Confidence and Humility

When I began frequenting social photography sites, I dove in wholeheartedly posting pictures and comments and having an all around great time.  As with any social networking site, the good interaction led to several solid new contacts and online friendships were born.  My general comment rule was (and still is) to only comment if I have something positive to say about a photograph.  If a picture moves me enough to add it to favorites or to start a gallery, it’s worth the time it takes to congratulate the photographer in the comment section.  I think these are good guidelines to follow that help keep any social website a fun place to interact and learn.  Then it happened–almost imperceptibly.  I’d be on a photo excursion, happily snapping away, when I began to notice an inner voice questioning my shots.  I was confident enough in my vision and style to ignore it and shoot anyway, but it bothered me that I was hearing it at all.  Upon reflection, I realized that the source was a comment that I had received on my Flickr page.

The comment at issue was not mean; it only questioned whether my photograph was a bit on the dull side.  My ego is healthy enough to handle a bit of criticism here and there but we artists are a sensitive lot, and when I caught myself questioning my judgment in the field, I traced it back to this innocent comment.  All of this got me thinking about photography social media as a whole and some of my own observations, pet peeves and usage practices.  At the moment I primarily use Flickr, so my comments are focused to that site, though they should apply to whichever platform you happen to use.

The most important thing when you’re displaying your images for the world to see and critique is to be confident.  If you’ve chosen your best work and built relationships with other photographers, you’ll reap the rewards of positive feedback across the community.  Even criticism is most often presented with good intentions.  As you build connections, decide whose critiques are worth considering.  Does their photography move or inspire you?  If not, their criticism shouldn’t mean much to you either.  It was instructive to realize the source of my creative doubt.   The person who left the comment was a regular visitor.  In a sense, he was giving me a compliment.  There was a certain standard he had come to expect from my photography, and for whatever reason that particular shot didn’t measure up.  It gave me reason to evaluate my own selection process. Was I posting photographs that represented my best work?  Or was I posting my second tier work because I was going through a dry spell and just wanted to post something?

One of my biggest annoyances as a consumer of online photography is users who post the entire series from their most recent outing.  Nothing makes me move on to the next photographer faster than landing on a page with ten or more of the same shot.  We all know how difficult it can be to choose the one or two best pictures from a shoot, but don’t make your viewers do the heavy lifting.  If you don’t care enough to choose, why should they?   When I was shooting film, the only pictures people saw were the ones I had enlarged and put in my portfolio.  If I didn’t value the photograph enough to go to the added expense of the custom lab, it wasn’t worth showing to other people.  Just because the internet has removed the expense barrier, I don’t think that the judgment barrier should be removed too.

As I already mentioned, keep it positive!  Comments are the coin of the realm in social media.  Tread carefully even with constructive criticism.  Make sure you’ve built that type of relationship with the photographer before diving in.  We all want to get better, and I’ve found most users who are serious about their photography are appreciative of helpful hints and ideas.  Common sense and courtesy rule the day here.  Humility in the face of criticism will make you honest with yourself.  Honesty with yourself will strengthen your confidence.  Too often it seems people take the attitude, “It’s the internet!  Go ahead—be a giant jerk!”  Stay humble, honest and positive; these are the keys to fostering communities on the web that keep it a rewarding place to learn and grow.