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Response to The Purpose of Critiques

from Jeff Spirer (jeffs@hyperreal.org)
I never post my work for critique; not because I'm thin-skinned, but because I'm a much stronger critic of my work than anyone else. I know exactly what look I was attempting to create when I took the picture and I can quite easily tell whether or not I succeeded and to what extent.

I find this comment amazing. It completely removes the viewer from the photograph, assumes that communication is internal to the photographer. It eliminates the possibility of the photograph transcending its origins.

Critique is essential to artistic growth. No one person, whether the photographer or a viewer, can fully assess the effect of a photograph, or a collection of photographs. Every viewpoint is different, and thus, valuable.

I have benefited immensely from seeking out critique from my peer group (photographers I hang out with), highly successful photographers, teachers, random viewers (like at shows), and even online strangers. I showed my portfolio to a published photographer whose work I respect highly and his comments were so different from what I had heard previously, and so different from how I viewed them, that it caused a significant shift in my work.

Unless one plans to only look at one's photos in the privacy of the home, I can't understand not constantly seeking out criticism. It's the way to grow...

(posted 8796 days ago)

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