sharing photos

[kiley9806]

if there were a place that we could post pictures, just to share, and not really to critique, might be nice. just get comments and talk about pictures taken... just a though. :)

[Marko]

That's an interesting thought, do other people agree?

If so it wouldn't be hard to set up.

Thx
Marko

[tegan]

That's an interesting thought, do other people agree?

If so it wouldn't be hard to set up.

Thx
Marko

I don't see the point in sharing photos unless they are reasonably good. If they are reasonably good then you should be looking to improve your technique to make them even better. If you are truly looking to improve, then you do not mind comments and critiques.

Sharing is more appropriate to some kind of social network such as Facebook and certainly not a Fine Art Photography site.

Tegan

[kiley9806]

i thought open forums were a form of social network.

sharing a photo that doesnt need to be 'critiqued' doesnt mean it cant be commented on and discussed.

i thought this site was for more for amateur/newbies and people who were passionate about a hobby and interest as a collective group. if all the members and guests were professionals who've taken photos for years upon years and who did this as a living, rather than a pastime, i would understand a reason why all work posted has to be torn apart and broken down into what is 'right' and 'wrong'.

some of us are doing this for FUN. imagine that...

[tegan]

i thought open forums were a form of social network.

sharing a photo that doesnt need to be 'critiqued' doesnt mean it cant be commented on and discussed.

i thought this site was for more for amateur/newbies and people who were passionate about a hobby and interest as a collective group. if all the members and guests were professionals who've taken photos for years upon years and who did this as a living, rather than a pastime, i would understand a reason why all work posted has to be torn apart and broken down into what is 'right' and 'wrong'.

some of us are doing this for FUN. imagine that...

Doing it for fun or not, even if you joined a camera club, when your photos are shown they are critiqued and broken down as to what was done correctly and what could be improved. That is what photography is all about: a desire to improve the quality of your work. If you are TRULY "passionate about a hobby" then you are TRULY interested in improving your skills.

Is that the case, with you or not?

Tegan

[tegan]

i thought open forums were a form of social network.

sharing a photo that doesnt need to be 'critiqued' doesnt mean it cant be commented on and discussed....

I don't know how you would draw an invisible line between comments and critique. I don't agree with any approach that can lead to characterizations such as "attaboys" are comments because they are meaningless pats on the back, but suggestions for improvement are critique.

Any photographer who is truly passionate about their hobby whether newbie or not does their homework and research, experiments, listens to critique and gains experience. They gain confidence through their work and learn from both their successes and failures. They do NOT need meaningless positive compliments and learning never ends even for pros. And of course, what is the purpose of sharing photos without critique, if it is NOT to secure meaningless positive pats on the back?

Tegan

Tegan

[kiley9806]

i am interested in improving my skills.
there is, however, more to photography than just skill and just the neccesity to improve.
i see it as an outlet. it is a hobby. it is something fun.

i am not asking for meaningless positive comments or pats on the back. that was not the point of the suggestion. the point was to build on the community of the forum, and have a place to simply share pictures taken.

i do think that people who are interested in photography should be offered a more positive reception than you give on this forum tegan. nothing seems to be good enough for you, not even a simple suggestion. if this is a place to learn and improve, it would help to not be spoken 'down' to, or felt as though you are stupid or not good enough for this forum. which is how youve welcomed me, as a 'senior member'.


i retract my suggestion for a sharing board. it obviously is not a good idea...

[Travis]

lol... amusing thread....

kiley I wouldn't get so upset with tegan.... it is obvious that she is a bull in china shop but she also has a lot to offer and learn from....

i agree with your idea that a photo sharing spot would be good.... there are photo's that i have felt compelled to share that aren't technical 5 stars.... but might be amusing.... I too have held up from posting these photo's to this forum because i'm aware that people may come out blasting....

but... on the other hand.... this has made me look at the technical attributes of my work more closely....

i think what this place needs is a beginners section.... where photo's and questions could be posted.... it is then understood the source of the post is beginner/amateur... and the critique and/or comment can be somewhat more constructive as to helping a newbie....

or maybe a coffeshop section or something for pro's to act loosely...

relax everybody... :)

[Marko]

For clarity,
Forum = the whole bulletin board
forum = the individual forums or topics that make up the Forum or bulletin board (ie General photography, Critiques etc.)

Even though this is a small Forum I can see by our logs that we actually have a number of lurkers (guests that visit but haven't registered).

Forums seem to take on a pulse of their own without much regard to the original intent of the Admin :D. For me, the intent was teaching or the sharing of photography knowledge, and the limited number of forums that make up this board were created to further that goal.

But this Forum, as all Forums should, should reflect the desires of the members. It shouldn't be static or autocratic - it should be dynamic and democratic (to an extent anyway:);))

The only thing I'm not too crazy about is having many empty forums with no action. As the Forum grows - I have no problem opening new forums left right and center.

Soooo all that said, I think that if members want a place to simply to share photos without critiques, how can that hurt?

I will implement a new sharing forum as a trial within a day or so. If people like it and use it, we'll keep it.

Thanks for the input thus far and feel free to keep it coming...:highfive:

[tegan]

i am interested in improving my skills.

i do think that people who are interested in photography should be offered a more positive reception than you give on this forum tegan. nothing seems to be good enough for you, not even a simple suggestion. if this is a place to learn and improve, it would help to not be spoken 'down' to, or felt as though you are stupid or not good enough for this forum. which is how youve welcomed me, as a 'senior member'. .

Your characterizations are not accurate and neither is the concept that weak photos should receive positive feedback. The so-called welcome that you characterize from me is EXACTLY the welcome you would receive in any serious camera club in an urban centre. I know because that is where I first started as a teen amateur.

You characterize it as being spoken "down to" but if you don't display certain knowledge through your photos, then I have NO idea whether you have that knowledge or not. For a truly passionate amateur, confidence comes from within and through working at gaining knowledge and experience. If you need the support of artificial positive compliments well, that is something that you will have to deal with, as you mature.

Certainly there are Forums where newbies exchange comments such as "Nice"
and "I like it.", but no one learns anything, and passionate enthusiasts don't even bother looking at the poor quality photos.

I repeat what I said before: Facebook and a Fine Art Photography Forum are two very different things. One is for socialization and the other is to improve photography.

Tegan

[Travis]

Even though this is a small Forum I can see by our logs that we actually have a number of lurkers (guests that visit but haven't registered).

The only thing I'm not too crazy about is having many empty forums with no action. As the Forum grows - I have no problem opening new forums left right and center.

...:highfive:

I wouldn't worry so much about having forums with no action. You might find that increasing the variety of new forums will increase the posting traffic. Something is keeping the numerous amount of trollers from posting. There may also be a misconception whether this is a "photography" forum, or a "fine art photography" forum. Visitors may not think their amateur work is not accepted here. I guess this is up to you how to shape the forum. I'm here not because of fine art.... mostly because I'm Canadian and into photography.

If you google "photography forum" this is the second site mentioned.... it should be getting a lot more posts... if your looking for more traffic you should open it up more to beginners and hardware etc... The seperation of beginners and pro's also add's an understanding of where everybody is coming from and reduces tension. I also post at TPF and finds this works very well.

[Travis]

Your characterizations are not accurate and neither is the concept that weak photos should receive positive feedback. The so-called welcome that you characterize from me is EXACTLY the welcome you would receive in any serious camera club in an urban centre. I know because that is where I first started as a teen amateur.

You characterize it as being spoken "down to" but if you don't display certain knowledge through your photos, then I have NO idea whether you have that knowledge or not. For a truly passionate amateur, confidence comes from within and through working at gaining knowledge and experience. If you need the support of artificial positive compliments well, that is something that you will have to deal with, as you mature.

Certainly there are Forums where newbies exchange comments such as "Nice"
and "I like it.", but no one learns anything, and passionate enthusiasts don't even bother looking at the poor quality photos.

I repeat what I said before: Facebook and a Fine Art Photography Forum are two very different things. One is for socialization and the other is to improve photography.

Tegan


lol.... tegan stop being such a bully....

[Marko]

I wouldn't worry so much about having forums with no action. You might find that increasing the variety of new forums will increase the posting traffic. Something is keeping the numerous amount of trollers from posting. There may also be a misconception whether this is a "photography" forum, or a "fine art photography" forum. Visitors may not think their amateur work is not accepted here. I guess this is up to you how to shape the forum. I'm here not because of fine art.... mostly because I'm Canadian and into photography.

If you google "photography forum" this is the second site mentioned.... it should be getting a lot more posts... if your looking for more traffic you should open it up more to beginners and hardware etc... The seperation of beginners and pro's also add's an understanding of where everybody is coming from and reduces tension...........

Those are some very interesting points Travis! I guess i have a bit of rethinking to do. Before We added the forum and blog the most interesting aspects to the site were the images done by fine art photographers. So I guess I kind of had that in mind when the forum was started and just used all the same lingo. But I think you may well be right, the title of the forum might well be misleading.

In terms of number 2 spot for that term in Google - there you are mistaken. On YOUR computer it may come up second....but not in most parts of the world. Google serves different search results based on the geography of the searcher.

Thanks a lot for that input,

Marko

[Marko]

Ok I just set up a show your photo section - let's see how it works :goodvibes

Thx
Marko

[Travis]

Those are some very interesting points Travis! I guess i have a bit of rethinking to do. Before We added the forum and blog the most interesting aspects to the site were the images done by fine art photographers. So I guess I kind of had that in mind when the forum was started and just used all the same lingo. But I think you may well be right, the title of the forum might well be misleading.

In terms of number 2 spot for that term in Google - there you are mistaken. On YOUR computer it may come up second....but not in most parts of the world. Google serves different search results based on the geography of the searcher.

Thanks a lot for that input,

Marko


hmmm... good to know..... i wasn't aware that Google did that....