photo critiques

[markmarples]

not really sure where to post this but here goes...

i joined this forum a year ago to learn from it but more an more latley i see many many posts with hundreds of views and no replys i for one would rather have critiques and what to improve than being ignored

i try to reply with what little knowledge i have but how are people ment to learn with no support of the chapps here, the only critical feedback off here ive had in months has been GOOSE so thankyou

please can we start to help each outer again

[Mike]

Hi Mark,are you talking about your own posts not having any comments and critisism or everyone's in general ?

Personally I feel that if members want to comment on shots then they either will or won't,you can't force them to do it.If someone new to photography wants some help then they shouldn't muck about with their shots before posting them,post them and then ask what the best thing to do is.

Just my opinion.

[markmarples]

mine and others


thanks for the honest reply mate im really trying to learn i have bought books and i read most posts looking for advice and tips but there is very little out there other than good photos!


all i ever do is crop and resize my photos(cos thats all i know how to do) ive 'sharpend on 3 photos all with very bad results , its things like this i looks for but there is very little out there im sure others would agree minde and some others theres were the same, we would say they all arnt perfect and we need advice

[markmarples]

andy with all due respect and please dont take this the wrong way but i dont know if you ment that positive of not - i hope you dont want me to leave

i generally like FC and in the past have had great help but latley it has really dried up

[markmarples]

thanks for the confirm

[benyboy]

Mark, I think the mistake some of us make is trying for the full frame shots we see on here. The truth is their lens is like the Hubble telescope and ours are, well, not
( lens envy ) So to make up we crop the picture, then over sharpen.
Nice as it would be to have all the gear, if I had that kind of money, I would buy a car and look at some one elses pics

[Sparts99]

I think if you have a specific question, just ask. I have and had some really useful advice and answer questions if I think I have something of value to say. I don't tend to post comments unless I have something specific to say but in general the pics on here are really good. Maybe as suggested above post a pic OOC and ask 'What would you do with it ?' I have seen people do that in the past here to good effect.

[Jonay]

I am one of those "Phantom Viewers".

The only reason I do not post on how to improve the shots is because well - I have no idea!

I'm a beginner too - and apart from resizing and tweaking a little bit of the colours/contrasts then sharpening - I've got no idea what else to do.

[Craig]

There is an unspoken rule for me. If the original poster does not say "C & C welcome" then I will only post something positive if I like them. If I don't like them and they do not ask for critique then I will simply not post.

I totally agree with you though, I would love more criticism on my images, I ask for it, but nobody else seems to be as harsh on me as I am on myself so I rarely get any useful help from posting threads on here. People are too nice and the worry over the internet is that you will be taken the wrong way. Face to face I have had long chats with other members and learnt a lot of useful stuff, and as people have said if you have a specific question you get a lot of help online too.

I do get frustrated when people post bad pictures and everyone tells them they are great. How is that person ever going to improve? I do realise though that there are aviation enthusiasts on here who may be impressed most by the subject so to them it is great, maybe if the photographer is only doing it for spotter reasons then that is absolutely fine with me. The quality of the photo is not important to everyone but if the poster wants to improve as a photographer then they are better off asking for advice at the fenceline in my opinion.

If you offer advice on here you look like the bad guy unfortunately.

[markmarples]

thanks for all the replies

perhapse we should have a seperate Critique area where we can post photos for advice

[Sparts99]

I think that's an excellent idea as a subforum to the Photo Q&A's.

[captain scarlet]

Be careful what you ask for mark, you may not like the replies!

Also, different people like different shots - my personal preference is for well lit photos where you can read serials, codes, sqn markings etc. Others may go for 'arty' shots like sunset or silhouettes. Each to their own i say. The only thing i like to see is that the shot is in focus (plus take into account the softening that photobucket might do as well ).

I just think that people don't want to offend the original poster. Best thing is to chat to all the fellow spotters/photographers when out and about and you'll learn more that way than from any book/tutorial, i know i did.

Keep snapping and that one in a million shot will surely come!

[Sparts99]

Seems fair enough, especially if when posting the intention is clear, if a silhouette against a sunset was the intention then say so. I think criticism might be the wrong word. When I posted my Queens flypast pics last year the comments were along the lines of good location etc, I could see they were weak and wan and needed some work. I didn't ask for C&C or help, with hindsight I could have asked for advice on sharpening & contrast.

[davedubya]

not really sure where to post this but here goes...

i joined this forum a year ago to learn from it but more an more latley i see many many posts with hundreds of views and no replys i for one would rather have critiques and what to improve than being ignored

i try to reply with what little knowledge i have but how are people ment to learn with no support of the chapps here, the only critical feedback off here ive had in months has been GOOSE so thankyou

please can we start to help each outer again

I went along to and tried three different camera/photography clubs in my area last year and two of them could be described as follows:
- people pretty much only interested in the kit (and they'll be more than happy to critique the camera and lens you're using and ridicule you for not buying something else)
- so seriously obsessed with composition and meaning that they're unable to give an constructive criticism.
- so advanced that they have no interest in other people's photos and probably won't care

Those two sucked the fun out of it for me and didn't see them as places to seek improvement in my photography. The third club however were friendly, saw photography as a fun activity and were keen to improve and help others improve.

If you consider FC to be a mix of all of that above, you'll start to see why some photo threads will have such a range of response.

The idea of a critique board would be good, but I would hesitate to call it that - "Novice corner" or something would be better perhaps, as it should be a place where constructive advice and encouragement is offered for your next attempt, rather than some harsh critical assault forum.

[Craig]

Those two sucked the fun out of it for me and didn't see them as places to seek improvement in my photography. The third club however were friendly, saw photography as a fun activity and were keen to improve and help others improve.

If you consider FC to be a mix of all of that above, you'll start to see why some photo threads will have such a range of response.

The idea of a critique board would be good, but I would hesitate to call it that - "Novice corner" or something would be better perhaps, as it should be a place where constructive advice and encouragement is offered for your next attempt, rather than some harsh critical assault forum.

Good post, I agree.

I think something to bear in mind is that some people have an eye for a good arty composition. Others persue technical perfection. The best photographers achieve both. For that reason it is not just the photos being critiqued that will vary, but the way different people look at them, and thus apply advice based on their style not what is required to improve the shot...

It is difficult, short of looking at all of the EXIF data to know what is at fault sometimes. If people jumped up and down about somebody's soft photos only to find out they were using poor equipment it would look harsh! The other problem for me is a lot of people take good shots that they edit badly, I don't comment though because not everyone is interested in that side of it. The photographs however may be fine from that point of view but lacking something in the post processing. Which I hasten to add can become very subjective.

If in posting pictures up the original poster asks the others how would they improve the shot with regard to sharpness for example then they may get some useful replies. If the OP knows from that they are using generally accepted correct settings then maybe it goes to the Q & A section on how to use editing tools for sharpening.

I like the idea of a sub section where perhaps people could post shots unedited and ask other users to post process them for example if it is an editing query. People would have to be able to take the criticism that is offered though and not kick off. Only other consideration is that other people may not actually know best, I am like a sponge with advice from others but fortunately I know enough about photography to know when someone is talking rubbish, but still open your ears and see if there is anything to learn...

[markmarples]

thanks guys for your replies

i can understand how some would not want to post replies, and why, perhapse i worded the original post wrong

but it seems like a reasonable idea for a 'critique / learning' thread - ADMINS are you listening?

i think that way if somone posted there they would expect help and critism in a positive way, as long as it all doesnt get nasty, i for one have no problem with someone saying it looks pants as long as they then post what else i could try to improve it

if you dont want the advice post in the normal section

[Ben Montgomery]

thanks guys for your replies

i can understand how some would not want to post replies, and why, perhapse i worded the original post wrong

but it seems like a reasonable idea for a 'critique / learning' thread - ADMINS are you listening?

i think that way if somone posted there they would expect help and critism in a positive way, as long as it all doesnt get nasty, i for one have no problem with someone saying it looks pants as long as they then post what else i could try to improve it

if you dont want the advice post in the normal section

It's a nice idea Mark - but by having a critique section, it would just mean that the only comments you would get in the main photo section would be stuff like "nice photo mate" or "good shot" - which doesn't do anyone much good in the first place!

Even if we had the thread - it's still going to require people willing to give up their time to explain problems/solutions - just as it does on the forum now. If people want to offer critique, they will. If not, they won't.

[markmarples]

thanks guys for your replies

i can understand how some would not want to post replies, and why, perhapse i worded the original post wrong

but it seems like a reasonable idea for a 'critique / learning' thread - ADMINS are you listening?

i think that way if somone posted there they would expect help and critism in a positive way, as long as it all doesnt get nasty, i for one have no problem with someone saying it looks pants as long as they then post what else i could try to improve it

if you dont want the advice post in the normal section

It's a nice idea Mark - but by having a critique section, it would just mean that the only comments you would get in the main photo section would be stuff like "nice photo mate" or "good shot" - which doesn't do anyone much good in the first place!

Even if we had the thread - it's still going to require people willing to give up their time to explain problems/solutions - just as it does on the forum now. If people want to offer critique, they will. If not, they won't.

ben thats the whole point thats all you get in the first place, very few offer help for example as i pointed out at the begining only goose has offered me any feedback, (globe master has now aswell- thanks)

[pikey01]

Would it not be easier to post a photo you want critique with in the photography questions section? For example "I have this shot, how could the sharpness / colour be improved etc" I can understand why members want constructive feedback, but you need to remember photography is only one part of FC. For that sort of in-depth comments, you might be better on a specialist photography forum. Some think there is already far too many sections on FC.

[Jonay]

Well I tried to critise/offer advice on a recent set of pics - and it worked - the Poster took the advice - worked on it and came back with better results

Happy for the following reasons:

a) I managed to spot the problem
b) I knew how to rectify it
c) Poster took the advice and got the result he wanted.

Happy poster - happy me!

Maybe there could be a section/thread for "Spot the Problem" and people can try pitch their solutions? Will certianly help the new starts aswell.