Lacock Positive 17 May 2025
As a non-competitive Club we aim to help each other towards our own photographic goals but we have noted that we need to improve our feedback when we share our images with each other.
Our Critique evening started with member Craig giving an overview of how to approach this by drawing together advice collected from taken courses. A quick summary suggests that the photographer should:
(1) Introduce their image by explaining the Where and the When it was taken, the What they were trying to achieve and whether they felt they had succeeded.
Feedback should cover:
(2) Technical points e.g.is image in focus (or softened intentionally), are exposure and depth of field appropriate for the intention, are the lighting and colour balance good?
(3) Emotional response - was there anything felt by the viewer on seeing the image; does the image tell a story or part of one?
(4) Composition - what skills has the photographer used to create the image or have 'rules' been challenged; what has been kept in (or out) of the frame?
Craig amplified many of these points especially about compositional guidelines e.g. rule of thirds, leading lines, symmetry, negative space, diagonal lines, Golden ratios. Members will find further information on the Club's Learning Zone.
Member Sue then showed Black& White images taken by professional photographers for everybody to practise their critiqueing skills on by saying why they felt each image was successful (or not) judging by the Points 2 to 4 above. It was interesting to note the breadth of opinion! Sue advised that the average viewing time of images in galleries is 10 seconds so that makes it quite challenging to find a way of grabbing attention.
The second half of the evening was intended to cover members' Black & White images of Portraits, Landscape or Wildlife but such was our enthusiasm to give feedback we only managed to see the first category, the other two will now be shown as a later date. A selection of portrait images (where permission had been sought from the subject) by participating members are shown below.
