I have started a new Album inspired by a comment that Rankin made on the BBC 4 programme "Great British Photography Challenge" broadcast last evening, he said that we are, or should be, our strongest critics. Well I find that very hard thing to do! This despite knowing that a lot of my photographs fall short of what I would like to achieve.
So the idea of this new album is to upload a photo every so often that I would like folk to critique. I do this in a spirit of wanting to learn, NOT looking for compliments!
My first upload is a portrait, an area in which I am not comfortable of competent, please have a look especially if you are into portraiture. Thanks for your help. Here is a link to the photo
It's an interesting aspect of this site. It's a very nice, warm and comfortable place for people to post photos. One usually gets lots of affirmation and support. Compared to when I first started posting on here, back in whenever, nowadays there seems to be very little critique. I once used the "critique-me" tag for a few months and had almost no feedback on any of the shots posted.
What a great idea! I too got more feedback on improvements back in 2011 and 2012 than I get today. It's a different crowd on 365 now. @allsop I am by far no expert but I will offer to tell you what I think based on what my old professor would have said in my own words... Increase your shadows a bit. There's plenty of highlights but I don't see enough contrast in your shadows. He didn't like "flat" black and white photos (meaning no pure blacks or whites) and it's a little flat - although that seems to be a style on 365 today. Nothing wrong with the way your subject is framed. It's a good clear image and I like this young man's expression. It pulls you into what he's possibly thinking. It's sharp and clear enough to see the detail in his eyes, hair and the lines in his lips. That's all I have to offer. Good luck with this!
there used to be a weekly thread where people would put the photo they wanted critique on and others were invited to give a critique sandwhich... I think a lot of folks enjoyed it, both the critique and giving feedback , if this is something you are interested in perhaps you could start a regular thread in the critique discussion section.
I personally have a huge problem with giving critique as I am more or less a newbie and cannot give any constructive critique. I either like a photo for some reason or I don't. As I am not a fan of black and white, I even seldom comment on them.
Thank you for all of your very interesting comments. I especially appreciate @marlboromaam comment which I will try to put into practice. @ludwigsdiana thank you for at least commenting! What I would say is that one of the things about this group is that it can, if you want it, expand your interest in photography in many ways, I for instance have found that looking at other folk's photos has led me into genres that I would once not have dreamed of looking at! This I think has improved my own photography. The challenges are good for this aspect of the group. I hope your enjoyment of photography is increased by sharing your images here and remember your comments are always welcomed by the good people here.
I agree, Diana, that critiquing is a hard thing to do. And finding the right language to do it with is particularly hard: there's the language of positivity and the technical language necessary to help and illustrate what is being said. In my area of professional expertise I learnt to master the approaches and language, but in this field I am less confident. @ludwigsdiana
@allsop
Hi Andrew,
I am new to this forum, but I too really value any critique I receive from others. I find there is always something to takeaway from others perspectives.
I am in no way an experienced photographer and portraits aren’t my strong suit, so these are my thoughts only.
Composition
I like the expression you have captured on the boys face and that his eyes are well focused. I would perhaps consider re-framing/zooming out a little so that the top of his head is captured fully next time. I like the landscape orientation and the offset position of the boy.
Lighting
I agree with marlboromaam re shadows and highlights.
Personally, I would try a reflector to bounce some light back onto the right side of his face a little and see what that does. Another technique that I personally really enjoy for portraits is chiaroscuro. You can achieve some fabulously moody results with that type of lighting and would be really suited with this boy’s expression.
I hope that helps and best of luck 😊
Rebecca
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@ludwigsdiana thank you for at least commenting! What I would say is that one of the things about this group is that it can, if you want it, expand your interest in photography in many ways, I for instance have found that looking at other folk's photos has led me into genres that I would once not have dreamed of looking at! This I think has improved my own photography. The challenges are good for this aspect of the group. I hope your enjoyment of photography is increased by sharing your images here and remember your comments are always welcomed by the good people here.
@ludwigsdiana
Hi Andrew,
I am new to this forum, but I too really value any critique I receive from others. I find there is always something to takeaway from others perspectives.
I am in no way an experienced photographer and portraits aren’t my strong suit, so these are my thoughts only.
Composition
I like the expression you have captured on the boys face and that his eyes are well focused. I would perhaps consider re-framing/zooming out a little so that the top of his head is captured fully next time. I like the landscape orientation and the offset position of the boy.
Lighting
I agree with marlboromaam re shadows and highlights.
Personally, I would try a reflector to bounce some light back onto the right side of his face a little and see what that does. Another technique that I personally really enjoy for portraits is chiaroscuro. You can achieve some fabulously moody results with that type of lighting and would be really suited with this boy’s expression.
I hope that helps and best of luck 😊
Rebecca