The Photographers' Corner 2013-2020

[Walt34]

A different perspective is generally a good thing but of course tact and diplomacy go a long way.

On a different FYI, Nikon is releasing a series of instructional videos on their Youtube channel at NikonUSA - YouTube. It is aimed at intermediate-level photographers, began in March and will run through July with releases every few weeks.

While I'm sure they hope to sell more Nikon gear I guess even Cannon shooters are allowed to watch.

 

[Major Tom]

we should have a thread for constructive comments on the shots.

If we are to do this, then I agree that a separate thread would be the best way to do it (or a "critique welcome" tag, like Mr Paul suggested). I think there are probably quite a few folk here (like me) who just want to post and share our pictures. Actually, I have been doing most of my photo posting over on the Animals We Share Our Lives With thread, as most of my picture-taking right now is of kitties. I do like to think that I could share photos on this thread too without being critiqued.

 

[seraphim]

" Aren't we suppose to comment on the photos? "

Tried that and was chastised... I misunderstood the OP as well, I guess. Now I just say 'nice photo'.

 

[seraphim]

The Photographers' Corner

Major Tom

There can be a discussion without a critique - as we started a discussion based on RoT on one photo. Somehow, your comment was fine, mine wasn't. Once burnt...

Just posting is fine.

 

[seraphim]

An excellent critique site is www.dpchallenge.com

 

[Major Tom]

This thread is quite different than a photography only forum where criticism is exchanged freely.

My thoughts exactly.

 

[mathjak107]

that is why i mentioned it, many folks really do not care about getting better , they just want to post here in fun to show what they have done or where they went. if you tell them their highlights are blown out they will think you are picking on them .

not everyone here is in to photography to the point they want critiques.

i love having it done so i can learn from it and i enjoy helping others to get better but in the real world not everyone wants to get better .

but i think critiques welcome attached to your thread would be a good idea so we know you want that.

 

[mathjak107]

one of the reasons we decided to give up our 2nd home in the pocono mountains of pa and decide to stay in nyc is because of the endless amount of things to do here.

we can jump on a train and be in manhattan in 17 minutes in any weather. the ability to keep busy year round out weighs any cost savings in more rural cheaper areas.

we went to ripleys museum in times square for the first time. really cool stuff to see.

they had a torture room that was pretty wild.

some punshments were insane, like strapping you to a steam pipe or being put in a box with food just out of reach. you starved to death and eventually they buried you in the box.
-
nikon d800 , nikon 24-120mm,sb910 flash nikon d7000 ,nikon 18-300mm ,sb900 flash

 

[Chuckanut]

Maybe we should follow a simple rule. If no critique is wanted adjust post the photo. If a critique is desired put 'critique welcome' under the photo.

 

[Major Tom]

Maybe we should follow a simple rule. If no critique is wanted adjust post the photo. If a critique is desired put 'critique welcome' under the photo.

Sounds reasonable to me.

There are a few reasons someone might not want to be critiqued, only one of which is that they're not that interested in improving. Some photographers have reached a level of competency and awareness about their work such that they are able to self-critique. They ask themselves whether the image achieved for them what they set out to do. In this case, outside input would simply be noise. Others might already have a source of trusted critique in the form of a forum with members they already know and respect, or a photographer they know in real life.

Sometimes you just want to share. It's a visual way of telling others what you did today. How "good" your method of delivering the message is of secondary importance to the actual message. Think how you'd feel if you got home, told your honey what you did during the day, and she responded by criticizing your tone of voice and/or choice of words.

Hey - we're ER types here. We don't always have to be striving for our personal best do we? That sounds awfully like hard work to me

 

[FIREd]

I intended for this thread to be a source of inspiration. Instead it has become a source of disappointment for me personally. The critiques of what I foolishly thought were good pictures were unexpected and they hit me hard. Even though I never seem to gratefully accept critiques, I do learn from them. But now I second guess myself all the time and miss potentially great shots. It's just frustrating and I am losing confidence in my abilities as a photographer. I have purged my photo library, and I am thinking about shelving the camera.

 

[HFWR]

I intended for this thread to be a source of inspiration. Instead it has become a source of disappointment for me personally. The critiques of what I foolishly thought were good pictures were unexpected and they hit me hard. Even though I never seem to gratefully accept critiques, I do learn from them. But now I second guess myself all the time and miss potentially great shots. It's just frustrating and I am losing confidence in my abilities as a photographer. I have purged my photo library, and I am thinking about shelving the camera.

April 1st was last Tuesday...

 

[steelyman]

You're asking for a spanking, FIREd. And I'm wearing the gloves to do it.

Stay creative! That's life!

 

[Major Tom]

I have purged my photo library, and I am thinking about shelving the camera.

Please don't. If you enjoy taking photos then please continue doing it, for the pure pleasure of doing it. What others think is secondary.

Unfortunately, the world of online photo criticism is a wild and woolly one. Like everything else on the internet, it's important to consider the source. A good deal of ego is often mixed in too - from amateurs and pros alike.

Please keep taking photographs FIREd.

 

[ls99]

I find the photographs posted fascinating and interesting. Have not critiqued any. Though there is the old saw: the price of hope is disappointment.

 

[Chuckanut]

My best photographic work is when I shoot for myself.

 

[Mr. Paul]

Dang it ... I've gone through many stages where I thought "hey I'm pretty good" and then got schooled in one area or another to the point where I felt the previous efforts were sub par It's a process ... or can be, if that's where you want to go with photo taking.

Keep plugging away, but only if you enjoy the process. Improving can be great fun if you allow it to be.

 

[splitwdw]

This thread is quite different than a photography only forum where criticism is exchanged freely. Perhaps anyone that is interested in constructive criticism can add a "critique welcome" tag to their posts. For those that want to learn, this is a great way to advance their skills.

Personally I'm always open to questions/criticisms/points to be made.

Exactly, this is an "early retirement" forum with a subforum on photos not a photography forum. I feel if you want your photos critiqued go post on a Photography forum. As I said before, you can't always see the same thing on your screen that the photographer is seeing. Colors can be off, images distort. When I asked about posting comments, I meant things like "that's cool" or "where was that taken" I didn't mean critiquing anyone's photo.
I'm not a good photographer but I take pictures of things that interest me like cars or water spigots!

 

[Walt34]

Sometimes you just want to share. It's a visual way of telling others what you did today. How "good" your method of delivering the message is of secondary importance to the actual message.

That's about where I am with it too. I have shelves of photography books and a bunch of bookmarked photography sites to improve (albeit slowly) my photography. It is interesting to see what others have done and how they did it.

But to me it's a hobby, not something that I'm the slightest bit competitive about.

That said there's almost always something that can be tweaked this way or that, or cropped a bit differently, to convey what the photographer wanted to convey. Someone else may be looking for or seeing another message. Sometimes that's all that causes the ruffled feathers.

 

[Jack_Pine]

This is going to be one of my go-to hobbies when I pull the plug. I love looking at photos taken and reading any thoughts on how to make them better. I have not posted any as of yet, don't have the time to take "interesting" shots now.

However, when I get to that, I would love to hear thoughts on what is technically wrong. I just want to improve, if I don't agree, I will just blow it off..............

I am in IT so I am used to that.............

 

[seraphim]

FIREd

Take photos for yourself, not others. It's why I stopped wedding and portraits, because I got tired of worrying about what others thought. Don't let others dictate your activities.

In the OP, you suggested we discuss techniques. In my mind, we were discussing the appropriate use of the rule of thirds, not critiquing your horizon photo. You effectively cut off discussion of composition, which is one of the techniques I thought you wished to discuss, and did so in a manner I found embarrassing.

Sorry you took the conversation the wrong way, but don't blame others if you choose to quit. You're only spiting yourself.

 

[seraphim]

The Photographers' Corner

I would have liked to have seen a discussion on composition, what it attempts to achieve and the tools used to achieve good composition, because I think understanding that is one of the two essentials required to achieve an excellent image. Unfortunately, all most photographers seem to be able to discuss is the rule of thirds. We can't effectively discuss composition though, and learn from it, without applying the discussion to our own images, and what we were trying to achieve when we took the photo.

 

[mathjak107]

marilyn and i live and breath photography as we really enjoy it . i guess i am very competitive against her but she really isn't that competitive with me.

i guess it is more a friendly kind of mines better than yours thing we have going on at times. especially when it comes to macro.

 

[photoguy]

I intended for this thread to be a source of inspiration. Instead it has become a source of disappointment for me personally. The critiques of what I foolishly thought were good pictures were unexpected and they hit me hard. Even though I never seem to gratefully accept critiques, I do learn from them. But now I second guess myself all the time and miss potentially great shots. It's just frustrating and I am losing confidence in my abilities as a photographer. I have purged my photo library, and I am thinking about shelving the camera.

If you look at some of the most expensive photos ever sold, they wouldn't survive internet critiques either:

Rhein II - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Rhein II by Andreas Gursky - sold for $4.3M)

Untitled 96 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Untitled #96 by Cindy Sherman - sold for $3.9M)

I have seen comments on photo sites where they describe these photos as "boring", "5/10", or "delete".

Photography is incredibly subjective and I think it's a mistake to think of photos as good or bad (despite our natural tendency to do so). I try to think of photos as either "matching" or "not matching" my tastes (or the tastes of the viewer).

 

[Walt34]

If you look at some of the most expensive photos ever sold, they wouldn't survive internet critiques either:

Rhein II - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Rhein II by Andreas Gursky - sold for $4.3M)

Untitled 96 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Untitled #96 by Cindy Sherman - sold for $3.9M)

That shows what I know. Especially the Rhein II - horizon right through the middle, for pete's sake!

None of my photos sold for millions, or even pennies for that matter. So I must be missing something...

However, I like most of mine, family loves what I do with a camera, but I'm just not looking to run a business.