Seeing as this was the 1st week of my new website and blog launch, I thought I’d gauge some opinions in a forum I frequent. BIG mistake.
Well.. on the whole the feedback was pretty good, and the site was received well, but then the select few started to nit pick beyond all reasonable comment, and were pulling me up on things that even Ansel Adams would not have noticed, or for that matter cared about.
The actual comments were irrelevant, but what struck me was the anger and possible jealousy that some folk had towards what they perceived as a newcomer to the club.. I thought I’d just go and ask some advice.. but left feeling angry and deflated.
I’m all for hearing and taking on board feedback but I think , especially with photography that there’s an increasing trend to focus (no pun intended) on the micro analysis of every shot.. pour over each pixel and analyse each angle as if a life depended on it.
I dont ever remember people looking at 35mm negatives or slide film the same way. Just because we can doesn’t mean we have to. For me the enjoyment from digital means that I dont have to be stood in the dark and stinking of chemicals and my results are instant. its JUST as rewarding. But i think people, espcially the pros and tend to overlook one important element of the art of photography – how it looks.. on paper, or on the eye.. NOT enlarged 1000% and analyzed.
In my opinion..clients dont care what camera you use, what lens, what make, how fast your memory card is, what kind of ISO you are shooting at. They just want nice photos. True, nice cameras tend to give nice photos, but a good photographer can get good photos from an expensive camera. An excellent photographer can get good photos from a crap camera.
I left the forums feeling both fustrated and angry. Too much analysis, not enough time in my life to care about pixel-peeping. If you look on my website, can you tell which of those have been taken with a 100 quid camera, and which have been taken with a 1000 quid camera? I bet you can’t. Would you like them less once you knew? I would doubt it.
I’m thinking that forums are not such a great idea.
I feel for you. No one likes criticism beyond what is useful. In the end you gotta just follow your instincts.
Forums are pure evil. They out the inner bully.
I had the unfortunate experience to admin for a tv show forum. We had stalkers, attempted suicides live online, death threats, manipulation… we’re talking primarily overweight, nerdy teenagers here with anti-social issues that find a freeflowing outlet for their rage.
One chick, a very intelligent woman but he arch bully of the forum, was actually the sweetest person in real life. A school teacher. It’s just she had a sadistic alter-ego.
So yeah, don’t put your stuff up for debate on a forum.
Build em up, knock em down – the old NME adage, but with forums there’s no bracing for the assault.
Your stuff is gorgeous.You don’t need validation. Do you?
Julesx
Photography is subjective. If you like it that’s good enough. If one other person likes it even better. And, since you’re a pro, if you’ve produced something saleable – you win.
Don’t let anyone debate your work unless the prize is big enough. Beyond that all people can really say about any artform is yes I like it or no I don’t.