Someone once said to me that to be a photographer that you need the "eye for detail" I love taking photos and am not a professional far from it lol. At the moment i use a basic point and shoot, although i am about to invest in a decent dslr. My husband thinks i take great photos and encourages me bless him, but i just doubt myself at times and lack the confidence, i think sometimes - well anyone can take a photo.... then i look at mine and i wonder maybe other people think that. LOL i am far too deep at times. Sorry for the ramble - i would love some critique on my photos (you can only ever learn from constructive critisism!)tia
I think you do have an eye for interesting subjects, and I like this shot. But since you asked for a little critique ;) I will say when taking pictures with a point and shoot and you want a close up, see if you have a close up setting on the camera (its usually a little flower) or pull back just slightly so that what you want to be in focus (the leaves) actually is in focus, instead of the background. I noticed that with my old P&S, that i had to get back a little and really pay attention to what the camera was focusing on before I took the shot or else I would end up with crisp backgrounds but my main subject was out of focus.
OR see if your camera has manual focus option on it so you can have a little more control over it. I like your shots, just focus issues is my only real "critique". Keep up the good work :)
But I think you are always going to be your own worst critic ;)
Photographers are usually overly critical of themselves, so I wouldn't worry. If you have others complimenting your photos, chances are you're far better than you realize. I often have the same feeling. I'll take photos that I think are ok but nothing special, yet everybody else who sees it loves it and begs for a print or something.
Even today, I'm still way too critical of my own work. The smallest things will make me second guess my photo, and from a pure technical standpoint, maybe there are some flaws. But when others say they like them and say things like, "I wish I could take photos like that" or something, I know I must be doing something right.
So, just keep at it. You've obviously got talent, and feeling like you aren't all that good is normal. The more photos you take, the better you'll get, and the more confident you'll become.
Its funny you mention this. A few people have said to me, you def have the eye. You get all chuffed. Yet I think as the take, you dont see it as easily.
Im a graphic designer by trade and as specialist as it it is with countless numbers of fonts, spacing, kerning colours, leading etc etc. People will often say, a little bigger here, this red, that blue etc
But with photography, people accept it as the final thing, the decisive moment and see it for what it is. Of course there is technical element to it as well.
But on the person who was looking through the lens will be most critical of the capture, because they were in the moment
I totally agree with what @marubozo said. I've been a professional photographer for two years now, I have sold hundreds of prints, had photos appear in newspaper and magazines, and I still think my photos suck haha. Well, not all the time, but yeah artists are always very critical of their own work.
One thing you can do is exactly what you just did: ask for a critique. Unfortunately, I don't think people on the 365 Project are either honest enough or willing to give critiques because I don't see a lot of people offering suggestions on photos. About all I ever see is people saying "Cool", "Neat", or "I'm jealous".
So, I'll take a look over your photos and see what you've got.
@Kate Edwards : I use a point & shoot one too. Mine is a vivitar at the moment. I used to have a nice p&S kodak but that broke. I think you take great pictures. I fiddle with the setting. My favorite one is high sensitivity. I'm just starting on this & I feel for me I will get better as I go. We can be our own worst critic. So good luck & have fun! I guess it can be a "having the eye" thing. I think it also is a desire to want to be a better photographer, some people just don't have the patience.
Kate, I took a look at your photos. I admire you for trying to take pictures of various subjects. In the portrait type photos, I envy your ability to get your subjects just at the right amount of off center. I either get my subjects "in the bulls eye" or to far over to one side (something I am working on). I feel that you are developing a "good eye" (or already have it). My camera is a step up from a point and shoot, but is a fairly low price range camera.
Here are two pieces of advice that two different persons gave me. Perhaps either or both pieces of advice will help you. 1. Decide what subject you want in your photo and how you want to portray that subject. What emotions do you feel? What emotions do you want the view to feel? OR Are there any things in your photo that might distract your viewer from seeing what you want to portray? 2. If you have the time, take pictures of your subject at various times of the day to see what the light will do to your photo. I found that I like natural light, side light and morning light the best. Take pictures of your subject at various angles and see which angle you like the best for your photo. Do you want to take a picture of the whole subject or part of the subject? Of course, when you take pictures of your children, you might not be able to do any of this.
I read part of your profile (I will go back and read the rest of it.). The paternal side of my father's side of the family came from Wales. Hearing that you live in Wales pulled my heartstrings.
I will signed up to be your follower. If you tag your photos as "critique me" I will feel more free to give you any advice that I can. I will try to comment on your photos, but may not always be able to do this on a daily basis. Note: I am an amateur and I am learning about photography. I will do my best to help you.
I think artists are sensitive to everything which is why they can see things in life that don't stand out to others around them....it's also why they are overly critical of themselves. I agree with the above comments that if people are telling you that your frames are good, then you are good. Don't worry about having the "eye" if you love taking photographs just take them! I perused your photos and I think you do have a good eye (what do I know though really) you will have fun with a DSLR.
Try not to be hard on yourself, and have fun with it. I will try to take my own advice :/
Read "The Photographer's Eye" by Michael Freeman. It's not a new book so you can probably pick it up at your local library but it is well worth it. It may not be the easiest read or the most entertaining, but it really does open your eye to what a good photographer should be looking for. Also, look up "Rule of Thirds". You will find numerous articles written about this. Those 2 things should help dramatically.
thankyou thankyou thankyou everyone! The constructive critisism is excellent thats how i will learn:-) ! @jasonbarnette thankyou i will read your critiques and take then into account i appreciate you taking the time to do so. @wendy thanks too - i am so with you there i want to be better and i have the patience:-) @kathrynmarshall :-) thankyou for the compliment its great you are part welsh too! TBH for me its just nice if someone comments on a photo that they think is good and stands out not just for the sake of it (well thats what i do wiht others i follow) @sarahmiller you're right i am oversensitive prob lol i really do love taking photos even back in the days before digi cameras lol. I can't wait to get my dslr! @mattyb thankyou will check that out in the library :-) I think that reading up and gaining a bit of knowledge is needed for me - cheers
@cariadon kate, how many shots do you take of your subjects?, i tend to take hundreds all at slightly different angles and using different settings then as i go through them on the computer i will keep the ones i am happy with as they are and the ones i'm not sure about i try cropping,tweaking or changing to b&w then if those things don't work i ditch them
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I think you do have an eye for interesting subjects, and I like this shot. But since you asked for a little critique ;) I will say when taking pictures with a point and shoot and you want a close up, see if you have a close up setting on the camera (its usually a little flower) or pull back just slightly so that what you want to be in focus (the leaves) actually is in focus, instead of the background. I noticed that with my old P&S, that i had to get back a little and really pay attention to what the camera was focusing on before I took the shot or else I would end up with crisp backgrounds but my main subject was out of focus.
OR see if your camera has manual focus option on it so you can have a little more control over it. I like your shots, just focus issues is my only real "critique". Keep up the good work :)
But I think you are always going to be your own worst critic ;)
Even today, I'm still way too critical of my own work. The smallest things will make me second guess my photo, and from a pure technical standpoint, maybe there are some flaws. But when others say they like them and say things like, "I wish I could take photos like that" or something, I know I must be doing something right.
So, just keep at it. You've obviously got talent, and feeling like you aren't all that good is normal. The more photos you take, the better you'll get, and the more confident you'll become.
Im a graphic designer by trade and as specialist as it it is with countless numbers of fonts, spacing, kerning colours, leading etc etc. People will often say, a little bigger here, this red, that blue etc
But with photography, people accept it as the final thing, the decisive moment and see it for what it is. Of course there is technical element to it as well.
But on the person who was looking through the lens will be most critical of the capture, because they were in the moment
One thing you can do is exactly what you just did: ask for a critique. Unfortunately, I don't think people on the 365 Project are either honest enough or willing to give critiques because I don't see a lot of people offering suggestions on photos. About all I ever see is people saying "Cool", "Neat", or "I'm jealous".
So, I'll take a look over your photos and see what you've got.
Here are two pieces of advice that two different persons gave me. Perhaps either or both pieces of advice will help you. 1. Decide what subject you want in your photo and how you want to portray that subject. What emotions do you feel? What emotions do you want the view to feel? OR Are there any things in your photo that might distract your viewer from seeing what you want to portray? 2. If you have the time, take pictures of your subject at various times of the day to see what the light will do to your photo. I found that I like natural light, side light and morning light the best. Take pictures of your subject at various angles and see which angle you like the best for your photo. Do you want to take a picture of the whole subject or part of the subject? Of course, when you take pictures of your children, you might not be able to do any of this.
I read part of your profile (I will go back and read the rest of it.). The paternal side of my father's side of the family came from Wales. Hearing that you live in Wales pulled my heartstrings.
I will signed up to be your follower. If you tag your photos as "critique me" I will feel more free to give you any advice that I can. I will try to comment on your photos, but may not always be able to do this on a daily basis. Note: I am an amateur and I am learning about photography. I will do my best to help you.
Try not to be hard on yourself, and have fun with it. I will try to take my own advice :/
@jasonbarnette thankyou i will read your critiques and take then into account i appreciate you taking the time to do so.
@wendy thanks too - i am so with you there i want to be better and i have the patience:-)
@kathrynmarshall :-) thankyou for the compliment its great you are part welsh too! TBH for me its just nice if someone comments on a photo that they think is good and stands out not just for the sake of it (well thats what i do wiht others i follow)
@sarahmiller you're right i am oversensitive prob lol i really do love taking photos even back in the days before digi cameras lol. I can't wait to get my dslr!
@mattyb thankyou will check that out in the library :-) I think that reading up and gaining a bit of knowledge is needed for me - cheers
can anyone critique this picture for me!! thank you