When you are evaluating a response to a request for a critique?

Question

do you look into the profile or review other questions and responses by a particular responder to get an indication of their experience or qualification? Or do you just pick an answer because it was what you wanted to hear in the first place?

Now the first five have answered and they are all people qualified to give a decent response. Notice so far I have had no response from a person likely to post a request for critique.

LOL...I just got dissed by a 12 year old brat. LOL!!! I think I'll go cry.

Answer 1

I always look into the people who give one word critique. If you have any formal training even if it was just say a semester long Photo I class you should be able to at least pick out some artistic elements and say a couple of sentences about EACH photograph. Right now, I may not be a Top Contributor, but I have been taking photography classes since my sophomore year in high school and I'm now a photomajor in college (sophomore). When I do give people critiques I get a lot of thumbs down because usually I'm not nice and I believe I have a right not to be. One, because most of the people saying "Look at my photos! Aren't they good?" also bragging about how they have never taken a class. That pretty much means that their "photos" are nothing more the snap shots. Two, when doing a critique of even professional work your not expected to be nice or like evey or anything that that photographer has produced and I would never give somebody my portfolio and say "is this good? I really want to know, but you cant say anything mean or put my photos down in any way." I feel like most people who give critiques who have no formal training don't know that and just say nice things or they really don't know that the photo sucks. So, yes, I always look at peoples profiles when I ask for a critique or give one and see crappy answers.

EDIT: Just so happenes I was also mean to that girl, right after you. Sry, Dont mean to be a b/itch, but thats they way life works bud.

Answer 2

you are the person that was rude to me..
i dont like you.

Answer 3

For me, I always give a good critique of what I think would make an image better. These are my suggestions, and may be different than someone Else's.

If I ever ask for a critique, I try to select the person that gives a review and critique of my image. If someone just says, 'it's pretty' or 'I luv this', I enjoy their compliment, by I never give them the best answer. I asked for a critique, not a two word phrase. Also, I won't choose someone as a best answer if they say, 'It sucks,' or 'You should just quit now'. I have had people write a 'critique' like this before. And while hateful and ignorant, and also it's probably coming from the mouth of a 14 year old kid, I never select these answers either. If they would have written their opinion on how to make an image better, I would have put more consideration towards them. Like I said, I wanted a critique, whether it be good or bad.

Answer 4

When I ask a question it's usually because I don't know the answer so I pick the one that's most helpful. Answers is a different thing, sometimes it's just a "chip in" to add to some topical answer, sometimes an off the wall answer to an odd question. I'm learning to avoid a lot of the "weak" questions.

I really like fotoace's answer to this question, I'm of the opinion there's always things to learn and room to grow...in my case lots of room.

If I see the same person post a couple of good questions I may check their profile to get a bit of an idea about them - to decide if I want to add them as a contact.

Edit - maybe smiley isn't so smiley, I read your answer to her question and it was spot on. Happy New year.

Answer 5

I'm not a professional, but I know the basics and have taken a lot of photo classes. I try to help other people by telling them some things to improve. If they list more than 5 photos, I usually don't answer. I really don't like to look through that many and pick through every detail of every photo. I will go back and look through other people's answers to see what they think and to see if I could use anything they suggested on my own photos. I think I have made some good progress since I started getting on here.

Answer 6

The vast majority of the time, on this and any other site, the majority of the requests for "critique" are actually requests for affirmation and kudos. Very few people ever post their failures, or shots that "didn't quite work." People post what they perceive to be their best work. Its very difficult for someone to acknowledge that their best work may yet be imperfect. So most people just want an electronic pat on the back, and in this forum, that is what they usually choose as best answer. This is why I seldom answer the "is this picture good" threads, and usually stick to more technical subject matter.