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05/19/2010 05:13:35 AM · #1 |
What I thought was a pretty nice portrait turned out to be in the bottom 35% of the DPC User Portrait challenge.
I only had 4 comments on this shot which annoys me - because if you are going to vote low then please let me know why so I can improve. I commented on each and every photo in this challenge - they were honest comments and I have had a few thanks for them. Please do the same and let me know why it did so poorly.
When I look at some of the other shots that finished above me I can't help wondering what the scores would be if friend voting was removed from this challenge? I'm not bitter - I'm just wondering... |
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05/19/2010 05:36:34 AM · #2 |
I think you nailed it with your comment pretty nice, on DPC Pretty nice doesn't cut it.
The model has motion blur or is just out of focus, also smoking is something that people will vote down, Lastly I'm not sure who the user is.
Its worth pointing out that there were more people vote a 6 on your image than there were below 5. So being upset at imaginary friend votes & people that haven't left a comment just doesn't make sense. Its nice to be on a high horse about commenting but you have been around for 9 challenges & have only left 115 comments, with a below 5 average vote Im sure that you would fall into the 'Ive left a low vote with out a comment' group as well.
Don't take a lower score harshly, its something to learn from. |
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05/19/2010 05:45:23 AM · #3 |
I'm not on a high horse - I just know what it feels like to get low scores and not know why, that is why I tried to leave as many comments as I could for this challenge.
I have had two replies now that say that smoking gets lower scores - at least I know that now. Thanks for for your technical comments
It shouldn't matter who the user is and if you don't know them. It is a new user yes - but she registered even before this challenge came up so it wasn't a ghost account created for this challenge.
Like I said I want to learn. So if you gave me a 5 then let me know what to do better next time to get a 6.
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05/19/2010 06:08:03 AM · #4 |
Originally posted by Silent-Shooter:
What I thought was a pretty nice portrait turned out to be in the bottom 35% of the DPC User Portrait challenge. |
There's the first catch.......the result didn't meet your expectations. That doesn't happen in most cases. You got a better score than the exact middle.....considering that you shot better than your average, and your third highest score, what's your gripe?
Originally posted by Silent-Shooter:
I only had 4 comments on this shot which annoys me - because if you are going to vote low then please let me know why so I can improve. I commented on each and every photo in this challenge - they were honest comments and I have had a few thanks for them. Please do the same and let me know why it did so poorly. |
Again......you didn't get the comments you think you should have. Since the votes indicated that it's a mid-pack image, why would you expect comments? If you search through the forums, you'll find a jillion reactions to images no meeting the photog's expectations. If you read some of them, you'll see what it sounds like.
Originally posted by Silent-Shooter:
When I look at some of the other shots that finished above me I can't help wondering what the scores would be if friend voting was removed from this challenge? I'm not bitter - I'm just wondering... |
Wow.....
So, you're miffed 'cause the results didn't meet your expectations and it must be because of friend voting?????
You say you're not bitter.....Right.
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05/19/2010 06:58:41 AM · #5 |
The dof is so extremely shallow, I think that hurt you quite a bit. While the eye is in focus, the nose is soft and the forehead very soft. While I happen to like shallow dof in portraits, I don't think it helps this one. The slightly upwards angle is uncomfortable, and I don't think the candle light adds much -- it's extremely warm and a little off-putting. After saying all of this, I'll add that I gave it a 6 because I thought it was different and a good try. But I think it could have been much better.
And you're really hurting yourself by picking on the photos that beat you in the challenge. There are also photos that placed worse than yours, which I think should have scored higher than yours. Is that because you had friends voting? I hope not. Sit back and think through things a little more. You will get more help, more interest and more response if you simply ask instead of insulting people.
Message edited by author 2010-05-19 07:02:15.
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05/19/2010 07:17:44 AM · #6 |
Thanks for the help vawendy. I see that there are areas I can improve on now so I will try my best to do so.
Maybe everyone is taking my OP in the wrong light. I am not trying to insult anyone here or pick on any other photos. Apologies if I have done so.
Of course I did not have frinds voting me up or other photos down. That wouldn't help me to learn which is why I joined here in the first place. |
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05/19/2010 07:25:22 AM · #7 |
Originally posted by Silent-Shooter:
I am not trying to insult anyone here or pick on any other photos. Apologies if I have done so.
Of course I did not have frinds voting me up or other photos down. That wouldn't help me to learn which is why I joined here in the first place. |
You insulted everybody by insinuating that everybody else's placement was a result of friend voting. Friend voting is not allowed some portions of the year and then disallowed others. If you believe that DPL means friend voting, you clearly have a misunderstanding of how things work. I would say that the competition is much stiffer now with the DPL however, with so many more entries per challenge, you really need to separate yourself from the pack to get what is typically a "standard/average" score.
Teammates cannot vote on their team's photos... you do know that, right? You're physically unable to.
Message edited by author 2010-05-19 07:25:38. |
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05/19/2010 08:25:24 AM · #8 |
Smokers who smell like ashtrays make me cringe. Maybe DPC was telling you that smoking is bad. ;)
I didn't vote on this but it would have received a 6 from me. |
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05/19/2010 08:35:27 AM · #9 |
I would have voted it a 4 or a 5 depending on how I was feeling and how the rest of the images I'd been looking at scored.
I don't like the colours, it looks to me like the white balance is set wrong (I realise you're going for the red colour palette to go with the smoke and fire theme but I don't find the overall effect aesthetically pleasing in this instance)
The DOF is too shallow for the portrait I think and the smoke is very grainy with ugly colour noise in it.
Having said that the eye is sharp and I think the composition and concept isn't bad. |
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05/19/2010 08:58:38 AM · #10 |
I gave you a 5 mostly because the image - which you saved to the Portraiture and Snapshot galleries - just doesn't convey much about the person. The slightly low pov and very close crop isn't flattering and the model's expression doesn't really say anything about them. The noisy smoke just added to what felt like a half-hearted effort. Overall I found it bland. And imho nobody looks their best when actually smoking. My entry is of a smoker, too, but you have to look for his current ciggy.
As for friends, yes, it was fun to see a great many fellow dpcers as they are (excluding my rather mystifying portrait ;-) but I still voted, as always, on the quality of the image as opposed to just going, 'Oh, I know and like so-and-so, I'm going to give this shot of them a high score'. |
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05/22/2010 11:34:29 PM · #11 |
| Well I am brand new.... do not now any of you... so my response can't be related to anything other then my humble opinion. I think the smoke shows no definition - its just a blurry blob- (I smoke so I have no problem with the smoke itself), her face shows no emotion and just looks bored, and nothing pops in this image. If I were voting I would of given it a 4 or a 5. The concept was thought out it just did not translate to the image well. |
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