Introducing a fourth contest on Lenzr for March and April 2010.  This is the first time there has ever been four consecutive photo contests running simultaneously on this serial contest website.

Obsolete Office Equipment invites workers to submit shots that showcase yesterday’s business standards. Let’s make people marvel at what used to pass for modern technology! Together we’re hoping to see huge early cell phone ‘bricks’, call center switchboards, and lots of old typewriters, adding machines and rotary dial telephones.  Show us your business antiques, and add a brief story.

We hatched this contest to remind folks that choosing the correct business telephone system is very important, because that system will be an integral part of everyday operations and will foster growth and better relationships. And conversely the wrong system can cripple your firm by stifling communications and alienating clients.

Understanding your business needs is the most important part of choosing the right telephone system, as the closer your chosen telephone system comes to meeting your specific requirements, the greater the value it will add to your business.

The Prize, courtesy of an business telephone equipment sponsor
is a 4 Line office telephone AT&T Model 1070. This state-of-the-art communication device has 4 line speakerphone & answering system capability. With Caller ID / Page / Intercom / Call transfer / Expandable to 16 stations / 32 # speed dial / 3 party conference / 6 number redial,  it has so many wonderful functions!

This contest ends May 1st at which time the member that uploaded the highest ranking photo will be issued this wonderful prize. Contest open to all Canadians age 13 yrs and older, excluding Quebec.

Lenzr gets even greener in March and April 2010 as they welcome technologically advanced start-ups as sponsors for photo contests.  Forward thinking people are helping Lenzr grow and reach a wider audience.

The How Green Are You? photo challenge hopes to collect one sentence stories and images that display a wide array of useful ideas for the rest of us increasingly environmentally conscious citizens to admire and adopt.  Sharing your wisdom and energy-saving tips here in this photo contest could actually help save the planet.  And we’re excited about what new ideas we might dredge up.

Good examples might include photos of people in expensive suits, carrying briefcases, riding their bicycles to work. Or maybe water powered or wind powered gadgets,  or colourful compost heaps, or photos of recycling trucks compacting plastics.  Even a walk in the woods would constitute green activity. There are so many photo opportunities here, its actually hard to decide on the right approach - so we leave it to shutterbugs to submit their spiffiest shots of whatever green subjects they can imagine.

Be sure and remember to add a detailed caption as good imaginative tag lines seem to be the common denominator in each previous Lenzr photo contest winner’s strategy.

The GrassCutters is quite possibly Canada’s first sustainable grass cutting business. The company uses electric lawn mowers powered by clean renewable solar energy produced by large panels mounted on their trucks and trailers! See the picture above that’s so cool it just might win any photo contest.  The set up is sure to attract the attention of your neighbours.  The enterprise reduces the need for fossil fuels and makes cutting grass very quiet, clean and more sustainable than anyone else on the block.

The business is competing against some other very notable competitors in the 2010 Green Innovation Awards in which the City of Toronto will invest up to $50K in the winner’s project.

How Green Are You? photo contest on Lenzr ends May 1st 2010.

On May 1st the highest ranked image as decided by the members wins a Neuton CE 6 Battery-Powered Mower with DURACELL® battery technology. There is no gas or oil to spill and no engine emissions to pollute the air. The 360 watt-hours of battery provide plenty of power. The Neuton CE 6 mower can cut about 1/3 acre (approx 15,000 sq. ft.) on a single charge. If you need more time, just swap in another battery and keep on mowing! Approx retail value $489.00 + shipping.

Saturday Feb 27th 2010 in The Better Living Center at Exhibition Place in Toronto, on day seven of the National Home Show, Lenzr met Steve Hamoen.

Steve is a geothermal guru.

The word geothermal comes from the Greek language - the root ‘geo’ means earth, and ‘thermos’ means heat.  In modern times the word has come to mean ‘power extracted from heat stored in the earth’ and Steve’s company uses that power to heat houses.

Geothermal energy originates from the original formation of the planet, from radioactive decay of minerals, and from solar energy absorbed at the surface. It has been used for bathing since Paleolithic times and for space heating since ancient Roman times, but is now better known for generating electricit. In large scale power plants this is done by simply boiling water to make steam to propel turbines.

But Geothermal energy is not exactly free power…

A common misconception about geothermal energy is that it just comes up out of the ground in easy to use levels. Sadly, once again nothing in life is free, not even the Earth’s heat.  In this case the heat units that come from the ground are referred to as low grade energy, and they need to ramped up into more viable residential or industrial heating (or cooling) strengths. This usable heat also needs to be distributed to from the source to the areas that require heat and all of that sort of thing requires electricity. But overall the system is part of a bigger, better planet saving solution.

Geothermal power is cost effective, reliable, sustainable, and environmentally friendly, but has historically been limited to only a very few areas of the globe, like Iceland. Recent technological advances have dramatically expanded the range and size of viable resources, especially for applications such as home heating, and in particular floor heating.

The Fire and Ice photo contest on Lenzr is sure to melt minds and set hearts ablaze on the homepage. The contest is probably the most technically challenging request this session, and it will almost certainly ‘go viral’ as friends tempt each other to submit their best fire photography. Already there are some terrific pictures in the index, and you can be certain, more arctic infernos are coming. Contest ends May 1st 2010

The Prize is GeoAir PCO air purifier

GeoSmart’s GeoAir PCO (PhotoCatalytic Oxidation) is perhaps one of the most advanced air purifier technologies available today. Unlike existing air cleaning systems that rely solely on ultraviolet light, the PCO integrates a titanium dioxide semiconductor to leverage photocatalytic oxidation allowing it to vaporize indoor air pollutants, including those that cause odors, and break them down into non-toxic products like C02 and H20. Bacteria, viruses, mold spores and volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) are destroyed when they come into contact with the system’s 187 square-inch Ti02 grid. The system is cost-effective, maintenance-free and provides maximum energy efficiency with negligible resistance to airflow.

The perception of indoor air quality (IAQ) is based on the interaction of a complex set of variables including chemical, biological, physical and psychosocial factors.1 Concern about indoor air quality has been driven mainly by health problems believed to be attributed to exposure to gaseous, particulate and microbial contaminant.

Downtown Toronto, its winter time and Absolute Tent and Event Services is stuffed to the rafters with everything required to make a party.  This place is a bonafide party bomb waiting to explode with tents and staging, folding chairs and tables, event lighting and so many other luxuries waiting to be delivered and assembled in backyards all over the Greater Toronto Area.  Kaboom its party time!

Just because its winter time is no excuse not to throw a party. This building is filled with heaters and insulated tents, snow blowers, troughs and buckets. Maybe we should have a made their photo contest a ‘winter parties’ theme?

Their building is huge and multi-faceted and worth visiting if you live in Toronto and you’re organizing an event. Tell them you’ve entered a photo on Lenzr and you may get 10% off…  maybe.

Here’s Laura, the Absolute blogger who is our eyes and ears inside this busy Toronto tent and party rentals house. She gives us the skinny on upcoming events, Hollywood film shoots, parades and even Toronto waterfront conditions from the perspective of a rentals house employee, which is kind of fascinating. The company does movies and big City of Toronto public occasions too, like Canada Day,  Woofstock and Gay Pride Parade  and so its possible she will have celebrity pictures and details about the assembly and clean-up of big urban bashes. Another interesting thing about Laura are the little glimpses we get into her daily life at the business, and how she struggles to improve her skills driving forklifts and

Backyard Party Events is for the little people who host their own good times at home. Every photographer worth his salt has party pictures and the ones we want to see will hopefully show off some residential geography and show off backyard BBQs, games and dancing under shady trees. Already there are shots of some rowdy kids and a whole of beer cans, but I think we can do better than that.

The prize for the Lenzr member that uploads the highest ranked picture is a spiffy new 10×10 Popup Tent, and $500 Gift Certificate * that must be spent at Absolute Tent and Event Services obviously. Laura is actually building the tent prize in the photo above and the Absolute blog will detail its specifics.

Georgia and Susanne are very knowledgeable oenophiles (wine lovers) that have a wine radio show, a wine tv show, and a wine blog.

The Wine Ladies share their passion for wine, food and living life to the fullest, without hesitation. Their motto, “everything in life somehow comes back to the vine,” keeps audiences entertained and informed, because in their lives its especially true.

You can listen to The Wine Ladies every Sunday morning at 8:30am on The Jewel Network Jewel Radio which is Jewel 88.5 FM in Toronto and Jewel 98.5 FM in Ottawa as they host special guests from all walks of life on their weekly lifestyle radio show.  Watch The Wine Ladies live on the air Wednesday afternoon at 2:30pm-3:30pm for their internet TV/Radio show on ThatChannel.com and call in live at 416.204.9723 from anywhere in the world to speak with The Wine Ladies and their guests.

The Wine Ladies entertain Toronto’s top chefs, and Canada’s foremost winemakers, sommeliers, and culinary artists.  These ladies have shared special vintages with famous musicians, politicians and athletes, and actors like Canadian comedian and wine investor Dan Akyroyd, and Fashion Televisions’ Jeanne Beker. They just did a spot with dynamo Gary Vaynerchuk from WineLibraryTV, and even shared a glass with mega entrepreneur Jim Treliving of Boston Pizza International and Dragon’s Den fame.  Industry executives might recognize Jackson Triggs’ wine maker Marco Picolli, and Canadian wine icon Rossana Magnotta. But enough name dropping, they came to Lenzr to fund a contest that gathers up Canada’s best gourmet food pictures, to draw attention to their media, and share a Locaboire adventure with the winners.

This Lenzr photo contest, like others, gives storytellers permission to use the caption to hint at the subtleties of the experience behind the images. Tell us about the strange sights, smells and sounds of the kitchen, the cries of the lobster, the tang of the mustard, the pique of mint jelly and the mouthwatering experience of biting into a….

Best Gourmet Food is a license to tell stories about great cuisine. Stretch the experience beyond the beauty of your photography, and tell us why your image really is the best gourmet food.

The ninth photo contest on Lenzr is called Kids in Action and gives shutterbugs lots of common ground on a wide open playing field.

Anyone with family knows that kids are pretty much always in action, having adventures wherever life takes them. Already there are some really interesting snapshots submitted to the site, and this contest just launched last week.

The prize in this challenge is a premier high quality teeth whitening kit called Nite White, and it’s a bleaching product that’s only available at the dentist’s office because it requires custom molded trays.

Sponsored by Toronto dentist Dr. Natalie Archer D.D.S. the challenge is designed to highlight the obvious connection between kids in action and healthy teeth.  Dr Archer hopes to personally meet and congratulate the winner of the contest. She has passion for photography and kids of her own, and thinks the whole idea is pretty neat.  So if the winner is local, they’ll be invited to stop by the office for a chat and custom fitting for the whitening trays. If the winner is out of province, or not interested in making the trip, then Lenzr will ship the NiteWhite prize with extra toothpaste, mouthwash and tooth floss and toothbrushes - dental supplies for an entire year.

Rosedale Family Dental Office at Sherbourne St and Bloor is literally right across the street from the subway, on the eight floor, in suite 808 of the large medical center with orange awnings at 600 Sherbourne St.
All of the dentists and staff at Rosedale Family Dental are committed to excellence and proud of their dedication to patients.

Just after Rob Campbell sat down in the big chair, and before Dr Archer put any metal things in his mouth, they had a friendly conversation about his dental pain and stains. Its obvious that each patient’s health and comfort is Dr Archer’s primary concern.

Her unique approach emphasizes patient wellness and prevention, and involves the dentist and client mutually agreeing on a program to achieve and maintain optimum oral health.

On Lenzr, we like to show off the prize winning photographers that make the site such a special place.

Lenzr member ve3bnw a.k.a Bill Watson, the photographer that uploaded the highest rated image in Macro Photos of Life photo contest sponsored by mobile software developer Shrinkray, eager to visit Eastern Ontario and enjoy his VIP Locaboire wine and breweries tour.

Here is Isabelle Seguin, Lenzr member Seguini the photographer that uploaded the highest rated image in Medicinal Plants in Nature photo contest sponsored by Toronto, Muskoka natural medicine clinic moments after she received her prize in the mail, eight different Neal’s Yard Remedies.

James Stortz the  C.E.O. and founder of  S.E. Telecommunications really surprised us when he came up with this perfect idea for a photo contest on Lenzr.  He said, why not make a challenge to show ‘tangled messes’ so we can make fun of how wired everyone is these days? And we said, of course.

James you’re a genius. The photo contest Everyday Tangled Web is designed to pinpoint the tangles that we, as a society, create and use everyday.

What does the back of your computer look like? If you run a network with multiple terminals in your home or business it can get really complicated behind the scenes. Add cable TV or fiber optic wires and device wires and audio cables and telephone wires and it becomes a real mess.  But can this mess ever be beautiful?  With or without the dust bunnies?

Its a challenging assignment, finding wired messes is not difficult, but it takes a special kind of artist to transform a natural composition of strings and wires, or steam hoses or even human hair into compelling photographic art.  This kind of out-of-the-box thinking by James will certainly require some innovative photo tactics by Lenzr members.

S.E Telecom would like to remind the public that choosing the correct business telephone system is very important, as that system will be an integral part of your business, helping you to grow and develop closer links with your clients. The wrong system can be expensive and disastrous.

This company is fast becoming the best business telephone systems provider in Toronto, offering consulting, design, implementation and support for small to medium sized businesses. They have integrated services for some of the most successful companies to date, such as Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Redline Communications, Remedy’s Rx, dineTO, to name a few.  They are distributors of AVAYA and Nortel giving them cutting edge solutions to bring your business to the next level. Located in Markham Ontario,  S.E. Telecommunications are experts at,

1.    Assessing your needs

2.    Mobile integration, including,  a)  Advanced Conference Calling Abilities  b)  Voicemail to Email c)    Call Recording  d)    Call Center  e)    Route-to-fax capability/Fax to E-Mail  f)   Cell phone Integration  g)    Call Detail Recording/Call Tacking

3.    De-mystifying the jargon and making sense of   a) VoiP or IP - Voice over Internet protocol and Internet protocol  b)  KSU - Key system unit  c)  PBX - Private branch exchange  d)  HOSTED PBX - A hosted PBX system delivers PBX functionality as a service  e) IVR - Interactive voice response.

4.    Estimating how many lines or trunks and how many extensions you need

5.    Choosing a supplier

SE Telecom designs phone systems that offer powerful capabilities to help employees communicate more effectively with customers, vendors, and each other. Combining advanced, big business functionality with the ease of use and simplified management that small businesses require.

The prize for the Everyday Tangled Web photo contest is a Plantronics Voyager 510SL+ Bluetooth Headset System with Lifter, retail Value $429.00

Enjoy wireless freedom in the office or on the go with the Plantronics Voyager 510S Bluetooth Headset. Ensuring lightweight, all-day comfort, the Voyager 510S delivers superior sound quality and provides WindSmart technology for clear voice transmission. At the touch of a button you can seamlessly switch between office phone and voice-enabled Bluetooth mobile device. Wherever, Whenever, Wireless
Highlights
•    Bluetooth-Enabled Technology
•    One headset for wireless communication in and out of office
•    Lightweight headset design for all-day wearing comfort
•    Desk phone adapter turns your office phone into a Bluetooth phone
•    Versatile headset for both office and Bluetooth mobile phones
•    Noise-Canceling microphone for clearer conversations
•    WindSmart provides wind-noise reduction technology for optimal sound clarity
•    Headset folds for easy storage
•    One-touch call control buttons
•    Now in silver for a sleek, updated look
•    Included lifter automatically lifts handset and returns it to the cradle
•    Enables remote or one touch call answer/end with your Plantronics headset
•    Included travel kit contains carrying pouch, CLA charger, USB charger, and indicator

“Using cutting edge technology and feature rich products is the corner stone of our business.  We have a team of researchers who are constantly reviewing the latest in telecommunications technology to ensure each of our clients has the latest and best systems out on the market.  That paired with our high level of customer service, and technicians that go the extra mile is what sets us apart from the rest. Whenever you need us wherever you need us, we are there for you”. James Stortz CEO, SE Telecommunications Ltd. www.setelecom.ca

This photo contest ends March 1st 2010 and at that time the member that uploaded the photo with the highest rating will win this prize. Good luck to all participants!

Happy New Year!  What were you doing on January 1st 2010, at 12:01 am?

At that exact moment, three photo contests ended on Lenzr.com and now its time to look at the numbers and celebrate the results.  Congratulations go to members ve3bnw and seguini for uploading the winning pictures!

Medicinal Plants in Nature collected 17 photos that were rated by 484 votes.

This photo contest was sponsored by Wellpath Clinic, a friendly natural medicine clinic located at Avenue Rd and Bloor St in downtown Toronto (and in Port Carling, Muskoka).

The winner of this challenge was a lovely picture of a plant with white blossoms by seguni that was called pretty garden…

Total Votes: 42
Popular rating: 4.6 (21 votes)
Registered rating: 7.0 (21 votes)

This member will receive $330 worth of Neal’s Yard Remedies and I hope to get a picture of this lucky person inspecting the prize in an upcoming post.

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Macro Photos of Life collected the most photos of all three web challenges. This match enjoyed the most votes too.  At the end of sixty days, there were 76 photos submitted in a collection that had accrued 4021 votes.

Sponsored by Shrinkray Mobile, this enterprise specializes in streamlining business websites to make them more effective in mobile browsers.  Shrinkray is a division of Boomboat.com which was established online in 2000. The Shrinkray Mobile website comes complete with a mighty boomblog and slideshare presentation outlining their easy to use innovation.

These people are very interested in developing, streamlining and hosting your mobile business. Smojoe has been taking an offer of free development and even free hosting to mobile discussion forums looking for case studies.

The winning photo was submitted by a prolific member named ve3bnw which sounds like a license plate # and I wouldn’t be surprised if it is, considering he (or she?) describes himself as a truck driver that’s interested in photography. The image is titled Time to BEEHAVE and spotlights a happy honey bee.

Total Votes: 171
Popular rating: 7.3 (132 votes)
Registered rating: 7.9 (39 votes)

The prize is a free wine and breweries tour of Eastern Ontario as described on the Locaboire website, it comes complete with one night’s accomodation at Timberhouse, a Brighton Ontario b&b. Look for a full report on this experience later this month.

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Ontario Tourist Attractions 2 collected 43 photos that enjoyed 2372 votes.

This web challenge was sponsored by Kanetix.ca to help get the word out about their car insurance quotes search system that makes shopping for all motor vehicle insurance easy, and rewarding.

The winning photo was also submitted by ve3bnw and titled Hidden Gem

Although I personally cannot see why this photo was selected, I will admit that a marshy stretch of Ontario farmland is a more desirable travel destination than many other more crowded, overpriced and less scenic abodes. The membership decides the winner, and this image won by the numbers.
Total Votes: 123
Popular rating: 7.6 (80 votes)
Registered rating: 7.4 (43 votes)

The prize is a gift/cash certificate for $300 and will be mailed/delivered to ve3bnw

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Regarding the Lenzr voting algorithm and the method by which the membership decides the winning photos: there are changes coming next round that will more effectively level the playing field, and prevent one or two members from dominating the scoring. There will be a Lenzr blog post following this post and before the next round of contests begins that will explain these changes and detail the new formula used to determine winners.

In the months of November and December 2009, Medicinal Plants in Nature celebrates botany and hopes to collect images of natural medicine growing wild in the great outdoors.  Botanical photography is used to depict plants accurately with respect to their form and color. Good examples will provide relevant information to help document plant morphology and function, the environment, plant life histories, diseases, the effects of pollution, and relationships with other lifeforms.

Successful botanical photography is as much art as it is science; it requires a detailed knowledge of plants and their habitats as well as a keen eye for composing balanced pictures.

Here at Lenzr, we’ve always been curious about plants and animals and the history of medicine is a hot topic. We’ve studied the works of early botanists who once walked the woods with Native American guides in the 1800s, sketching and collecting flowers and herbs for the benefit of science. Historical fiction has a fond place for the Benedictine Monks and their apothecaries or the tribal elders that collected herbage for poultices for wounds, and other plants to cure digestive ailments. We want to know, what plants did they collect? and what ailments did they cure, exactly?

Today this practice of herb collecting while hiking is sometimes called wildcrafting and instead of filling burlap bags with leaves and roots and flower blossoms, people are asked to respect the environment and simply photograph the plants. Take only take what you need, when you need it. Its far better to take only pictures and document these medicinal plants growing wild in nature - please help insure a supply remains for anyone and everyone in the future.

Sponsored by Ontario’s premier Natural Medicine Clinic the member that uploads the highest rated photo will take home about $330 worth of Neal’s Yard Remedies.

Wellpath Clinic offers a new approach to health care. Their mission is to empower people to improve the overall quality of their lives.

Their organic approach focuses on understanding and treating each patient’s whole health, rather than just the symptoms. Using state-of-the-art techniques and a scientific approach to natural medicine, Wellpath Clinic provides safe and effective therapies to help patients achieve a sustainable wellness.

At the core of each program is the patient, and this clinic is committed to taking the time to understand the individual, and to formulate a personalized approach to their specific needs. Their goal is to help patients lead healthier lives.

PRIZE - a gift basket of six different Neal’s Yard Remedies, including Orange Flower Facial Wash, Rosewater Toner, Orange Flower Facial Oil, Yarrow & Comfrey Moisturizer, White Tea Eye Gel, Geranium & Orange Body Butter for a Total Retail Value  $330.00

The member that uploaded the highest rated photo when this photo contest ends at 12:01 am EST on the morning January 1st 2009 will win the prize package detailed above.