One person’s idea of beautiful can be totally different from another. We all get that. But how can someone not see how bad they are? They have a camera in hand, they take pictures, family and friends say how wonderful they are even if they aren’t. They need to find someone who will be honest with them because they will not be honest with them-self.
One of the things I see a lot is the request for Constructive Criticism (CC). There are YouTube channels that focus on this regularly, Facebook groups that are there to help you grow, but do you listen? I belong/have belonged to a few photography Facebook groups. They run the whole gamut from very comfortable to downright mean. Some people will ask for CC, but they don’t really want it. They want validation that their work is good. When they don’t get it, they get nasty. People fight, say things they shouldn’t. Then leave the group and learn nothing.
I saw one recently where a young girl posted some photos very proud of what she had taken. They were pretty good but did have issues. Mostly technical things that a few people pointed out to her. That is all fine and good, but no one pointed out any of the good things. She had great composition, but her depth of field was off. One was a beautiful shot, but the sky was blown out. The CC was all about the blown-out part, no comment on how great the rest of the photo was.
Here is my suggestion to those offering CC. Find something encouraging to say. Tell them what they did right, not just what they did wrong. Then they will be more open to listening to what you have to say, and what you say will hold more credibility.
To the person receiving the CC, take it. By that I mean listen, process, learn, and move on. As I said at the beginning, everyone has a different idea of what they like. Personally, some of the best photographs I have seen aren’t ‘technically’ perfect. Photographers are the worst critics because they will see the technical flaws. The best critic is the one who sees what you were seeing when you took the picture. But also remember that the best photographers never took their art for granted. You have to continue to grow; if you become stagnant you will wither away. Most important, do not get full of yourself. These days there is always another photographer to pick up where you left off.
