| Author | Thread |
|
|
06/17/2005 09:22:50 AM · #1 |
I was just reading through one of the threads about darkness, and was struck by a comment saying that if our photograph was somehow vaguely related to the challenge, then we should define it more clearly with a title.
So I was wondering what other people are thinking.... Shouldn't our photographs be able to stand on their own without a title? Shouldn't our themes be so clear that a title becomes irrelevant? Isn't that what we're striving for?
I admit that most of my photos don't stand on their own without a title... but I would hope that one day I would be able to communicate clearly through photos without needing a title. And I would argue that most of the winners' photos don't need a title.
I have, however, seen photos that don't seem to meet a challenge, save that their titles (often intending to be humorous, and sometimes succeeding) link the photos to the challenge.
Just curious if anyone else has noticed this... |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 09:26:01 AM · #2 |
| I think that titles are very important just like if you were writing a paper or book the title should support the picture not carry it like some you see. |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 09:34:04 AM · #3 |
this is a good point
i for one, would like to see some challenges redone with no titles ...
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 09:47:53 AM · #4 |
Originally posted by liv4him330:
I think that titles are very important just like if you were writing a paper or book the title should support the picture not carry it like some you see. |
I agree that some photos are carried by their titles.
I also think that, unlike a book, which you probably wouldn't open were it not for an interesting title, a picture is a visual art form intended to speak to a person emotionally (cause a reaction in the viewer). I personally think that a title should add another dimension to a photo, but not create a filter from which to view the photo. Am I explaining myself clearly here? |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 09:49:25 AM · #5 |
Personally I think the challenge desciption should be title enough in the DPC environment. We are given a direction we are supposed to provide a photo.
For each submission I read the challenge description, scrutinize the photo and then glance at the title...especially with the WTH is the photog trying to pull of here submissions.
Titles can become as much a distraction to a photo as secondary objects that draw the viewers away from the main subject. Put the two together and you got a mess.
IMO Titles are important when hanging in a gallery, but under the conditions here at DPC they become a hinder or tool to manipulate the viewer. Just my thoughts.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 09:49:37 AM · #6 |
| A photo should stand alone. Expressing something somehow related to an intent. A picture and a title which combine to create an overall impact might be the ultimate accomplishment. |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 09:56:33 AM · #7 |
Zenelf, I agree with you in part. Yes, a strong photograph can speak volumes without a title. And, the winning photos appear to be able to convey their intended point enough without a title. Personally I find that some pics without a title can mean different things to different people, so I think in the context of the challenge a title helps to point the viewer in the direction the photographer originally intended.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:00:49 AM · #8 |
Originally posted by awpollard:
Personally I think the challenge desciption should be title enough in the DPC environment. We are given a direction we are supposed to provide a photo.
IMO Titles are important when hanging in a gallery, but under the conditions here at DPC they become a hinder or tool to manipulate the viewer. Just my thoughts. |
Of course the titles are intended to manipulate the viewer, that's why they are so important, whether in a museum or an entry on DPC! Good example is this photo:
BTW, great picture! |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:07:14 AM · #9 |
Originally posted by awpollard:
Personally I think the challenge desciption should be title enough in the DPC environment. We are given a direction we are supposed to provide a photo. |
And that is kind of my point, too, Andy. I mean, if we are already given the theme to try and work with, isn't that theme parameters enough without having to attach a title to the piece?
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:18:04 AM · #10 |
I like the idea of having titles because it helps the photographer to make the statement more clearly. But, titles that are detailed descriptions annoy me.
Sometimes I even get the idea that the photographer is trying to imply that s/he has photographed something of extreme significance that you should vote high. |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:29:24 AM · #11 |
I think that my photo for darkness does not carry my photo but it may explain it to those who have not been where I am. That said, I wouldn't mind doing a challenge without titles because I think that overall my picture would still do about the same. Some will get it and some won't.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:39:46 AM · #12 |
do we need titles..no we don t
do we need pictures..no we dont
but both just nice means for expression in whatever way
but like xion stated detailed descriptions seem to imply we are not so clever and thats annoying indeed |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:44:36 AM · #13 |
It really annoys me when the title is the only part of the submission that has anything to do with the specific contest. A titleless submission would be better IMO.
I think it would give more anonymity to the piece giving a truer vote from the viewer..
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:55:12 AM · #14 |
Yes, we need titles (at least most of the time)
1) We're the only creatures that have developed language - so why not use it?
2) Some messages/photos are very complex. Even if they are 100% on topic, a title helps us make sense. One-year old babies learning to talk don't need titles over their bright simple pictures - you can't go toooooo wrong with "apple", "ball", "car" - but I like to think that OUR pictures are at a different level.
3) We try to enhance our subject with the best possible background, lighting, angle etc - why not with a title, too?
4) I think we all agree that the photo must be good enough so the title isn't the ONLY thing linking it to the challenge, but what is so wrong with allowing the photographer to communicate through BOTH? |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 10:57:36 AM · #15 |
A fitting title for a beautiful shot will be the difference between an 8 or a 10 for me. A title just completes pictures. If I see a beautiful pic and stupid title, the shot gets ruined and the message not conveyed properly.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:23:13 AM · #16 |
I would like to see the titles given less emphasis. When you're voting, it's usually the first thing you see while the picture is loading. I prefer to look at a picture first, and then go to the title for additional information about the picture. But with the title right up top, it takes a conscious effort not to read it before the picture loads.
Think of photographs in newspapers, museums, etc. The image carries the weight, and then you go to the title or caption (that is below or to the side) to learn more about it. After voting, the title is below the photo, and I think that makes perfect sense. Why not do the same during voting?
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:31:14 AM · #17 |
| One concession could be that you cannot use the theme of the challenge in the title - in this case 'darkness'. |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:39:59 AM · #18 |
i have stated before i never look at titles...maybe if i wasn't understanding what something was in free study i would..but our subject is given in the challenge...title bares no weight in my scoring....although some are hilarious
example should have won on title alone
Message edited by author 2005-06-17 11:40:26.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:43:30 AM · #19 |
| I think that titles are great! Pictures without titles are just family albums. To me, when you name something, it makes it special. This is not a snapshot, this is my art. As far as lowering the score of a picture because you didn't like the title is stupid. You are judging the picture not the name. But I guess that you don't see any Miss America's named Bertha either. |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:43:48 AM · #20 |
The title is the challenge name/title. This is a visual medium, and we are competing on our ability to get the idea across visually.
Perhaps we should try a challenge with NO titles..and see how it goes.
C'mon - Construction, Birds, Light on White, Framed, Orange. Is a title needed, or can a reasonably intelligent viewer understand it? If not, then I suppose it does not meet the challenge.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:43:58 AM · #21 |
Originally posted by buzzmom:
i have stated before i never look at titles...maybe if i wasn't understanding what something was in free study i would..but our subject is given in the challenge...title bares no weight in my scoring....although some are hilarious
example should have won on title alone |
Yea..I laughed, off and on, for a full hour at that one:)) |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:44:27 AM · #22 |
I think that since we have people contributing to this site from all over the world an image without titles may not be understood by everyone, (not saying that the title always clears the mud the photographer has created). but people from other counties have items that may fit a certain challenge but we may not all know what that item actually is or that it really does fit the challenge; a title may help educate us. (we all know "the west" has always had a tendancy to interrupt things by what they know and standards without regards to what is fact.
I admit I used the title in one of my past challenges to help make the connection between the photo and the challenge topic because I felt I had failed to capture it clearly and was afraid no one would get it. Now I just don't enter if it isn't clear enough. It happens. I also agree that the title should be about the image, not details about the shot, UNLESS that is what the challenge wants you to do.
I would like to see a no title challenge happen just to see who many people don't get an image that the photographer thought was pretty clear cut.
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:45:58 AM · #23 |
Originally posted by buzzmom:
i have stated before i never look at titles...maybe if i wasn't understanding what something was in free study i would..but our subject is given in the challenge...title bares no weight in my scoring....although some are hilarious
example should have won on title alone |
And this is an example of why some of us are anti-title. The title makes it humurous. Without a title, it is a poorly composed photo and shold not score well.
So is this Digital Photo Challenge or Digital PhotoTitle Challenge?
|
|
|
|
06/17/2005 11:56:13 AM · #24 |
| Lets have a one time TITLELESS CHALLENGE!! |
|
|
|
06/17/2005 12:32:57 PM · #25 |
Perhaps there should be a voting checklist that includes the title as one aspect of the entry. Something like this:
Composition: 1-10 _____
Technical quality: 1-10 _____
Title: 1-10 ______
Overall Impression: 1-10 _____
With each category weighted appropriately and a composite of those values used to generate the final vote. You could vote low on the title and high on the composition or vice versa, according to your tastes. Drawback: would take longer and require more thought to vote. |
|
Home -
Challenges -
Community -
League -
Photos -
Cameras -
Lenses -
Learn -
Prints! -
Help -
Terms of Use -
Privacy -
Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2024 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 04/19/2024 01:42:16 AM EDT.
