jetcode wrote in post #11574764
Thanks Jason.
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Here's a good question for you the judge based on Harm's list above.
Let's say you have 5 photographs that are 1's; one in sports, one in street, one in portrait, one in fine art, and one in still life, and the content is equally engaging in each one. Which photograph wins?
Next question. One image is technically perfect and represents an idiom you are not familiar with or not attracted to and another image is not technically perfect but generates excitement for you. Which photograph wins?
How about an image that by all standards is dark and murky, small in size, and features a solo object on a black backdrop. Another image is soft, low in contrast, and monochromatic in tone and was composed of several images in a composite. What if the rest of the entries were well composed, bright, and pleasant. How would you decide which entry wins?
I ask because I think being a judge of a photography competition is likely the most difficult role a photographer can take. You really have to know how to separate content from feeling and become impartial to every image so the image itself makes a statement on it's own without your personal bias.
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I realize these competitions are for fun and that's great but I also think it is easy to get distracted in the outcome and that can have a detrimental effect if the poster is not aware of the subjective nature of art and the subjective nature of a competition. I have seen folks trash a great image because they didn't understand what they were looking at. No doubt we have individual tastes. I saw images today in S.F. at several high end galleries that I would like to submit to Critique Corner just to see how people respond to them. It's really interesting to me how we decide what is of value and why.
Photographers communicate in a visual language. Like other 2 dimensional art forms photographer speak in line, color, shape, space, implied depth, texture, implied movement, etc. How well you understand that language will determine if you understand the work. Many times we all dismiss and say we don't like things that we don't understand.
A great photographer once told me that a in a great photograph everything in the frame is either helping the image or if its not helping the image, its hurting it.
So if you look at all the things in a photograph and if its not supposed to be there like crap in the background and or foreground. Is the color palette supporting the statement. Is the vertical or horizontal helping create height or width and is that all helping the statement. Is the composition working with all of those other things to help. If not, its hurting the statement. Is the statement supposed to be static or does there need to be implied movement. Knowing how to create these illusions are also part of understanding the visual language.
Then is the image working on more than one level. Usually the simplest images are the shallowest and loose their luster very quickly. The ones that have staying power are images you keep getting a bit more out of with each viewing.
Then come even the bigger questions. Intent of the artist. Is the intent clear or does it take some time to interpret of is it not there. The first question that should be asked when making a photograph by the photographer is why. Therefor the viewer should be able to figure out why.
The problem sometimes with viewing just one image by a photographer is one great photograph no more makes a great photographer than one good at bat makes an MVP. Also if the work is part of an exhibit or a book how is the individual piece working in context of the others. The individual image is like a piece of a puzzle where the whole (the exhibit or the book) is greater than each piece. Is the flow leading from one image into the other.
Sorry I guess that got a little long winded but Joe you touched on something that i think is important.
