DSS #30 Unofficial Feedback Thread - Envorinmental Portrait

hawkeye978

Here is the official gallery to give your C&C for DSS#30

Gallery Found Here...

Once more into the fray. This unofficial feedback thread is a catch-all of sorts, lets make it happen:thumb

Anyway, let's start feedback on DSS #30!!

This thread is:

• a place to post a list of your top ten favorites. (be heard, and let everyone know what images moved you.)
• a place to post your "the making of my image"
• a place to ask someone "how did they do that?"(for us all to see:D )

Feedback is an important part of the photographic process. While those selected as finalists get feedback from the judges and those who vote, others are never quite sure where they stand. So share your thoughts both in this thread and with comments in the actual gallery. Constructive criticism should always be welcome.

It's easy to post thumbnails (with help from our Moderator).

With the image selected in the gallery, copy its URL from your browser, add "-Th.jpg" to the end, delete the jumble of numbers and letters preceding the hashtag (#), change "gallery" to "photos" and that's it.

Example

Change this url

http://challenges.smugmug.com/gallery/7821877_VUfQz#508585564_r5YQB

To this

http://challenges.smugmug.com/photos/508585564_r5YQB-Th.jpg

Happy Feedbacking :scratch

jeffgroves

Excellent portrait entries!
Great job everyone! Congratulations to all who entered and good luck judges trying to pick only 10!

michswiss

Great job everyone. Here are some of the photos that took my fancy.

AirThom

My top choices in the order they appear in the album:


I loved in all of these how they really captured the context surrounding their subjects... bravo!

Tango

I love so many shots from this challenge! good work everyone!...I cant wait to see who wins this one!

whiterice

What a great round....congrats everyone. I'll put my individual comments in the gallery.

sherstone

Wow the judges have been so quick the last few rounds that this thread barely gets a chance to get started before the results are in. (not that I am complaining / I love to see the results this quick)

My top picks are the same as the ones that the judges picked
JK - seriously though, this round is chock full of WOW blow your socks off shots and picking only 10 certainly is challenging.

I feel energetic, so I plan on making comments on all the entries in the gallery later on this week
This round sure was (is) fun!

BTW - Thanks to michswiss and AirThom for your top picks inclusion.

travelways

Here are my top 10 favorite entries, in the order they appear into the contest:



I made my comments under each entry in the contest.

kds1

Thanks for your kind comments on my entry, everyone! I will learn as I go . . .

That shot was pretty funny to do - my daughter was rather miffed that I insisted on dragging her packed up stuff (she just graduated h.s. and is going on to college) out, laying it all over her room and taking her photo while she had no makeup on! The look on her face is literally, "I can't believe you're doing this." But in the end, I think she liked having a record of her 'stuff' and her at this transition time in her life.

I'll do my best to do a more artistic entry for the next one! I loved so many of the entries - wig lady, chef, all good and show that person in the environment in which they function. I think I've learned that each person takes the entry definition differently (which is to be expected) and I've gotten a little more familiar with the process and forum posts around the challenges. So thank you, all!

travelways

I would also like to thank all who made a comment on my entry.

I made my own explanations under the photo and I'll repeat them here:

I replaced my old entry with the current one because:

1. The composition and crop are much better - there are more important elements
balancing each other.

2. It shows his face and his eyes, which I think it's important for a portrait
(please correct me if I'm wrong)

3 It shows more of his art

In addition he is an artist selling his work on the street, even though he's
not painting directly on the side walk. He is a street artist - how else should I call him?...

The fact that the judges didn't like it is a little confusing because I received a lot of good
comments on this photo, especially in the daily photo community , where I posted it yesterday...

Well, maybe this is just a matter of lottery... I hope it's not personal

HoofClix

photo-bug wrote:

.... I hope it's not personal

It was definitely NOT personal.. Hang in there and know that your stuff is great.. Your photo was one of your very best so far!

richtersl

Don't sweat it, Tatiana. That happened to me with my photo from the previous round. I submitted it for C&C in several places and it was well received but it did not make it into the voting round for DSS #29.

It didn't bother me a bit because I liked how it turned out, it was generally well-received, and I know it will be a nice addition to my portfolio.

Ditto for your street artist series! You came home with shots that you should be proud of. They will be a wonderful addition to your portfolio and you should seriously considering submitting one or more of them to a local exhibit.

nightpixels

photo-bug wrote:

I would also like to thank all who made a comment on my entry.

I made my own explanations under the photo and I'll repeat them here:

I replaced my old entry with the current one because:

1. The composition and crop are much better - there are more important elements
balancing each other.

2. It shows his face and his eyes, which I think it's important for a portrait
(please correct me if I'm wrong)

3 It shows more of his art

In addition he is an artist selling his work on the street, even though he's
not painting directly on the side walk. He is a street artist - how else should I call him?...

The fact that the judges didn't like it is a little confusing because I received a lot of good
comments on this photo, especially in the daily photo community , where I posted it yesterday...

Well, maybe this is just a matter of lottery... I hope it's not personal

Hi Tatiana,

Of course it is NOT personal. As I mentioned it under your image, your original entry was my absolute top favorite in the gallery. Number ONE, no ifs or buts in my mind, I just loved it. The new entry just didn't move me as much. Yes, the person in your image may very well be a street artist, however, I wasn't getting that impression from the image. To me it looked like a guy who was selling art instead of performing art (like the artist in the original image was doing it). Of course, this is strictly my own interpretation of it and I could only be one of many who thinks this way. (I guess Kevin may have too)

As for the C&C threads in this round, I did not read a single one of them for 2 reasons: 1) I did not want my opinion to be influenced by others' C&Cs 2) I was out of the country on a vacation and just didn't have the time to read them. I may have taken a peak at them once in awhile when I got the chance, but mostly I stayed away from this board for good 2 weeks.

Again, your entry is a wonderful image, it's just my personal interpretation of it that stopped me from picking it.

You are a great photographer who produces great photos on daily basis and I enjoy looking at your photos in your "photo a day" gallery.

Tango

I hate seeing Judges needing to explain their actions to someone upset..... photobug its not a lottery, and yes its personal, meaning specifically personal to the judge and how they react and receive a image "Personally".

Photobug maybe show the judges some respect of their artistic view...

travelways

Thank you Mark and Linda for your kind encouragement.

KevXman

Hi Tatiana,

Please don't take it personally and please don't let it discourage you. I did not see your original entry so I cannot comment on it. Your final entry though did make my short list. I like the composition and subject matter. However, even though I like the colors I feel that you might have overdone the PP a bit. The person's rear-end in the upper left corner takes away from an overall great image in my view. So on my list of choices, when I had to whittle it down to just ten, there were one or two minor checkmarks against it. Yes, I wish judging could be completely impersonal. But, when there are so many good photos technically being submitted, the final choice will always come down to what "Moves Me" for the judge. This has happened to all of us and will continue to happen. Every round there is at least one photo that has been either picked for voting or passed over that makes me think "ARE YOU FRIGGIN' NUTS?!". So take it with a grain of salt and move on. Hopefully at the very least you learned some new technique either taking the photo or processing it that you can put in your bag of tricks.
— Kevin

dlplumer

photo-bug wrote:

Thank you Mark and Linda for your kind encouragement.

I'm sure you saw my cc in the gallery Tatiana. I loved your new entry.

Remember, this sport is soooooooo subjective. What one person likes, another doesn't......and there is no TRUTH......just opinion and perspective.

nightpixels

AaronNelson wrote:

I hate seeing Judges needing to explain their actions to someone upset..... photobug its not a lottery, and yes its personal, meaning specifically personal to the judge and how they react and receive a image "Personally".

Photobug maybe show the judges some respect of their artistic view...

Hi Aaron,

I agree that Art is all personal and subjective when it comes to interpreting it or when it comes to how much a work of art moves a certain individual. I wanted to make it clear to Photo-bug that it was nothing against her or her work. I hope I was able to accomplish that

travelways

Thank you Allen for the clarifications.

I would honestly hoped that it was personal, because the simple "like" or "dislike" doesn't sound to me
the best was of judging someone's work in a contest.

I needed a fair critique of my work, so I can know why what I did was not good or not good enough.

I totally agree that there were others better (in my opinion) and I took my time to submit my comments
on why... the ones above are just part of the works I appreciate this time.

I also submitted some comments on why not, as the time allowed me.

I'm participating into these contest hoping to learn, but sometimes I just leave discouraged, without
understanding too much about how should I have done it better.

I think that a real criticism, more objective rather than subjective would be a real help,
I'm sure not only for me.

Tango

when you have a photograph that you love it does not matter what anyone has to say about it.

travelways

KevXman wrote:

Hi Tatiana,

Please don't take it personally and please don't let it discourage you. I did not see your original entry so I cannot comment on it. Your final entry though did make my short list. I like the composition and subject matter. However, even though I like the colors I feel that you might have overdone the PP a bit. The person's rear-end in the upper left corner takes away from an overall great image in my view. So on my list of choices, when I had to whittle it down to just ten, there were one or two minor checkmarks against it. Yes, I wish judging could be completely impersonal. But, when there are so many good photos technically being submitted, the final choice will always come down to what "Moves Me" for the judge. This has happened to all of us and will continue to happen. Every round there is at least one photo that has been either picked for voting or passed over that makes me think "ARE YOU FRIGGIN' NUTS?!". So take it with a grain of salt and move on. Hopefully at the very least you learned some new technique either taking the photo or processing it that you can put in your bag of tricks.
— Kevin

I like your reply Kevin, and this kind of critique. Yes this is the way we can learn from each other.

Thank you

travelways

dlplumer wrote:

I'm sure you saw my cc in the gallery Tatiana. I loved your new entry.

Thank you Dan.

I can say I like this kind of critique

dlplumer wrote:

Remember, this sport is soooooooo subjective. What one person likes, another doesn't......and there is no TRUTH......just opinion and perspective.

I do remember... and that's why I mentioned the term "lottery": the right entry in the right time to the right judge... kind of...

As I previously said, a more objective critique (if possible), would be more constructive - in my opinion...

The Curious Camel

thanks Jeff Groves
AirThom
and Taitina for having me on their list of top ten.

travelways

AaronNelson wrote:

I hate seeing Judges needing to explain their actions to someone upset..... photobug its not a lottery, and yes its personal, meaning specifically personal to the judge and how they react and receive a image "Personally".

Photobug maybe show the judges some respect of their artistic view...

Aaron,

I didn't offend anybody and didn't ask "Judges to explain their actions to someone upset....."

I'm sorry but I find your intervention quite offensive...

I asked in order to correct myself, so I don't really believe i deserve this rather caustic reply...

travelways

AaronNelson wrote:

when you have a photograph that you love it does not matter what anyone has to say about it.

Correct, but this is not the case. I generally have more than one shot that may be good for the subject,
because I'm trying to work as hard as possible, especially because I'm a beginner to photography.

That's why I'm not sure how good my one photo can be or not and I need some objective critique,
so I can correct myself, as I mentioned.

travelways

The Curious Camel wrote:

thanks Jeff Groves
AirThom
and Taitina for having me on their list of top ten.

You did a great job as always, Gail.... as much as I can say with my limited experience in photography

Llywellyn

Tatiana, if you haven't done so already, I'd highly recommend checking out the newly restyled Refinery forum here. I think you'll find more of the type of critique you're looking for there, if you're still craving it.

travelways

Llywellyn wrote:

Tatiana, if you haven't done so already, I'd highly recommend checking out the newly restyled Refinery forum here. I think you'll find more of the type of critique you're looking for there, if you're still craving it.

Hi Kerry,

I did before and will eventually try it again, thank you.

Tango

photo-bug wrote:

Aaron,

I didn't offend anybody and didn't ask "Judges to explain their actions to someone upset....."

I'm sorry but I find your intervention quite offensive...

I asked in order to correct myself, so I don't really believe i deserve this rather caustic reply...

Ok, you dont understand... Im not going to explain any further, so we will leave it at that. moving on....

Katmitchell

photo-bug wrote:

I would also like to thank all who made a comment on my entry.

I made my own explanations under the photo and I'll repeat them here:

I replaced my old entry with the current one because:

1. The composition and crop are much better - there are more important elements
balancing each other.

2. It shows his face and his eyes, which I think it's important for a portrait
(please correct me if I'm wrong)

3 It shows more of his art

In addition he is an artist selling his work on the street, even though he's
not painting directly on the side walk. He is a street artist - how else should I call him?...

The fact that the judges didn't like it is a little confusing because I received a lot of good
comments on this photo, especially in the daily photo community , where I posted it yesterday...

Well, maybe this is just a matter of lottery... I hope it's not personal

=======================================


OK.. Wait a minute... first I have to agree with Aaron on this one.. I don't like to see this either... It kills the spirit of "good sportsmanship"... This is a contest and to enter the artist is "supposed" to have enough where with all and faith in their "own work and vision" before entering.

Now we have the "CC" board "BEFORE" the contest for a reason, and that is where we all take the time to CC and help each other learn..

In "most" national photo contests out there, you never get an explanation from the judge, EVER... at least here they are willing to give us something... by expecting an explanation like this you are basically saying "your" photo is more worthy than all of the other entries that got passed up.. You don't see them on here demanding an explanation... Could you imagine how that would make judging if every judge had to psycho analyze their reasoning to every contestant?

I am going to step out on a limb here and just say this, although it may not end up making me very popular in the end, that is a risk I am willing to take for the sake of what is right....

I have a question:

I noticed on your post that you mentioned you post your challenge entries in the "dailys" ... I also noticed yesterday that Jeff Groves said he did this too in the entry gallery under the comments there under his photo.. I did not know what the daily's were until you guys brought this up, and so I went and checked it out... I have to step up and say that I do not think that is fair..

If a person is running a community group or belongs to one, and they are over there gathering favor and votes for themselves with other dgrin members so those members will vote for their photo, that is wrong.

If a person is posting in these community groups and the dailys and is actually "listing and titling" the photo as a "dgrin challenge entry" before the contest, I think that is unfair advertisement for their photo and puts "ALL" of the other entries at a disadvantage.

This method of practice puts "those" who are doing this.. > at an advantage for the polls if they are drawing crowds, advertisement, exposure and comments onto an entry
( prior to the contest)..

I do not think this should be allowed...

-- >> It amazes me and disappoints me that these contests are just about "winning" to some people...

It would be nice to lose or win at this because of skill level and not who does the best marketing..After all, it is by fairly winning or losing that we can gauge where we need to improve, and that in itself is helping us to learn..

I don't think a person needs to be center of attention all the time getting tons of CC on their photo repeatedly to learn... An artist has to reach a place of confidence in their work enough to begin to scrutinize themselves some too... and as I said.. that is what the CC boards are for "prior" to the contest..


If I am wrong, please correct me... I do not know a lot about the dailys or the communities on here, only what I have looked at recently... but if I am right then I stand on what I have said... especially if they are labeling their entries as challenge photos..

Kat

Katmitchell

Tatiana,

It also looks to me from going through the gallery link you posted that you are receiving """ a ton """ of feedback and help on your images already.. So what is there to complain about...?

http://allbiz.smugmug.com/gallery/6464803_UmdP9#608533977_QZsZW