19,000+ Walkers for July 18 Worldwide Photo Walk

19,000+ Walkers for July 18 Worldwide Photo Walk

Seriously?! This event has gotten huge and we are so thrilled about it. The sponsor list has grown too. The prizes you could win are incredible. One Grand Prize winner gets 17 – yes, 17 prizes! Then 10 Honorable Mentions each get 11 prizes. You can still sign up to walk in a city near you – pick from 900 locations.

Q. What is a Photo Walk?
A. It’s a social photography event where photographers get together, usually in a downtown area or trendy section of town, to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers.

Q. When is the Scott Kelby 2nd Annual Worldwide Photo Walk™?
A. Saturday, July 18, 2009.

Q. How long does it last?
A. Two hours, from start to finish.

Q. When does it start?
A. It starts at a different time in each city (the time is chosen by the Photo Walk leader in each city, and is posted on your “City Page” here on the site).

Is there a cut-off date for starting new Photo walks?
A. The cut-off date for leader applications is June 18, 2009

Q. Where do we go on this walk?
A. Your local walk leader chooses the starting place and the basic route you’ll be following. They also choose an ending place (usually a local restaurant, pub, cafe, etc.) where you can wind down after the shoot, look at your photos from the day, and make new photography friends. At least, that’s the plan.

Q. How should I dress?
A. Casual, and wear comfortable shoes because you’ll be walking (Hey, it’s a photo “walk,” right?)

Q. Is there a fee to be part of this worldwide Photo Walk?
A. Nope, it’s totally free (well, if you buy food or drinks at the restaurant, that’s on you, but there’s no charge to be a part of the Photo Walk itself).

Q. Is the number of people in each city limited?
A. Yup. It’s limited to just 50 people per city (If groups get much bigger, it gets really hard to manage; hard to find a restaurant to hold more people, it creates crowd control problems, etc.)

Q. Do I have to sign up in advance?
A. Yeah, you have to let us know you’re going to a part of a particular city’s event by using the registration form (found right here). Don’t forget to choose your city from the pop-up menu.

Q. Is there any training during the event?
A. No—this is a social event, just for fun, but since you’re working with a group of photographers you always wind up learning something from each other (at least, we do).

Q. Do we have to stick together as one big group?
A. Nope. Once the walk starts, you kind of move at your own pace, and we try to make the routes short enough so you have plenty of time for shooting and exploring along the way, and still get to the ending point on time.

Q. How can I process my photos after the Photo Walk?
A. We highly recommend using Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2. Matt Kloskowski will be providing a small training course. Or you can check out our Lightroom 2 Learning Center. Don’t have Lightoom? No worries. Download a free trial.

Q. What do we do with our photos once we’re done with the Photo Walk?
A. The website (and your Photo Walk leader) will have all of the details. Also, you’ll be able to come to the website and watch a mini-Lightroom online training course by Matt Kloskowski on how to best sort and prepare your photos for submission. The course will include:
Lesson 1: Importing your photos after the Photo WalkLesson 2: Picking your keepers and finding them quicklyLesson 3: Taking your photos from good to greatLesson 4: Integrating Lightroom with Photoshop for the finishing touchesLesson 5: Saving your photos to submit onlineLesson 6: Printing your photos

Q. Where will these photos be posted for judging?
A. The photos will be posted right here on this site so you can see the best shots from the other photo walkers in your area (and around the world).

Q. Is there a Grand Prize?
A. Oh man is there a grand prize!!!! Details of the mega prize package (awarded by Scott to the single best overall photo taken that day, from all the Photo Walk locations around the world) will be announced soon.

Q. How many cities and people participated in last year’s Photo Walk?
A. We had:
1. 8.324 photographers register for local walks
2. 47 Countries had participating cities
3. 44 States in the US had Photo Walks
4. We had a total of 236 cities worldwide
5. More than 1,017,125 photos were taken on walks that day

Q. How can I tell if there’s a Photo Walk near me?
A. Click on the Cities link above.

Q. What if there isn’t a Photo Walk planned for my city?
A. You can apply to be a Photo Walk leader. You just have to have the qualifications, which are listed on the Leader Registration Page.

Q. How can I lead a Photo Walk?
A. Click on the “Lead Your Own Photo Walk” button on the home page

Q. What if my city already has a Photo Walk, but I want to lead a walk, too?
A. Some big cities can accommodate more than one walk, and so as soon as one starts to fill up, we add a 2nd city walk if we have a leader apply. Or, if the walks are held geographically far from each other but technically in the same major city, we usually add those, too. (Cities like Paris, New York, London, Tokyo all can have multiple walks and draw from totally different population groups)

Q. The only walk for the city near me is already full. Is there any hope?
A. Photo Walks are limited to 50 photographers. If that doesn’t sound like a lot, you haven’t seen 50 photographers coming down the sidewalk at the same time, and later all converging at once on a restaurant or pub. It’s more like a scary bike gang (except without the bikes, or gang, or scariness). That said, July 18th is still a couple of months away, so don’t be discouraged if the first location is full. Another location could pop up that you’ll be able to register for. So check back regularly, or sign up to lead one if you meet the qualifications.

Q. What do I get for being a Photo Walk leader?
A. You get a free copy of Scott’s upcoming book, The Digital Photography Book, Volume 3 as soon as it’s released, and you get to pick the best shot from your group and award them with a free copy as well. Plus, that person is entered into the grand prize competition.

Q. Does everyone get accepted as a Photo Walk leader?
A. We’re looking for people who have experience leading groups, so if you’re the president of your local camera club, or a college teacher, or photography instructor, or you run a local camera store, or you’ve lead Photo Walks in your area before, etc., you’re more likely to get accepted to be a leader. We ask for your qualifications on the leader application, and that’s the type of experience we’re looking for. Last year, we had some people put, “Well, nobody else signed up from our city, so I guess I’ll do it.” That doesn’t instill a lot of confidence in you as a leader. So, in short, we read every application. If you convince us you’d make a good leader, we approve your walk.

Q. Why does it say “Under Construction” when I select a city that I want to walk in?
A. Once a leader is approved for a location, it’s the leader’s responsibility to log in and enter some information about their particular location. Once they have done this, the city page will go live, and you will be able to register.

Q. Do I have to enter the prize competition?
A. Absolutely not. This is a totally separate part of the experience, and if you don’t want to enter your images, you absolutely don’t have to (it’s just to make the experience more fun). Some people freaked out last year thinking they were required to enter, but just know—you absolutely don’t have to enter your image—you can go and shoot for the day, and never let anyone see your photos. Ever. They can be your private “secret” photos.