Trail marker improvement

Can you guys help me improve my trail marker? It's for the high line canal trail. I'm feeling kind of discouraged to see it rejected, if you can give me some advice to make it better and help it pass, I would really appreciate it.


Comments

  • 26thDoctor-PGO26thDoctor-PGO Posts: 4,924 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2022

    I don't think the off centered photo helps. Metal signs still seem to get a bit of a negative reaction too.

    It might help to focus more on on the trail name for the picture? Can you show the sign/trail in supporting pic with mostly green space and the sign rather than the pavement/road in the pic?

    You could try to 'anchor' it as a place on the trail.

    High Line Canal Trail - Eisenhower Park?

    Say what's nearby that makes this part of the trail unique.

    If you really, really want to add in words about exercise, exploration I think you have to be a bit more subtle about it and not mention criteria.

    The trail itself looks pretty amazing

    so I think just telling people about it's diversity, uses and sights should be enough to convince people that it's acceptable.

    Good luck.

  • SweetnessMcBoss-PGOSweetnessMcBoss-PGO Posts: 19 ✭✭

    When, you say "It might help to focus more on on the trail name for the picture? Can you show the sign/trail in supporting pic with mostly green space and the sign rather than the pavement/road in the pic?", do you mean something like this?

    (But not cropped from my old photo)

  • 26thDoctor-PGO26thDoctor-PGO Posts: 4,924 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I think that would work better. Something to stop the initial impression of 'Metal directional sign' review

  • X0bai-PGOX0bai-PGO Posts: 1,667 ✭✭✭✭✭

    You have a critical problem with this sign that it has three other things, two of which are clearly directional signage, listed above what you say is the subject. I look at this sign and think the name of the waypoint should be D15, because that’s the top of the sign. I think reviewers don’t read this as a trail marker, certainly not for the High Line Canal Trail, and I don’t know that there’s a obvious fix for it.

    As a general habit, both your images could use improvement. Reviewers tend to respond better to a primary that is as straight, square, and level as you can get it, so take every opportunity to minimize any angle. Your supporting should be from 5-10 yards further away. This mostly shows the sign’s post, which is not terribly supportive; while showing the sign, the post in the ground, the sidewalk, and the park all in one wider shot would give a lot more location context.

    But I don’t know how much a couple of image tweaks will push toward approval when the sign itself is really putting you behind the 8 ball.

  • SweetnessMcBoss-PGOSweetnessMcBoss-PGO Posts: 19 ✭✭

    I don't think that's a critical problem if you read and interpret the information on the sign. It's a biking trail, so it's says if the bus district and southmoor park are both 0.4 and 0.5 miles ahead but turn right to be on the high line canal trail. It seems pretty intuitive to me that if two things are ahead, but a direct right turn puts you on the high line canal trail, that sign is marking the high line canal trail. Especially when it is visibly along side the trail (which I tried to show in images, where the trail is visible in the background.) I apparently didn't communicate that well in my first and 2nd nominations. But it's marking for bikers that the trail is here. Hopefully a compressed image that frames the high line canal text (like the 26th doctor said) will make it easier for reviewers to not misinterpret it as D15.

    My first nomination got falsely rejected because someone said it wasn't pedestrian accessible. I thought showing the sidewalk might help (and I guess it wasn't rejected for that reason) but I think what you said about the image makes sense to me. I don't put that much thought into the image if it's not blurry and I can tell what it is. So anything I can do to improve my images helps me. I don't remember how much I moved back but I can **** for a little more on the secondary image.

  • SweetnessMcBoss-PGOSweetnessMcBoss-PGO Posts: 19 ✭✭

    Not sure what I said that was censored but "I can **** for a little more" can be I can step back a little more.

  • X0bai-PGOX0bai-PGO Posts: 1,667 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When I say “critical problem” I believe you’re thinking in terms of eligibility; I am discussing in terms of reviewer response and perception. You can count on your reviewers using their first reaction to your image to be the basis for their voting, and this sign does not give an impression of eligibility. It gives the impression of a directional street sign that is not on the trail, but merely points to the trail, which would not be eligible. It gives that impression because other indicators on that sign are very clearly directional.

    Which brings me to a question that maybe should have been asked sooner: is this sign, in fact, on the trail, or does it merely point to the trail?

  • dman41689-PGOdman41689-PGO Posts: 294 ✭✭✭

    everything seems fine with your nomination I would just resubmit it. however sometimes its hard with metal signs like this because people mistake them for regular street signs

  • SweetnessMcBoss-PGOSweetnessMcBoss-PGO Posts: 19 ✭✭

    Why do you say that a sign points to a trail is ineligible? I get it for signs far away from the trail but it doesn't say keep going .5 miles to get to the trail, it says turn left here to arrive at the trail. If it is close to the trail, doesn't it still encourage exercise and mark the trail?

    The sign is about 15 feet away on the side of the trail. It's close to the mark on the Google map in this screenshot. The trail is marked in green too.

  • 26thDoctor-PGO26thDoctor-PGO Posts: 4,924 ✭✭✭✭✭

    It works a bit better maybe straighter would help too. You may always struggle with do reviewers see it as a marker on the trail or a metal sign pointing to the trail though irrespective of what you do.

  • SweetnessMcBoss-PGOSweetnessMcBoss-PGO Posts: 19 ✭✭

    Aww man, you're right, it is slanted. It's tough to get a straight photo because the ground is slanted and I'm reaching up to take a picture looking down. I don't upload until I leave the park too. I'll try again next time I go back there.


    Agreed, that might happen. Closed-minded reviewers are frustrating for me. I put a lot more effort into walking around finding things to match the approved wayfarer criteria around the neighborhood, than they did to automatically turn me down because the trail marker is made from metal.

  • Gendgi-PGOGendgi-PGO Posts: 3,534 Ambassador

    Take a bunch of pictures and try playing around with them with your phone. This was adjusted using the tilt and perspective options on my default gallery viewing app.


Sign In or Register to comment.