Giant Dahlia Centerpiece & Pinterest Rant

July 31, 2012

First off, wouldn't this be a cool center piece for wedding tables? Especially if you made one 3' in diameter or several large ones grouped together. They are so easy to make but are also a large statement piece. See a tutorial for one on Vively Online and Living with Lindsay.

Secondly, I found this photo on Pinterest in a collage which had other pictorial photos showing how to make the flower. The source led no where and no matter how hard I searched on google images or Tin Eye I could not find the original source. So I took the collage photo and removed the final photo shown to left. If anyone knows the original source please let me know so I can give credit.

If you ever come across a photo collage that does NOT lead back to a person's blog, it's probably stolen. What some websites have been doing is taking blogger's craft tutorials, putting all the photos in one long picture and posting it themselves on Pinterest with no credit to the author.

Admittedly I had been posting these long tutorial pics with the automatic Pinterest links below without knowing that this was a 'thing' until recently. A friend of mine, Beth from Stories of A to Z made a bird bath using clay pots. It's super clever BTW. But I've seen it on Pinterest in a full long photo collage and of course it doesn't lead back to her. In fact, on her original post, the photos are not in one picture but rather separate. Meaning, another website took her photos, made a new long one and posted it themselves. And it sucks for her because it's a really popular pin (like hundreds of thousands of hits popular) that she rarely gets credit for.

So if you see a long photo collage on Pinterest, click on it to see if it leads to the original tutorial. Some sites like The Beauty Department will pin full tutorials in one photo but most sites don't. If the pin doesn't go to the orignal source OR at least have a link to the original source in the website with the photo, report it to Pinterest by clicking 'report pin' on the side. Also try doing a reverse image search on google. It's BEYOND EASY. Just open a new google image tab in your brower. Go back to the tab with the photo in it and drag that photo over to the google image tab and drop the image in the search box. It will automatically pull up all images on the web that look like that image. Even visually similar images. Cool huh?

But honestly, it rarely helps me to find an original source. It's so frustrating.

17 {comments}:

jojoebi-designs said... Best Blogger Tips

thank you for posting about this, I had no idea that it was an issue. I rarely pin those long tutorials I prefer to go through to the blog but I will be keeping an eye out in future.
Good luck with the hunt for the flower owner

Montserrat said... Best Blogger Tips

About as bad as copying complete posts from other blogs, pictures and all, without permission, right Kathleen?

Original Ribbon Headband Tutorial
Copied Headband Tutorial on the Tumtum Tree

found using the reverse google image search you talked about.

La Vie DIY said... Best Blogger Tips

I made those as center pieces for my wedding a few years ago! Holla!

Grosgrain said... Best Blogger Tips

@Chocolate on my Cranium@Chocolate on my Cranium
I wrote that post back in 2008 on my very first blog The TumTum Tree back when I first learning blog etiquette and didn't know not to post a full tutorial, which I know better now. And I never claimed the tutorial as my own, I linked back to original poster in the first paragraph.

What I'm talking about in this post is not the same. I'm talking about people who take the original post, remove the words, make their own long pic, sometimes with words in the pics and post it on their site without any link back to the original poster.

As I mentioned in THIS post, I have been guilty of pinning posts that don't lead back to the original post. Since I realized that this is a problem I can often take an hour looking for an original source. When I discover something I'm doing is wrong I try to change it. Like back in 2008, I haven't posted full tutorials since then.

However, I'm sorry about posting your full tutorial on that blog back then. It was out of ignorance not malice and I always had the link back to you. If you wish I can take it down.

Grosgrain said... Best Blogger Tips

@Chocolate on my CraniumI took it down in the meantime. If you want me to put it back up, I can.

Montserrat said... Best Blogger Tips

Ah, thanks for clearing up the date! I couldn't find a year on the post. We've all been guilty of making mistakes in our early days, including me. I appreciate you taking the post down.

Thanks for sharing all the great ideas you come across. I have found some amazing blogs to read because of it!

Cat said... Best Blogger Tips

i always check for original posts before i repin anything... if it doesn't lead back, i won't repin it. i absolutely HATE it... and, obviously, it doesn't credit the originator. thanks for the tip on "report pin"... i've never used that!

Madkrakatoa said... Best Blogger Tips

As you mentioned I tried the image search through google and it only shows Pinterest links. The oldest one belongs to Sherri Gibson (who is mentioned as the original pinner)
http://pinterest.com/pin/53972895504407203/
Today I post about a kitchen photo that I found online with no source or info attached. I took the time to do some research and found the photographer, but it took me like 5 hours, with interruptions of course! and I mentioned all the blogs involved on this search. So you can see, how not adding a name or link affect us all.

You can see it here,
http://unacasaconjardin.blogspot.com.ar/2012/08/la-cocina-escurridiza-elusive-kitchen.html

Grosgrain said... Best Blogger Tips

@romyI can certainly empathize. I look for about an hour and then I give up. Five hours is crazy but I commend you for it! Sometimes the original source never even shows up in an image source. And it IS frustrating when the first links are all either Pinterest or Asian picture sites. Ugh. I want to be able to share ideas and tutorials but I also want to be fair to the original writers. I guess it's the price we pay for enjoying Pinterest.

I guess a good rule of thumb is just, if you pin something it should at least have the original source "linked" in the post somewhere and never link to an entire tutorial but rather a teaser image, unless of course the original image is a full pictorial tutorial from the original site.

Ugh. Confused? It is a little confusing.

Caryn S said... Best Blogger Tips

Well thanks for this post! I have re-photos of ideas I liked from other people on Pinterest I follow, only to later click the picture and have it lead nowhere! Beyond frustrating, and I'm sure it's not the fault of the person I re-pinned, they've probably re-pinned it from other people the same way. Now I know what to do when that happens.

Madkrakatoa said... Best Blogger Tips

@Caryn S
About the re-pinning, been there, done that. Sometimes you get carried away and you pinned and re-pinned like a mad lady and you don't want to stop and check every single picture to see if the source is the correct one. One of the good things about Pinterest is that MOST of the times it automatically links to the original source; but if you download a picture then when you upload it, it will say 'uploaded by user'. So it is not always perfect, but in this it's better than Thumblr.

Grosgrain said... Best Blogger Tips

@romy
I think Pinterest has made blogs and websites more accessible to everyone and I think it's an AMAZING source and asset for spreading ideas. It's a shame that it has these flaws which are a result of it being accessible to everyone. But if it wasn't accessible to everyone, it wouldn't be as rich with information.

In terms of cost and reward, I think we're better off with it. If some links are incorrect or content is stolen, it's bad, but in the end you still get more hits with it than without. (My opinion).

It IS quite a pain if you want to repin something and can't find the original source.

Pinterest is a funny thing. Its purpose is two fold. One, it is used in place of bookmarking. So you can use those pins for personal style boards and personal inspiration.

Second, people use it to discover sites that they would never have seen if they weren't all in one easy to access place.

I think for pinning purposes, if you want to repin something that doesn't have an original source, try to look for the original and if you can't find it, it's okay to repin.

HOWEVER, if you are posting something you found on Pinterest on your own blog, DON'T link to the wrong source (if you can help it). And try your best to find the original. If you can't, what I do is ask in the post if one of my readers knows the original source so I can properly attribute it. I know if I had an improperly attributed tutorial I would want someone to post it and ask for the original source. At least then I'd have a 'chance' of getting credit. Otherwise I'm getting nothing.

However, you really run the risk of posting a picture that the author didn't want shared. Most of the time authors want their content shared and would welcome having a link to their site. That's how websites make money! But there are some people out there, like professional photographers who DON'T want their pictures on other people sites even WITH a link to theirs.

So long story, post and pin unsourced photos at your own risk. Most people will be decent about either asking you to source the image to them or take it down. But there are a few out there who can be vicious. I think if you don't want an image reposted on the internet you should BOLDLY say so on the same page that your photo is on, visibly where a reader is going to notice. The majority of people will pin an image otherwise. Is that asking too much?

Madkrakatoa said... Best Blogger Tips

@Kathleen Frances
@Kathleen Frances
You're so right, and regarding getting more hits, you made me remember that teal and copper dress that you posted on march, 4, 2011.
The flickr owner freaked out when she knew people where seeing her picture in other places, but then she was reliefed when people explained her how pinterest work; and now that picture has more than 16.000 views!

sorbetsurprise said... Best Blogger Tips

I make sure I never post anything that doesn't have a link back to the source on Pinterest but I don't always check the posts I repin from there. Thanks for the hint about tracing the images, I didn't know about that.

Anonymous said... Best Blogger Tips

Your rant is exactly why I rarely if ever repin. I always search out the original post and create a new pin. That way I am certain proper credit is given.

Dale said... Best Blogger Tips

what drives me absolutely bonkers is the beautiful things that are pinned from tumblr sites. I absolutely refuse to ever repin anything that lists tumblr as it's source, as it is never the proper source. If only tumblr photos linked back to their source or credited the artist in any way!

the relocators.... said... Best Blogger Tips

i think the important thing to remember about pinterest is that its a virtual pinboard! a place for individuals to pin inspirational images that can be referred to later.

i personally dont always need to know where things come from but im seeing more and more people are using pinterest as a shopping destination....always asking " where did you buy that", "i want to buy that"...its never ending & it feels almost like its become this huge marketing opportunity.

furthermore, why should everyone be compelled to make sure each image they pin is credited to the original source?? i personally would not like to see my own images posted without credit so i understand the frustration however as an artist (in todays day and age with the internet and all). i faced the fact along time ago that i should be prepared to have images used & abused as soon as they are posted online. we cannot get away with expecting wveryone to be as kind as as honest as we are unfortunately.

so those are just a few of my immediate thoughts on pinterest.

as always, thanks for an awesome blog!!

 
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