Utopia of Critique Forum

[elsaspet]

I'd be interested to see the examples, bad manners or not.

I think that I'm asking for a very big favour when I ask for a critique, and I tend to select the people I ask. There's not a lot of point in getting a critique from someone whose work or viewpoint you feel no connection with, though it can be enlightening in limited doses.

One small suggestion that I would make is that multiple images be allowed as a single offering, so essays and collections can be commented upon. This fits more with the real life critique sessions that I am used to.

Good luck,
Helen

I can't honestly do that...I owe a lot to this forum, and I'd hate to see it lose members who find one of my well kept secret forums. (Not that they are better forums, just that they have a workable crit area) It's all laid down right here, and others have, IMO, expounded on and greatly enhanced the original idea.

I also agree that collections should be considered, as long as they are posted as a collection, and not a "this and that".

Just my 2 pennies.

 

[elsaspet]

Not good. I think it would lead to a collective dictatorship.

Now that you've put it that way, I think you are right.

Down with Dictatorships!!:lmao::lmao::lmao::lmao:

 

[elsaspet]

Also Helen, I think the review panel should be public knowledge.
I too put a lot of stock into who is advising me, politically correct or not...

 

[abraxas]

...

though it can be enlightening in limited doses.

...

I would think that would be the point.

 

[Hertz van Rental]

I'm a total n00b anyways, but like, that doesn't mean I want toned down critique of my work.

Adjusting the level of the crit is not 'toning things down' if it is done properly. The crit just addresses different aspects in a different way.
A beginner may well make errors in composition, framing or exposure that a more advanced photographer shouldn't. In order to help the beginner you would have to address these issues first.


A word of caution too. I can already see people trying to run here before they have even learned to crawl (Cindy). Don't start planning advanced crit forums before you have got a beginner's one up and running. Doing so clouds the main issues and is largely a waste of time.
And anonymous submissions is getting away from what I thought was the point of the crit forum: a learning tool. It's not supposed to be about the people doing the crit - it's about helping people improve their photography.
Keep focussed or it will all fall flat.

 

[elsaspet]

Adjusting the level of the crit is not 'toning things down' if it is done properly. The crit just addresses different aspects in a different way.
A beginner may well make errors in composition, framing or exposure that a more advanced photographer shouldn't. In order to help the beginner you would have to address these issues first.


A word of caution too. I can already see people trying to run here before they have even learned to crawl (Cindy). Don't start planning advanced crit forums before you have got a beginner's one up and running. Doing so clouds the main issues and is largely a waste of time.
And anonymous submissions is getting away from what I thought was the point of the crit forum: a learning tool. It's not supposed to be about the people doing the crit - it's about helping people improve their photography.
Keep focussed or it will all fall flat.

But I want to run Hertz! Runnnnnnnnnnnn!

 

[abraxas]

Now that you've put it that way, I think you are right.

...

A better word would have been autocracy- my error. A bad choice should be lived with until the term expires.

 

[elsaspet]

And anonymous submissions is getting away from what I thought was the point of the crit forum: a learning tool. It's not supposed to be about the people doing the crit - it's about helping people improve their photography.
Keep focussed or it will all fall flat.

The posters would remain annon Hertz.
The reason I like it is that there would be no favoritism at all, based on the poster.
We all have people we just don't get along with, and I think by taking that out of the equation, people won't be able to think or scream, "Politics!"
The poster and the reader still learn, and there is nothing to muddy the review.
But I still agree about breaking up the levels of experience.

 

[Chris of Arabia]

One additional suggestion, though likely to be less used, is that all submissions for 'critique' must be considered to be OTE, but by the panel only. I can envisage situations where the best way to show a poster how to improve a particular image is to demonstrate it - it may even be quicker than trying to write out was meant.

I'd largely envisage this to be in demonstrating revisions to crop, colour correction, sharpening, maybe minor cloning to tidy up rough edges. I'd draw the line at radical revisions to an image though.

 

[abraxas]

The posters would remain annon Hertz.
The reason I like it is that there would be no favoritism at all, based on the poster.
We all have people we just don't get along with, and I think by taking that out of the equation, people won't be able to think or scream, "Politics!"
The poster and the reader still learn, and there is nothing to muddy the review.
But I still agree about breaking up the levels of experience.

I agree with what I think HvR is saying- Simple and functional- build an infrastructure that works then develop arrays later.

 

[Chiller]

One additional suggestion, though likely to be less used, is that all submissions for 'critique' must be considered to be OTE, but by the panel only. I can envisage situations where the best way to show a poster how to improve a particular image is to demonstrate it - it may even be quicker than trying to write out was meant.

I'd largely envisage this to be in demonstrating revisions to crop, colour correction, sharpening, maybe minor cloning to tidy up rough edges. I'd draw the line at radical revisions to an image though.

This is a great idea, as long as the steps to get to the final image is posted, so everyone can learn from it.

 

[abraxas]

One additional suggestion, though likely to be less used, is that all submissions for 'critique' must be considered to be OTE, but by the panel only. I can envisage situations where the best way to show a poster how to improve a particular image is to demonstrate it - it may even be quicker than trying to write out was meant.

I'd largely envisage this to be in demonstrating revisions to crop, colour correction, sharpening, maybe minor cloning to tidy up rough edges. I'd draw the line at radical revisions to an image though.

meh. I'd be more comfortable leaving OTE optional to the artist. Some folks would rather have a why does/doesn't my work, work?- than have an edit thrown in thier face.

 

[elsaspet]

LOL Abraxas, you turned on me man! I was vouching for your idea.
Still think it's a great one, BTW.

Ok, so what do we do from here? Do we set up polls for what we think people might want and would find most beneficial? How do we do that with the many varied aspects?

Are we even to that point yet? LOL, or is it me running? Or even better, do we even REALLY have a say in it?
We are still the minion......

 

[Arch]

Its interesting to read some of these suggestions... i hope you guys can appreciate how difficult it is to find an idea that solves everything.... its kinda like The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy where they know the answer is 42 (in this case a good crit section) but no one knows exatly what the question is suppose to be!

The problem with saying things like 'we can have arule which says...' is that history has proved no matter how important the rule is.. people simply wont read it, and within a few weeks of opening the section is full of 'what do you think of this?' and 'i took these 6 images over the weekend what do you think of them?'.... there really is no way you can make someone read rules of any kind.

I actually thought of the 'ok to crit' type tags before... but unlike the 'ok to edit ones' which i would leave perminantly under my avatar.. the 'ok to crit' ones wouldnt be. People forgetting to turn this on and off when they submit photos could lead to problems or just be an annoying thing to have to remember.

We really dont have the time here after running the monthly competitions, the POTM etc to run some kind of submitted post idea tbh. Plus as hertz mentioned im not sure that the anonymous approach would be for the best either.

One thing i thought of that id have to look into was the idea of a template which appears to the poster as soon as they click the 'start new thread button'. The template would be a few simple questions that the poster has to answer to give other people a better idea of the image.
i.e. things like, settings, equipment used, personal skill lvl (beginner, intermediate, advanced, pro) and personal statement about the image (what it means to them / what they want to achieve).

This way it would be impossible to simply post an image with no info (as some people seemed to think the critique gallery was the same as the general gallery), or a series of images. However at this point i have no idea if the forum can be altered in such a way... but its an idea all the same.

 

[Hertz van Rental]

I agree with what I think HvR is saying- Simple and functional- build an infrastructure that works then develop arrays later.