I think your picture is rubbish!

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BOM

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When you see a picture that you think is truely rubbish, do you ignore it or tell the person its rubbish?

Do you only critique pictures you like which you think could be better?

Do you feel like your missing something when you look at a picture that you think isnt very good but theres lots of praise in feedback for it?
 
What one person likes, another may think is dreadful. Simple as that really.......:shrug:
 
Art, of any form is subjective, so what one person loves, another will hate.

The tate modern is a good example... a pile of bricks :shrug:

However, there isn't a great deal that can be acomplished by telling someone their photo is crap, apart from to knock/destroy their confidence. If you can constructively suggest a way to make a photo better, then I'm all for it, but if you just don't like it, there's no point posting IMO.
 
I think its best to say but in a tactful manner, how else can everyone learn??
 
:agree: with Matty
 
Yeah you are totally right, and thats the fantastic thing about art.

I've noticed myself not commenting on images I dont like, hence me wondering if others are doing the same thing. If we are all only commenting on the images we like are we doing our fellow togs an injustice by not telling them about the images we dont like?
 
Have to agree with Fracster really, photography is very subjective and open to interpretation. I think I know where your coming from though, on occasion some comments I've seen on this forum for not-so-good shots have surprised me, but I don't really see the point in commenting on these shots, as at the end of the day that is 'my' opinion and maybe not anyone elses.
 
fracster said:
What one person likes, another may think is dreadful. Simple as that really.......:shrug:
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There are a lot of pictures I see on flickr that I think suck. There are also a few on here that I think are pretty terrible too and sometimes I'll say so. I think at the end of the day I'd rather have you comment on my picture and tell me what's wrong with it that you look at it and leave without leaving a comment. I'm pretty sure most people will feel like that too.
 
Some time back I started a thread asking a similar thing.

While it's better to say what it is about a shot that you like and why, it's still ok to post saying "great shot", or "I like it".

It's not so acceptable to say without reason "crap shot" or "I dont like it".

In asking peoples thoughts on why this is, the issue was mostly danced around and avoided. My take.... We'll tolerate an unfounded opinion if it makes us feel good but not just for the sake of honesty.

Normally this ditching of straight talking would make me feel a total hypocrite but is it really worth damaging someone's passion for shooting just to be honest? Being silent in these cases seems an acceptable compromise.

Of course, if you can offer something constructive, then do it...... or if the snapper is an insufferable bigheaded bore, it's OK to call it too. ;):D
 
mattyh said:
The point is.. If someone doesn't like a photo, and can't offer a constructive comment, it's better to say nothing, and vice versa of course.
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:agree:

its one thing to not like a photo for a reason you can give its another just slate someone for posting a picture you don't like..
 
I think most people ignore them!

If someone posts a picture and asks for feedback people will tell them what they think. Not everyone will like everything that you do. I know myself I have just posted an arty macro shot which I don't think went down too well but I really liked it ! I have had positive and negative feedback on other posts its how we learn and I'm certainly in the learning position. I get a few good shots out of each batch using the brute force method (large memory card !!)
 
BOM said:
When you see a picture that you think is truely rubbish, do you ignore it or tell the person its rubbish?

Do you only critique pictures you like which you think could be better?

Do you feel like your missing something when you look at a picture that you think isnt very good but theres lots of praise in feedback for it?
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Wouldn't say It's blatant rubbish, just suggest ways to Improve It if they asked me thoughts. Saying It's rubbish It just a useless thing to say In my opinion as they wouldn't learn from It.

Hard though because a lot of can take It the wrong way even when your trying to be constructive In your words.

Criticising ones that could be better might be already better though, sometimes you might be basing how It could better based on personal preference so It depends?
 
I do not normally comment on subjects such as this, but what the heck - PC is playing up, I can't sleep, so here goes:

I long ago gave up worrying if other people liked my images, so if other people do not like them - tough. But I also realise that I am not perfect and a wider audience may notice something that I have missed. So therefore I will give thought to what people say/write.

I have never really seen a bad image on here. I have seen plenty that I do not like - but that does not mean they are bad - it just means that I cannot see what the photographer is trying to show us. (Almost) every picture we take is to show someone an image that we can see, either in our minds or through our eyes. Is it right that I criticise an image because I cannot see what the creator of that image is trying to show me? (And they are trying to show us something otherwise they would not post it)
An image can be "wrong" technically, but without knowing everything about how it was created I struggle to offer any meaningful assistance. That is why I rarely comment on other peoples images on here, apart from generally two occasions:
1. I was there when the picture was taken, therefore I know about what the photographer is trying to show me. Case in point being the Banham Zoo meet. I know what we were all looking at, I know what limitations we were under, I know what my own results were.
2. Sometimes an image just "floats my boat". I normally cannot say why it does, but if it is that good (to me) I will say so.

But we are all different, and if an image stirs something in you enough to make you want to comment, then do so - good or bad. The hard part is communicating your thoughts so that they do not upset other people on here.
 
its all very well people telling other people how to improve a picture , but again that is only to improve it in their opinion , so one question that comes to mind is , is a picture a good one ( or any art for that matter ) if a lot of people say it is ? so to the original question ,would i tell someone i thought their picture was carp ? no because its only my opinion .if i like it i would say

i only said the above because most people would say my pics are fresh water fish
 
no not tench or pike
 
The constructive criticism received on here, amongst other sites, has improved my photography no end ( well I think it has.......:lol: ), if you don`t like a picture, then by all means say so, but say why. Yes we are all different and like different things, would`nt life be dull otherwise. Sometimes I see an image that is bad, but I can`t put into words why,so I don`t comment and certainly don`t say "it`s crap" and leave it at that, I feel that doing so would be rude and counter productive.

Don`t forget, this is the interweb thingy and peoples comments are thier opinions only......:thumbs:
 
I think you will read comments here that you would not get on, say, an oil-painters forum. This is largely because photography is both an art and a science. The better togs have the science pretty well down pat and can produce an acceptable image in most conditions (although modern cameras can often get you most of the way there). Composition can be learned and yet again there are "rules" which a photographer can follow which will greatly improve his or her photography.

A critical comment should point out any deficiencies of the technical part of the image whilst advising what went well in the image. Going further and perhaps offering methods that from your own experience would result in an image that might be closer to what the author was trying to reach must surely be the "added value" part of the crit.

Finally there is the subjective part. The viewer might not be interested in the subject and despite an image having great technical merit the viewer might not feel they can comment, either because they do not know the subject or do no not like what is being portrayed.

I think we are generally lucky here that not many people make "I do not like this" type comments without giving a reason. Feedback however good or bad is up to the owner of the posted image to take on board or reject. If they are so sensitive to negative criticism I would go as far as to suggest that they should perhaps consider whether posting to a public forum is the correct platform for displaying their images.

For the main I, like others here, post criticism, invite criticism and are happy to see that the standard of our images improve because of the valued feedback which is so often received on this forum.

:thumbs:
 
.........but what do you do if you think a thread is rubbish..............?

:p
 
.....I think nothing at all, its not part of my itinerary, ;)


---

When it comes to crap photos, most people here are smart enough to admit they took crap shots once too. I know I still manage it regularly with little effort. Obviously those that post direct rude, objectionable and pointless comments are born talented and are in fact gods disguised as photographers.

:D
 
I've been known to tell someone a photograph is terrible in my time, but typically when it's been presented amongst a batch of 'first time photographs' and the photographer is begging for criticism. I have always then go on to explain why I think it's a bad photograph, and justify my comments.

As for 'art is subjective', since when did every photograph become art? Does everyone on here consider themselves an artist? I certainly don't.
 
I can't add a lot to what's already been said other than to say that if I post a photo that someone thinks is bad / rubbish / awful, I'd sooner they said so (tactfully, of course, not rudely ;)) and most importantly, WHY! This is a photography forum after all and I've found it's easier to improve my photography by someone telling me how I could improve a photo than by someone saying "that's nice I like it", even if that is nicer to hear :)
 
We went for a family day out yesterday......to Manchester Art Gallery. Now that IS considered art and it is illuminating as a tog to stop a while and look at the images created in a different medium. Most of the time the "rules" of composition are followed and if you have ever been taught about the use of colour then that is pretty much the same. So yes, without getting into the whole photography/art thing then there is a lot of crossover between the two.

As for critiquing pics here, I don't ever tell anyone that an image is crap, that would not be productive at all. If I think an image is poor I might make a comment on how I think it might be improved. It might be a small thing or a fairly major leap but if it keeps the person on the receiving end moving in the right direction then hopefully it will have been helpful. At the same time I will also add a positive comment if I find something done right. It's all about balance.

I've been fortunate to be on the receiving end of such critique and I'll pay more attention to that detail next time out. So hopefully I will improve that aspect.

Small steps.
 
LKavaney said:
I think its best to say but in a tactful manner, how else can everyone learn??
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I tend to agree with LKavaney , You only need to look in the Replies and Views columns to see how many views on a particular photo/s have been made and sometimes lots of views but not getting a single response. I think that can deflate a persons confidence in their hobby more than anything else, leaving them thinking "Gawd I must be really crap at this, I'm not learning nothing."
The more experienced members who post photos which are always of excellent subjects and spot on exposures etc will obviously get more replies praising their work, rightly so. The danger is that TP may get the reputation of being cliquey if it is the same members (good & experienced togs) who get
all the replies to their posts, while the not so experienced are not getting any or very little, leaving them wondering where they went wrong therefor not learning because no-one here would respond or give a bit advice.
So if you are one of the more experienced guys, inexperienced guys or site staff who should lead by example, I think we all need to be a little more tolerant of poor/inexperienced togs after all you were one too at one time, no-one is born into this game, it is a skill you learnt from others and were all here to share.

Perhaps a suggestion to site staff, could a button or something not be added to the member profile saying for example all C&C welcomed, or maybe we should create a line in our sigfiles saying something similar.
 
Frank, you've nailed it there, I've posted images which I think are good (Not on this forum, it was a while back on a different one), had loads of views and no responses. personally I'd rather be told an image is not up to the mark than simply get ignored.
 
I agree that people ignore them, if they feel they dont like it or hard to give a constructive comment.

I'm just learning and only just getting into photography and I have posted a few pictures on here, which rarely get any sort of response and usually just fall of the pages. I think its because im not very good yet and so people either dont like them or have nothing to say about them. Its hard sometimes as it makes me feel dejected, but I'll keep trying and maybe one day something I post will be good enough for them to comment on - I take it as a sort of learning curve, lol.

(I do sort of have a question though.....if you want critique to help you learn were should you post it, because the in depth critique board is usually full of great photos and mine just dont live up to them yet. Should they go there? or is there another place?)

Apologies for highjacking your thread!

MM
 
If I have nothing nice to say, I tend to press backspace. If I want to explain why I dont like it, Ill do it. Ill never just say its crap, what sort of feedback is that? ;)
 
Last months discussion on this topic. That started on the opposite side of the coin to this. "Nice post!" and now "Rubbish post!" :) Short answer is be honest if you can back it up and sprinkle it with hundreds and thousands so the person doesn't bin their camera :)
 
"When you see a picture that you think is truely rubbish, do you ignore it or tell the person its rubbish?"

I think you are talking about my photos then!:lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:
 
I think its bad for someone to say its rubbish maybe some positive remarks and suggestions to do better next time would be kinder.I have loads of rubbish photos some i thought were really good then when i go back to them i realise they are awfull.
 
Memorymaker said:
if you want critique to help you learn were should you post it, because the in depth critique board is usually full of great photos and mine just dont live up to them yet. Should they go there? or is there another place?
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Place it in the appropriate section, landscape for example and put a note on the end and ask for criticism I think is best.
 
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