On Mon, 3 Jan 2005 10:40:38 +0000, Bob W <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > yes, I guess so. I wasn't suggesting it was something I would do > though. I don't enter competitions. If I did it would be as a means to > improving my photography, not simply a desire to enter something and > win. > > I'm very used to submitting work of various types for review and > criticism. In the case of something personal, such as my photography, > I wouldn't take any notice of somebody whose judgement I didn't > respect. > > As an example, I would almost certainly not pay any attention > whatsoever to the opinion of a local camera club judge. On the other > hand, I once had some feedback from the curator of photography at a > national museum - a man who is very well connected to the world of > photojournalism that I admire. I took his opinions very seriously, > and acted on them*. > > I think it's very important for us to have well qualified people > comment on our work. They have the breadth of knowledge and experience > to put our work in its proper context, and to be realistic without the > subjective attachment that we have to our own work. But of course, it's > our opinion that matters most, and we take the final decisions. > > *I still have some cameras, so his opinion wasn't too harsh! >
I'm glad that you distinguished between judges and critics. I drafted a post on that very subject several times, but trashed it each time, as I could get my thoughts organized. While I don't think much of art competitions, I think very highly of art criticism. Or rather, there are some critics who I think highly of. Some are on this list, in fact. cheers, frank -- "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." -Henri Cartier-Bresson
