Is Honesty gone? Are we just a kiss and coddle forum now?

[SCraig]

My best advice on something like that is that if they are someone new then tell them that they suck the same way you would your girlfriend / wife / SO / best friend. In other words instead of just bluntly stating that their shots suck use a little tact. Something like, "Honey, those are just a touch overexposed. It isn't hard to tell since there isn't a damn thing there except WHITE!" Or maybe, "Your color balance is just a tad off. Either that or he ate something he shouldn't have since his face is green as freakin' grass!" You know, just a little bit of tact.

 

[cgipson1]

well, I haven't seen anyone banned for any arguments over bad HDR photos so i would assume that it doesn't matter what you SAY here, as long as you don't post any memes (or other photos) you don't have the copyrights to. Blast away with impunity charlie!

Wanna bet? I could get banned permanently in a heartbeat if I actually said what I was thinking to some people! but I am literally afraid to even TRY to help these people.. because I might hurt their feelings, and piss off a mod or something.....

I did say that "I" haven't seen...not that there haven't been.
maybe we need a photo critique section in the NSFW section with "no holds barred" critique allowed.

But only paying members get to see that.. and most of them don't need the C&C to the degree I am referring to.... lol!

 

[cgipson1]

I don't know if anyone has been banned for being honest. But there is a (sometimes fine) line between being honest and being brutal.

Communicating on the internet is hard to do well...and many times, you have to guess the intellectual, mental and emotional state of who you are 'talking' to.

So many of us have found that a good technique is to pepper your comments with both compliments and critique.

Everyone was bad at photography, at some point. So when you see bad photography, maybe suggest way that they can improve, rather than just pointing out the flaws.

I will take that into consideration.... Thanks!

 

[Bynx]

Ive recently learned that commenting to certain people is just a waste of time. If I comment to anyone I dont look to see if they have 1 post or 10,000. I just call them as I see them. I would think that everyone posts stuff they really think is good, or even better, they know is bad and want help to fix it. So dont hold back. If anyone gets banned for commenting on a photo thats not right. As long as it doesnt get personal anything said about a photo should be ok. Just dont say its good, or its bad, or I dont like it, or I dig it without some explanation why.

 

[pixmedic]

I think part of the problem, is that *sometimes* people mistake critiquing for blasting away at every fault the picture has in the worst way possible.
Saying what a total waste of digital space the photo is, and how the puppy you just photographed probably died of shame afterwards is fine.. but for the OP's sake,
at least TRY and explain what went wrong, why it happened, and how it can be corrected in future shots and/or fixed in post.

 

[cgipson1]

Also, to get your message accross is very hard. It may sound friendly if you had said it in person, but when you type it... you sound like the biggest A-hole.

^^^ THIS!

(happens to Schwetty all the time, right Robin? lol)! <J/K>!

 

[cgipson1]

Tell it like it is man! Come from the heart and never hold back.

uhh...this is Charlie...*sometimes* it might be good to "hold back." :lmao:

Yep.. you know how I can be... lol!

 

[cgipson1]

Ive recently learned that commenting to certain people is just a waste of time. If I comment to anyone I dont look to see if they have 1 post or 10,000. I just call them as I see them. I would think that everyone posts stuff they really think is good, or even better, they know is bad and want help to fix it. So dont hold back. If anyone gets banned for commenting on a photo thats not right. As long as it doesnt get personal anything said about a photo should be ok. Just dont say its good, or its bad, or I dont like it, or I dig it without some explanation why.

Good idea, Bynx.. that is what I normally try to do! But sometimes that old Sarcasm seems to creep in.. lol!

 

[jamesbjenkins]

You know.. it had gotten to where I just ignore certain types of photographers... even though they need the most help!

I ignore them, because I am afraid I will be banned if I am honest.. even if I not rude about it!

Does anyone else feel this way?

If we see really BAD photography.. how ARE we supposed to address that? If we are anywhere near honest... somebody is probably going to get upset?

Are we a teaching forum.. or a kiss and coddle forum?

How do we address somebody else telling a really BAD photographer how great their shots are.. when they AREN'T?

Just curious!!!!

Tactful, constructive honesty is the best solution to this problem. Lots of members here seem to view C&C requests from amateur or unskilled photogs like a mountain lion would view a wounded goat. That doesn't solve anything except coddle the already bloated ego giving the critique.

As Robin said, offer C&C on images from a genre you have some modicum of expertise. Ignore the rest.

If I were to attempt to respond to every >10 post new member who asked for C&C, I'd have to quit my job, install a catheter and buy commercial size bags of snacks so I could sit in front of the computer 16 hours a day.

The real problem here is that there are way too many takers and nowhere near enough people with the expertise or desire to deal with all the requests from people that, frankly, have FAR more issues with their images than a handful of comments can remedy.

If I/you get banned for that position, than to Hell with this forum and its mods. :banghead:

 

[cgipson1]

My best advice on something like that is that if they are someone new then tell them that they suck the same way you would your girlfriend / wife / SO / best friend. In other words instead of just bluntly stating that their shots suck use a little tact. Something like, "Honey, those are just a touch overexposed. It isn't hard to tell since there isn't a damn thing there except WHITE!" Or maybe, "Your color balance is just a tad off. Either that or he ate something he shouldn't have since his face is green as freakin' grass!" You know, just a little bit of tact.

Tact? Hmmmm... never tried that before! lol!

 

[cgipson1]

You know.. it had gotten to where I just ignore certain types of photographers... even though they need the most help!

I ignore them, because I am afraid I will be banned if I am honest.. even if I not rude about it!

Does anyone else feel this way?

If we see really BAD photography.. how ARE we supposed to address that? If we are anywhere near honest... somebody is probably going to get upset?

Are we a teaching forum.. or a kiss and coddle forum?

How do we address somebody else telling a really BAD photographer how great their shots are.. when they AREN'T?

Just curious!!!!

Tactful, constructive honesty is the best solution to this problem. Lots of members here seem to view C&C requests from amateur or unskilled photogs like a mountain lion would view a wounded goat. That doesn't solve anything except coddle the already bloated ego giving the critique.

As Robin said, offer C&C on images from a genre you have some modicum of expertise. Ignore the rest.

If I were to attempt to respond to every >10 post new member who asked for C&C, I'd have to quit my job, install a catheter and buy commercial size bags of snacks so I could sit in front of the computer 16 hours a day.

The real problem here is that there are way too many takers and nowhere near enough people with the expertise or desire to deal with all the requests from people that, frankly, have FAR more issues with their images than a handful of comments can remedy.

If I/you get banned for that position, than to Hell with this forum and its mods. :banghead:

Uh oh.. Honesty!

To be honest..... this " Lots of members here seem to view C&C requests from amateur or unskilled photogs like a mountain lion would view a wounded goat. That doesn't solve anything except coddle the already bloated ego giving the critique." doesn't make much sense to me! I guess you are saying that many of the members here view Noobs like a a Lion views a goat? As easy prey? And that the members "attack" to boost their "already bloated egos"?.

IS that what you meant to say?

I do agree that we have many "takers"... and not enough experienced "givers"! And while I love seeing new people give C&C (many do very well at it...within the boundaries of what they know) there are times when what they are saying is TOTALLY wrong, and I am so tempted to say "ARE YOU SERIOUS? REALLY?" lol!

 

[jwbryson1]

I will give my personal C&C when a person posts 2 or 3 photos and it looks like they TRIED to take a "photo" and they aren't just posting a snapshot of their kid/dog/cat/car/vacation.

We see dozens upon dozens of "C&C please" threads from noobs and otherwise, and so it's hard to respond to all of them. I will not post any comments on a photo when I don't think the person will take my comments into consideration and then go back and work on fixing the "problem."

Stated another way, I will ONLY post comments when (i) the person has tried to take a "good photo" and (ii) I think they are serious about getting feedback and improving. Otherwise, what's the point?

If they just want to show off a snapshot of their 3 year old kid and are not interested in learning more about the technical side of things, then I will not waste my time or theirs.

Am I making any sense?

 

[imagemaker46]

I've always been honest on this forum. I speak from my experience and knowledge as a long time professional photographer. Some people just don't understand what it's like working as freelance photographer. I won't come right out and say a photo is bad, even though there have been many on here that are just plain bad. I really don't care if some people have their feelings stepped on, that's life and they should learn to live with the positive and negative things that come along. What's the point of misleading people?

 

[cgipson1]

I will give my personal C&C when a person posts 2 or 3 photos and it looks like they TRIED to take a "photo" and they aren't just posting a snapshot of their kid/dog/cat/car/vacation.

We see dozens upon dozens of "C&C please" threads from noobs and otherwise, and so it's hard to respond to all of them. I will not post any comments on a photo when I don't think the person will take my comments into consideration and then go back and work on fixing the "problem."

Stated another way, I will ONLY post comments when (i) the person has tried to take a "good photo" and (ii) I think they are serious about getting feedback and improving. Otherwise, what's the point?

If they just want to show off a snapshot of their 3 year old kid and are not interested in learning more about the technical side of things, then I will not waste my time or theirs.

Am I making any sense?

Yes.. totally!

I guess the people I am ranting about probably think they are good enough.. so I shouldn't waste my time (following your train of thought here..). Hmmmm... another fine line... another hair to split! lol!

 

[cgipson1]

I've always been honest on this forum. I speak from my experience and knowledge as a long time professional photographer. Some people just don't understand what it's like working as freelance photographer. I won't come right out and say a photo is bad, even though there have been many on here that are just plain bad. I really don't care if some people have their feelings stepped on, that's life and they should learn to live with the positive and negative things that come along. What's the point of misleading people?

True! I am not concerned about hurting someone's feelings that much.. if they can't take honest C&C, they shouldn't ask! But I AM willing to say it is a bad photo.. and explain why! I just don't know if I should bother anymore.... lol!