Gurushots Tip – Get a Guru Pick
OK, so lots of people ask me the same question “How do I get a Guru Pick?“. I say ask but there has also been a fair amount of begging, bribery and even a little blackmail (I’ll tell you about it over a beer one day).
Soccer betting and slovenia roster fans love to take pictures of their favorite players in action on the field. They also enjoy taking pictures of themselves with their friends at the game. Soccer betting fans are passionate about their sport and love to show off their excitement.
Soccer betting fans love to take photographs of the games they are watching. They also love to take photographs of their favorite players. Often, these photos are taken with a phone or camera. Sometimes, they are even taken with a video camera. Betting fans often take photos of the game in progress. They may also take photos of themselves with their friends or family members who are also betting on the game. These photos can be used to show off their knowledge of the game and their passion for it. They can also be used to show off how much money they have won or lost.
My response is that it’s actually quite simple. There are just 2 steps.
Step One: Produce photographs that will impress the Guru Pro.
Step Two: Get the Guru Pro to see your photographs.
That’s all there is to it. If the Guru sees your work and is impressed by it, then you will receive a Guru Pick. Simple. Guru Picks are especially relevant if you want to reach the status of Guru.
In this post we are going to look at step one, step 2 is covered in my ebook The Guru’s Secrets
Ok, so you probably think you are already producing some pretty good photography, technically perfect, sharp in all the right places, interesting subject and so on. The thing is, this part of the game is not about what you think. It’s about producing photographs that someone will like, much like a professional photographer has to do.
Let me give you an example. In the Diagonal Lines challenge, you will see that many of my picks have people in them. This is somewhat strange, why would I pick photos of a person in a challenge about diagonal likes? It wasn’t part of the theme.
The truth is despite the fact most photographs in this challenge not having people in them, I like people. I love to see a human element in the frame, it adds so much to the shot on many levels. It tells me something about the place, it makes me start asking questions in my head about where they are, what they are doing, perhaps I’d like to visit that place too. This all helps to build a connection with me. This for me is the key, creating photographs that connect.
And it’s not just this challenge. This is true for all (well, probably most) challenges I run – check it out if you don’t believe me :)
Other Gurus will have different likes and different things that appeal to them. But this is no problem. If you really want to get a Guru Pick I suggest you do this.
Get a Guru Pick from any Guru
- Choose a Guru Pro
- Have a look at one of their recent challenges and write down the first five to ten words you think of when you see their picks. Consider things like B&W, vibrant colours, high contrast, sizes of elements, the rule of thirds, slow shutter speed, heavily processed.. as well as actual elements in the frame.
- Choose more challenges from the same Guru and keep adding to the list. If words are repeated then you can tally them up and you will start to see a pattern.
The list
A list from my Picks in the Mesmerizing Diagonals challenge could look like this
- Black & white
- Single people
- Person often small in the frame
- Strong patterns
- Few elements
- Unposed
Repeat for other challenges, you will find differences but for certain there will be some overlap. I suggest you look at at least 5 different challenges for each Guru to get a better understanding.
You can now build up a list for each Guru and know what you need to do to appeal to them on an individual basis. The next step is to make sure the Guru sees your photos, this is the part that is more difficult as each Guru can vote (more or less) whenever they want.
Anyway, let me know if you try this method and how you get on.
April 5, 2018 @ 12:54 pm
Your tips are always so helpful, giving me the opportunity and choices to grow as a photographer
Your tips are greatly appreciated. Thank you
April 7, 2018 @ 2:35 pm
Thanks for your kind words Barbara.
All the best in the challenges
January 27, 2023 @ 7:46 pm
Maravilha, Tom, você tem um belo trabalho, admiro muito. Boas informações você nos passou, muito obrigado.
January 28, 2023 @ 9:44 pm
Tom, for me it has been difficult to get to Guru, I have followed some suggestions and rules of some Gurus where I have been, however, not even get close. I consider my work reasonable and I’ve seen some team friends come to Guru with very good images, even similar to mine. I ask, is there the luck factor too?
April 28, 2018 @ 4:44 pm
Hello, my pseudo on gurushot is zyvle0. Ok I understand the simple notion of voting and visibility. What is the definition of “being viewed”? When someone starts voting, how the site decides that the guy voting actually viewed the pic? More precisely, as the guy scrolls the voting frame, are the pics progressively being noted as viewed, or are the pics considered as viewed since the moment the voting frame is constructed?
April 30, 2018 @ 11:35 am
A Voting View is counted when the photo is loaded on the voting page. The way I understand that it works is that they are loaded in batches of 25 to improve loading speed. So yes it is possible that a photo is counted as being viewed when in reality it hasn’t been. But the chances of this happening are the same for everyone.
I think that’s what you’re asking
April 30, 2018 @ 8:00 pm
yes thanks for info
May 12, 2018 @ 3:56 am
Tom, thank you for your contributions, you are really helping each of the photographers to appreciate more what we like to do, and it is nothing more than the exciting world of photography, there reflects the depth of the photographer’s soul and those who qualify our work, success and continue your extraordinary work,
best regards,
Adolfo
May 27, 2018 @ 5:06 pm
Many thanks for your comments :)
May 12, 2018 @ 3:40 pm
When is the best time to post photos so the guru will see them?
February 20, 2019 @ 2:38 pm
Well the simple answer would be when the Guru is voting :) Obviously every Guru is different. I’m not sure if you’ve seen this post I wrote but it may help you
https://tombourdon.co.uk/get-a-guru-pick/
All the best
Tom
January 12, 2020 @ 6:30 pm
The biggest trick to getting a guru’s pick is trying to make sure the guru actually sees your photo and gives you a pick. Right now, I’m a master with 3 Guru Picks. I became a master in less than three months. I got my Guru’s Picks at some unusual times. I think my second Guru Pick was nominated in the middle of the night when I was asleep, lol. From my experience, here are two ways to increase your chances of getting a Guru’s Pick. One; check in the contest to see if the Guru has made his or her picks. Early in a challenge, if no Gurus Picks hasn’t been made yet, this time is actually a good time to enter a photo for a chance of a Guru’s pick. Next, keep you exposure meter high and vote or swap photos when a massage comes up saying that the guru is voting. This doesn’t guarantee you a Gurus Pick, but definitely increases your odds.
May 21, 2018 @ 10:42 am
Thanks for this advice Tom, I have been using gurushots for just over a year, I’ve loved moving up through the ranks, it really teaches you how to use the site with swaps etc… I am now a Champion and have been for what seems months and months, and I cannot get those elusive guru picks to move on! ¦{D I’ve even made it into the top 10 a number of times but even this didn’t seem to catch the gurus eyes!
I’ll certainly be studying the gurus as you suggest… thanks for great competitions and inspiration through your amazing work, every blessing BadlyFittingHat.
May 27, 2018 @ 5:09 pm
Thanks Darren, I’m sure that if you follow my tips you’ll continue to progress. There’s lo a section in my eBook called ‘How to gt a Guru Pick’ that might be of ome help too.
Tom
February 11, 2020 @ 5:09 pm
Hi Tom,
What I experiencing is wrong calculations of Guru pick.i have 4 Guru picks but they r showing 3.and also what I came to know that after reaching on one point my all images stop to get votes. For example my one image got 800 likes and I swapped that one and after reaching 1000 very quickly it stopped getting votes feel like my image is out of voting even with full exposure. Strange, may be they have some special algorithms by which they know to whom specific person should get more votes.
Its seem not fair game. Anyways.
I m trying.
February 11, 2020 @ 6:32 pm
Hi Vishal. To comment on the 2 things you mentioned.
Frstly, for the miscount issue you should contact the support team and they’ll sort it out for you. You can reach them here gurushot.com/contact
Secondly. Yes of course there is an algorithm, and it is perfectly normal that new photos get many votes quickly. In this blog post I explain how the algorithm works and why you get that rush of votes at the beginning. Check it out here https://tombourdon.co.uk/repost-the-gurushots-algorithm/ it should answer some of your questions.
January 27, 2021 @ 5:31 am
I’ve seen similar things frequently. I’ve always wondered if there are times when the server lags in updating results? Sometimes the images will start getting votes again, but other times nothing seems to work to get votes coming in again. The second thing I wonder is if “equal exposure” is across all entrants or just my own images? Reason being is that if it’s across all images, it could just be that for some contests, there are not enough people voting so to balance exposure, older images don’t get as much exposure while newer images catch up with exposure?
While I fully accept the need for subjective judgment and that some images are just not good enough, it seems there must be a huge bottleneck of Champions and Masters waiting for that lucky moment when that right photo is seen by that one guru and they happen to pick it.
I would love to see alternatives such as x votes by any guru = guru pick or x top 10% finishes = guru pick
My skill has benefited greatly by the challenge to improve and advance, but I’ve also been stagnant for over a year for want of an elusive guru pick.
May 27, 2018 @ 8:44 am
Hello Tom; I am an expert right now, and these tips pertain to me. I need to hit 10 percent of votes , two more all star ratings and a gurus pick I have spent lots of dough on swaps and auto fills and am learning some other tricks to picking up votes. I help but think that I just may not be able to get to that level with the old camera I use. Is it true that if you are savvy at editing photos, you do not need an expensive camera. What do you think? and thanks a lot for the tips that you share with us. Maybe I should save my money so that I can afford a new camera or even a used nice camera? A thought.
May 27, 2018 @ 5:12 pm
Hi Sandra. You don’t tell m what camera you are using. But I’d say it doesn’t matter. To be honest I think you’re probably better off spending your money on learning composition rather than on gear. The camera manufacturers like to convince us we need modern gear, but it’s not true. Great photos can be taken with old cameras for certain!
March 9, 2019 @ 4:22 pm
Thanks for that confirmation, Tom. I just got a new (used) “bridge” camera, but I have been and also still use a 12 year old “point and shoot” with a fixed lens, and I have some old slides, some as old as 50 years, done on very old equipment. Some of the oldest of slides, scanned poorly, have actually placed fairly high in several challenges. It’s what’s in the mind that counts, not what’s in your hand!
May 28, 2018 @ 5:48 am
Tom, thank you for sending me a link to this webinar. I wish I didn’t have a problem joining at the time it was held. I will try Luminar at a later date…not in my budget at the moment. I am sure I will be coming back to this webinar to watch it again, once I do.
I did subscribe to your tips…twice now, with no reply as of yet…and yes, I checked spam. I’ll check again in the morning.
May 28, 2018 @ 5:05 pm
Thanks KAren for your comments.
Yes it looks like there was an issue with my form. It should all be working well now if you’d like to try again.
Thanks
Tom
September 4, 2018 @ 5:25 pm
Thanks, Tom! I already have one Guru pick under my belt, and am stuck at Challenger level. Getting the next two, in order to reach Master has been very difficult. I’ll start using your tips. I have a feeling they will help. Thanks again!
May 29, 2018 @ 12:05 pm
Hello Tom,
I have one quick question about GURU Pick and the process from the GURU point of view. Once you are voting in your challenge as GURU – do you have full set of photos (for example from ranking page) available for voting the GURU Pick or you get the set of pics proposed by “system” and you must pick photos from this set of photos? My point is whether I must just be lucky to be picked by system to have chance to be voted by GURU or whether GURU can choose from whatever picture he/she likes? Thanks for answer.
By the way your work is very inspiring :)
Best wishes
Jana
May 29, 2018 @ 4:39 pm
Thanks Jana for making contact.
To answer your question Gurus use the same voting system and we can pick whatever appeals to us. Yes, there is certainly an element of luck in getting a Guru Pick, but my advice would be to make sure your photography is excellent too. We see thousands of photos and most are not up to the mark, so if/when you do get lucky make sure your photographs are of the heighest quality.
May 29, 2018 @ 5:26 pm
Hello Tom,
thank you for your answer. Multiple times it happened to me that I had picture in top 10 during GURU’s voting and he did not pick my picture. I understand that guru’s taste does not need to correspond to my taste. I just was not sure whether my pictures were not good enough or guru did not have the chance to vote for it. What you write gives me hope that my work is not that bad :)
Thanks again for your time
June 5, 2018 @ 8:56 am
It sounds like you are on the right track. Best of luck
September 23, 2018 @ 1:49 pm
Hello Tom, after a while I am here to confirm what you said to me. Few days after your explanation, I received my first Guru’s pick, now I have already 7 of them. Last night I won my first challenge (Top Photographer Winner) and I became GURU. Thanks for encouraging me and explaining the principals. And for other people reading this discussion – just keep trying and doing the best you can, it will come one day :)
September 24, 2018 @ 6:58 pm
Well done Jana!!
That’s great
June 7, 2018 @ 2:55 am
Tom your tips are AMAZING, I juts read it and in 2 days i got my first Guru Pick to graduate to Champion! THANKS SO MUCH very helpful insights
June 7, 2018 @ 11:35 am
Thanks Pravin,
Glad things worked out well for you and that the information I provided was useful
Keep up the good work!
Tom
March 4, 2019 @ 10:46 am
I have tried using your tips and I am not doing so great I cant get a guru pick at all is there any other advice you could give me.
October 15, 2019 @ 4:14 pm
I was stuck with no guru picks, then I read that the best time is join right at the start before voting starts. Then use a fill about 10 mins before voting starts. Human nature dictates a Guru is probably watching at the start of his/her challenge. I got 3 GPs in 2 days this way. Your images do have to be good and on theme too.
June 7, 2018 @ 10:15 pm
Hi Tom,
I just found your blog here and thought how cool this is. I wish there were a forum, but I guess I understand that could undermine the voting process.
Like a lot of folks, I am also stuck on getting a Guru’s pick. In fact, if I got three of them, I would move up to Master right away.
Can you tell me about the mechanics of the Guru’s Pick? Do you have access to all the photos in a challenge and then make your picks at will? Or is it more structured than that? I read with interest that you often make your picks when there are people in the photo. I laughed out loud as I go to massive efforts to make sure I never have people polluting my images! I’ve never enjoyed shooting people as I am always worried that the details that I like about the person I am shooting, they might not like themselves. Now I have to go and re-evaluate the pictures I am planning to submit to your “My Favorite Shots” challenge! Mountains and buildings almost never wriggle around and never complain I got their bad-side.
June 8, 2018 @ 6:03 pm
Hi Glen, thanks for commenting
I too like the idea of a forum, but I am aware that it could be a lot of work to manage. But it is certainly something I have thought about, and may possibly happen in the future – but no promises!
If you want a place to interact with other places there’s an active Facebook group here https://www.facebook.com/groups/MajodiPhotgraphy/ You should check them out and say hi, they’re a friendly bunch – tell them Tom sent you :)
Gurus make their votes in the same way you do. They get to see the good the bad, everything!
As for photos of people, it’s not exclusive and I do vote for photos without people too. I’m just aware of what I tend to pick, and you should be too, not just for me but other Gurus as I suggest above. I’m sure that’ll help you.
Anyway best of luck, and thanks again for commenting
Tom
June 8, 2018 @ 12:27 pm
Hello Tom,
That might be a stupid question, but does the guru that run a particular challenge choose a particular time to choose the picks they will vote for ? I mean, if the Guru Picks have been chosen at the beginning of the challenge, and if I enter late, will I still have a chance to get a vote from this particular guru ?
I already got some of my photographies voted for by gurus, but sadly not yet by the one running the challenge, with is both kinda frustrating, but also hopeful I would say.
June 8, 2018 @ 6:08 pm
Hi Olivier, there’s no such thing as a stupid question!
Each Guru picks whenever they want (except for the first 24 hours when voting is closed). The only exception is as things stand Gurus cannot vote in the last 48 hours. (* UPDATE: As of July 2018 Gurus can now pick photos until the last minute of the challenge)
Some Gurus will vote early others leave it to the last moment. It depends on the individual. There is a study from last year in my eBook that looks at the voting patterns for some of the Gurus. It looks at what day of the week each Guru usually votes and also how many days into the challenge they vote. From this it is possible to understand their voting patterns.
I hope that helps – keep up the good work!
Tom
June 8, 2018 @ 6:29 pm
Thanks for the reply, Tom,
“(except for the first 24 hours when voting is closed).”
You mean closed for everyone, right ? When it say “Voting will open in…”, not just closed for Gurus .
“The only exception is as things stand Gurus cannot vote in the last 48 hours”
And since I usually enter the last day, the last few hours even, this is indeed very important for me to know. Thanks Oba… uh, I mean Tom. ;)
June 8, 2018 @ 6:34 pm
Hahaha…
“.. You mean closed for everyone, right? When it say “Voting will open in…”, not just closed for Gurus ..”
Yes, that’s correct
Also yes. Entering in the last 36/48 hours will not get you a Guru Pick as things stand at the moment.
June 8, 2018 @ 6:57 pm
“Yes, that’s correct”
Ah well, at least it allowed me to get some nice All-Star. Now I need to enter earlier, and maybe, maybe… :)
July 23, 2018 @ 1:55 pm
Hello Tom,
Does the 36/48 hours window applies to speed challenge as well?
Thank you!
Reethesh
July 24, 2018 @ 3:20 pm
* UPDATE: As of August 2018 Gurus can now pick photos until the last minute of the challenge, so the 48 hours mentioned above is no longer the case.
June 24, 2018 @ 6:38 am
“Do I know something? You don’t”? Did I slip something there? What do I know? :-)
Thanks, a lot for leaving your link on my site – it will be worth it drawing visitors each day!
GREAT TIPS for the next gen! As one of the early adopters, the game updates have been changing from time to time, most of the individuals who passed by in my site “Gurushots.com Review” & left their comments clearly stated their “pain points” as I had.
I never meant that all our photos were great and wonderful back then, but if you have seen some Guru Picks in the early launched – you wonder why & how that photo picked while “I’ve seen better than that”? :-)
Anyways, just sayin’ – no hurt feelings since those “pain points could most turn into best NUGGETS of the game if they were understood.
I wished I could come back to the game (too little time) but hopefully in the future when the rewards maybe will convert into “cryptocurrency” Any hint, pls? :-)
June 25, 2018 @ 2:24 pm
Hi jennifer.
I’ve actually been following the comments on your blog for some time. I understand that the platform can be frustrating, but I also see that as part of the fun. If it was easy then everyone would be a Guru and no one would learn much.
Don’t worry, I’m not offended in the slightest. Constructive criticism is useful, unconstructive criticism is simply ignored :)
Know, obviously, I can’t comment on what other Gurus have picked in the past, but if you can point to one I picked, that you think didn’t deserve it, just let me know and I’ll give you my thoughts. I’ve picked something like 15,000 different photos, so I’m sure we don’t agree on all of them.
July 18, 2018 @ 2:45 pm
Hello Tom, if i swap my gurupick photo during the challenge, i Will lost my gurupick ?
July 18, 2018 @ 3:26 pm
Nope :) you lose nothing by swapping
October 10, 2018 @ 6:40 pm
OK, but what about rewards due the guru pick after swapping? Will I keep them also when challenge end or they lost and I will keep only guru pick. Thanks in adavce for answer you are doing really good job here. Greg.
October 10, 2018 @ 8:15 pm
I just tried and found already answer – no you will not receive any “guru pick” rewards after swapping the photo. But as Tom mentioned “guru pick” will be kept. Cheers!
October 11, 2018 @ 10:48 am
Hi Greg.The acheivement is kept. Let me know if you lost it somehow.
Obviously once you swap out a photo it will no longer appear in the challenge ranking pages and you will rule yourself out of getting the Guru Top Pick Winner award.
A Guru TopPick Winner award counts as a challenge win in terms of requirements to move up to Guru status.
August 10, 2018 @ 11:44 am
Hi Carlos. I know I’m late here, but the answer is no, but make sure its in the challenge at the end to be in with a chance of the Gurus Top Pick Winner
July 23, 2018 @ 2:03 pm
Hi Tom,
With regards to your comments above on window period for guru picks.
Does the 36/48 window that u mentioned above for Guru picks, apply to speed challenge as well? And as far as I remember I got a guru pick when I posted a photo in the last day of the challenge.. Infact it was the last few hours. And a friend of mine received a guru pick just 3 hours before the completion of challenge
August 10, 2018 @ 11:37 am
Hi Reethesh,
Sorry for the delay in replying.
There have been some updates to the platform since this post was written and there is now no longer a 36-48 hour limit. Gurus can vote upto the last second.
July 26, 2018 @ 12:12 pm
Hi Tom!
I was gutted and amazed and elated to discover that one of my shots made Giru Pick! Gutted because I had no idea until I stumbled upon it going through my photos by chance looking for one in particular!
Is there not any other notification about that? I mean I personally expected a trumpet fanfare, balloons and cheering BUT an email notifying me would have been acceptable! I didn’t get one! So I have no idea when it was picked!
So sad [snivels quietly].
Any info on this?
Best Regards,
Louise Robbins
July 26, 2018 @ 1:33 pm
Hi Louise, sorry we missed you at the party. Normally yes there is an email that is sent out and a notification on the platform itself. I’m unsure why you didn’t get this. I will pass your comment on to the support team to investigate.
In the meantime, keep up the good work.
Tom
August 10, 2018 @ 11:42 am
Hi Louise, sorry for the delay in replying.
Wow, what a range of emotions!
There was a small bug that effected notifications for some users, I think everything is back to normal now.
I hope you’re still enjoying the platform
Tom
July 27, 2018 @ 4:47 pm
Thanks so much for this helpful information Tom. I’m still waiting for that elusive Guru Pick and these tips are very helpful, thanks again!
August 10, 2018 @ 11:33 am
Thanks Helen.
Keep working at it and keep shooting. You’ll get there :)
Tom
August 10, 2018 @ 11:23 am
Very glad to have stumbled onto your blog. I have been playing and having fun since January or February and am stuck at the Champion level trying to gain a couple more elusive Guru picks.
Great app, great fun and I appreciate your ideas.
What I love most is the creative nudges and seeing photos from all over the world at all levels.
Scott Linscott
August 10, 2018 @ 11:34 am
Thanks for your comments Scott :)
August 11, 2018 @ 1:37 pm
Hello Tom,
I know that you can’t get a Guru pick on the last 3 days of a challenge, but what about a 9 days challenge ? Or the 4 days ones ? And what about the new 12 hours challenge ? Thank you for your answer :)
August 13, 2018 @ 1:38 pm
Hi Oliver.
As of July 2018 Gurus can now pick photos until the last minute of the challenge
August 22, 2018 @ 9:39 am
Hey Tom,
I would like to know if the gurus see all the photos that are posted. I’m using iPhone 7. The photo might be good but it does not have enough quality to print or to be used on large screens. Is the camera a criteria to be selected?
August 27, 2018 @ 3:37 pm
Very helpful, thank you!
September 5, 2018 @ 10:14 pm
Great tips. Thank you.
September 5, 2018 @ 10:15 pm
Great tips. Thanks.
September 14, 2018 @ 1:58 pm
I think it is still very difficult but of course helpful information. Thanks
September 14, 2018 @ 2:22 pm
It sure is difficult, but then again it wouldn’t be fun if it was easy :)
September 16, 2018 @ 1:38 pm
Hi,
First of all thank you for all the tips and the support.
Is there a chance that guru will pick my photo even if it was taken by phone camera?
September 17, 2018 @ 8:07 am
Most definatly!
As always the composition needs to be strong. But that’s no different between a Pro DSLR or a mobile phone.
September 27, 2018 @ 6:49 am
Hi Tom,
I’ve been using GS for a couple of months now and loving it. But getting a Guru’s pick is one tricky and frustrating business. (I just got one recently though).
Got a couple of questions regarding Guru’s Picks. I hope you can answer them.
1. Is there a maximum limit to how many picks a Guru can have in a particular challenge?
2. Does that limit differ from speed to exhibition to normal challenge?
3. In your own challenges, do you do your picks during a particular time, like early morning, late evening or is more random?
Thanks!
September 29, 2018 @ 4:44 pm
Hey,
Just stumbled upon this. Been using GS for a few months now and I have to say it’s SO much fun. Using only my phone right now is an extra challenge as I relearn all the old photography rules. Tweaking pics and pulling everything I can out of a simple phone camera has been quite the challenge. I’m back to my old love and now looking to upgrade OLD equipment to get back into the Photo game for real.
Also, thanks for the tips! I have to relearn all my training for the digital world. My old 35mm cameras are going up on the shelf as antiques. I think I’ve found an old NEW love.
September 30, 2018 @ 12:16 pm
Hi Tom,
Great article – thanks for the tips. I have recently achieved guru status and I was wondering if you could please tell me how I run a challenge? Thanks.
September 30, 2018 @ 12:19 pm
Hi Tom,
Great article – thanks for the tips. I have recently achieved guru status and I was wondering if you could please tell me how to run a challenge? Thank you.
October 1, 2018 @ 1:47 pm
Hi Sara, if you contact the team at Gurushots HQ they’ll be able to set this up for you. https://gurushots.com/contact
October 1, 2018 @ 10:23 pm
Ok great. Thank you.
October 2, 2018 @ 2:48 am
Hi Tom,
Just a quickie….
How many Guru picks can a Guru allocate per challenge? I’m praying it’s not just one per challenge…..
October 3, 2018 @ 9:34 am
Hi Berlinda,
A player can earn up to 4! but that is extremely unlikely. A Guru should aim to give 100 per challenge
October 3, 2018 @ 10:48 pm
Thank you Tom, for the article.
October 28, 2018 @ 10:16 am
Good morning Tom – I have just stumbled upon this page and found all the questions and tips very helpful.
I have been using GS for over two years and have really enjoyed posting my photos. Still waiting for the elusive Guru pick, but after reading your tips and advice I can see that I must try harder.
I am now looking forward to posting more photos and hopefully one day that magical Guru pick will appear. I am currently at Expert level and can’t wait to move on.
Thank you to you and all the Gurus for the wonderful opportunity in being able to showcase our photos.
October 29, 2018 @ 9:50 am
Hi Sharron,
Thanks for dropping by. I’m glad you find my tips useful. I’m sure if you follow them you’ll get your Guru Pick soon enough!
Best of Luck
Tom
November 2, 2018 @ 10:47 am
Great tips Tom. I’ve joined a challenge only a day ago, weapons and battle time, its running for 50+ hours but only 4 hours into the speed challenge, the Guru had already picked over 30 picks. Is this the norm? How many picks are there per challenge. I have only one elusive pick to climb ladder and is getting very frustrating. I think I will just throw it in and close the account. I’m sure these challengers are run by bots and are just random.
December 20, 2018 @ 5:49 pm
I’ve read (Tom, correct me if I am wrong) a Guru can pick around 100 but can choice to pick less.
December 20, 2018 @ 5:50 pm
Oops… *Choose
December 26, 2018 @ 2:58 pm
Hi Angie. Gurus are encouraged to pick 100 photos. Sometimes they don’t reach that figure and sometimes (although rarely) there are unexpected events that means the Guru picks very few.
I hope that helps
Have a good New Year!
November 22, 2018 @ 3:24 pm
Hi Tom,
I enjoy playing Gurushots. I joined sometime in Nov as a newbie and have quickly moved up ranks to Expert. I have got my Top 10% rank. Waiting to get my first Guru pick so I could move up in rank to Master. My photos when entered climb up to top 10 photos, I am so frustrated that it does not get the Guru’s attention to be picked. I always join the challenge as soon as it opens. I usually go by the topics of interest and submit photos then look up gurus. Sometimes it gets frustrating by looking at the progress of my pictures, I think this time I will get guru picked and it does not happen.
November 27, 2018 @ 2:19 pm
Hi Suguna. Try entering the challenges later on. People often report that a photo will get more votes if it is entered later in the challenge.
Best of luck
Tom
December 20, 2018 @ 12:28 am
Thanks a lot for your explanations!
Only thing I am not sure about is… how do I find previous challenges launched by a Guru?
I mean, if I decide to enter a challenge, I can see who is the Guru, I can see his own pictures, the pictures he picked for that specific challenge, I can even follow him, but… I don’t know how to se his recent challenges! Thanks
December 20, 2018 @ 3:35 pm
Hi, thanks for the comments.
To answer you question, have a look at the closed challenges and find the Guru by simply hovering over the challenge. At the moment this is the only way to do it.
Regards
Tom
January 4, 2019 @ 9:17 am
Hi Tom,
Thanks so much for your helpful tipps. I managed to get to Master within about one week, now it is getting hard indeed.
It would for sure be a good feature to sort through previous (or even current) challenges, be it to see challenges for a certain topic or per Guru running them. Would be nice if the developer crew could look into that
Best, Doris
January 7, 2019 @ 5:57 pm
Thanks, I’ll pass your suggestion on to the team.
Tom
January 4, 2019 @ 9:18 am
nooo, Tom. I got to Champion and work on “mastering Master”
January 9, 2019 @ 3:55 pm
Hi thank you! This really help. Now I’m in champion level. Work harder to move on up up level.
January 9, 2019 @ 4:03 pm
Great! I’m glad you find them useful
January 18, 2019 @ 1:58 am
Hi Tom
Great tips, will use them for sure! I’ve been stuck Veteran level now for what seems like AGES! I have specifically picked a certain Guru Pro who takes photos very similarly to mine and has put forward some challenges that I can easily enter with my shots. This guru lately has been picking photos that seem like the sort of photos they would usually pick as they are of much lower quality, loss of clarity, contrast, colour, improper exposure, etc. when their standards used to be much higher – very strange… Seems like my photos don’t get anywhere near as many views or votes as they used to despite stepping up my game substantially…
I have also noted there’s another Guru in the ranks who has got there without meeting the requirements & achievements of being a guru (less than 20,000 points, nowhere near enough All Stars, no wins, etc.)… how does this happen?
Thanks
January 24, 2019 @ 5:17 pm
Hi David, sorry for the delay in replying.
Obviously I can’t comment on what other Gurus pick in their challenges, so there’s not much I can say especially as I don’t know who the Guru is.
A for people reaching Guru status. I guess this is to do with the old rankings that were used and replaced about 3 years ago. At this time it was possible to get to Guru status without a win. These players will have a Pioneer badge, to show that they have been on the platform since the early days. If this is not the case perhaps you could share a couple of links and I’ll investigate further.
Cheers
Tom
January 29, 2019 @ 8:31 pm
Hi Tom-
How do the gurus see the photos in the challenge? Are they all presented in a random order? Do they see them based on rank? Do gurus see boosted photos higher up in the rotation? Thanks!
January 30, 2019 @ 8:48 am
Hi RC,
The Gurus use the same blind voting system as every other player. This is a step to ensure a level playing field for everyone.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Tom
February 10, 2019 @ 5:56 am
Hi Tom:
I see in your Centered contest if you get to All Star Level you can earn the right to be in the exhibition. Is that exhibition able to be viewed online too? Is there a way to see your photo in the exhibition besides flying to Berlin? Thank you for running this and for all the time you take to answer everyone’s questions.
February 18, 2019 @ 9:02 am
Hi and congratulations!
There is usually a photographer who shoots all the images on display and they will be available from the curator a few weeks after the event. There will also be a live video stream of the opening night on the Gurushots Facebook page. For any more information regarding the exhibition have a look here https://www.facebook.com/pg/GuruShots/events/?ref=page_internal and here https://gurushots.com/exhibitions
Regards
Tom
February 19, 2019 @ 6:44 pm
Hello Tom,
My name is Denis, I’ve been really working on the photos and even got a top 5% but still can’t get the guru pick. I have a question:
Does Exposure Bonus some role in Guru’s pictures list?
Maybe keeping high exposure bonus might help Guru see my picture but I don’t know for sure…
March 11, 2019 @ 6:09 pm
This is Really funny. I will give you very simple way. Buy something in GuruShots app like bundle or exhibition or anything else. Unconditionally u r pic will choose u as a GuruPicks even it’s a very basic pic. And , u r pic enter into more visible than others. The algorithm designed like in that way.
March 11, 2019 @ 6:38 pm
I’m not sure how that works. As it is the Gurus who make the Guru Picks, the Gurus are other players too. Yes, if you boost you get more visibility, and if you swap you’ll get your full exposure on the new image. But it doesn’t make any difference if these are paid bonuses or freebies.
March 12, 2019 @ 4:40 am
Hi Tom—
Typically how long does it take for a proposed contest to get reviewed and opened once a Guru creates it?
Thanks!
March 18, 2019 @ 12:40 pm
Hi, it can take a while as there are now many Gurus wishing to run challenges. Also, note that not all proposed challenges are accepted. You will be notified if it hasn’t been once it has been reviewed.
March 30, 2019 @ 7:51 pm
I’ve tried to get an email of your ebook multiple different days with multiple different emails. Checked promotions and spam and can’t find an email in either address. Any help? Thanks so much!
April 1, 2019 @ 10:30 am
Hi Kristina. According to my records, an email was sent to you on 28th March with the ebook. I’ll send it to you again in a direct email. Let me know if you still don’t get it.
Tom
March 31, 2019 @ 9:12 pm
How do I find challenges by a specific guru? I want to use your tip, but I don’t know how to find the challenges a specific guru has run!
Thanks!
Barbara
April 1, 2019 @ 10:33 am
Hi Barbara,
Unfortunately, there is no easy way to do this at the moment. The only way is to scroll through the completed challenges. This was easier when there were fewer Gurus running challenges.
Tom
April 9, 2019 @ 6:56 am
Hi Tom,
thank you for your tipps. I will try it and start analyzing the gurus.
In some way it is a way to get better pics… :) I am still “waiting” for my first guru pic but now i have a road to follow.
April 9, 2019 @ 3:21 pm
No problem :)
Yes, Gurushots is a great tool to help you improve your photography, there’s no doubt about that.
Best of luck
Tom
April 23, 2019 @ 11:09 pm
Hi Tom-
I just became a guru and wanted to know what the measurements should be for a cover photo when a contest is submitted.
Thanks!
April 25, 2019 @ 6:26 am
Hi Rc. I recommend a 6×4 ratio of 1900 x 1267. Remember the photo will be displayed at different sizes and ratios depending on the device it is being used on and where on the platform it is being shown. The ratio in the Open/Closed/Upcoming tabs are very different to the header photo in the challenge itself.
April 24, 2019 @ 6:36 pm
Hi Tom–
I recently became a Guru and wanted to know what you thought the best dimensions were for contest cover photos when submitting a contest for approval.
Thanks
September 13, 2022 @ 11:05 am
I Tom, thank you very much for your advices. I’m in level Master now, it was to hard can get Gurupicks and even more win a challenge to level up to Guru. I have a doubt, how the choice of Top Gurupick Winner is made?
Thank you once again.
September 15, 2022 @ 3:02 pm
Cheers Vera,
Yes getting a win is tough and a mixture of having great photos and good strategy. The Gurus Top Pick Winner is chosen by the Guru running the challenge, in this respect it’s about having excellent images.
All the best
April 25, 2019 @ 2:12 am
For TOM BOURDON…. Thank you Tom for all your great advice. So nice to read the help you have given so many including myself. I have been enjoying taking pics, learning as I go and getting better. I just received my 2nd Guru pick and I am very happy. I would love to get some advice from a Guru someday on pics that I have taken. Most of my pics are from my IPhone 6. I seem to take pics of anything in my path, lol. I’m loving photography.
Thanks again Tom!
Is there a way of thanking the Guru that chose my pic or communicating with other photographers?
April 25, 2019 @ 6:28 am
Hi, Don’t let the fact you are shooting with a phone hold you back. There are plenty of players who have received Guru Picks and even wins with a mobile phone.
As for contacting the Guru directly, you can always leave a comment on one of their photos in their profile. At the moment this is the simplest way at the moment.
Regards
Tom
June 2, 2019 @ 8:46 pm
Love GuruShots, im near to be a guru noe. In my latent competition about Cos Players I ended in 16:th place….was nummer two for a while but ended 16. I get both happy and a bit dissapointed, so near… 😄 well well, someday i Will be there.
Greetings from Sweden
June 10, 2019 @ 7:46 am
Hi
How does a guru know that the photo is mine. A lot of my pictures do not show the data even though they have been uploaded directly from my camera. If there is no data, does this mean I will not get a good pick?
June 10, 2019 @ 11:03 am
Hi Ruth. The Gurus don’t know which is your photo! This is the beauty of the voting system. Votes are made solely on the photograph, not the photographer. This creates a fairer system for everyone.
Enjoy the game :)
July 5, 2019 @ 2:53 pm
So apparently I received my first guru pick, how do I know what image it was? I cant seem to find it.
July 18, 2019 @ 12:24 pm
Sorry for the delay in replying. I’m actually up in the mountains in Kyrgyzstan and the internet connection can be a bit hit and miss.
To answer your question you should have received an email letting you know. Alternatively, you can open the images you had in that challenge and it will show you. Finally, you could also look in the Top Guru Picks section of the winner’s gallery for the challenge.
I hope that helps :) In the future, if you want a faster response you should contact the support team gurushots.com/contact, they’re set up to deal with these kinds of things.
July 20, 2019 @ 2:25 am
Tom, I want to thank you. I got and read your book, which pointed me in the right direction for developing winning strategies with Gurushots. I have even qualified for exhibition in two of your challenges, the most recent in Athens. My photo beat out more than 256,000 other photos. I consider that a solid personal win! I have also moved from Expert to Master in about two months, and expect to be Guru before too much longer. If you ever plan to do an update to your book, please let me know! I have learned a few things along the way that I would like to see in a great book like yours.
September 12, 2019 @ 7:58 pm
Amazing tips, will give it a shot. Thanks Tom!
September 18, 2019 @ 9:43 pm
Thanks Tom. I got 2 Guru picks in one day!!!!! Waited a long time! My question is can the same image be picked twice?
September 19, 2019 @ 2:36 am
Hi Adam,
Well done! Yes, you can get many Guru Picks for the same image. What you can’t do is submit an image that has won a challenge (that includes Top Photo, Top Photographer and Top Guru Pick winner)
October 16, 2019 @ 12:27 pm
Thank you so much for the tips! Quick question – do gurus choose their pics only at one time or do some choose over a period of time? Meaning if a guru already has some guru pics shown for a challenge, does that mean they are done? Thank you for the answer.
February 15, 2020 @ 12:55 am
Hey Tom, recently made guru status.
Just curious if there is a way of knowing how many people have reached the different guru levels.
Thanks, Ron Miller
February 15, 2020 @ 6:52 pm
Hi Ron, congrats on reaching Guru status, at the moment the number you are looking for is not available.
April 9, 2020 @ 6:17 pm
thank you so much for your tip. now I’m joining in one of your competition hahahaha
May 28, 2020 @ 4:19 pm
Hi tom,
I signed up and didn’t receive your 5 top tips which I am angry about. And could
You tell me how to get noticed by gurus.
July 7, 2020 @ 4:53 pm
Hey Tom! I’m curious….how does a Guru Pick win “Top Guru Pick”? Is it the Guru that decides the best of her/his picks, or is it the Guru Pick that finishes highest in the general voting? Thanks!!
July 8, 2020 @ 4:16 pm
Hi Jeff, the Guru will make the choice for the Top Guru Pick Winner from the Guru picks that they have already made. There is no other ranking, you either have a Guru pick or you don’t :)
September 23, 2020 @ 4:32 am
Hey Tom, just curious but how do you know you entered the exhibition contest?
September 13, 2022 @ 11:06 am
I Tom, thank you very much for your advices. I’m in level Master now, it was to hard can get Gurupicks and even more win a challenge to level up to Guru. I have a doubt, how the choice of Top Gurupick Winner is made?
Thank you once again.
January 28, 2023 @ 10:44 pm
Tom, for me it has been difficult to get to Guru, I have followed some suggestions and rules of some gurus team partners and the most I got was a Top 10. Getting to GURU remains a remote possibility. I consider my work reasonable and I’ve seen some team friends come to Guru with very good images, even similar to mine. The lucky factor for me is fact verified, besides the algorithm. I ask you, do you proceed with this question?