At this time, we are starting in our local Redmond Washington community, but we do hope this program grows. BetterPhoto members and BP Clubs are providing the cameras, BetterPhoto is offering the courses, and the mentors are matched by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound.

The Big Brothers Big Sisters Vision promotes successful mentoring relationships for all children who need and want them, contributing to better schools, brighter futures, and stronger communities for all. There may be opportunities in your community. or more information about Big Brothers Big Sisters, visit www.bbbs.org/pugetsound

You can remove images from a Club in the following manner:

Sign in the your Member Center > Clubs tab > Name of Club > My Club Photos.

Under each club photo you will see a link to remove from Club Gallery.

At this time the BP Club Internal Messaging system is set up to send to all members of your club. If you would like to reach a member individually, you may contact them by way of their BetterPholio contact button.

Here's how:

Sign in to your Member Center > Clubs Tab > My Clubs List (on left)
This will show you a list of your clubs: My BetterPhoto Club Memberships
Click on the club name in the Club listing
See the option on the left Club Home Page
See member names under Club Photos and Club Members
Click the member name and you will be taken to their BetterPholio
There you can click the contact button and reach a member by email

You bet! BP Clubs are a perfect place to showcase photography and exchange ideas and feedback with your club members. A great place to start is setting up a BP Club as a virtual art gallery for your camera club. We are very excited about this new area of BetterPhoto where groups get together, post their images, share and learn.
Create a private group for your club
Members interact and bond with each other
Share and discuss photos
Exchange tips
Post Events and meetings
Here's how to access BP Clubs:
Sign into your Member Center using your email and password (each person will need to be a member of BetterPhoto - it's free and quick)
In your Member Center> Clubs Tab
Under My BetterPhoto Clubs (list on left)
Start a new club
Follow instructions on Right

You can enter your existing images into a club by using the photo id of the image.

Club Tab> My Clubs> then choose the club you have joined to “add photos to club gallery”; that gets you to the window where you add your photo ID.

First - Upload new photos to your Member Center, then go back to your BPClub and Click add photos link. Here are the steps:

Sign into your Member Center > BetterPhotos > Upload New Photos

Clubs Tab > My Clubs List (on left)
My BetterPhoto Club Memberships
Club Gallery > Click add photos link >

Upload photos to your club here with these simple steps:

To Add images already uploaded to BetterPhoto:
Search for your photo by clicking the "Find Image" button, or enter the PhotoID number in the box provided.
Then click the "Add to Club Photo Gallery" button.

If there are other members in your club, you will not be able to close.

You can either ask the members to leave the club by sending them a BPMail or remove the members by signing in --> member center --> clubs --> my clubs list --> select the club name --> remove members link on the lower left side.

Once there are no more members in the club a link will appear on the my clubs list page to close the club.

Here's how to check your BPClub Memberships:
Sign in to your Member Center > Clubs Tab > My Clubs List (on left)
This will show you a list of your clubs: My BetterPhoto Club Memberships

Here's how to use the BP Club internal messaging system:

Sign in to your Member Center > Clubs Tab > My Clubs List (on left)
This will show you a list of your clubs: My BetterPhoto Club Memberships
Click on the club name in the Club listing
See the option on the left under Club Members
Send a Message
Click this and you will be taken to a the message sending screen

Note: The internal messaging system will send an email to all of the members in your club.

Sign into your Member Center using your email and password (each person will need to be a member of BetterPhoto - it's free and quick)
In your Member Center> Clubs Tab
Under My BetterPhoto Clubs (list on left)
Start a new club
Follow instructions on Right

Our site is for photographers of all ages. We have a number of young photographers on the site who have flourished from the resources at BetterPhoto. We also have established a special area of the site specifically for kids and teens:
http://www.betterphoto.com/photography-for-kids.asp

We have "safer than the law" standards. BetterPhoto is a family-friendly Web site and, for this kids area, we go beyond our usual high standards for protection:

There is no chat room. We do not allow email addresses or any other private information to be shared. If a young person ever decides to take a course at BetterPhoto, we need the parent's permission first.

Once you have purchased Cash Contest credits, you can enter your images via your Member Center. Go to the "Better Photos" tab and click the "Edit photos" link. Under each image is an "Enter into Cash Contest" button. As you enter the images, you will be taken to a page to confirm entry. Each time you confirm entry on an image, your account will be deducted one Cash Contest credit.

There are no photo categories for the cash contest.

For information on our terms and conditions of the cash contest, please visit:

http://www.betterphoto.com/cash-photo-contest.asp

Here is a copy of some of the information posted:

Contest Terms and Conditions

• Learn the rules of the contest to increase your chances of winning.
• Photos that have placed Grand, First, or Second Prize in the Free Contest or Cash Contest are not allowed in any Cash Contest - current or future.
• Entries that have previously placed as a winner will be disqualified.
• Since BetterPhoto is a family-friendly site, unsuitable or pornographic images are not allowed.

Read Terms & Conditions.

Before you can enter a photo into the Cash Contest, you need to first upload photos into your Member Center and then purchase Cash Contest credits. After uploading one or more photos, go to the "Better Photos" tab in your Member Center. Click the link to "Edit Photos" and then click on an "Enter into Cash Contest" button under one of your photos. On the following page, you will see instructions on how to first purchase credits and then enter photos into the contest.
Note that, when you confirm entry for an image in the contest, the image is placed in the gallery of cash contest entries in order of photo ID#. Therefore, the photo may be placed further back in the contest pages than you might expect. You can quickly check your entry by clicking on the link to "Cash Contest Entries" in the "Better Photos" tab of your Member Center. This page allows you to confirm which of your photos have been successfully entered into the Cash Contest.

There is no limit to the number of entries per day that you may enter in the cash contest.

If you go to BetterPhotos tab >Cash contest entries, you will see that these have been successfully entered in the contest. You can find them in order by their photo id#s in the entry pages. By hovering over the images there you will see the photo id# in the URL bar. You may have to look several pages back to find yours. Also if you own a Pro or Deluxe BetterPholio, you will need to make sure that these images are set to public viewing rather than private.

The cash contest credits will automatically expire 6 months from the date of purchase. You are welcome to use your credits within the 6 month time period as you desire. Example: 3 entries one month and 2 entries the following month.

The winners are usually posted by the end of the month.

When you enter an image in the contest, the image is placed in order of photo ID#. Therefore, photos that were originally uploaded at an earlier date are placed further back in the contest pages. You may have to look several pages back to find your photo(s) in the gallery of contest entries. You can quickly double check your entry by signing in to your Member Center and clicking on the "Better Photos" tab. Click on the link to "Current Contest Entries" [or "Cash Contest Entries"]. If you still don't see your entry, be sure to refresh the page to view the entries you have in the monthly contest.

Also if you own a Pro or Deluxe BetterPholio, make sure that your contest images are set to a "Public" viewing status rather than "Private". This is managed in the Photo Manager section of your Deluxe Update Center

Due to our site privacy policies, we are unable to give out member information.

The best way to contact a photographer is to click on the link below the photo, either Read This Discussion or Discuss This Photo. Under the photo or discussion click on the link to add a discussion. Then you can ask the photographer a question.

This is the only option we have for you to contact a particular photographer as we do not provide email addresses of our members.

We have a generous and active community at BetterPhoto and many members who may be interested in donating their time to your group. Here are a couple of quick links that will help you connect:

Post your question in the forum:
http://www.betterphoto.com/photography-forum.asp

Contact a BP Club in your area here:
http://www.betterphoto.com/BetterPhotoClubs.asp?ai=3&typeID=1

If you don't have a camera to donate, but are looking to upgrade, our trusted partner Hunts Photo & Video has generously offered to work with us towards the success of BetterPhotoMentor.

Here's how the works:
When Betterphoto members need to upgrade their photo gear, Hunts will make a fair market offer on your current equipment. When you accept the offer and trade-in your equipment, Hunt's will donate 10% of trade-in value to BetterPhoto Big Brothers . This from BetterPhoto will use these funds to purchase new or used equipment for our Big Brothers & Big Sisters initiative. As an example, if equipment is valued at $350.00,Hunts would add a $35.00 credit to the Betterphoto.comaccount. Steve Genatossio at Hunts has offered to answer your questions directly at sgenatossio@wbhunt.com.

Steve Genatossio
Trade-in Manager
Hunts Photo & Video.
781-662-8822

Thank you for your help in the success of BetterPhotoMentor!

There are several great ways to connect with other BetterPhoto members, here's a few tips:

BetterPhoto is an incredible community of gifted photographers, and many beginners who will be inspired by your photos. Membership is free, I hope you take a moment to sign up and explore.

Like many of our members, it looks like you must do a lot of traveling to get so many diverse shots. When you have a moment, here are some suggestions to explore at BetterPhoto:

SHARE your photos and make friends with others who share your love of photography in our BP Clubs:
http://www.betterphoto.com/BetterPhotoClubs.asp

ASK your question in the BetterPhoto Forum. Search for discussions on the topic or post a question, here's how:

1) Go to the BetterPhoto Forum page:

http://www.betterphoto.com/qnaTOC.asp

2) Click the "ask a question" link near the top of the Q&A page.

3) Sign in with your email address, or if you aren't already a member, then sign up - it's easy and free!

4) You will then see a page where you can ask your question.

The BetterPhoto Summit Meetings have been a fantastic experience for Team BetterPhoto and all those who were able to attend over the years.

We want everyone to have an opportunity to experience the energy of meeting face-to-face with people who share the love of photography. Since our members live all over the world, many people were unable to travel to the Summit. Therefore, instead of hosting one localized conference this year, we are focusing on helping the BetterPhoto community meet up in other ways. This is still in the early stages of development, do stay tuned for some exciting announcements!

Through BP Clubs, Favorites and BPMail, members are connecting like never before. These fabulous new features are bringing our global community together online and in their home communities.

BetterPhoto is an incredible community of gifted photographers. Membership is free, I hope you take a moment to sign up and explore these areas under the Community Tab:

SHARE your photos and make friends with others who share your love of photography in our BP Clubs:
http://www.betterphoto.com/BetterPhotoClubs.asp

ASK your question in the BetterPhoto Forum. Search for discussions on the topic or post a question, here's how:
http://www.betterphoto.com/photography-forum.asp

Once images are uploaded with a particular camera selection, we can not move them from the selected camera to another. You can delete the image and reupload it selecting the correct camera. To delete your image: Sign in to your Member Center>BetterPhotos >Edit Photos >Delete Image> Submit.

You can add accents and other special characters on the My Better Photos page in your Member Center - by clicking on Edit Your Photos or Your Photos link. You cannot add accents with the multi-image uploader during the upload (where you type in the title, "@@", then description).

To turn email notifications on or off, sign in to your Member Center > My Discussions/Q&A tab where you will see all of the discussions and Q&A you have taken part in. You will also see on/off buttons to turn on/off select discussions or question threads.

If you would like to turn ALL discussions or questions off or on, look for the link under each list of threads.

Also, when initially responding to a discussion on an image, there is a small check box asking you whether or not you would like to be notified when comments continue to be made.

If you do not want notification, be sure to uncheck the box.

Thank you for taking the time to email us about your interest in photography - you have come to the right place! Our BetterPhoto online community is packed with free creative tips and professionals available to help you reach your goals whenever you are ready.

Our courses offer an online learning experience that provides each student the skills necessary to not only master their tools, but to develop a way of seeing and fulfilling their potential as photographers and artists. Getting feedback from a professional who inspires you in a constructive classroom environment is unbeatable.

Sign up for your free membership today by clicking the join button on the upper right of the Home page.

Once you are signed up with BetterPhoto, be sure to sign up for our inspiring Photo of the Day and other newsletters.
http://www.betterphoto.com/subscribe.asp

Have fun exploring BetterPhoto!

You can update your bio in your Member Center> Member Info Tab>Bio / About Yourself

You can update your name, email, password, contact information, etc., via your Member Center. At the top right of any BetterPhoto page: Sign In > My Member Info > Contact Info

Once you have made your changes, click on the Submit button at the bottom of the page.

NOTE: Deluxe BetterPholio owners please contact betterpholio.support@betterphoto.com

First, make sure that you are typing it in correctly and that you don't have the Caps Lock key activated on your keyboard. If you are still unable to sign in, you may contact bpsupport@betterphoto.com.

This is due to a browser caching issue.

Try holding down the shift key and click on the refresh button. Your new mini-pic should appear.

This sometimes happens when members create a new account instead of changing their email address in their member center. This duplication causes a system error. Please contact bpsupport@betterphoto.com and we will consolidate your accounts.

In future, you can update your Name & Contact Information as well as change your email address in your Member Center:

Member Center>My Member Info>Contact Info

Spam is annoying. Spammers or spamming software may be trying to email you via your contact page from your Free, Premium, or Deluxe BetterPholio™. In an attempt to keep this problem to a minimum, we have installed an authentication step with all contact forms. Keep in mind that the spammers do not view your email address when they use the contact link, and BetterPhoto does not ever share email addresses of our members.

We have also created the following informational page to help our members spot spam and scams, and know how to handle these problems:

http://www.betterphoto.com/spam-scam.asp

The password is case-sensitive. Be sure that the letters are exactly as you see them in the instructional email.

Our easy-to-operate BetterPholio™ packages are designed to be maintainable for any user! Even a complete non-tech can customize a BetterPholio. You have full control over your site: choose your favorite layout/color combination from 24 possibilities, and switch between them as often as you like; add or delete images and categories; update your homepage; add links to other sites, and much more! These functions are easily accessed and manipulated from your BetterPholio Admin Center.

Premium BetterPholios™, Deluxe BetterPholios™, and Pro BetterPholios™ may be cancelled within 14 days of the date of your order. Deluxe and Pro BetterPholio orders will be charged a non-refundable $35 cancellation fee. No refunds or partial refunds will be given after 14 days.

The new, sleeker, more versatile designs that you see on the informational pages are currently the only designs available. Some of our BetterPholio™ owners have not yet converted to these new design options - thus the variety of older layouts in existence.

You will have a certain amount of control over the pages on your BetterPholio™ via a password protected Admin Center. For example, you will be able to add and edit all the text on your site, create custom categories and categorize photos, choose from six designs and four different background colors, etc. You have "wildcard" pages where you can add anything you like. HTML is supported wherever you can edit text. We try to allow as much flexibility as we can, but do understand that it is a templated web site solution, so you will not be able to edit the source code of your site and may run into something that you wish could be different but cannot change. The best idea, if you haven't already, is to browse through the current BetterPholios to get an idea of the various options to see if it would meet your needs.

http://www.betterphoto.com/sites4photogs/allDeluxesList.asp

You can check out our beautiful BetterPholio™ designs on this page:

http://www.betterphoto.com/sites4photogs/deluxe-photographer-websites.asp (Scroll down to see examples of each layout).

Each of the new design comes in four different color schemes: black, dark gray, light gray and white. You can choose which color you like the best and even change it as often as you like right from your Admin Center. This is where you will be able to change between our 24 color/layout combinations as often as you like.

Here are a few examples of BetterPholios that I think are beautiful and will give you an idea of what is possible:

http://www.corporatefineart.com/%2D/corporatefineart/
http://www.marlinimages.com/-/marlinimages/
http://www.amdahlphotography.com/-/amdahlphotography/
http://www.mikehollman.com/-/mikehollman/
http://www.miotke.com/-/miotke/
http://www.kerrydrager.com/-/kerrydrager/

We have great options for image sales in our Web Hosting packages. Here is a link to where you can learn more about these exciting features:

http://www.betterphoto.com/sites4photogs.asp

Hi xxx:

Very good question. You could sell it in this way: take a picture of your product and upload as you would an image. You could then create a Product Category specifically for your book and display it in it's own gallery on your site. People would be able to buy it just like they would your images - using PayPal.

Each of our BetterPholio packages will allow you to use your existing domain name. Be aware, however, that you would be responsible for renewing it each year.

If you would like to purchase a BetterPholio™ and want us to register a domain name for you, we can, although we only support the following top level domains: .com, .net, .org, .info, .biz, and .ca. If you want a domain name that does not use one of these you still have the option of using it, although you will have to purchase the domain name on your own.

Our BetterPholios™ are a fantastic way to display and sell your images and enhance your business. Like you, many people have questions about licensing and taxes when they are ready to turn their hobby into a business. There are state and federal guidelines for business practices, all available for reference online. Our best recommendation is that you contact your State Department of Revenue and the IRS to be clear on all laws and requirments.

It might also be helpful to read our BetterPhoto Questions & Answers where there is a wealth of information and advice from photographers and business owners.

We register the domain name for you, but you can transfer the domain name into your name at any time. You would need to purchase a transfer from a company that sells domain names. One thing to be aware of is that you would be responsible for domain renewal fees apart from your BetterPholio™ subscription as well as DNS management.

Our basic rule of thumb is the shorter the domain name, the easier it is to remember and to give out. However, having the name of your business as your URL is a good option too. Ideally, you want people to remember your name. In the end, it's up to you and what you feel is appropriate for your needs.

Start at BetterPhoto's homepage, click on the "Get a Web Site" button, then select the "Domain Names" option. You will see samples and a box where you can enter any domain name you can think of to check it's availability.

With our add on image sales option or our Pro BetterPholio™, your customers will be able to buy photos directly from your site. All you need is to set up a Premium account with Paypal. When they make a purchase you will be emailed the image title and size they want. Then you would need to fulfill those orders using an outside lab, your own printer, etc. To read more about our Pro BetterPholios or image sales option, click here:

http://www.betterphoto.com/sites4photogs.asp

Once you pick a domain name and make payment arrangements, it usually takes 24 - 48 hours for your site to be built. Most of that time is waiting for your domain name to be registered. As soon as it is, you will receive several emails taking you through the set up process step by step.

You then have 24/7 access to your site. Our BetterPholio™ Specialist is available as well should you have any questions. The process really is quite simple. The trick is to read EVERYTHING carefully and to take your time setting things up.

You can check out our designs on this page:

http://www.betterphoto.com/sites4photogs/deluxe-photographer-websites.asp


We have six different layouts from which to choose and each layout comes in many different color schemes. You can choose which colors you like best and even change them as often as you like right from your Admin Center. You will have a "Site Design" and an "Advanced Site Design" link in your Admin Center where you will be able to change between our color/layout combinations as often as you like.

We now offer the convenience of a payment plan with your purchase of a Deluxe, Deluxe with Image Sales or Pro Betterpholio. In choosing the payment plan option for any of these Betterpholios, your payments will be divided into thirds, a non-refundable processing fee is applied to each payment.

If you are interested in this option you will see the ability to select payment in full or payment plan on the checkout page during the order process. In selecting payment plan for the Betterpholios, the following payment schedule will be applied:

Payment #1 upon purchase, 2nd and 3rd payments are charged in 6 week intervals after initial payment.

Payment amount varies with your Betterpholio selection as follows:

• Deluxe Betterpholio (66.00 + fee)
• Deluxe with Image Sales (83.00 + fee)
• Pro Betterpholio (116.00 +fee)
• Additional processing fee of 8% is applied to the payments noted above

All payments are applied automatically to the credit card used upon enrollment.

Your Pro BetterPholio™ came with the statistics add on feature which gives you a much more in-depth look at how many visitors come to your site, how may pages are viewed, how much time they spent at your site, top visitor paths, which pages they entered on and exited on, etc. When you sign into your Google Stats page, you get a quick summary of your visitors. The "Visitors" section shows you currently how many people have visited your site, by the hour, day, month and year. It shows you on average how many people visit your site in the same increments. And lastly, what was the most and least visitors you had in any one hour, day, month, year. "Page & Files" simply shows how many pages are being viewed overall by your visitors.

If you want to use your own domain name, you need to be able to change your DNS settings so that it points to our server. You may need to get hold of a technical contact where your name is currently registered to have this done.

If you choose this route, understand that:

a) You will be responsible for all technical support revolving around your domain name registration

b) You will be responsible for all domain name registration and renewal fees.

If you are unable to change your DNS settings, then you will want to select a new domain name that we will set up for you.

We've tried to transfer names to BetterPhoto in the past and it just hasn't worked very smoothly. The registration companies often want the actual owners of the domain name, rather than someone from BetterPhoto, to do the work.

We provide JavaScript image protection. This protection disables the user's ability to click their right mouse button (as when they are trying to get to the "Save this Image" command).
However, the nature of the Web makes it practically impossible to truly stop a determined thief. You see, you are publishing the photos by putting them on a Web site. Once they are out there, there is not much you can to do make them unavailable (both to the good people and the bad thieves).

You do have a few options, though. One is the aforementioned JavaScript protection. This deters "casual image thieves" - innocent people who just don't know any better. To stop the die-hard evil thieves in their tracks, you can:

a) Keep your images relatively small. Web display requires much less resolution than print. Therefore, if you keep your images small, the thief at least can't print your images or try to sell them for print production (where most of the money-making occurs in the photography world).

b) Watermark your images. You can add a watermark to your images during the upload process to your BetterPholio. Or you can use Photoshop or another program to put your name and a copyright symbol on your picture.

c) Use special software that digitally marks your images, making them unviewable by anyone without the same special software. But I don't recommend this method if you are interested in sharing or selling your photographs. By using it, you are forcing potential clients and other viewers to install special software. They will rarely do this and, thus, you will immediately lose your audience as well as your potential customers.

The other thing you can do is register each of your images with the US Copyright office. This will at least give you a legal leg to stand on, if you ever have to take an image thief to court.

The truth of the matter is that the benefits of publishing and promoting your work on the Web far outweigh these potential risks.

You will have many options to control the look and feel of your website whether you choose the Deluxe or Pro package, but it won't be as flexible if you were to create your own site from scratch. The big advantage of our BetterPholios™ is convenience. Within a day or two you will have a fully functional site online with your photos up for sale. Whereas developing your own site takes a much larger time commitment, not to mention the additional hosting costs.

As far as adding the PayPal shopping cart without purchasing the image sales add on product, you are welcome to add HTML code wherever you are able to edit text, so you are free to add the shopping cart in this way.

However, our PayPal shopping cart product offers pricing administrative tools and additional pricing pages for each of your images. It allows you to easily and quickly price hundreds of your images and display different photo product categories (i.e., 8x10, 5x7, etc.) for each image. This will not be available to you without the Image Sales component.

Anywhere you can edit text you are free to add your own HTML. For example, wildcard pages, image titles, image descriptions, welcome text, gallery text, bio, etc. This, however, will not allow you to edit every attribute which is just the nature of a template web system. However, many BetterPholio™ owners do this to make their site more customized.

Many other BetterPholio owners have learned some basic HTML tags to spice up their pages. It can be a little intimidating to start, but it's fairly easy to learn a few basic tags.

There are a ton of beginner books on HTML and lessons on the web. A google search will probably give you more than you can handle.

Yes, you can add either the image sales option or the Pro option to your BetterPholio™ at any time. We charge you a prorated amount based on the months remaining on your existing BetterPholio subscription. You can place your upgrade order through the Image Sales tab or Pro Tab of your Admin Center.

Absoultely! You are able to add your own HTML anywhere you can edit text (i.e. wildcard page, bio page, etc.). This would allow you to add any link you wish.

Yes, we can change your domain name after following a couple of steps.
First be sure your chosen domain name is available by going to our homepage,
clicking on the Get a Web Site button and selecting the "Domain Name" option. You will see a box where you can enter any domain name you can think of to check it's availability. Once you find an available domain name that you like, use the following link to process a $27.00 registration fee:

http://www.betterphoto.com/product/ourProductDetail.asp?productID=1355

You would then need to email our BetterPholio™ Specialist at amy@betterphoto.com with your new domain name.

The image sales option primarily allows people to sell their individual images. We have had people sell other things however. To sell something other than images, you would need to upload an image for each product you are offering. Your customers would be able to purchase your products just like they would images.

You are able to transfer your domain name back to yourself once you decide to close your site. There is no fee from us. However, you will have to pay for a transfer from another site. The cost is about $8. Your domain name will have to be active for a transfer to happen so the transfer needs to be done before the site expires.

You want your keywords to be as specific as possible. Here are a couple of examples, based on BetterBicycling.com:

KEYWORDS:
pictures of bicyclists, bicycling photos, biking photography, photo tips for cyclists, bicycling images

TITLE
BetterBicycling.com - Where Bicycling and Photography meet

DESCRIPTION:
Come see some of the best images of bicycles, bicyclists, and bicycle enthusiasts. This photo gallery is a BetterPholio offered by BetterPhoto.com® - visit BetterPhoto.com to get your own Web site like this.

If the keywords were vague like "photos", "photography", etc. then too many other competing sites will come up when people search those terms and it would never make it to page 1. So being as specific as possible is the name of the game.

No. When your customers click through to purchase one of your images and checkout, there is a button that says "If you do not have a Paypal account, click here". If a visitor clicks that, they are able to pay with a credit card without having to sign up for a Paypal account.

BetterPhoto.com® does not offer BetterPholio phone support at this time. We are happy to help you with whatever issues you are having via email. You can email our BetterPholio Specialist whenever you need help, and she will get back to you within 24 hours (usually a lot sooner).

Our BetterPholio packages have been designed to operate and be maintainable for anyone, (even complete non-techs). If you find, after reading your step by step instructions that were emailed to you when your site was built, that the set up and customizing process is just too difficult for you, we will be more than happy to help.

You can attach your logo to your home page photo using a program like Photoshop and then upload it to your site as you would any photo.

To delete a Mailing List subscriber, go to your Pro Features tab in your BetterPholio Admin Center. Choose the "Mailing List Subscribers" link. You will see "remove" links on that page. Click that link next to the subscriber's name you wish to remove from your Mailing List and this will completely remove them from your list.

Are you a happy BetterPholio owner? Help us get the word out about this great service. We make it quick and easy!

All you have to do is:

1. Sign in to your Deluxe Admin Center, and click the "Design" tab.

2. Click the "Display BetterPhoto Ads" link in the "Site Design Options" box.

3. Select the location and size of the ads you would like to display.

That's it! Three simple steps to sharing BP with the world.

You can also add a link to BetterPhoto in your Links page or do any number of other things to help us stay the world leader in photography sharing and education. To learn more, visit:
http://www.betterphoto.com/promoting_BP_pholios.asp

Technically you cannot. However, you can respond from your account email address and have it appear as though it's coming from your alias. If you prefer to keep your alias mail separate like this, using a free webmail service is a great way to go.I know that gmail and hotmail both allow you to set the from address of all emails going out. You could set the from address as your alias. This way your customers would have no idea that you were using a hotmail or gmail account for your business email.

The fact of the matter is that, since there are over 40 million Web sites out there - with everyone wanting their site to be found on the first page returned by the search engines - this is a very competitive and difficult thing to do. It is an art and it doesn't happen overnight. So be patient with yourself and give yourself some time - it can take about 4 to 6 weeks to get indexed on the major search engines even when you are actively promoting your site with them.

This search engine optimization can be a fun game - it is exciting when you get better placement on the search engines. But it can be frustrating too. If you want to learn more about how it all works, go to:

http://searchenginewatch.com/

This guy - Danny Sullivan - has many great articles on the subject. Some are for paying subscribers only but many are free to everyone.

Specifically, here is a good intro on keywords:

http://searchenginewatch.com/webmasters/meta.html

Another article on keywords that seems to be more general:

hrefhttp://www.searchenginewatch.com/searchday/02/sd0611-keywords.html

We also highly recommend signing up for the free monthly newsletter at the following site. Each issue seems to have at least one great article about search engine optimization. The software they sell is also very effective - I use it all the time:

http://www.web-positiongold.com/

And here is another excellent resource - this site keeps track of the most popular search phrases and indexes them according to how much competition there is. The idea is to find keyword phrases that are not on very many Web sites but searched for often. You can do a free trial run with them to try to get better suggestions for keywords:

http://www.wordtracker.com/

Once you have determined the best keywords, you can do some things in the BetterPholio Admin Center like add the best, most searched-after text. You can add good keywords to your site when you write your Welcome Blurb and Gallery Blurb. You can go even further by adding articles and/or a Wildcard page to your site. Having good keyword phrases in these text elements can help very much.

And then, don't forget to submit your site to the various search engines for indexing. Alternatively, you can buy paid listings with the search engine to get your site indexed faster, or use outsource services like "Submit It" to help.

One last thing you can do is to tell as many people as possible your domain name. Tell them to directly type this domain name into the location field of their browser. Explain to them that it can take some time for the search engines to properly index your site. Furthermore, you can use the "Tell a Friend/Recommend the Site" function to get the word out to as many people as you can. And don't forget to print your domain name on your business cards and promotional materials. These are some of the most effective ways to get traffic to your Web site.

We have recently added streaming music to all of your BetterPholios! We currently have a library of 80 songs for you to choose from in your music library and we are adding a few songs every week. It’s super easy to add or subtract music from your playlist with the new Music Finder.

Once you’ve logged into your BetterPholio Admin Center, choose your Photos tab and you will see the “Music Manager” link in the center box at the top. Click on that link. You will then see your different site categories: Home Page, Slide Show, all photos and your photo categories. You can choose up to five different songs for each category. Do so by clicking on the edit icon next to each of your categories. You will then see boxes for your five different song choices for that particular category. Click the “Find Music” button to view your different song choices. You can preview each song before selecting it by clicking on the megaphone icon in your Music Finer. When you’ve made your choice, click on the “Select” button next to the song. This will add the song to your first song selection box. When you’re done selecting your music, hit the Update button at the bottom of that page. You can then move on to your next category and add music the same way! That’s all there is to it!

1) Choose a photo from each of your BetterPholio™ galleries and make sure to jot down the Photo ID number for each. (Find the Photo ID number by hovering over the photo with your cursor - the number and picture title will then appear. Another method: By hovering over the photo, a long URL will appear at the bottom of your screen. Towards the end of the URL, it will say: photoid=xxxxxx.)

2) Next, go to your BetterPholio Admin Center.

3) In the Admin Center, click on Create/Update Categories.

4) In the Create/Update Categories section: Pick a gallery and click on the "Edit This Category" link, which puts you in the Update Category box.

5) In the Update Category box, look for "Thumbnail Photo ID", and type in your picture's ID number. Next, click on the Update Category button below ... and that's it!

Spam is incredibly annoying. Unfortunately since the alias is just forwarding email, we cannot add a spam filter to it. Members who don't like this spam have 3 options:
1) Request that we change your email alias
2) Request that we turn off your alias altogether if you do not use it
3) Leave everything as is, and delete spam as it comes in, or get a good spam filter

There is no way for us to stop the spam or track it down or prosecute the spammer. We wish there was something more we could do.

Your copyright name is determined by the name you enter in your BetterPhoto Member Center Contact Information under "First and Last Name". Go ahead and sign into your Member Center through the BetterPhoto.com® home page. Click on your "Member Info" tab and change your first and last name to reflect the name you would like displayed as your Copyright. This will update your copyright information on your BetterPholio.

In Internet Explorer, go to the Tools menu, select Internet Options, and then click the Delete Files button.

From your BetterPholio™ Admin Center, click on your "Update Parent Category" link. You will see your Parent Categories listed. Click on the "Edit this category" link for each. You will then see an "Update Subcategories" section where you are able to assign your Photo Categories to your Parent Categories. Remember, all of your Photo Categories must be assigned to a Parent Category. Once you do this, your photos should only appear in the categories to which they are assigned.

What you can do is create any size image in a digital image-editing software program. Then follow the instructions on the Home Page Graphic page of your BetterPholio™ Admin Center to upload this new graphic.

First of all, to create new categories with a password, click on "Create/Update Photo Categories" (second link under Images in your Admin Center). Scroll all the way down to the bottom of that page. Under "Create a New Category" there is a box at the bottom entitled "Category Password". This is where you create your passwords for each new category.

Now, to add passwords to your existing categories, click on "Create/Update Photo Categories" again. Here you will see your existing categories. Click on "Edit this category". A box will come up and you will notice the last white box is entitled "Category Password". This is where you create your passwords for each of your existing categories.

Just remember, passwords are case sensitive.

From your Admin Center, click on the "basic hit counter" link. Delete all of the text in the box and this will remove your hit counter.

After you have set up your PayPal account, use your "Update Product Categories" link in your Admin Center to set up your different Product Categories (i.e. 8x10 glossy, 5x7 framed, etc.). Once you have done that you can move to the "Make Photo Products" link to add your pricing information. Your images will only appear for sale on your site after you have associated a price with a particular image.

Getting your images to display on your BetterPholio™ is a two step process.
First you upload them and then, from your Admin Center, you indicate which ones you want to display. Click on the "Select and Categorize Photos" link under your Photos tab in your Admin Page, then use the boxes next to each of your categories to indicate which image you would like to display and to which category you would like that particular image assigned to. Your photos will only appear on your web site once they are categorized.

This gives you additional flexibility with the look of your site at any given time. For example, you can easily change the displayed images from time to time to keep the site looking new and fresh.

From your BetterPholio™ Admin Center click on the "basic hit counter" link and follow the instructions there to set up your free hit counter from Bravenet. Once you have finished this process, the hit counter will appear on your home page.

There are two little checkboxes on the Contact admin pages in the Member Center / BetterPholio™ Admin Center that allow you to hide your address and/or phone number from the public eye. By checking these boxes, you keep that information from being displayed.

All you need to know is some basic HTML. But is it is very important that you do it right - doing it wrong could cause major problems.

1. Grab the URL and the name of the link that you want to post.
2. Type in

a less than symbol <
a href=
a quotation mark
your URL
another quotation mark
a greater than symbol >
your name of the link
a less than symbol <
a forward slash
the letter a
a greater than symbol >

so it should look like this:

http://www.yourURL.com

Important: Do not include any line breaks within the code. i.e. don't hit return or enter as you are typing in the code.

Log into your BetterPholio Admin Center. Choose your Photos tab. Click on the "Update Category Sort Order" link. Then just drag and drop your categories into the order you wish, then click the Update Sort Order button.

Yes, we set you up with an email alias. Any email sent to YourFirstName@YourDomainName.com will direct to your main email account (the one you use to sign in).

Domain People is the company that registers all of the domain names for the BetterPholios™ hosted by BetterPhoto.com®. Unfortunately their system defaults to sending out one reminder email to all BetterPholio owners. You can disregard this email, once your domain name is renewed through BetterPhoto.com, you are all set.

Once your site expires and has not been renewed, it is archived on our servers for a certain amount of time, but your domain name does expire. It is placed in an inactive state where we cannot renew it. It will come up for sale in 30-60 days from expiration to the public. We could try to renew it when it comes up for sale again, but there is a good chance it could be bought by another party first. You do have the option to choose another available domain name for your site, however.

The fastest and easiest way for you to upload your images to your BetterPholio would be to sign into your Member Center. Here you can click on the "Upload New Photos" link under the "My Better Photos" tab. We offer a bulk uploader that allows you to upload 50 images at one time. This is the fastest way for you to upload multiple images as well as add titles and descriptions to each image. First, select the camera you are using, decide whether you want your photos to be public or private, and then click the bottom box to indicate you've read and agree to our Terms and Conditions. Then click the "Submit" button. You will then be in the bulk image uploader. Follow the instructions on the top of this page to upload your photos. Then click the "Send" button. A status box will appear and then you will see a box indicating your photos have been uploaded to your site. Click "Ok". You will then see a page showing your uploaded images. You can title your images, enter a description for them, delete them altogether or decide whether or not you want them displayed in your free member gallery as well as your BetterPholio, or just your BetterPholio. Once you've entered all of your information you can click on your "My Better Photos" tab and you will see a link to your BetterPholio™ Admin Center.

Choose that link. Once in your Admin Center, click on the "Select and Categorize Photos" link (right-hand column). You will see your photos there with a box next to them with the word "Select" in them. You will need to categorize each of your photos. This is important, as your photos will not appear on your site unless you have assigned them to a particular category. To make your Photo Categories, go back to your Admin Center and click on the "Create/Update Photo Categories". This page allows you to name and describe your different Photo Categories.

The first thing you may need to do is adjust your spam filters. Often times spam filters incorrectly block these forwarded messages, so you should adjust your spam filter settings either on your computer or with your ISP to allow these messages to get through.

1. Go to the "Select and Categorize Photos" link under your Photos tab in your Admin Center and find the photo in question.
2. Then uncheck the box next to the category you don't want that image displayed in.
3. Then hit the "Apply Changes" button. This will remove it from that category.

Your Photo Products will only appear next to an image if you have designated a price for them. To do this, use your "Make Photo Products" link in your Admin Center.

In order to have your image size descriptions show up on your sales pages, you will need to fill in the blurb area for each Product Category using your "Update Photo Categories" link in your Admin Center.

There are two separate lists, one for Pro BetterPholios and the other for Deluxe BetterPholios™. Make sure you are looking at the right list.

Titles and Descriptions don't display for home page images, although text can be added to the home page using the Welcome Blurb link in your Admin Center. Depending on the design chosen, the welcome blurb will show up in different places on your home page.

This is happening because you have uploaded the image multiple times and the winning version of your image is not the one selected for display. All you need to do is to:
1. First identify the winning photoID # - this is the 5 or 6 digit number you see in the URL when looking at the enlarged view of an image.
2. Use this number to locate the correct photo in your BetterPholio Admin Center (using the "Select and Categorize Photos" link).
3. Set the winning image to display in a category and set the other image to "Exclude from this site".

If you are having trouble with the bulk upload process, you can still use our previous single image uploader. You will see links to this on the first upload page.
Please email the following info: Mac/PC, operating system, browser version, image format to amy@betterphoto.com. That information will get passed onto our development team. The bulk upload process works on most system configurations and we are working to expand compatibility as much as possible. Until then, you can continue uploading photoswith our single image uploader.

Check out our BPClubs where you can find other members by location. BP Clubs are located under the Community Tab, check out Regional Clubs here:
http://www.betterphoto.com/BetterPhotoClubs.asp?ai=3&typeID=1

You can take away the tips and lessons, and read the answers posted by Jim from his previous students, however Jim is not available for the free preview. It might help if you think of it as a behind the scenes tour of a real course.

Unfortunately, we are not able to extend your time in class but hope that you will enjoy the other areas of the site.
Here are some suggestions for other resources at BetterPhoto:

1) Ask a question in the public BetterPhoto forum and you will likely get a ton of good answers from other members:
http://www.betterphoto.com/photography-forum.asp

2) Read up on a topic in the Articles on Photography by our professional instructors here: http://www.betterphoto.com/allAbout.asp

3) If you haven't already done so, be sure to sign up for our inspirational Photo of the Day and other informative Newsletters. Here is a link where you can subscribe to all 4 of our FREE newsletters: http://www.betterphoto.com/subscribe.asp

4) Also consider starting - or joining - a BetterPhoto Club in order to meet people with similar interests, learn and gain new skills together, and share and discuss photos. Club info: http://www.betterphoto.com/BetterPhotoClubs.asp

Even if you don't have an SLR you will benefit from the many tips and lessons in the class preview. However, one of our Fundamentals courses might be a better fit, check out our listings here:
http://www.betterphoto.com/online-photo-course-categories.asp?ai=1

This preview is a "behind the scenes" look at a real PhotoCourse - all lessons and critiques are real, however, it is a preview. You can take away the tips and lessons, but won't be able to upload your own photos here - for that, we welcome you to consider one of our fully functional courses here: http://www.betterphoto.com/online-photography-courses.asp

Sign in using your email address and password - this will take you to your Member Center
Click the My Courses Tab
Click A FREE Course Preview: Digital SLR Photography

PhotoCourse Quick Tips will be sent by email so that you can make the most out of your time in class.

Here is a link to the course page, just click the Enroll button on the right to sign up:
http://www.betterphoto.com/courseOverview.asp?cspID=165

Within 24 hours you will start receiving daily Quick Tips to help you during your 10 day free trial.

This course is not an active class, so you do not upload images or get feedback. For this, consider one of our fully functional courses:

http://www.betterphoto.com/online-photography-courses.asp

Isn't email tricky sometimes? It took me a while to see the question that comes through on emails including images, somehow it just doesn't stand out. My understanding is that this is a safety step that your email provider has in place so that you agree to open the images sent to you.

There is usually some type of question - often at the top and reads:
Display images below - Always display images from BetterPhoto.com?

Look at the heading of the email for this type of question link. All you should have to do is click on it once, and you will see images from BetterPhoto in the future.

To enroll in one of the courses using your MVBP discount, you will need to enroll via the MVBP section of your My Courses page.

How to Enroll:
In your Member Center, click on the My Courses tab. From here, scroll down to the bottom of the page where you will see the MVBP announcement in gold lettering. You will see: "You've Earned MVBP Rewards!"

Click on either the "8 week" or "4 week" links to see the listing of classes available. You will need to choose from the courses shown on these pages to receive the discount. Click on the "Enroll" link to redeem your award and complete the payment process.

Note: A special discount code will be automatically applied to your course order and the discount will be taken off of your enrollment fee. The 50% discount, though, will show up at Check-out (not on the Shopping Cart page).

We allow only a certain number of MBVP students to enroll in each class, each session, so if you don't see your class listed, another student has already enrolled in that spot. If this is the case, you can choose a different class, or you can wait and check later in a future session for the specific class you want.

Hope this answers your questions. Please feel free to email back with any questions.

To have newsletters go to different email - totally separate from your usual BP sign-in - then you would need to sign up as a "new" member. At upper right of any BetterPhoto page, click on Join - or if signed in already, click on Sign Out and then Join. With that second email address, you can then subscribe to newsletters at this page: http://www.betterphoto.com/subscribe.asp: And if you don't want to receive the newsletters at your original email (your main sign-in), then you must go the unsubscribe route: (sign in with original email/password to Member Center > Member Info and unsubscribe at bottom of the page).

You can be assured that we do not share email addresses of our members. Here is a copy of our privacy policy:

BetterPhoto's Privacy Policy
BetterPhoto.com does not sell our members' email addresses or personal information. All information submitted to BetterPhoto.com is not to be sold or used in any way that violates your right to privacy. Upon registration as a BetterPhoto member, email addresses are collected for the purpose of answering questions and responding to visitors.
BetterPhoto.com does not endorse or tolerate unsolicited sales emails through our automated contact forms. Individuals or companies may not email BetterPhoto members through our contact forms, Q&A, or any BetterPhoto discussions.

BetterPhoto.com cannot serve as an enforcer or investigator in possible scam cases. Nor can we take on the role of intermediary between buyer and seller. If you are the victim of a scam, also inform your local authorities.

Change your sign-in email to the new address. Sign in to Member Center > Member Info > Contact Info ... then change the email. That new email would apply not only to receiving newsletters but also for signing into the site for courses, Member Center, Forum, contest, etc.

Here is a link where you can subscribe to all 4 of our free newsletters:

http://www.betterphoto.com/subscribe.asp

You can unsubscribe to newsletters in two ways: 1) In the emailed newsletter, look for the Unsubscribe link at the bottom of the page; or 2) Sign in to your Member Center > Member Info tab, and at the bottom of the page is an Unsubscribe link.

All images for the Photo of the Day newsletter are chosen from contest entries. The Judges at BetterPhoto make the selections. A Photo of the Day, however, does not guarantee a contest victory. It's just us saying "Wow! Great photo!"

In order to get a good balance of photos over a period of days and weeks - i.e., "traditional," digital art, color, black and white, landscapes, details, animals, etc. - some of the pictures are "held over" to future months. Thus, although some photos may have a "contest finalist/winner" award attached to it, those particular images were chosen for POTD status BEFORE the final contest judging.

At times, we will send out a membership email with promotions or exciting news.If you wish to cancel your BetterPhoto membership, please email bpsupport@betterphoto.com

Most people reviewing past POTD images just want to see the photo itself, which still appears in its large size on the page. Even if it was replaced by a new upload - not an easy tech task - the original discussion still wouldn't be there. The main thing is that the photo still appears on the page itself ( i.e., no weird blank space or red X) for those people going back through the archives.

Be sure to add Snapshot@betterphoto.com to your allowed list.

Unfortunately, we are unable to send you the error message directly.

Photo of the Day is BetterPhoto's daily e-newsletter. Images are selected - by BP's judges - from contest entries. Other than that, the POTD is totally separate from the regular judging of the monthly contest, and all POTD images remain in the contest. Here's link to our newsletter page, where you can check out all of our newsletters (and subscribe for free!):
http://www.betterphoto.com/subscribe.asp

Thanks for your interest in BetterPhoto!

There is a second step to the newsletter subscribing: You needed to respond to an automated email in order to activate your subscription.

You can try increasing your screen resolution with these steps:

1.Open Display in Control Panel.

2.On the Settings tab, under Screen resolution, drag the slider, and then click Apply.

3.When prompted to apply the settings, click OK. Your screen will turn black for a moment.

4.Once your screen resolution changes, you have 15 seconds to confirm the change. Click Yes to confirm the change; click No or do nothing to revert to your previous setting.

Note:To open Display, click Start, click Control Panel, click Appearance and Themes, and then click Display. A higher screen resolution reduces the size of items on your screen and increases the relative space on your desktop.

Some email programs will not display images in email unless you click a separate link. That may be what is occurring here.

Please be sure that you have added our email address to your contact form with your email provider to avoid a soft bounce with BetterPhoto newsletters. You will want to be sure to add Snapshot@betterphoto.com to your allowed list

Note-*We have found with other members that the newsletter address can be marked as spam by your email program, the address may appear in the folder: blocked addresses. Blocked addresses have priority in your spam settings. If our address is on that list it won't even be delivered to your spam folder.

If you are still getting the email notifications when there is activity on your discussions and questions at BetterPhoto, this means that, for some reason, only the newsletter is being blocked. If you have spam filtering software or size restrictions, this could be causing the email to be filtered before it gets to you. If this is not the case, please send an email to bpsupport@betterphoto.com and we will check to see if your emails are bouncing.

It is possible that a copy of that page is being stored in history (in the cache) on your computer. Then, when you get another discussion email, the browser brings up the copy it made before instead of pulling again from the site.

In other words, it may be that Internet Explorer is not allowing the page to be updated every time. If you think this might be the case, go to the Tools menu and select Internet Options. Click on the Settings button in the Temporary Internet Files section. Under "Check for newer versions of stored pages", click on "Every visit to the page". This should correct the problem.

Betterphoto.com is on a secure server. Once you have items in your cart and you are at your checkout page, you will find that we have security via Thawte. Our certification is clearly noted with an icon and also you will see the typical web lock that denotes a secure server.

Thanks so much for your interest in our online PhotoCourses.

I am unable to convert that foreign exchange rates for you. Your credit card company will automatically convert the charges when you order via a credit card. Also, you can check on the conversion rate via: http://www.exchangerate.com/ .

Please be sure you have the correct billing address upon ordering. You could also
check with your credit card company for more information.

BetterPhoto.com accepts the following methods of payment: M/C, Visa, Electronic Check, Check and Money Order.

If you prefer to mail your check payment, you will see that option on the pull down menu upon check out. Once you proceed with purchase, your email receipt will provide the BetterPhoto address in which to mail payment.

This may be a problem with your card code. The card code on a Visa is the last 3 digits in "italics" on the back of your card, often in the signature field.

If you continue to have declined messages, you may want to call your credit card company for more information.