If you want to improve your digital photography skills, you need to be able to evaluate your own work objectively and identify areas of improvement. But how can you do that without being too harsh or too lenient on yourself? Here are some tips to help you review and critique your own photos effectively.
Before you start reviewing your photos, you should have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and how you will measure your progress. For example, you might want to improve your composition, lighting, focus, color, or storytelling. You can use these aspects as criteria to judge your photos and compare them to your previous work or to other photographers' work. You can also set specific goals for each photo session, such as trying a new technique, experimenting with a different genre, or capturing a certain mood or emotion.
Identifying areas of improvement in digital photography involves critical self-assessment and feedback from others. Firstly, review your own work with a discerning eye, considering composition, lighting, focus, and overall impact. Compare your photos to professional standards and analyze where they fall short. Secondly, seek feedback from peers, mentors, or online photography communities. Constructive criticism can offer valuable insights and point out areas for improvement that you may not have noticed.
Thirdly, study the work of accomplished photographers and analyze what makes their photos stand out. Identify techniques or styles you admire and strive to incorporate them into your own work. Lastly, experiment with new techniques, equipment, and subjects to broaden your skills and push your creative boundaries. By continuously assessing your work and seeking feedback, you can identify areas for growth and improve your digital photography skills over time.
There are many tools and methods you can use to review and critique your own photos, such as zooming in and out, cropping, rotating, flipping, applying filters, or using histograms and grids. These can help you see your photos from different perspectives and notice details, flaws, or strengths that you might have missed otherwise. You can also use online platforms, apps, or software that offer feedback, ratings, or suggestions for your photos, such as Adobe Lightroom, Snapseed, or Photocritic.
While reviewing your own photos is important, it can also be helpful to get feedback from other people, especially those who have more experience or expertise in photography. You can ask them to comment on your photos, point out areas of improvement, or suggest ways to enhance them. You can also join online or offline photography communities, groups, or clubs where you can share your work, learn from others, and get inspired. However, you should be open-minded and respectful when receiving feedback, and not take it personally or defensively.
This is the most important one. It is nearly impossible for an artist to objectively judge his own work. Finding people who have both the ability to critique your work and the candor to do so without fear of hurting you is critical, but also difficult. It's a rare person that can fulfill both criteria.
One of the best ways to identify areas of improvement in your digital photography work is to keep a record of your photos and track your progress over time. You can create a portfolio, a blog, a journal, or a folder where you can store your photos and organize them by date, theme, genre, or technique. You can also write notes, reflections, or captions for each photo, explaining what you like, dislike, or want to improve. This can help you see how you have improved, what you have learned, and what you still need to work on.
Finally, you need to be honest and realistic with yourself when reviewing and critiquing your own photos. You should not be too harsh or too lenient on yourself, but rather acknowledge both your strengths and weaknesses, and celebrate your achievements and efforts. You should also not compare yourself to others or set unrealistic expectations, but rather focus on your own goals and criteria, and enjoy the process of learning and improving. Remember that photography is a creative and personal expression, and there is always room for improvement.
Lo anterior, más el análisis de métricas y "patear" calle. Una fotografía viral no significa necesariamente un buen desempe?o.