Hi to everyone :) I do have a small problem with the "helpful comments" we should/could add to the work, postet in the galeries. If one looks at the ratings, everything is at least great. If someone say's "good", one must feel as if the pic is real crap with all those "excellents" around. "Good" is a fine thing imho? "Needs improvement" can be stated, but i never did find one? So, if there's a range from 1-10, why is almost all of it beyond 8? Why do especially the not-so-well pics get no helpful comments as this are the artists, who need help most? Why are postings to real great images just "ahhh"s and "ohhhh"s but only sometimes words to what makes this workings great? That could be another point helping the less experienced. May help even the good ones around here ;). Is it only, that lot's of people are afraid to articulate critics? Or is it the artists themselfes, that don't want to read comments like that? Or is it me with a wrong sight of things? Don't get me wrong, i'm not speaking of those pictures with horrible thumbs, no-one does even look at. Not giving a comment at all is some kind of a statement too :) .. but i'm talking about those, that are looked and commented. Feeling somewhat irritated. Feeling unease after posting more than 3 lines and then reading my successors with "ahhh great". Is it me, that's wrong? Thanks for reading! Greets Tom PS Sorry 'bout my speaking but english is not my native language ;)

Hi Raven! Yes this is an age old question which has been asked many times here.... I fear it is one that is not easily answered....there are numerous reasons for it. I really believe that critiques help us learn both in giving them and in getting them.... yet I'll be the first to admit that I don't critique as often as I probably could. Maybe...... 1. I don't have the time to sit and articulate what I feel is wrong. 2. Or the image, even with it's technical issues is still an image that evokes a message or a feeling there by making the technical problems not so important. 3. Or I'm not sure how the member feels about public critiques....some people are sensitive to them. 4. Or I think the member only wants to share a moment and really doesn't care to learn anything. 5. Or my negative feelings are in regards to some artistic choices the member has made and I feel that I have no right to give opinions on artistic license.... after all it would only be my opinion, and we each have our own ideas about art and what is pleasing.... 6. Or sometimes all I really want to say is !WOW! Yes I agree it can be irritating to sit and write a thoughtful critique only to have everyone following give excellents and back slaps.... it goes with the territory here. I have noticed your comments and they are quite helpful..... I am sure the members who receive them appreciate them. I know I love to get a good critique and there are a few here who are willing to tell it like it is on my own images, and I love them for it.....

Hi Michelle, thank you very much for taking time to explain your thoughts! :) I'd like to add two points which apply to me more than once: 7. or i'm not able to express my feelings in proper words. 8. or i'm not able to tell exactly what's wrong. There's just that feeling of "s'things wrong here". Even if this question is age-old, i'm willing to continue, if there's anything new, i can add (which i fear is not the case here). If not, ok, after reading your post it's easier for me to understand some people. Sometimes, i need those little reminders ;) I'd like to underline, what you're saying about critiques. I do often have problems giving them. But getting helpful words is a fine gift from the writer. The only risk could be questions following up :) Thanks again!

I only comment images that I like, generally from the ebot's of uploads of my favorite artists, and they are in my list because I like their work. I can't comment all the images that I don't like. I also comment images that I see in the gallery, like "going nowhere" because are excellent for me. I'm not an expert to advise others. If I like an image I say it, even if the image isn't technically perfect, if I like it, my ranking is excellent. If I don't like I don't comment because I'll find a lot of excellent images to comment.
I also value a lot of things in one image: compo, light, mood, theme, idea, title, POV, DOF and if I feel well seeing it I vote for the hot 20. No matter for me sex, race, religion, nationality... of the photographer when I value one image.
Also before I upload one of my images I ask myself: Would be my ranking excellent if this image, that I want to upload, would be of other photographer? Would I vote for this image if this image would be of other photographer? I'm trying to be objective and don't waste the time of the people who has me in their list of favorites.
If you want advice on one image put it in the forum and you'll get the best advice, the title of the gallery is "Art Gallery" not "workshop"
Finally I saw the thumb of your last upload and I think I'll like the photo, if when I see the photo I like it my ranking will be "excellent" as always.

I can sum it up in 3 words. This isn't photosig. And thank the gods for that! The thumb wars over there are incredible. I used to post there and my excellent images rarely got reviews at all. If I posted a nude it would get reviewed, but at the time I was only able to find male models and then everyone got homophobic! If I want an honest critique on my work I post it here, in the forum and I ask for the opinions of others. Michelle helped me with my most recent and her edit in cropping helped me "wow" my client. The gallery is like enax says, an art gallery. Learning happens in the forum. And to be honest, I have learned ALOT from my friends here. Well I am off to shoot 2 girls for Christmas gifts. Mom is paying so its gonna be tough to please her but hey I am getting paid again! Magick Michael

Hi Tom, I use to comment images I like. But sometimes when I see someone needs a help I write an IM to this photographer to tell my critics or hints cause I'm not sure how the member feels about public critiques... some people are sensitive to them. But you're right... we can only learn by helpful words! Greetz, Monika

I agree with Monika, I thought that the IM system was good and I sent some IM, especially commenting about the frames, and I felt myself as a pretentious intruder, for this, not IM neither.

I'm like the Magick one. If I want a critique of my work, I'll post it in the forum and ask a simple question like "Hey, what do you guys think?" The response is usually immediate and very, very helpful. The gallery, well .. shrug. I think that if people starting putting "Please critique" in their posts, then people might start giving critiques of those works. I think many people feel "funny" about honestly critiquing a work in the gallery because someone didn't expressly ask for it. Sort of what Enax is saying above about how he felt. Still, the problem persists that if you don't have a woman in the thumbnail (or the hint of a female body part) then the number of views will be down (along with the number of possible critiques). My $0.02 cents. -=>Donald

Thank you all! I didn't think of the forum here as a plattform for critiques as i used to ignore it 'till some days ago (my fault, not that of the forum or the people in it!!). If this is a way of getting the help, someone needs .. ok! There's only one small problem with it: it works well for you, for people having a lot of experience. Others ones don't even know that there's s'thing wrong with their pics .. they only keep wondering, why no-one comments. But i do understand each and any argument, why someone doesn't give the necessary critiques in the galeries. I know Enax' feeling very well. I do have it even if someone aks directly via IM. One does not know the other one and can never be sure, how the the critique will be taken. Btw.: if someone rarely comments, it's a reason to be proud, if one get's a comment (talking to enax). Thank you :) Considering (naked) women: i don't think, that this is too much of a problem in the photographic-galeries here? At least in the last days there hadn't been to much of them and they were that bad, that naked flesh doesn't help too (even if they got lots of views). But in the bryce / poser galleries, that's definetly a point. But i can live with that for i'm not interested in the opinion of little boys, looking for .... ya know ... sorry if that sounds arrogant. So let me say thanks. After all your postings, i'm one step further. My own pics weren't that much in the focus of my somewhat provocative post. I do know now, where i can get help. But, more important, i do know, what to post in the future (no irony!!). :) Grettings Tom

I think everyone captured my thoughts pretty well. If you want useful critiques, ask for them in the Forum. But also provide some hints; what were you trying to achieve? Where do you think it needs help?

Thank you Misha883 :). But i'd like to point out, that my pics were not really the point of my posting. I'm glad to get help but i don't feel having any right to get it, so there would be no reason to argue about getting critique to me. :) I just wanted to talk about .. hmmm ... let me call it the basics on how the system works here (and why it does it that way). Sorry if that wasn't writen good enough .. blame it on beeing tired oder whatever ;). So thanks again! Greetings Tom