"Let’s be honest, just because your photo appears on the explore page doesn’t mean that it’s a great photo."
That's so true. So much big exposure goes to images that really are "nothing special", which can be both a blessing and a curse I guess.
Anyway, being a very regular user of Flickr, I found the article an interesting read.
6 Tips for Getting on Flickr's Explore Page

Mark

All you need is an iPhone, a kitten, a sunset and a bit of HDR:


A kitten on an iPhone at (HDR) sunset by bitrot, on Flickr

Throw some Helvetica on that and a retro filter and we're looking at the cover for the next 'Flickr for Dummies'.

I have also found that retro computers, Star Trek and The Moon can cause a healthy spike in the stats.

And bookshelves:

Or rubbish bins that look like R2-D2 …



It's all very hit-and-miss with Flickr.
By the way, it's nice to see you about these parts again, Simon.

Mark

Thanks Mark.

Seconded!

Cheers Nick.