>From: "Malcolm Smith" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Sadly, not living in an area of great natural beauty like your good self, >it's very easy to travel a very short distance and see such images which >would easily become photos. What we have here is a photographic conflict of >interest. You've also raised this in part in earlier posts this year in the >quality of images submitted to the PUG. > >I've submitted very few images in the last twelve months directly as a >result of the comments surrounding PUG and other submissions here. Most of >the submissions are of a very high standard - well beyond competition for >a >mediocre photographer like myself - and the constant 'raising of the bar' >makes it very difficult not to compete, but to find a place for those of a >lower standard to discuss what's gone right and what's gone wrong with a >particular shot - perhaps this no longer exists or is welcome here. >
Hi Malcolm, I think all levels of photographers should contribute, as I said back then as well. I personally find the list to be largely self-congratulatory. In other words the vast majority of shots are praised whether they possess merit or not. While I don't believe the photographer should be denigrated for what might be considered generally a poor shot by most, neither does *apparently* thoughtless random commendaion help them improve. It also tends to make the commendation for good shots less meaningful. I probably came across too strongly, and apologize. Of course the list is used by a wide variety of people and for different purposes. As you can see, I use it as an outlet as opposed to kicking my dog. ;-) >As regards the stinking street shots, in an age where the camera is >increasingly being viewed the same way as a weapon and treated accordingly, >I find it fascinating how photographers are still taking pictures, often >very good ones and I often wonder if the image as a reflection of society >is >the problem, rather than the technical aspects of the picture itself. > >Malcolm Yeah, I shouldn't have said that. Most (not all) street photography that I see is to my liking. I've seen lots of pictures of homeless people (not that they define street photography in any way). While their situation is often deplorable, I don't find that a poignant subject necessarily makes the photograph good, just as an adorable kitten does not, and just as a beautiful vista does not. Tom C. -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
