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Permalink Reply by n i s h a on February 19, 2008 at 12:53am

It is an interesting question and many interesting answers .thank you for sharing.

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Permalink Reply by Liviu on January 22, 2008 at 8:27am

A good photo is that photo that is telling you something when you watch it....If you take 100 photos and only one is good, do not think that you waste 100 photos for only one picture...Consider that you made 1 good picture and THAT'S IT...Just keep shooting

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Permalink Reply by J. D. Gordon on January 23, 2008 at 1:34pm

The fact that you are asking this question is an indication that you have an eye for good shots, or if not yet, it will be happening soon. You will see what you are looking for at the start, but as you take more and more pictures and try different shades of light, you will begin to see beyond what you normally would see. Keep doing it.

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Permalink Reply by matias on January 25, 2008 at 11:59pm

Hey Igor:
I think good or bad (and anything in between) depends on the usage. of course there is all the technical stuff as viewed per a photography teacher. for example i have a few pictures my friends may say they like, for a reason or another. yet they are useless if i try to sell them online as per

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Permalink Reply by Terra Dawn on January 31, 2008 at 4:43am

When I first begin my editing process through all of my images, I start with a list of the numbers my camera assigns each image (there are usually 200-300). Then I open up each image and either cross it off the list for basics such as blurriness, blinking (I work in portraiture), bad crop, and just an immediate NO! from my head. After I have marked off the obvious NO's, I usually go back and start looking at each image individually. A lot of the images look similar, so it is easy to hold up the similar ones and decide with one looks better. This is when you look at everything from sharpness, to composition, to the message the image tells. Even then, I still come across some images where I think "Oh lord, noooo..... That one is definately not going to be seen by the public." By the end of this process, I usually end up with 25-30 solid images that I want to work on in photoshop. After photoshop (color, contrast, curves, and blemish removal) I will usually end up with around five less than what I went in with. Out of those final 25 images, I usually have a favorite. And, if it is good enough to go in my portfolio........in it goes.

I know it is good enough to go into my portfolio, if I am in love with it. I am my biggest critic, so if I love the colors and composition and crop and message.......if I can't help but show it off and look at it every five minutes to make sure it really is good....then i know it should go in. Really, I think final judgement on an image comes from your personal critique.

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Permalink Reply by lem estiva on January 31, 2008 at 5:17am

i guess that is one question that we will forever be asking ourselves... i have realized that my eyes would always be drawn towards something or someone that expresses my emotions. i believe that is how a certain mood is composed in a photograph... it surprises me sometimes that some of the photos i took i thought were worthless, were actually the ones that other people would take another glance at and comment with such kind words... its always nice to show other people our work, and let them be the judge... for me, taking photographs is like writing a story with a camera instead of a pen =)

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Permalink Reply by denny on January 31, 2008 at 5:21pm

hallo igor,...you just create in your mind ,more insting,frame your image,dont think about anything just focus,..see the light,..n of course what u see what u get....keep on shoot igor -d

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Permalink Reply by reyn on February 7, 2008 at 8:22am

being a beginner myself, i dont know how to tell which picture is good and which is not. as for the pictures that i took, i never really liked any of them - as i always thought that i could have done better. i compared the ones that i made and draw some distinction. i have Set A pictures where i shoot them because i like what im seeing, and Set B where i actually prepared to go outdoors for a photoshoot. it happens all the time that Set A pictures worked better for me. these included candid pictures, party pictures, and pictures of many different scenes of our day-today lives - like people passing by or children playing. i thought it was because of the stories these picture tell us. we may not know these people in the picture but they inspire us and our hearts melt. as for the Set B pictures, yes they come in good landscapes, colors and shapes. but sometimes they're just it and nothing else. i am not a good photographer that's the main reason, and second - i basically compare them with photos taken by professional photographers and i would end up telling myself, mine is too far behind. - maybe the wrong thing here is we often try to copy a picture taken by others or working on classic themes where hundreds have already been produced. And these classics have become basis or standard, and rendered original in a way.

personally, i resolved these issue with just one word - originality.
of course this ain't an easy one. you've got to experience or feel the real thing first before capturing them in your lenses. a child's laughter may become a good one when when you first heard him or saw his smile your heart sunk... you turn on your camera and get a good one, and i know, even if its just a picture, you and your audience hear the child's laughter.

when you get the picture, you make the finishing touches thru your software to better the colors and sharpness.

i read thru randy epperson's note on this topic, i bet he's right. i learned a lot from his short answer. saw his pictures and they were all nice, some are heart-warming.

note: this is just my idea, as i told you i'm just a beginner and i dont know the standards of photography.

hope to read more advices and tips from you guys. ;-)

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Permalink Reply by shlomo on February 18, 2008 at 12:54am

try the "wall test" put the print somewhere upon a visible site.
try feeling if U like to see it again
ask your friends

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Permalink Reply by 'Chelle on February 18, 2008 at 7:34pm

I agree with Randy in the whole "good is in the eye of the beholder". Is the picture how you imagined it? or Did it turn out like you meant it to? Anyone can pick apart a picture and say "this is wrong, that's wrong" but if it's how you intended for it to come out, then I say that it's an expression and thus a great pic. I think that it's all about what you think... it is handy to hear what others have to say but in the end, your style is your style and you'll stand out because of it. Good luck!

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