Why can't I stop staring at a bad photo?

dizzyg44 · Aug 25, 2009

Why is it that you can sometimes take some of the worst (technically) yet you can't stop looking at them?

Am I the only one?

For example, these are so wrong technically, yet my eyes keep drawing back to them. I just can't put my finger on why...

The first two I was intentionally trying to shoot into the harsh sun with sb-800, failed of course.

camz · Aug 25, 2009

hmmmm...are these kids of any relation to you?

dizzyg44 · Aug 25, 2009

Yes, but at the time I wanted to go Homer Simpson on the two of them.

camz · Aug 25, 2009

I can't stop looking at bad pictures of my kids myself

MelissaMarieImagery · Aug 25, 2009

^ this is always a possiblity, you draw a deeper connection tos ubjects when you know them. In school my teachers always said "Don't shoot your dog, your girlfriend/boyfriend, or your children/family, you will be VERY bias of the work"

However, those aren't MY kids and I think even though incorrect technically, I really like them. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and just because they aren't correct on the technical scale doesn't mean that they can't be asthetically pleasing (which to me, is the MOST important part)

blash · Aug 25, 2009

Because when you only look at the photo as the capture of a subject, the expressions are priceless? There's a lot of humanity in those expressions which, symbolically, is all the more powerful by the fact that the photos are photos of children - i.e., trying to say many of our problems on a societal scale are resultant of the very nature of our beings since they still exist from an almost 'tabula rasa' (blank slate) state, as well as drawing connections to human curiosity and adventure-seeking even from a young state of innocence.

Congratulations are in order for proving that technical excellence is not the only metric as to the worthiness of a photo, by far, and thus why robots can never (even theoretically) truly judge the merit of a photo.

JerryPH · Aug 26, 2009

I think I have to be the exception to the bias rule. I shoot a lot of pics of my family, and I YET have one that I cannot clearly see either technical, compositional or other kinds of errors in. My parents loved a set I took so much, that they bought 3 frames and had me print them out in 16X20" and 5X7"sizes, but though "nice" I see all kinds of bad points in them.

I know there are times that I need to set aside my critical side and just enjoy a photo, but maybe I am overly hard on myself and what I demand of myself. I *want* to get better... always, and I am constantly pushing to advance myself.

MelissaMarieImagery · Aug 26, 2009

^ I agree I don't really have bias even if the subject is someone I love. I'm able to step back and say "Wow, that photo sucks" hahah.

KmH · Aug 26, 2009

That's the key to selling photographs, and why in-person proofing can be so very valuable. The emotional involvement of the buyer.
Portrait buyers don't care squat about technical excellence. They always pick some of the worst shots just because they have some connection to the image. A child's facial expression or posture is all it takes to make a so-so shot priceless to them.

Derrel · Aug 26, 2009

KmH has obviously sold portraiture....it's true...parents and grandparents will often buy a less-than-optimal photograph if there is some aspect of the child's personality that comes through.

Many of the world's most famous photographs are a bit lacking in technical virtuosity. Think of Eddie Adams' shot of the Vietnamese general General Nguyen Ngoc Loan killing a Vietcong operative--the composition is poor. There's an ugly white building right in the center of the frame. The subjects are too far toward the side of the frame. Weak, weak,weak. And yet one of the most-memorable of tens of thousands of photos from the Vietnam war.

Expression counts for more than ultimate technical quality in people photography. Capturing some type of human feeling, like the feeling of bright sunlight streaming into one's eyes--capturing real feeling, real humanity, counts more that having the perfect exposure and perfect focus.

MelissaMarieImagery · Aug 26, 2009

I sell portraiture every day at work, and you are totally right. If the shot is ****ty but the expression is great, they'll usually buy it. I've sold blurry photos to people because they loved them so much -- even though I point out they are out of focus.

I've gotten really good at telling what photos parents will like and not like, and it never has anything to do with technicalities.

djacobox372 · Aug 27, 2009

Those aren't "bad" shots... Personally I like the highly exposed nature of the first two, had the exposure been lower and the focus more perfect my eye would be distracted by every pore, scratch, and tiny hair on the kids face--which I suspect isn't the point of the photo.

dizzyg44 · Aug 30, 2009

JerryPH said:
I think I have to be the exception to the bias rule. I shoot a lot of pics of my family, and I YET have one that I cannot clearly see either technical, compositional or other kinds of errors in. My parents loved a set I took so much, that they bought 3 frames and had me print them out in 16X20" and 5X7"sizes, but though "nice" I see all kinds of bad points in them.

I know there are times that I need to set aside my critical side and just enjoy a photo, but maybe I am overly hard on myself and what I demand of myself. I *want* to get better... always, and I am constantly pushing to advance myself.

I can clearly see the technical errors in these.

I agree on stepping aside the technical/critical and looking at the picture as a whole and just enjoy it for what it is. It's sometimes too hard to step aside that I sometimes it's to the point that I think it's hurting me creatively.....but that's a rant for another thread.

skieur · Sep 1, 2009

In all photos, not just children's photos, it can be difficult when a pro can see a considerable number of good points: technically and aesthetically with his/her photo and an equal number of bad points, and on balance cannot decide whether it is a keeper or for file 13 (garbage). :thumbup: or :thumbdown:

Of course, "When in doubt, throw it out." works too.

skieur

JerryPH · Sep 1, 2009

Actually, if I have to be honest, I am not satisfied with anything that I have produced to date. When it comes time to CC my own work, a bad shot is disgusting and maddening, and even some of my "best" work to date is just so inadequate in my eyes.

I am often frustrated at my inabilities and motivated to improve and do better. I try very hard... and that mythical "perfect shot" has so far eluded me... matter of fact, likely forever.

I think that it is important for an artist to be able to separate the art & technical side from something that you have a personal attachment to (shots of your kids, departed relatives, nude shots of ex-girlfriends and so on... lol).

If you cannot seperate these two, you are hurting your photography by not being honest with yourself about it. You then may have such an attachment to a shot that you will wish to post it, and make the mistake of asking for a CC... which then others will be (in your eyes) totally brutal and incorrect... well, they have no such emotional aspect, and if the shot is blurry, its blurry and if the composition sucks... becuase of your attachment, you cannot see it, and just get mad at the CC giver.

It's nice to be passionate, but it is also important to be realistic and face reality.