hey joy,
yeah setting up a pbase, photosig or photo.net gallery would help you in getting some feedback from people here and elsewhere. i can tell you that a good rule of thumb for scoring well here is to create visually simple, striking images. soft focus, low lighting, low contrast, obvious use of flash and background/foreground clutter contribute to low marks, and are elements present in the lowest-scoring photographs. people who are confounded by their low scores often get caught up in their own emotional connection with the subject. no matter how much you love your kid or your dog or a figurine or whatever it is that you're photographing, if it's not a great photo then people will score it low.
take a look at the top scorers from each challenge and you'll notice that they're all simple in composition and are striking to look at. they have that intangible 'wow' factor that is easy to recognise but more difficult to define or create. after a while you'll get more of a feel for these types of images. for an idea of what a really, really good photograph looks like, check out photo.net and look at their 'top-rated' photos section. it'll give you a good idea of what a great photo can look like.
above all take photos that you're proud of, and then take advice on how to improve them. learn how to use photo editing software like photoshop if you don't already feel comfortable with it. it'll allow you to refine your photos that much more (mind the rules, though).
don't take photos you don't like if it's just for the sake of doing well here. i find that this site can both promote and stifle creativity. good to hear you're doing better in this challenge. keep studying and taking lots of shots! |
