What has happened?

My preferred browser is Google Chrome and I have installed a couple of extensions that effectively block 100% of adverts.

I use DoNotTrackMe and AdBlock+. I believe both are available free for most browsers.

I apologise for bucking the trend but for me this forum is more or less the same as it's always been, still pretty darn good?

Sure, the remarketing ads are a little annoying but that's Google at work. You can opt out of that but then they get replaced with even more irrelevant ads .

About personal differences, heck they occur on any forums, it's a bit like the weather, just got to learn to get on with it.

Forums and people come and go - this is as good a forum as any I semi-regularly visit.

What have I browsed that prompted Google to believe I was a prospective customer for an Acorn Stairlift?

Perhaps after a dawn-to-dusk shoot, it's just what a photographer needs..

Adblock Plus. Gone for good

Nice, thanks, works great!!

Thanks Smeggy... it was so simple, even for a computer illiterate, like me.

And now for something completely different...


Another reason why I like PU so much: Mrs C. with Trixie and Mike on a short break from Sheffield. Friendships formed through a mutual interest in Pentax gear.

Interesting thread this, and things do seem to have livened up on the site since it got going... which should please David

The issue of bland, overly positive comments vs proper critique is an old chestnut. One of the glories of the site is the potential to get useful feedback from supportive and friendly forum folk, and from far more skilled/experienced photographers. This is a rare privilege of site membership, and can be a massive help to those developing their skills.

Not long after I started here I plucked up the courage to post a set and invited criticism - and got some amazingly helpful responses from (amongst others) paulyrichard and smeggypants which have hugely influenced my photography. Short, pithy reactions to my early fumblings which set me up to improve.

But I also got some less, ehem, constructive feedback from the legendary PentaxExpert (Oh how we miss him ! Uninitiated should check him out at link). Although an occupational hazard of this kind of open forum, this sort of negative feedback/trolling might have been really intimidating to many folk, and discouraged them in photography.

[Important note here – when advised very publicly by PE that my images were c**p, various forum folk waded in to encourage me. Which shows the underlying quality of the place. Step forward particularly Bwlchmawr...who made sure I knew that trolls were afoot and that my photography was not a total lost cause, for which I’ll be forever grateful.]

So I understand why criticism can be bland/overly praiseworthy and why sometimes folk don't get lots of responses when they post looking for feedback. It can be pretty daunting putting your stuff up on a public forum like this... and that cuts both ways meaning most folk are more comfortable making positive comments rather than negative. Is it a better forum because we don’t seem to have too many PentaxExperts now putting the boot in, and alienating novice photographers, or is it a worse forum? It takes confidence, experience and skill to give proper, informed and truly useful feedback. Not everyone here is comfortable being negative, even though that’s sometimes what we want/need to improve.

So.. .what does this mean practically for PU?

As currently formulated, the Gallery is an unthreatening space where people can display photos they’ve taken which they like. People looking at the Gallery tend to make short positive comments if they also like the image. It should not be a place for detailed criticism, as the current system of responses works well as a general indication of quality for those with a bit of nouse. No comments = lame, 1/2 comments = we’re being polite, 3-5 comments = good, over ten comments = something special.

Posting images in YourPhotos should be the route to invite detailed criticism. But understand there is probably a limited pool of folk here with the skill/experience/time to comment sensibly. Most forum folk would be intimidated to comment on, say, a Storm landscape given his acknowledged expertise. Hopefully this thread will encourage us all say what we really think when folk clearly ask for critiques of their images. But it will always ebb and flow in terms of the number of forum members happy to get stuck in.

Not sure I’ve ever produced such a long post. Feel free to ignore.

When I purchased the K20D in 2009, this revitalized my interest in photography. Soon afterwards I discovered this forum, and it was not long before I dared to post some images on the "My Photos" sub-forum. The feedback I received on my images, the inspiration of studying the work of very skilled photographers (Puma, bwlchmawr, and many others), and the vast collective knowledge about photography and Pentax, has been a tremendous learning experience. I have learned most of the things I know about photography from this very forum. I also have to add that I have always found Pentaxuser very including and open towards me, even though I come from the land of Vikings, polar bears and fjords

Best regards
Bjørn

I usually comment when I see something that grabs my attention. That is often something I'm impressed with, sometimes something where I think there's a useful point to be made.

It's always worth bearing in mind though that someone who says "tell me the truth, good or bad" really means "tell me how much you like my photo" and there have been a few cases in the past of overly-sensitive reactions to critique. Then that puts people off for a while.

It ebbs and flows over time.

Somehow I missed PentaxExpert back in the day. I followed your link and had more than a usual amount of amusement for a Thursday morning.

Who was he, did it come out at all? Genius, clearly.

If
then they deserve what they get.

For future reference, if I say "tell me the truth, good or bad", then that is exactly what I mean. I would feel insulted if I got the mealy-mouthed half-baked approach.

There are a few on here whose critique is to be really valued.

Dr O is top of my list. If he says its good, then all is well with the world. If he says its not, then he's giving genuine constructive feedback.

This can bring you down to earth with a bump, but a reality check is needed on occasion

What I meant to say, was "sometimes someone who say...etc."

The sometimes got lost somewhere as I was typing.

Freudian slip; I bet it's true more often than you'd think.

They still deserve what they get though

It has been suggested before that the 'Your Photos' board is re-titled 'Critique' or 'Images for Critique'. Unfortunately, like so many other suggestions it fell into the 'too difficult' category.

Perhaps a 'sticky' post could be added to the board to give some clear guidance on how to give and receive critique.

Comments like 'it does nothing for me', or 'it's nice' are not really that helpful.
Structured critique regarding composition, exposure, DoF, bokeh, subject matter, etc. etc. would all help to improve someone's images.

Equally, if someone bothers to comment then the poster should respond positively. As mentioned earlier maybe the poster should add a bit more detail about the images, why they were taken and what they were hoping to achieve, what kit/settings were used rather than; 'here are today's efforts'

I would happily put together a 'draft' post on how to critique and, once other have agreed it, this could be added to the board. Perhaps, following this thread, we can make the 'My Photos' or a 'rebarded' version of it a really worthwhile resource. leaving the Gallery for the 'that's nice' comments.

John
Could I request that the board is renamed and, if I put something together on critique, we can get it 'approved' and added as a 'stickie'?