[the Zachster]

I think most of us would agree that folks on this site or very kind and generous with their complements on photos. It's really great to share photos and experiences with friends (and strangers!) and know that they enjoy them with you. Every once in a while someone will critique a shot from a technical or artistic standpoint and to me, it feels a little uncomfortable if the critique wasn't solicited. So I was wondering if anyone would be interested in a thread dedicated to critiques. I personally would appreciate and value feedback from this group because I think it would be honest, respectful and based on a huge base of knowledge and experience that exists here. I would like to know what's good, what's bad, what you would do differently, etc... Here are a few of mine for starters...

sunlight in the bedroom

winter trees

falling leaves II

red leaf on blue spruce

shadows

[joker]

Great idea! I'll happily offer critiques (not right now, but will make a point to come back later) and offer up work for same. But I'll raise you one - is anyone interested in getting together in person with prints in order to share thoughts on each others' photos? I have not done this for years, but when I did (way back in college) it was very helpful. Depending on how many people are interested (if any) I'd either offer up space in my house on a recurring basis (heck, I'd even buy unhealthy snacks), or would figure out how to get some free or really cheap space. What this sort of recurring "critique session" with a consistent group of people can do is help you start to dig in on what aspects of your work are resonating most for you and others, and ultimately can help you home in on a sense of "personal style," which I recall finding extremely rewarding. If you are interested, please PM me, or alternatively speak up here to help recruit others (though I don't want to hijack Zachster's thread, so please make a point of commenting and perhaps offering photos of your own here too). If even a small group (say 4-6 of you) bites, let's do it. We can meet once to simply work out "goals and ground rules" and see if we all want to move forward. Sorry about the tangential drift.

[Trevor]

Actually I am finding difficulty in trying to find much to critique at all in the posted images, which is why I presume they are some of your favorites. They are balanced in composition and have good exposures. If I were being more critical, I would say the first one could be rotated slightly clockwise, and perhaps you could have added a bit more room on the right side for additional balance and breathing space between the piece of art and the edge of the frame.

[joker]

I'll try throw out more specifics later after I've had time to reflect, but FWIW I find the first to be much more impactful than the rest. The trees would come next (but is more "normal" - I did a double take as I have shots like this and have seen others - but still, it does nicely evoke a sense of being out in a storm). The last three are nice pieces of craft, but connect more with my brain than my heart, if you know what I mean. The shot of the room leaves me with a strong feeling - it evokes memories and smells and leaves me with a quiet mood, but I'm also left wondering why the room is so bare. I sense a story behind that, and I like that little bit of mystery.

[Jim Dockery]

I think this is an exelent idea Zackster. I am a member of Photo.net which has a critique function. It can be great to get feedback from others (on Photonet from around the world) but their number rating system is often abused and written comments are few. In our case the people rating would be our more imediate peers, and our foucus would mostly be outdoor/hiking related photography which could be good. I also agree with Joker that it would be fun and informative to get togther for physical viewing / exchange of info. - I've tried this at work though and found it hard to keep a core group going who can consistently find the time. I also agree with Trevor that those are very nice shots Zack and I'd have to nit-pick to find any thing to critique. The only thing I would advise is that pictures you want critiqued be posted in larger than normal sizes so that we can see the details better, I would propose 1024 x 768 as a minimal standard.

[Tom]

Pictures are too tiny to critique IMO. Looks like you recently changed permissions on your flickr account which is preventing anyone from viewing sizes larger than 500 pixels. It could be that you are hiding original sizes and uploading originals < 1280 pixels but Karen2 also hides originals and I noticed in her last TR that her originals < 1280 pixels are still available so I suspect it's a combination of permissions you're setting.

[the Zachster]

Tom: I uploaded 900x600 images (approx. 250 KB) assuming that's what you would see but now I see they are really tiny. I just changed the privacy settings so here's one of the pics again, just to check size...

shadows

[Tom]

Yes, I can see bigger sizes now. I'm not sure why Karen2's photos don't exhibit the same problem (she has original size hidden at flickr but for some reason it's smart enough not to apply for 900x600 uploads when we request the photo via the flickr API).

[the Zachster]

It's not clear to me why the images are still showing up smaller than what I upload. Did I mention that technology is not my thing, but I'm trying?! I'll make future submissions larger as suggested but comments on the smaller images are still welcome! Joker: An in-person group would be interesting. Depends on the where and when. Thank you for your comments about the bedroom. I grew up in a really big house with 7 brothers and sisters. This was "the boys room" and I'm sure the walls could tell some stories. My Mom lives there now all by herself. She is 88 and doing well but has no need to decorate or keep things in an upstairs room that no-one sees or uses. So it is bare. Except for the light that fills it in the morning. Trevor: Thanks. I totally agree, except that rotating the image would make the picture on the wall crooked and since that's closer to the edge I think it would be more apparent. The house is over 100 years old and the room isn't exactly squared up so any way you shoot it something will be off! Jim: I'll check out photo.net as well, thanks.

[mike]

Z, I like all of your photos especially the winter trees. One adjustment I would make to the falling leaves is to add some blur to the background. The bokeh could be improved to make the leaves stand out from the background more.

[the Zachster]

bokeh?

[Jason Hummel]

Okay, I've never critiqued so bear with me. Photo #1. You mention your grandma. She would make a nice addition to the first photo if she were sitting in the chair. That would tell a better story, especially when the room is bare and nearly empty. The 2nd photo I like, but when I look at the bigger one, I see that it is pretty grainy. Perhaps the ISO was jumped up cause it was so dark? This is hard when there isn't much light. Set your pack down and take the picture off it, using it as a tripod. That takes a few more seconds and will get a better exposure. I have to get back to work now....ps hope that helps some. I think they are all great photos. BTW, joker, I'd be interested in sitting down depending on where it's at. It would be great to get a few photographers, etc., together.

[the Zachster]

Jason, Grandma would be about 115 now...it's my Mom's house She doesn't go upstairs much anymore (and she hates to have her picture taken ) so in a way that's part of the story. That would give it a Whistler's Mother kind of look though, wouldn't it? And you're absolutely correct about the trees. The ISO was way high because of the light and it was a freakin' 10 degrees (without windchill) so I was just trying to grab it and go! I actually went back the next day with the tripod and go figure, there was too much light!

[joker]

In the spirit of group critique, where folks play off each others' comments, I want to react to Jason's thought on the room. I think empty w/o your grandma is good, but do wonder what it would be like to see a series of shots from that house. A series might tell a story in a more interesting way. I'm not sure what I'd make of seeing a person in that shot - I think it would break some of the mood that struck me, but w/o really telling the actual story. But even as a standalone shot, it tells a story of a bare and moody room, even if the reasons are mysterious. Not that Jason's reaction is wrong - it's just different, and I wanted to highlight the difference in case it helps you at all, Zachster. I'll also add that the first two (room and trees) and the last two (leaf on needles and shadows) seem like pairs from two different sets. To the extent you're interested in coherence across your work, this leaves me wondering which pair strikes more of a chord for you - which would you want to pursue further? I'm more interested in the first two, but it is of course more important which pair interests you more. Regarding meeting up in person for more of same, I'll see how many more pings I get either via this thread or PM and will try to instigate a bit. I have the right combination of energy and foolishness to at least try.

[naturealbeing]

What I Love about the many photo contributers here at NWH's is their unique styles and their creative ways in which they embellish their images. I for one am not into critiquing others on how they should or should not create their images. When I think of how society is so much into judgement on so many things it drives me nuts. Art and photography should be created for the enjoyment and expressed without expectation, the observer will or will not approve of the art/photography based upon their own bias. Ask 50 people and get 50 responses, so what now, in the end it's always your choice as to what you want to create and no matter what you do someone will like it or hate it, so to change your style to make someone approve of your work will only make someone else disprove of it. I say do what you Love and release it into the world and let the kind words that others share with you feed your Heart and the ones that are critical, know that it is their choice to feel the way they do. We are all responsible of our own well being and happiness. Basing are expression of art/photgraphy on others opinions sacrifices our own uniqueness that is our gift to each other and when we emulate others to be more like them we lose our gift. If everyone here wants to start a group mentality thing and homogenize their work so it all looks the same, then make it so. I think a better thread would be people asking for assistance in learning more about technics to create images that they are unsure of. There are many talented, creative, and knowledgeable people here that know how to milk their images for every last once of beauty, this is what I see as a way of supporting people that want to extend their photography skills. Anyways, this is just my opinion and how I feel about such things. In the end I hope that we all follow a path created of happiness that fills our Hearts with each step of the journey. Namaste