Today we are going to try something different. Instead of critiquing some of your best images, we are asking photographers to submit only images they have created during their quarantined time from this coronavirus pandemic. We aren't setting any specific genre so you can submit any type of photograph or art but we do ask you only submit images you have created in the last few weeks.
All entries must be submitted by April 8th at 11:45pm Eastern Time, and this time we are going to give away a free Fstoppers Tutorial to every submission selected for our critique episode. We will still leave voting open so we can see what you the community thinks of each image, but again, EVERY SINGLE IMAGE selected will win a free tutorial.
We can't wait to see what you come up with, and everyone from Fstoppers hopes you guys are staying safe and in good spirits during this difficult time.
The low voters are out already. NO, I don't think my images are 4 or 5-star images, but a 1-star rating is B.S.! I guess that is just to be expected in this forum. :(
I wouldn’t worry about it.. people are dicks, and no new found community spirit brought out by a deadly virus spreading across the earth is going to change it, the internet is the place to be for weasels.
It is the whole being anonymous thing too. It is easy to be a jerk when no one knows who is doing it.
Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is watching.
It happens
I totally agree. A year or two ago I tried posting photos on F stoppers, and within minutes, every time they all got one star. I got so discouraged I closed my account and left the site. Only recently did I try again. MY photos might not have been good, but I feel if you give a 1 star rating , you should also leave a reason and hint as to what would make it better.
Exactly. I have uploaded two photos, both of it got 1 star rating. Snapshot? I don't think my photos deserve more than 2 -2.5 stars, but 1? I'm relly curious why I got 1 star rating.
Agreed it's stupid and wrong, but there are a few of us who refuse to rate anything lower than a 3 until we've revisited the "questionable" entry and caption a second or third time. Members of this exclusive Decency Union are usually the ones kind enough to find the time to compose a note with constructive criticism on my modest work. I'd offer you a membership, but I'm not on the screening committee yet (joking, you can send your dues to....)
Agree. I appreciate it when submitters took time to give some background and it might help if voters took time to read and consider said details. But it can be tough to cycle thru the tons of submissions on a phone.
I really wish that people would try to be more aware of the actual theme and only post relevant photos... this would cut down on the amount of irrelevant submissions and maybe make it easier to give well-considered ratings.
I also appreciate it when the guys at Fstoppers choose a variety of submissions, good and bad, that actually fit the theme best. This would encourage everyone in the future to stick to the theme. A thrid party who picks which 20 photos for the critique would add some variety and maybe keep Lee & Patrick a little more interested in the critique :-P
And anyone who is griping about a 1 star vote it might be because I docked a star if it was off-theme. I'm not saying that it is a bad photo, sometimes I am just using my vote to try to help keep the theme on track.
I personally don't have any photos that have ever been better than maybe a 2 star but I view low ratings as constructive criticism for how others who have completely different taste may view your/my work. Not everyone likes the Mona Lisa either, so don't take it personally in these contests!
Some people rate photos 1 or 2 stars because that's just what they do. However, in this contest, such ratings given because a person feels they're "off theme" shows failure to read what's expected of submissions. It's two sentences.
If parts of your comment means you did this, then you were unfair.
I would like you to visit my entries then. I am new to photography, constructive criticism is welcome.
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Thats a bit kettle calling the pot black im afraid.. perhaps you should look closer to home before typing such a scathing assessment of someone elses work.
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Dude it's really laughable at this point, I can say for sure ... If you give half of them the opportunity to prove why they gave said ratings they'd be stumped
For real now what is going on with the one star voters? At least if you give someone one star, write why his or hers photo dosnt work...
Honestly, it happens. I don't care about winning. Awarded with my shots taking the front cover of magazines is much more satisfying. People that have been voting a 1 or 2 on my picture probably can't count higher than that. You can't hold it against them haha
Totally agree. Not saying my photos are great but for some to vote a star is a little harsh. I used flash and focus stacking so is definitely a little more that a snapshot:)
Oh well, I still love seeing everyone’s photos and get inspired
I like your photos. I gave you a 5 to counter balance. Good images though.
Awww, thank you!
I gave you 5's for a few of the images on your page
Very kind of you 😊
Yeah, personally I don't see a single 1 star in any of your photos. Most seem to be solid portfolio pieces at worst.
Thank you. Trying to improve every day!
Well, your not alone who enjoys looking at everyone's photos (God, I can't even spell or type....so what is wrong with that?)...don't let some A** ruin your day.
Maybe people downvote others pictures to be more likely to get into a video (and thus win a tutorial)
Thanks so much for listening! I appreciate this.
What quarantine?
Wow tough crowd lol. This is my first time submitting to any sort of contest. Idc about the rating but some feedback good bad or ugly would be nice....
Yikes, no wonder the coronavirus is spreading like wildfire. Half of these photos are outdoors in public places. People clearly don’t know what quarantine means?
The U.S. isn't under quarantine.
Well, this is a "submit your photos taken during quarantine" contest, so people not under quarantine must be cheating then? Otherwise, what's the challenge? The contest even specifies that for a change it is not looks for the best photos, but to "submit only images they have created during their quarantined time".
You can and it’s some what encouraged to stay active and to get outside, while remaining distant from people. Even in big cities
That’s true and I have to say that the newer submissions are far better than the earlier ones (in terms of what could have been shot while in quarantine). My reaction was to the earlier ones where many where shot in busier places that does not seem like the most responsible places to stay active and get some air.
The USA may not be under quarantine but thats because several states have not issued a stay at home order. The ones that have done such have closed down all non-essential businesses and thats why photographers have so much free time right now. Sadly the USA government sees us as non-essential
Yeah, I'm in Idaho and we're under the lunacy of a "lockdown". Funny how we are so willing to give up our rights in the pursuit of some illusion of safety.
Hope the community is keeping safe and well. This is a really good contest, I'm loving the entries so far. Big thanks to the Fstoppers team for giving away free tutorials to all that are chosen too.
Sorry to end this on a negative, but it does make me chuckle that when you first post an image the 3 and 4 stars flo... then leave it a few hours and people realise that it starts to get a little too high for their liking and they start putting in lower votes. Like many others, I'm not saying I have amazing images, but I do think that once your vote is cast you shouldn't be able to then change it once you're presented with the overall vote. Just a thought ;-)
There is something I like in this community- that tiny little hiding camera owners who make my day with their 1 star votes 😂
Someone said -give a person a mask and you will know who he really is.
So why do you complain? If you can't handle the rating you probably shouldn't post any thing. I voted several picture in this contest 1 Star and don't need to hide from that. If you have a different opinion you can vote how ever you like, but attacking people for their free vote and opinion doesn't show much strength.
OK 😂
The trouble with your comment is you included 'and opinion'... nobody gives an opinion, they just downvote then disappear like rats.
Well of course there are people just beeing toxic, but answering that witch the same negativity will only perpetuate that cycle, especially if the people see that they can provoke a reaction.
Me personally im past caring, but i have every sympathy with people who complain because they took time to create an image, more time than the average iphone user will take.. then someone decides to drop in and rate their image as, and i quote 'a snapshot' without having to provide their reason.. its not constructive or valuable and its just degrading the community on this website.
I dont get how photography has managed to gain such a toxic online following, the 2 things just shouldn't be in the same space.
Well yes I know what you mean, but then the average picture here has about zero comments which is sad, because if anything this could be the place have nice exchanges with people about photography.
Getting stresst about some number some random person put on your picture is not really helpful in any conversation nor will it help to stay positiv.
If people would care half as much about commenting on other pictures and giving some feedback as they care about their rating, this would already be a better place.
Oh, really? Then prepare to be ecstatic because I just went through your portfolio and rated everything 1-star.
Kidding. They inspired me to do one-light portraits today and work on technique.
Ive been reading all these comments about how people are pissed over only getting 1 star and i get it, the the thing is that unless your photos are perfect and at pro level they will unfortunately only get a low rating even if they are good photos and not snapshots. I'm saying this from a point of view of seeing lots of photos on these contests and seeing good photos getting 1 or 2 star rating when they should be getting 3-4 star.
Even some photos I think would normally be 5-star photos are hovering at 3-4. I'm doing fairly well, for the first time ever, I have one above two stars. It has a 4 star rating on my portfolio, but hey, what's the difference. Still better than anything I've received before.
You could copy paste 20 images from a natgeo.com article on here and I swear half the people here would vote em 1 to 2 stars.
There also seems to be a view with some that because they used fancy equipment or techniques or spent hours producing an image that it should deserve a higher score. Which is nonsense imo, the image should speak for itself regardless of how it was produced. Maybe its the term "snapshot" in particular that people react to?
The rules states that if the photo is externally lit, it’s automatically a 2 star picture no matter what it looks like, so you’re wrong. Personally, I think people are way to liberal with their one star ratings.
Even though art is usually a fairly subjective matter, we wanted to create a rating system that was as objective and unbiased as possible. This way if one of your images has been rated 50 times and has received an average rating of 2 stars, you could feel confident that maybe that particular image is not up to par. Below is a simple chart explaining the Fstoppers Community Rating System.
1 Star - The Snapshot
1 Star ratings are limited to snapshots only. Snapshots are usually taken to document a time or location but little to no thought has gone into the creation of the image. If an image has been "lit" with external light (besides a direct on-camera flash) it is at least a 2 star picture. The majority of 1 star images have had no postproduction work done to them but do often have an "Instagram style" filter added to them. The average person these days snaps 1 star images every single day with their smartphones. Most 1 star images that pop up on sites like ours are images of flowers, pets, landscapes, sunsets, objects around a house, etc. If you read Fstoppers, you should not be sharing 1 star images for any reason.
2 Stars - Needs Work
All images, besides maybe 5 star images, always have room for improvement but 2 star images "need work" before they should be included in your portfolio. As photographers we are snapping thousands of images per year but only a few of those images should ever be shared or put into our portfolio. A photographer who has taken a 2 star image has put some thought into the composition, exposure, and postproduction but for some reason has missed the mark. 2 star images should not be in the portfolio of a full-time professional photographer, and amateur photographers should strive for something better. Even complete amateurs who don't understand photography at all are capable of taking 2 star images from time to time.
3 Stars - Solid
A 3 star image is an all around good image. The photographer has a solid understanding of the basics: composition, color, focus, subject matter, and postproduction. A 3 star image is "good" but it's not great. Most part-time professional photographers have mostly 3 star images in their portfolios. Usually a level 3 image would have been rated 4 stars if it had been shot in a better location, or with a better model showing a better expressions, or there was better postproduction. A photographer capable of taking a 3 star image is capable of taking 4 and 5 star images if they would simply pay more attention to the details.
4 Stars - Excellent
4 star images are fantastic. In most cases, 4 star images have a certain style to them that links them directly to their creator. 4 star images usually require planning and attention to extreme detail. It's almost impossible to shoot a 4 star image by getting lucky. 4 star images have almost flawless conception, composition, lighting, subject matter, and postproduction. If you have any 4 star images in your portfolio you should be very proud of yourself.
5 Stars - World Class
5 star images are flawless and unforgettable. The amount of time, energy, and talent that goes into the average 5 star image is staggering. In many cases these pictures require a team to produce including a professional retoucher. The concept, lighting, subject, location, and postproduction on these images has to be perfect. In some cases the jump from 4 to 5 stars may be as simple as changing the unknown model in the picture with a celebrity or bringing in a set designer or stylist to make the image slightly better. Although there are always exceptions, most 5 star images take days, if not weeks or months to produce.