Woman with Red Handbag

[manaheim]

Fred, I think the way to look at this might be more along the lines of... Whatever you were hoping to communicate here was clearly not received by most people viewing the piece. Regardless about how YOU feel about the work, a big part of art is usually communicating something and it sounds like in this case we have a miss.

I understand your frustration, but being defensive rarely gets you far. Take a step back.

 

[jowensphoto]

Art shouldn't need explaining.

 

[Frequency]

Dear Fred,
My humble feeling is that an image need not be visually appealing just because it has leading lines to the subject or because subject is at the golden point- of course they are strong points. Only when you can observe emotionally distancing your brain child you can see its limits and draw backs. Further i don't think this time the criticisms are too harsh; so please take them cool

 

[Tuffythepug]

The idea here, and real subject, is how insignificant man is; even in surroundings created by himself he almost disappears into the undergrowth.

Whilst I welcome all views on my work (but also reserve the right to respond as I see fit), some of the posts in this thread display an arrogance that is frankly breathtaking. If by responding to your input (which, as mentioned, I value) with words that you may not like or do not want to hear, I am then open to accusations of making excuses and not being able to receive criticism, then this is the hallmark of puerile mindsets and a rather disappointing situation. Please do feel free not to post on my threads in future if your egos can't take having your views questioned and, perhaps, even rejected. Dialogue is not about telling someone what you think and demanding that they agree and thank you for your superior knowledge. Dialogue is about accepting that views differ and attempting to see things from the other person's perspective. This is not the first time I have experienced this extremely rude kind of behaviour on this forum.

To those who have given feedback in a considered and reasoned way, thank you.

I'm sorry Fred, I think it's plain to see who is responding with arrogance here. The fact that you needed to explain "the real idea here" is proof enough that your photo failed in it's intended purpose. You need to step back and realize that people are not criticizing you; they are critiquing your photo just as everyone else's' photos are critiqued.

You have to remember that someone who views your photo does not have a direct line inside your head and an understanding of what you are trying to convey; all we have is the image. It either works or it doesn't work regardless of your intentions. The fact that virtually nobody so far has reacted the way you wanted them to is a real good clue that you may be the arrogant one in claiming that we are all wrong in our assessment. You have posted some good photos on the forum but this isn't one of them. I see what you tried to do but it didn't come across. Sometimes it just works out that way. But don't get mad at the viewer; look at what you could have done to make the photo better convey your intentions.