Flickr - A Guide for The Beginner

Flickr.com has been around since 2004 and some people are still unsure how to use it. Sure, you can read the FAQ’s, but those only go so far in explaining what you can actually do on the site. I’m here to give you a brief run-down on how best to use Flickr.

Flickr is a website geared towards photo sharing, so the first step is having photos. Most people nowadays take photos everyday. Whether they’re with a D-SLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera, the 35mm camera you’ve had since you were 12, or even your cell phone, any of these photos can be added to Flickr.

After you have the photographs loaded into your computer, you’ll need to make an account. Go to www.flickr.com and click “Create Your Account.” If you already have a Yahoo! ID, this process will be even easier because you can use that to access your Flickr.com account. After you type in your Yahoo! ID and password you’ll be brought to a Flickr page asking you to choose your new Flickr screen name, this is the name that you want other Flickr members to see. Make sure it’s something different than your Yahoo! ID. After you’ve thought of a name that suits you, you’ll be brought to the next Flickr page. This page gives you a few tips on what to do since you’re new to Flickr. We’ll start with the most important link: Read the Community Guidelines. Make sure you click that, you read it; you immerse yourself in all the knowledge on that page. This page explains what to do (and what not to do) throughout Flickr. The moderators don’t want to have to ban your account, but they will if it’s necessary.

Go ahead and click the back button on your browser. We’re now left with “Explore Flickr” and “Upload Your First Photo (or video.)” We’ll click on “Explore Flickr” first. Go ahead and click on that. What you will see is photos in the highly coveted spot of “interestingness.” This means that the photo you took was thought to be so wonderful, thought provoking, beautifully captured, etc…that the Flickr system chose your photo to display to anyone who clicks on Explore. There are only 500 spaces per day, so don’t feel bad if you’re not in Explore right away.

After you’re done seeing all there is to see, go ahead and click the top button that says “Home”. This will bring you to your main page. It’s empty right now because you haven’t added anything, but we’ll spruce it up quickly. On your Home tab, there are options to read the Flickr blog, view your photostream, find friends already on Flickr, view randomly uploaded photos, and a place for your groups.