Lucian Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio

Sadly, that has not been the case here, from what I have seen in past years. There have been many on here asking about how to shoot a wedding, because they have been asked to do so. They are asking what lens, what type of flash, what images should they be shooting etc. Anyone who asks those questions should immediately know they have no idea what they are doing and should not be accepting the job as wedding photographer.

Yet on here, so many other have commented that they should go ahead and do it, they will be okay and that they feel they will be good at being the wedding photographer. Those that know what a real wedding photographer is, have stated that they should stand down and allow a professional to do that work, which is the correct response.

So, as much as we all hope people should know and understand their limitations, it has been clearly shown that many do not know their own limitations, and many commenters on here do not know that they should not be encouraging someone to go ahead and take that job. Doing such a thing can put that poor photographer into a world of hurt if things don't go right and they can be sued, and friendships can be lost, and many more things can happen. That's why it is not in the best interest of the OP to tell them to go for it.

Urnst Loc: Brownsville, Texas

very well said

Lucian Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio

You obviously failed to see that I included the words "In General" along with best. Read it again, I did not include that just to fill space, but to make a point, so that this sort of thing would not get carried on and on.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

No, I saw it. Simply explaining how my mind works.
Obviously you looked past that into something else.

Ergo line one in my signature.

Lucian Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio

Well, I believe the subject has obviously struck a nerve here with many, many members, otherwise we would not have 20 or more pages of comments. It would have died a death long ago. From reading the posts, I feel the majority of the members agree with what the OP has brought to light.

Urnst Loc: Brownsville, Texas

I used to hate your posts. Now I make it a point to read them.

Lucian Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio

I don't disagree with you regarding art in some galleries. I too find some stuff unfathomable as to why it was even considered, let alone displayed. I just did not want to go into all the possible computations of art and art galleries. That's why I said, that "In general, art galleries show the best...".

Bill_de Loc: US

This might help.

https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-426-1.html

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Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Thanks, much obliged!

levinton

There are ways to be positive. I find that if I post a few photographs on a theme, some old hands will note one shot that pleases them. With a few details this would be a helpful guide to what strikes an experienced stranger as technically good, compositionally good, etc. General nastiness has a habit of not working very well. A manual of positive criticism would be most welcome from experienced hands who want to help.

TimHGuitar Loc: San Francisco, CA

When I was 16 years old I went out photographing with my father's Rollieflex camera. I would walk the city streets towards the Haight - Ashbury district in San Francisco and photography the people I saw. One fellow saw me with my camera and came up to me. He told he had just won first prize in a photo contest and he took out the photograph. It was indeed nicely done and had excellent back lighting and seemed, to me, to have a full range of tones. Then he proceeded to show me other prints he had done. They were all flat and not anything like the first print he showed me. Since I had already had experience in the darkroom (and had the same problem), I knew that his winning photograph was done by pure luck. He chose the best exposure under the best conditions, and it was a fortuitous accident. I was only 16 and had been photographing for only a year's time, so I didn't say anything. I just congratulated him and walked on my way. i did mention that my father worked at a color lab in SF; there weren't many in those days. He told me he might go by that lab to meet my father. When I relayed this story to my father that evening, he said, "Oh no, not another one..."

oregonfrank Loc: Astoria, Oregon

Partially agree. I can see someone saying “I’m good enough skill-wise, I just want to find a broader range of subjects to capture.”. Frank

RodeoMan Loc: St Joseph, Missouri

Warhol's Campbell painting is not my personal preference for art, but I did see the original and when you see it right in front of your nose, it has a different impact from merely seeing a reproduction in a book.

lowkick Loc: Connecticut

I don’t know who to attribute this quote to, but I remember someone (it may have been Jay Maisel) say, ”If you want to take better pictures, put yourself in front of more interesting subjects”. I see many photos in the gallery that are technically decent, some even quite good, but of totally uninteresting subjects. So I might praise the technical aspects of their work or say nothing at all. I won't critique their work unless they request it.

KindaSpikey Loc: English living in San Diego

Why not have "two" galleries? One for absolute newbie /amatures, and a second gallery targeted towards the more professional /experienced photographers? Everyone would know what to expect from each, and appropriate comments could hopefully be tailored for each. Also it should be pointed out that for those that actually want advice and knowledge about improvement, we already have forums specifically for criticism, and another for Photo Analysis, where constructive (or sometimes destructive) comments are wanted, welcomed and expected.