Everyone welcome and comfortable???

Valentia

I'd love to post in this forum, but I've seen too many people have the pee ripped out of them, so I'll just enjoy my photos myself.

A quote from TapouT on another thread. This is desperately sad and a bad reflection on the forum. I must admit I felt a bit the same, though I've gotten over that. Some of the smart allacky, patronising stuff is very offputting. Seriously though, do we want a forum where people can feel that they can post and get construvtine advice and not just subjective judgements. To me photography is like music. I like all sorts and can see the merit in stuff that doesn't appeal to me.

Some of the comments made here (and not just by Shrimp) would rip the soul out of someone starting out. By all means be critical but it is important to encourage.

I think the only exception I would make is if some premadonna burst in here thinking they were God's gift to photography and acted that way. Hmm, begod we could have some fun then I suppose.

peepingtom

i hear ya brother

Oriel

But nobody is as good as me. Of course.

CONMIKE12

I would tend to agree.As I'm only starting out I am constantly rumaging around this forum for tips and advice.Sometimes some of the comments I have seen have made me cringe and would definitely make me think twice about posting a photo.But,in general,I think it's a very informative forum.

ChityWest

That put me off posting anything for a while too - then I thought - f*(* it !

I think most people here could find at least one other person who's work (or at least some samples of their work) they would consider to be not as good as their own - I think the problem is in how you choose to handle that.

I think if you cant think of anything constructive to say - then dont bother. If your just trying to sound cool and score points while not offering any useful advice - then save your breadth. Being arrogant and condescending/dismissive does no one any good and is just plain ugly. imo.

dalk

Sure i agree but... some people who post seeking 'criticism' or 'critiques' of their pics often in reality seem only to be fishing for compliments. Which is fine of course, but try to develop a thicker skin. And don't have the ridiculous notion that just because you like something means that everyone else will... Consensus is rare in something subjective like Art. Taste varies.

Posters on this forum go from being very easily impressed, to being very critical.

Oriel

CONMIKE12 wrote:

I would tend to agree.

Gee, thank you very much.

elven

You can't go anywhere without there being someone who thinks their pictures and their taste are the be-all and end-all of photography. I've had problems in the past with wanting constructive criticism and getting "sorry it's just crap" or at the other end of the scale "ooh very pretty" which is nice, but doesn't help anyone.

Hopefully this can be the place where I can try to use my limited experience to help someone who might be where I was a couple of years ago, and be helped by someone who is beyond my skill level. Of course, I haven't posted any pictures yet so it's all theoretical just now

Generally this seems to be a pretty welcoming and open place to share thoughts.

Dundhoone

dalk wrote:

Sure i agree but... some people who post seeking 'criticism' or 'critiques' of their pics often in reality seem only to be fishing for compliments. Which is fine of course, but try to develop a thicker skin. And don't have the ridiculous notion that just because you like something means that everyone else will... Consensus is rare in something subjective like Art. Taste varies.

Posters on this forum go from being very easily impressed, to being very critical.

Yeah, and often those that are very impressed are reacting to someone whos posted something overcritical or simply offensive, rather than giving honest critique.

I'm new to photography and im honestly amazed at the arrogance and ego of some photographers (not all necessarily on this forum) particularily because as an art form , as you said, its all about taste. As you said elven, it comes down to other people who feel that their interpretation of what is good art is is what eveyone else should think good art is. In a field supposedly full of imagination, its a very limited viewpoint!

PaulieC

OED defines criticise as...
"To discuss critically; to offer judgement upon with respect to merits or faults".
Therefore, criticism can be good or bad, but by definition it must include a reason why it's good or bad. Not just "it's crap" or "it's really nice". I'm very comfortable with criticism, as long as it is meaningful one way or the other

joolsveer

Well I would say that I definitely have felt unwelcome on this forum in recent weeks and I stress that I believe I am able to take constructive criticism. I take it all the time on other sites like photo.net. The difference between constructive and destructive criticism, to me, is that you can learn from having your photos criticised in a constructive manner where advice is given as how to correct technical or compositional issues.
I think it would help to maintain order here if there was a clear set of guidelines or rules laying down that specified inappropriate behaviour would be dealt with without fear or favour. My pet hate is being harangued with vulgar abuse using scatological and sexually inspired language. It really gets my back up. Foul language may be the norm on the streets of Irish cities but do we have to use it here?

Fenster

It doesn't bother me too much, as I personally prefer bad feedback on the grounds that it is usually more informative. Besides which, I've been on some truly horrible forums in my time, this board is tame in comparison. No, the problem is that someone will lay into a bad photo, but the poster of the photo can't take such harsh criticism and things get nasty (the jools thread of a few days ago).

As for Shrimp, I came up with my own solution for him a while back. He doesn't contribute anything to this board except for his infinitely rehashed, "you suck, bin your camera now" comments.

melekalikimaka

dalk wrote:

Sure i agree but... some people who post seeking 'criticism' or 'critiques' of their pics often in reality seem only to be fishing for compliments. Which is fine of course, but try to develop a thicker skin. And don't have the ridiculous notion that just because you like something means that everyone else will... Consensus is rare in something subjective like Art. Taste varies.

Posters on this forum go from being very easily impressed, to being very critical.

bingo

eas

but try to develop a thicker skin. And don't have the ridiculous notion that just because you like something means that everyone else will... Consensus is rare in something subjective like Art. Taste varies.

for sure, couldnt agree more, but it's a 2 way street < >

Thirdfox

Fenster: what does the ignore button do anyway? - Does it remove his posts from your sight? And hey we have the same Mozilla theme!

Fenster

Try it and see.

Zillah

I blame Shrimp.

(And you know im right Shrimpy boy)

Thirdfox

Where is Shrimp btw? Doesn't seem fair to accuse people when they're not here to defend themselves...

Zillah

Its a forum, its not like we'll be declaring the matter closed within the next ten seconds or anything.

He'll respond when and if he's inclined. He knows damn right he constantly insults people. If I recall, his sig says something about being as delicate as a nuke.

Fionn

ahh who cares? i couldn't give a rats ass what anyone thinks!! i know my neighbours hate it when i'm showering (mostly my singing)
and i've no doubt my photographic efforts are similar, hopefully i can improve, well it's pretty bad now so that shouldn't be a huge prob straight off, anyway i can live with my poor photos.

ok so i got my first camera yesterday, unless i count a Canon snappy i had about 20 years ago! it's the first.
it was late before i got to take a look at it, didn't expect so many buttons and stuff and of course the manual was in every language except english, so a bit difficult to follow after havin a few pints too. anyway my test shots are linked below please don't anyone ask me any technical questions about f stops or iso or whatever i haven't a clue
cheers
btw the green bottles were from last night obviously and the flora was taken today at lunch time .

aFlabbyPanda

We all like to get compliments about our pics, which is fine as encouragement will make you want to take more shots and get better. But it’s also important to know where you are going wrong so you can correct mistakes.

What I've noticed is people criticising a shot without saying how to improve or correct the error. Like (and this isn’t just about my recent shots but it’s a good example) better composition (ok like what?) or the shots aren’t sharp (ok how do I correct that). Give people good solid advice.

The reason I'm starting to post my shots here is that I already know I need help and that some of the shots aren’t perfect. I don’t need someone else telling me that. What I'm looking for is the info on how to improve.

I appreciate the time people took to look at my pics and post comments. I am in no way singling them out for anything. Just my 2 cents.

cgf

Fenster wrote:

It doesn't bother me too much, as I personally prefer bad feedback on the grounds that it is usually more informative. Besides which, I've been on some truly horrible forums in my time, this board is tame in comparison. No, the problem is that someone will lay into a bad photo, but the poster of the photo can't take such harsh criticism and things get nasty (the jools thread of a few days ago).

As for Shrimp, I came up with my own solution for him a while back. He doesn't contribute anything to this board except for his infinitely rehashed, "you suck, bin your camera now" comments.

I came across this rather interesting item on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrimp

Shrimp preparation

To deshell the shrimp, first hold onto the tail while gently removing the shell around the body. The tail can be detached completely at this point, or left attached for presentation purposes. The "vein" is then removed; make a shallow cut lengthwise down the outer curve of the shrimp's body. Pick out the dark ribbon-like vein running lengthwise along the shrimp's back with a pointed utensil. Then rinse the shrimp under cold running water. If the tail has been detached, the vein can be pinched at the tail end and pulled out completely with the fingers. Care with live shrimp is necessary, as they can inflict extremely painful injuries.

Fenster

I've blocked him and I've gotten that point across, which is the beginning and end of things as far as I'm concerned. Bashing his character past that actually doesn't sit well with me, unfortunately.

melekalikimaka

tut tut in fairness to shrimp, he usually has valid points, even if his getting it accross is less that tactful

Valentia

Bashing his character past that actually doesn't sit well with me, unfortunately.

Apart from the "unfortunately" I agree 100%