Camera Club Critiques

I have just started a new group on Flickr.

http://www.flickr.com/groups/1018989@N23/

This can be a place where images are displayed, shared and/or critiqued. It will only be successful IF we post pictures and IF we ALL comment on the posted pictures. After talking with several members and after our own executive camera club board meeting I think that many people would like more comments on their photographs. Perhaps this is a forum that can help everyone and visually deilight us all in the learning process. Anyone with an interest in photograph can join.

You will be able to subscribe to the group after you join so you will know when new things have been posted to the group.

Feed – Subscribe to Camera Club Critiques discussion threads

http://api.flickr.com/services/feeds/groups_discuss.gne?id=1018989@N23&lang=en-us&format=rss_200


About Camera Club Critiques

This is a place for you to upload your photograph so that others may enjoy it, comment on it and/or critique it. During the monthly competitions it is not possible to get comments on every photograph but everyone learns when we critique and are critiqued.

We ALL love to see photographs and learn what might be done to improve them.

Constructive criticism only, remember the maker took that photograph for a reason and they chose it to compete for a reason.

You can offer constructive criticism. You can also "score" the photo if you want (0-10) and please break it down into the 4 categories below so people can learn.

Please remember that what constitutes a GREAT photo for CAMERA CLUB competition does not necessarily constitute a GREAT photo for hanging on your wall, in an art studio, on the cover of a magazine, etc. Camera club competition is but one set of guidelines. If you want to be on the cover of a magazine you usually shoot vertical and leave lots of sky (or negative space) for the TITLE and words. This same image would have to be cropped tightly to do well in camera club competition.

At a John Shaw seminar John remarked "If you are attending my seminar in hopes to improve your camera club competition scores then I will NOT be able to help you as my images would not necessarily do well in camera club competition. Howver, I have made my living with them and they have been published in many places".

The bottom line: Shoot what you love.

Judging Guidelines:

Light and exposure

0= badly over or under-exposed.

1= Use of light is appropriate with some tolerance for exposure range.

2=Use of light and exposure well handled & absolutely correct with no obvious lighting problems.

3=Light and exposure have been used effectively, beyond mere recording. The exposure may be deliberately unusual but correct, and the image shows skill in the use of light direction, character, and color.

Sharpness

0=the subject image is not sharp or as sharp as required in subject areas

1=the subject area is sharp (blurred areas are an enhancement)

Composition and Design

0=composition is careless with significant distractions. Design is not apparent or not satisfactory.

1=Composition and design are satisfactory. Distractions may be apparent but not dominant.

2=Composition and design are without fault. There are no distractions.

3=the organization of the elements is critical to the success of the image. Composition and design are both with out fault or distraction.

Mood, Impact, Subject Matter

0=the image has little emotional appeal and fails to communicate an objective.

1=the image initiates some emotional response or recognition of the makers perceived objective.

2=the subject conveys a sense of place or an event and is accurately rendered. There is an automatic emotional response.

3=the image is powerful and evokes an immediate emotional response which is strong and lasting. The subject matter is well selected and portrayed.

My personal opinion is that many photographs can be technically correct, lighting and exposure, but the "impact" portion is only a 1 or 2 and the composition portion is only a 2 leading to a score of 7 or 8 by a judge (21 or 24). You can improve on technical features but impact is hard -- either it is ther or it is not there. And sometimes a photograph has impact to US because we were there and the photograph brings back the emotion that we were feeling that day at the time that we tripped the shutter. That does not necessarily mean that a viewer that was not there feels the same impact as you did because you were there and they were not there.