I may not promote myself, but it seems on this page I may. Well:
My full name is Dick Osseman. I love photography and (some aspects of) Turkey. So I created an extensive site (http://www.pbase.com/dosseman ,in 2024 containing 87.000 well-organized pictures), where I treat most of that country. Almost every city is represented, as are most of the major museums and archaeological sites. Whenever possible I add texts taken from authoritative books, local folders, the Encyclopedia Britanica and increasingly the Wikipedia itself, or just original writing of my own or contributed by visitors. The site started May 9th 2004 and has generated (November 2024) 140.000.000 "views". Pictures have been used in well over 125 publications (https://pbase.com/dosseman/me_in_print ), several newspapers, some exhibitions, many sites and at least one (BBC) television program. I received many positive reactions from Turks, either living in the country or abroad and from foreigners who have visited the country as tourists or worked there.
In view of the scarcity of good (links to) pictures of many Turkish cities and their culture I have added "External links" on several Wikipedia pages. I do NOT consider that as promoting my site or myself, but as promoting (knowledge of) Turkey. I suppose I may find some Wikipedian will be taking the links out, considering me to be guilty of self-aggrandizement after all. In that case I thought I'd say good-bye to Wikipedia, and use my energy elsewhere. I did not want to compete on that issue. However, in 2019 I decided I'd contribute part of my archive as Wikicommons pictures (started end of januari 2019, passing 72.000 uploads in November 2024 and progressing fast). I also decided to upload high resolution pictures instead of the smaller ones I started out with. If I come across those I substitute them with the large files. I try and put the pictures in relevant articles, editing some as I go along. I'm still struck by the many outdated links in Turkey articles, and sometimes remedy this. However, as I have so many pictures, I may continue to link to pages on my site. In Commons I have been granted "autopatrol" rights on 25-3-2020. That indicates I do not have the ability to mark [other's] actions as patrolled; instead only [my own] actions are automatically marked as patrolled. This right is commonly granted to users who aren't necessarily involved in patrolling pages, edits or uploads, but create a high level of quality pages or uploads that do not require patrolling by other users. It seems to have advantages that I will be working out, and maybe use to good advantage. I mention it because I have on occassion been bothered by other users who thought they ought to correct my work. Please don't, but write to me instead if you feel I'm wrong.
In May 2024 I was made a patroller. I'm still working out what that implies.
I have also created a large site about Syria, with pictures of monuments that may no longer exist (some used by BBC, UNESCO and others), and a smaller one about Italy. In 2013 I added a site about Jordan. For a while I felt so harassed by Turkish users that I spent all my Wiki-time putting full size pictures in the Jordan and Syria commons. But I have returned to Turkey (physically in 2023, for three Istanbul weeks well-spent. During my last full day later that year I made a speech as guest speaker on 22-10-2023 at the Turkic Wikimedia Conference 2023 in Istanbul under the title "A traveller’s pictures of Turkey, taken over 30 years (EN)", explaining how I became the passionate photographer and then wikimedian that I have turned into. The audience liked it.
After it re-opened I have contributed a little to the Turkish Vikipedi, but my Turkish being poor it is hard going. Assistance of English-speakers knowing Turkish might be useful. Oh, and my name, Osseman, has nothing to do with Osman, it's a Dutch name referring to a man with oxen, and I'm Dutch also.
I was pleased to receive a message as shown below (can be checked in my talk page, 25-6-2020). And I do intend to keep it up.
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The Turkish Barnstar of National Merit | |
| This is for your continuous efforts on uploading numerous beautiful Turkey-related images. You deserve recognition and appreciation. Keep it up. CeeGee 11:33, 25 June 2020 (UTC) |
And this erlier one:
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The Photographer's Barnstar |
| Hi Dosseman! Each and every one of your photographs is an invaluable contribution to Wikipedia. Thank you! पाटलिपुत्र (talk) 16:36, 6 February 2019 (UTC) |
A week before my 73rd birthday I received:
A barnstar for you!
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The Tireless Contributor Barnstar |
| Thank you very much for all of your marvellous contributions of photography in the Anatolian and the surrounding geographies, and another thank you for tirelessly uploading them into the WC every single day! Keep up the good work. Emre Dokur (talk) 15:33, 6 January 2022 (UTC) |
And when I was 74:
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The Photographer's Barnstar |
| Thank you for your uploads about Türkiye! You are making Commons great! Kadı Message 13:37, 3 June 2023 (UTC) |
And as if that was not enough:
A barnstar for you!
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The Photographer's Barnstar |
| Thank you for taking photos of Türkiye and for presenting the picture of pride in the state institution Anadolu Agency. If you go, we are waiting for you in Sivas too :) --88.236.188.202 19:42, 7 June 2023 (UTC) |
And then came (though I must add I have an archive stretching back to the 1990's):
Archiver
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Turkish Archiver |
| What a precious archive! It is great to find open access photos of the past ten years of the distinguished buildings of the Turkish homeland. Thanks for sharing. Bjelica (talk) 21:05, 2 July 2023 (UTC) |