Post by Saknika on Jul 27, 2009 19:15:07 GMT -5
I'm sure many of you have never thought about why critique is important to you as a photographer, beyond the fact that the feedback on your images will help you grow. What you may not have realized, is that you're also growing by looking at and commenting on others' photographs as well.
By looking at someone else's photography, and pointing out what you do and don't like, you're also going to discover what does and doesn't please you. Sometimes the imagery you're looking at will be more amateur than what level you're at now, and sometimes it will be far superior. Either way, by leaving a critique you're going to learn.
When the imagery is more amateur than your current level, critiquing the photograph will allow you to re-discover basic techniques you might have forgotten, and need to re-visit. It will also cement information in your brain, since you usually learn best when you teach others. It will also help instill a sense of pride and community in you, to know that you are able to help someone else out who needs it.
Imagery that is superior to where you are now serves as a learning tool for you. Critiquing these images will still be helpful to the photographer, but will also be incredibly beneficial to you. You're now looking at photography of a quality that you aspire to achieve. By studying the image, and commenting on specific aspects, you are also becoming aware of just what you find to make a photograph good. These things that you discover should be things you attempt to implement into your own photography. By doing this, you will grow as a photographer, and your images can only become better.
Not only does critiquing photographs help, but reading the critiques posted by others will help as well. As human beings we aren't going to necessarily notice everything about things, and so what one person notices might not be what you notice. Reading the other critiques gives you insight from someone else's point of view, and it will also allow you to see the photograph from another angle. Understanding how others view a photograph is just as much a learning tool as anything else.
So no matter how time-consuming or trivial the critiques may seem, they are incredibly important and beneficial to all of us as photographers. From the hobbiest to the professional, we all need the critiques to keep going. A true artist will always have something new to learn, and as such they always need to give and receive critiques. As such, please do not be shy in offering anything you find could be helpful or complimentary to your fellow photographers. We all appreciate the constructive criticism!
And remember, the more you critique, the more likely you are to get critiques.
By looking at someone else's photography, and pointing out what you do and don't like, you're also going to discover what does and doesn't please you. Sometimes the imagery you're looking at will be more amateur than what level you're at now, and sometimes it will be far superior. Either way, by leaving a critique you're going to learn.
When the imagery is more amateur than your current level, critiquing the photograph will allow you to re-discover basic techniques you might have forgotten, and need to re-visit. It will also cement information in your brain, since you usually learn best when you teach others. It will also help instill a sense of pride and community in you, to know that you are able to help someone else out who needs it.
Imagery that is superior to where you are now serves as a learning tool for you. Critiquing these images will still be helpful to the photographer, but will also be incredibly beneficial to you. You're now looking at photography of a quality that you aspire to achieve. By studying the image, and commenting on specific aspects, you are also becoming aware of just what you find to make a photograph good. These things that you discover should be things you attempt to implement into your own photography. By doing this, you will grow as a photographer, and your images can only become better.
Not only does critiquing photographs help, but reading the critiques posted by others will help as well. As human beings we aren't going to necessarily notice everything about things, and so what one person notices might not be what you notice. Reading the other critiques gives you insight from someone else's point of view, and it will also allow you to see the photograph from another angle. Understanding how others view a photograph is just as much a learning tool as anything else.
So no matter how time-consuming or trivial the critiques may seem, they are incredibly important and beneficial to all of us as photographers. From the hobbiest to the professional, we all need the critiques to keep going. A true artist will always have something new to learn, and as such they always need to give and receive critiques. As such, please do not be shy in offering anything you find could be helpful or complimentary to your fellow photographers. We all appreciate the constructive criticism!
And remember, the more you critique, the more likely you are to get critiques.
