Critiquing is something that we should all do when considering a photograph, both before you take the shot, and after while editing or preparing it for competitions. So, that said, what do we do and what should we be looking for is the most important thing. This week the evening was all about all of us having a chance to Critique photographs for ourselves.
Critiquing is a Positive Experience
Critiquing should be a positive experience explaining what works, what adds to the photograph, focusing on the positives. This allows us to see what makes a good photograph and what we should aim for when considering and composing ourselves. Sometimes it is all too easy to consider a photograph and point out what we feel are the negative points about it. Looking for negatives trains our minds to look for imperfections, and not focus on the strengths of a photograph. Centring on the strengths of a photograph is much harder, as we found out when Critiquing. Although, this was made easier when we opened up the conversation after a selected member completed his Critique. With this approach, we were able to gather the views of many people which allowed us to synergistically accumulate the positive elements. So, this centred our minds around what worked about the photograph and what its strengths were.
Critiquing is a Positive Experience
Critiquing should be a positive experience explaining what works, what adds to the photograph, focusing on the positives. This allows us to see what makes a good photograph and what we should aim for when considering and composing ourselves. Sometimes it is all too easy to consider a photograph and point out what we feel are the negative points about it. Looking for negatives trains our minds to look for imperfections, and not focus on the strengths of a photograph. Centring on the strengths of a photograph is much harder, as we found out when Critiquing. Although, this was made easier when we opened up the conversation after a selected member completed his Critique. With this approach, we were able to gather the views of many people which allowed us to synergistically accumulate the positive elements. So, this centred our minds around what worked about the photograph and what its strengths were.
Appreciating Other Genres
When we are presented with a photograph that is of a genre that we like it is easy to comment on it. This week made us have to consider other genres that may not be something that we are accustomed to or even like. This makes it a real challenge for us to then positively comment on and appreciate. With this situation it makes us have to think more about the core elements that make a good photograph. This, in turn, focuses us on what are the good elements of the photograph and appreciate these.
Helping with Critiquing
To help us with the process of Critiquing, Tom Knowles prepared some prompt cards to help us. These allowed us to centre our comments around; technical areas of the photograph, creativity, composition and the impact it had. These helped us to focus on the areas that we should consider.
Lots of Submissions
It was really positive to see so many of us submit photographs for Critiquing and taking part. We hope that this will tempt others that may not be so confident to submit their photographs in the future. This evening helped us to look at the areas of strength within our own work and focus on how to further improve our images.
A Big Thanks To Tom
Finally, we must thank Tom for coming up with the format for this evening and making it a positive experience. We look forward to the next Critique Evening.