard with Green Eyes - Photoshop effects
The image on the left above was found on Pinterest. The real image is on the right. Anyone who knows their birds will recognize that the eyes had been manipulated in the image on the left.
Altered image of a tiger.
Do albino tigers have green eyes? Well, at least in this case, No! The image on the left has been altered from the image on the right. I hope children in school do not see this white tiger and think that it is real!
Picture
If you are like me, I am a bit suspicious when I see a celebrity or model with a perfect smile, smooth skin, and skinny hips in magazine coves and advertisements.  There is much discussion about the ethics of changing the image of models and the unrealistic expectations our youth develop after seeing these "perfect" images. I understand that a model may have an imperfection on the day of a photo shoot, but where do we draw line on what is acceptable for the sake of aesthetics and what is a violation of basic ethics. 

What has surprised me is the number of Pinners that pin fake images on Pinterest.  What is the purpose?  I imagine that it is designed to help get followers and repins of these unusual images.  Unfortunately, it will also give unwise Pinners the wrong idea regarding an endangered species or potential travel destinations.  For example, is the above image real or fake? If you said fake, then you are correct. What are some indicators that it is a fake? First, this is a photo of a Clark's Nutcracker that is a gray and black bird.  Second, the watermark indicates that this came from the Worth1000.com website. This website operates photo manipulation contests . . . you can find a great number of really well done images.  So I understand the temptation, but at least confess that this image has been manipulated with a software, such as Adobe Photoshop. Finally, this bird is found in the mountain west region of the United States.  I have seen it many times in our national parks, near campgrounds, pine trees, and in picnic areas.

But alas, even I have fallen for a few of these fakes. Now I take the time to verify the associated link.  Does the pin link to a real website? Is the image still on the website? Is the author or photographer indicated on the website?  Any photographer worth "their salt" will claim credit for their work!  Most will share when and where the photo was taken, and with what camera they used to capture the image. Exercise a little caution before repinning that stunning image.
 
I realize that many of these images are pretty and it is difficult to resist.  But be truthful in your representation!  Your reputation will depend on your ethics.  Consider this . . . if you use a fake image to attract customers to a business website (yes, I have discovered at least one company on Pinterest that has done this), I as a customer would not trust that the images of your products were truthful.  By the way, here is the original untouched photo of the Clark's Nutcracker. Next time you see a beautiful and unusual bird, check out Cornell Lab of Ornithology. 


The real Clark's Nutcracker is singing for joy in its natural colors.
May the real Clark's Nutcracker be appreciated for its natural beauty! The Clark's Nutcracker is commonly found in the mountain regions of western United States.
1 Comment

Check out my student's Pinterest Accounts

2/15/2013

1 Comment

 
Picture
Do you have a Pinterest Account?  You might want to check out the Pinterest Accounts for my students in Electronic Marketing.

  • Tanner Andresen:@mtandresen
  • Cameron Bailey: @cameronbailey14
  • Tyler Barnhart: @tylerbarn
  • Carly Brown: @carlyranae
  • Cameo Burton: @cameoburton33
  • Henry Calderon: @henrycalderon
  • Vivian Chang: @tokkichang
  • Ram Chapagain: @rchapagain2
  • David Cravens: @davidfcravens
  • Cam Doane: @camerondoane
  • Creighton Elinski: @creightone
  • Jenny Glauser: @jennlee1035
  • Michael Greer: @mgreer0403
  • Megan Hepworth: @meganhepworth
  • Kylie James: @kylieajames
  • Cole Johnston: @rcj412
  • Tyler McLachlan: @mclachlanty
  • Cris Nelson: @nelsonator4
  • Montana Peterson: @monty10
  • Amanda Rostrom: @amandalrostrom
  • Kyrstal Schultz: @krystalschultz
  • Samu Sitake: @ssitake
  • David Sylvain: @davidsylvain
  • Jenessa Tondevold: @jenessaton
  • Jetta Valentine: @jettav
  • Jennie Williams: @jenniekinz
1 Comment

Check out my Pinterest eMarketing Boards

2/13/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
I have an extensive number of Pinterest boards related to electronic marketing and social media. Why not check them out and follow the boards that will be most helpful to you in maximizing your marketing efforts. 
  • eMarketing & Social Media
  • Advertising
  • Blogging for Business
  • Branding & Logos
  • Content Generation
  • Direct Mail Marketing
  • Facebook & Google Plus
  • Infographics
  • ::INFOGRAPHIC::
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Mobile Marketing
  • Photo Tips & Tutorials
  • Pinterest Tips & Tools
  • Pinterest: Mastering Pinterest for Viral Traffic and Conversion
  • Publicity/PR
  • SEO/Search Tools
  • Social Media
  • Target Audience
  • Twitter
  • Website Designs
  • WordPress
  • YouTube

3 Comments

Electronic Marketing Student Accounts on Twitter

2/13/2013

3 Comments

 
Picture
Please check out these Twitter Accounts for recent articles and information on social media:

Instructor Linda Ralston: @DrLindaRalston

Tanner Andresen: @TanAndresen

Cameron Bailey: @Cssbailey

Tyler Barnhart: @barnsandstuff

Carly Brown: @carlyranae

Cameo Burton: @CameoBurton

Vivian Chang: @_VivianChang

Ram Chapagain: @RChapagain2

David Cravens: @davidfcravens14

Cam Doane: @CameronDoane

Creighton Elinski: @CreightonUofU

Jenny Glauser: @JennLee941

Michael Greer: @MichaelWGreer

Megan Hepworth: @MeganHepworth

Kylie James: @kylieajames

Cole Johnston: @rcj412

Tyler McLachlan: @McLachlanTy

Cris Nelson: @CrisNelson1

Montana Peterson: @MontanaP_

Krystal Schultz: @krystals34

Samu Sitake: @ssitake

David Sylvain: @DavidSylvain2

Jenessa Tondevold: @JenessaShae

Jetta Valentine: @jettavalentine

Jennie Williams: @jenniekinz80

Teaching Assistants:

Si Chen: @elsachensi0622

Jared Hopkinson: @RaftIdaho

Xu Liu: @XULIU2

Ling Sha: @LingSha1

Lin Zhang: @Lin_Emarketing

Qingqing Zhang: @Zhangqq_Tiffany


3 Comments

Electronic Marketing Student Blogs on AIDA

2/4/2013

14 Comments

 
Picture
This week I would like to share some of the blogs created by my students in PRT 5460/6460 Electronic Marketing.  Their first assignment was to evaluate a website using AIDA (attention-interest-desire-action). The majority of the students in this class will be graduating in May 2013.  If you are looking for a capable employee with knowledge of electronic marketing, then check out these blogs:

  • Tanner Andresen: http://tannerandresen.weebly.com/index.html
  • Tyler Barnhart: http://tylerbarnhart.weebly.com/
  • Cameron Bailey: http://cameronbailey14.weebly.com/
  • Carly Brown: http://carlybrown.weebly.com/
  • Cameo Burton: http://cameoburton.weebly.com/
  • Henry Calderon: http://henrycalderon.weebly.com/
  • Vivian Chang: http://vivianchangs.weebly.com
  • Ram Chapagain: http://ramesworchapagain.weebly.com/
  • David Cravens: http://davidcravens.weebly.com/index.html
  • Cam Doane: http://www.CameronDoane.weebly.com
  • Creighton Elinski: http://creightonelinski.weebly.com/
  • Jenny Glauser: http://jennyglausereportfolio.weebly.com/
  • Michael Greer: http://michaelgreereportfolio.weebly.com/
  • Megan Hepworth: http://meganhepworth.weebly.com
  • Kylie James: http://kylieajames.weebly.com
  • Cole Johnston: http://robertcjohnston.weebly.com/
  • Cris Nelson: http://crisnelson.weebly.com/index.html
  • Montana Peterson: http://montanapeterson.weebly.com
  • Amanda Rostrom: http://amandaleerostrom.weebly.com/
  • Krystal Schultz: http://krystalschultz.weebly.com/electronic-marketing.html
  • Samu Sitake: http://samusitake.weebly.com
  • David Sylvain: http://occasionalcatnap.weebly.com
  • Jenessa Tondevold: http://jenessateportfolio.weebly.com/index.html
  • Jetta Valentine: http://jettavalentine.weebly.com/
  • Jennie Williams: http://jenniesexcellence.weebly.com/e-marketing-blog.html

14 Comments

    Author

    Dr. Linda Ralston (alias UTourDoctor) teaches at the University of Utah in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism. My blog on emarketing is designed for my students just beginning the journey of exploring the world of electronic marketing.

    Check out my other blogs:
    eLearning Blog
    ePortfolio Blog
    Responsible Tourism Blog
    Sabbatical Blog (2009)

    Linda Ralston

    Archives

    January 2017
    March 2016
    February 2014
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    September 2012
    August 2012
    March 2012
    October 2011
    September 2011

    Categories

    All
    Aida
    Blogging
    Chinese Social Media
    Computers
    Electronic Marketing
    Emarketing
    Fake Or Real Photos
    Google+
    Online Identity
    Photoshop
    Pinterest
    Search Engines
    Seo
    Social Media
    Student Blogs

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly