I think it's fair to say that all of us do this already: critique our own photos. As photographers and artists in general, we judge our own work and are constantly finding things we don't like about our own pictures. At least, I do.
I think it would be fun to try a little game to not only get better at critiquing, but to improve ourselves as photographers. Even the most perfect images can be "that much better".
So here are the rules.
1) Pick and share one of your favorite photos that you have taken RECENTLY. (in the past seven or eight days.)
2) List 3 things you think could better improve that photo.
3) Then, just for fun, list three specific things you like about the previous poster's photo. A little confidence boost never hurt anyone ;)
The catch: You have to pick your favorite photo. this way, when you critique it, it will be harder to find 3 things wrong with it :)
I'll start off:
Self-critique:
1) I wish I would have framed this differently. The butterfly is almost verging on center and off center. It needs to be more off-center.
2) The colors could be better. The butterfly was much more yellow in real life.
3) I could have waited for a better spot to capture the butterfly. The grass covers more of the butterfly than I would have liked.
@lauren211 1) I love the color of the grass. 2) Love the focus! 3) I love how its off center for some reason. It looks nice :)
uhmm. 1) I didnt like the light reflected on the glass because it was distracting (for me).
2) That empty space on the left side should be taken out because it makes it look slanted.
3) The shadow on the lower right corner of the thermometer takes away from the color...so If I moved it somewhere else, that problem would have been solved.
@nimi 1) I actually really like the light reflected on the glass, I enjoy the weird things light does unexpectedly 2) I really like all of the colors in the shot 3) i like the position of the subject
1) I am never sure if I have enough contrast or too much contrast, maybe more contrast would make it sharper
2) I;m still getting comfortable taking shots of strangers so I tend to not try more interesting angles or just getting closer and that may have enhanced this shot
3) some of the people in the background may be a little too distracting but i also like them cause it adds a new york feel to the shot
@nbedi 1. I LOVE it in black and white 2. It's a very interesting shot. 3. The little girls face is very cute. :]
1. I should have gotten the ferris wheel in more
2. I feel like there is a little too much processing in the sky
3. I took it with my blackberry phone. If I took it with my camera it could have been more in focus
@n0pants3ver
1. I love the stars/galaxies in the back!
2. I disagree with you, I think there's just enough of the ferris wheel in the picture.
3. It's so... colorful and magical and awesome.. and I really like it!
1. Urrmm.. I wish I could have gotten the moon more in focus, so you can actually see something other than a white blob.
2. I think it would have been better if, instead of one tree in the corner, there were trees lining the bottom.
3. I want the moon to be bigger, so the main focus of the photo.
@magicmaker
1. I really like the blurry movement in the clouds. Adds mystique and interest.
2. The brown and grey tones blend like watercolour, with a wide range! Beautiful transitions.
3. I prefer the far away moon shot here because it allows us to see so much of the clouds that I love here! And the way the moon's light really illuminates the clouds.
1. Wished for more patience to get stronger light rays and more of them. (they came out 10 minutes later).
2.Had I waited longer, the colours would have been darker and I wouldn't have had to adjust the red tones.
3. Might have taken a bit of a larger shot to get the ends of the cloud in view with the sun rays slightly more to the right.
1. The colours - so soft and ethereal!
2. The composition with the rocks and reflections on the water is great!
3. The overall clarity and atmosphere of the image :)
As for mine...
1. I really really really wish I'd narrowed the aperture, so that the light in the top left corner wouldn't have produced so much glare.
2. I wish I had framed it a bit better - there are bits of the scene cut off on the right side that just feel a bit awkward to me.
3. Wish I'd tried landscape - maybe that would have looked better?
I will say, though, that shooting photos in an underground train station with a big bulky DSLR is not the most inconspicuous of things to do on a Saturday morning, so I was only game enough to take 3 or 4 photos before being too afraid to take any more in case security were to ambush me and take me (and my camera) away!
@pocketmouse 1. I love this in portrait. It really portrays the atmosphere of an underground station.
2. I like the glare from the line of lights. It shows the continuity of the line.
3. Black and white is always lovely for these scenes!
1. I wish the colours were bolder and more intense. The whole picture is quite light and almost over exposed.
2. I would have liked to have taken a bit more time and got some better sun flare.
3. I would have liked to have the grass off centre much more.
@sobefree
1. i love the bokeh effect
2. i think the colours are perfect for this shot
3. i like your focus
1. i wish the face wasn't so overexposed on the right side.
2. i wish i could get the eyes to pop a little more.
3. im not sure if the crop is a little too tight
@mjkthorpe The intensity of his stare is wonderfully captured, and I like the contrastyness of the exposure (the blown highlights don't bother me). The tones are wonderful - I think the neutral b&w conversion you chose really works for the mood of the shot. :)
I don't really have much to post. I have taken images for all the blank spots in my album this month, but just haven't gotten around to uploading them. How lazy am I this week?!
Well, here's one I did post.
Really, it's a PJ piece, but I should have taken more compositional care. I should have found a better angle to show more of Shireen and Andrew (on the right), or alternatively gotten behind them to show more of the angle from their point of view (for which they were setting the light and pose). Since it was crowded, I could have stood on a chair and taken a more dynamic viewpoint and shown less of the foreground clutter. And lastly, I should have dropped the ISO down to 800 and the shutter speed down to 1/60, or even just added a little more DOF for through-the-shot sharpness. Well, I guess I wasn't really trying to make a beautiful image, but it still bothers me. ;)
@jinximages 1; i like the lighting for this pic,it enhances the mood, 2;i also like the foreground,it shows that it was part of the day not a posed shot, 3;i think it's great that you got everyone in the pic that was involved in it.
1,i wish there was less clutter in the background,2,i wish more of her face and eyes were showing,3,i would have liked a bit more of her body in the shot aswell but i had my 55-200 lens on and couldn't get any further out and didn't want to miss the shot changing lenses
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uhmm. 1) I didnt like the light reflected on the glass because it was distracting (for me).
2) That empty space on the left side should be taken out because it makes it look slanted.
3) The shadow on the lower right corner of the thermometer takes away from the color...so If I moved it somewhere else, that problem would have been solved.
1) I am never sure if I have enough contrast or too much contrast, maybe more contrast would make it sharper
2) I;m still getting comfortable taking shots of strangers so I tend to not try more interesting angles or just getting closer and that may have enhanced this shot
3) some of the people in the background may be a little too distracting but i also like them cause it adds a new york feel to the shot
1. I should have gotten the ferris wheel in more
2. I feel like there is a little too much processing in the sky
3. I took it with my blackberry phone. If I took it with my camera it could have been more in focus
1. I love the stars/galaxies in the back!
2. I disagree with you, I think there's just enough of the ferris wheel in the picture.
3. It's so... colorful and magical and awesome.. and I really like it!
1. Urrmm.. I wish I could have gotten the moon more in focus, so you can actually see something other than a white blob.
2. I think it would have been better if, instead of one tree in the corner, there were trees lining the bottom.
3. I want the moon to be bigger, so the main focus of the photo.
1. I really like the blurry movement in the clouds. Adds mystique and interest.
2. The brown and grey tones blend like watercolour, with a wide range! Beautiful transitions.
3. I prefer the far away moon shot here because it allows us to see so much of the clouds that I love here! And the way the moon's light really illuminates the clouds.
1. Wished for more patience to get stronger light rays and more of them. (they came out 10 minutes later).
2.Had I waited longer, the colours would have been darker and I wouldn't have had to adjust the red tones.
3. Might have taken a bit of a larger shot to get the ends of the cloud in view with the sun rays slightly more to the right.
1. The colours - so soft and ethereal!
2. The composition with the rocks and reflections on the water is great!
3. The overall clarity and atmosphere of the image :)
As for mine...
1. I really really really wish I'd narrowed the aperture, so that the light in the top left corner wouldn't have produced so much glare.
2. I wish I had framed it a bit better - there are bits of the scene cut off on the right side that just feel a bit awkward to me.
3. Wish I'd tried landscape - maybe that would have looked better?
I will say, though, that shooting photos in an underground train station with a big bulky DSLR is not the most inconspicuous of things to do on a Saturday morning, so I was only game enough to take 3 or 4 photos before being too afraid to take any more in case security were to ambush me and take me (and my camera) away!
2. I like the glare from the line of lights. It shows the continuity of the line.
3. Black and white is always lovely for these scenes!
1. I wish the colours were bolder and more intense. The whole picture is quite light and almost over exposed.
2. I would have liked to have taken a bit more time and got some better sun flare.
3. I would have liked to have the grass off centre much more.
1. i love the bokeh effect
2. i think the colours are perfect for this shot
3. i like your focus
1. i wish the face wasn't so overexposed on the right side.
2. i wish i could get the eyes to pop a little more.
3. im not sure if the crop is a little too tight
I don't really have much to post. I have taken images for all the blank spots in my album this month, but just haven't gotten around to uploading them. How lazy am I this week?!
Well, here's one I did post.
Really, it's a PJ piece, but I should have taken more compositional care. I should have found a better angle to show more of Shireen and Andrew (on the right), or alternatively gotten behind them to show more of the angle from their point of view (for which they were setting the light and pose). Since it was crowded, I could have stood on a chair and taken a more dynamic viewpoint and shown less of the foreground clutter. And lastly, I should have dropped the ISO down to 800 and the shutter speed down to 1/60, or even just added a little more DOF for through-the-shot sharpness. Well, I guess I wasn't really trying to make a beautiful image, but it still bothers me. ;)
1,i wish there was less clutter in the background,2,i wish more of her face and eyes were showing,3,i would have liked a bit more of her body in the shot aswell but i had my 55-200 lens on and couldn't get any further out and didn't want to miss the shot changing lenses