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You must learn to crawl before you walk....I love retouching but I love Photoshop and all it has to offer....If i didn't understand the tools that photoshop had to offer....Retouching or any Graphic Design would be a lot harder. Learn it...Understand it.....and you will become better at your craft each day. Learn to critique yourself Finding your own mistakes helps you not make the same ones in the future. And for the trolls or so called wanabe wizards..... ignore an over critical person....If it was perfect they would still have a list of problems In conclusion ......I luv helping people make their images better...by sharing and learning... Contact me on Facebook at [email protected] or Flickr at Retouch Mayhem (Group) Please feel free to join and add your 2 cents and pics Jun 29 10 11:18 pm Link so are you crawling, walking, running, flying or dematerialized?  Jun 30 10 01:28 am Link Koray wrote: I'm going with Energized! Beam me up Scotty! Jun 30 10 01:38 am Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: You sound like some big woman blowing their own trumpets. Jun 30 10 01:38 am Link so, as this is in the critique section, we can critique you, right? Jun 30 10 01:51 am Link StaceyMarie-Retouch wrote: I dont think so since she is advising the readers to critique themselves Jun 30 10 02:26 am Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: If you follow that advice you will never succeed in this business (or any business while we are at it) Jun 30 10 06:50 am Link I would never recommend ignoring criticism, that is just what helps you expand, learn and get better. I would however say that you need to grow thick skin to be able to take it. Jun 30 10 09:45 am Link Eva Ubani wrote: +1 Jun 30 10 09:48 am Link thread fail Jun 30 10 11:19 pm Link This wasn't meant to be a battle......nor a big deal.....This is why I said learn to critique yourself...Everyone has there way of seeing how something should be done. Take this thread for example...Simple advice turned into a personal attack....That's crazy Jul 01 10 10:43 am Link Ashish Arora wrote: No I'm not tooting my own horn....I was simply giving advice i was given in school...we have to tell our instructor what we think is good and what we think could have been better....before she gives us her critique......I have seen how it helped me do better in my compositions.....I don't claim to be good .....But i strive to do my best...The group i have is only meant to learn not hinder or to outdo or to profit...Just for the love of Photoshop..... Jul 01 10 10:47 am Link Natalia_Taffarel wrote: I didn't say ignore criticism ....I said ignore an over critical person....someone who always sees fault and no good...people who take good advice and turn it into bad....You know sort of like what you did Jul 01 10 10:50 am Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: 'Over critical' ppl are doing the major brands hiring/publishing. Jul 01 10 11:01 am Link This is directed at nobody in particular, but reading the thread brought it to mind: There seems to be an insidious, and, unfortunately, growing, belief in our culture that criticism is a "bad" thing, that each work is as valid or as good as the next, and that we should be accepting of all and treat them all equally. In fact the term "criticism" has come to have a primarily negative connotation, meaning to put someone down, rather than the more basic meaning of evaluating the merits and faults of a particular work. I see as the root of this attitude the soft and fuzzy "self-esteem" rage that began in the 1980's and continues largely unchecked today. Aiding it is the trend towards "political-correctness" which began as a way of more sensitively identifying various groups, and has evolved into a hyper-sensitivity towards any language that someone else may find difficult. So, we've collectively shied away from honesty and discerning taste, and moved towards euphemisms and blanket acceptance. And we have further confused the issue by not distinguishing what is GOOD from what we LIKE. The two are not always the same. I can admit to liking something very much, while knowing full well it is not a good example of its genre. I can truly enjoy drinking a cheap table wine and know that it isn't a high-quality wine. Conversely, I can know that a $500 bottle of Cos D'Estournel Bourdeaux is a fine example of the best of red wines, and I may not like the way it tastes. Some people like Brittney Spears and some like Mozart, but that doesn't mean they are equally good musicians or play equally good music. This is partly where the term "kitsch" comes from: creative products with mass appeal, but nothing particularly original or distinctive about them. Often, this mass appeal is perceived as vulgar (the original meaning of vulgar actually is "characteristic of, or belonging to the masses) and undesirable by those of "discerning taste." Today, unfortunately, this kind of attitude is seen as snobbish and elitist (in the past, the only people able to spend time, effort, and money on the arts and developing "taste" were the aristocracy and fabulously wealthy). To be sure, there is some truth to that, but we shouldn't throw out the baby with the bath-water. The ability to be critical of ourselves and towards others' works, and to RECEIVE criticism is crucial to the survival of art. A true artist doesn't ignore criticism. A true artist listens to ALL criticism -- even what they deem to be incorrect and invalid -- sifts through it, and seeks to address the underlying issue that brought up the criticism in the first place. And, importantly, a true artist has the strength to withstand even the most withering criticism. Addressing criticism of one's work doesn't necessarily mean bending to it. Openness to criticism needs to be balanced by conviction and direction. Similarly, being critical, or rather, thinking critically, about others' works shapes our ideas about our own work, and is what defines the term "taste." To not think critically and use a critical mind and eye (or ear) when taking in an artwork is to abdicate one's responsibility as a viewer to form and have an opinion. It is an abdication of taste. Once that happens, there is nothing to distinguish art from a candy wrapper, as everything will be just as valid and important (or rather unimportant) as everything else. MY advice to people, is BE critical. First and foremost of yourself. Set standards. Strive to reach them. Always find things that can be better. In order to truly do this, one has to be open, both to criticism and to others' works. And being open yet critical is how to grow as an artist. Jul 01 10 11:26 am Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: This is not school, this is real life, 10000x different from the lessons that my teachers taught me. Jul 01 10 11:29 am Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: Trust me, if I had not met such people, I wouldn't have been where I am today. I love them. And they know who they are when I write this. SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: You mean she is an over critical person? someone who always sees fault and no good. That makes me Natalia_Taffarel wrote: +1. Jul 01 10 11:32 am Link DARE Photography wrote: Very thought provoking, thanks. Jul 01 10 08:51 pm Link Ni Anluain wrote:
Jul 01 10 08:54 pm Link DARE Photography wrote: I need to learn how to write like you Jul 02 10 04:56 am Link Natalia_Taffarel wrote: I agree. Whenever I get a critique on the serious critique forum, I love it when someone nit picks and finds every flaw no matter how little it is. Sometimes it's stuff I already know but sometimes it's stuff I missed. If I wanted just nice comments on my photos, i would just beg for comments in a shout. Jul 02 10 05:05 am Link criticism in itself is almost useless. without some guidance on how to improve, it is just an insult from someone who is usually just opinionated. Jul 02 10 05:48 am Link Steve Broadbent wrote: It depends. if the critique is "your lighting sucks" without any suggestions, yea it doesn't do much good. Now if someone says that a crack on the wall is a distraction, I don't think I would need a suggestion how to fix it if I agree. Jul 02 10 06:15 am Link Jeff Fiore wrote: Exactly! Jul 02 10 10:20 am Link Steve Broadbent wrote: I have to disagree. Jul 02 10 10:42 am Link Natalia_Taffarel wrote: You're welcome and thanks for the compliment. Jul 02 10 10:46 am Link Ashish Arora wrote: As i recall and this is probably just something I'm coming up with of the top of my head but I had to go to school for 13 years of my adolescence life to prepare for the world....If you want a degree you go to school to prepare for that job.....And what you learn in school you apply to real life...... Jul 02 10 04:03 pm Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: Exactly. That was my point, and if you don't have it, you develop it, and how? By inviting critiques, really harsh ones so you train your eye and your brain. SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: Same here, but there is always something to be learned. glad you wrote that, totally agree with you. You too can teach me something, I am sure about that, cos I am not a sea of knowledge, nobody is; but your approach was a tad rude, just nagged you so you know about that. Jul 02 10 09:00 pm Link SMAK ENTERTAINMENTS wrote: Agree Jul 09 10 09:34 am Link |
