So how might one go about making constructive criticisms? I actually think that there are five easy steps.

Firstly and most importantly one must respect the artist whose work one is criticising. That doesn’t mean that one has to like everything but rather that one must try and understand the creator’s motives and approach. Only then can one make a judgement about whether one thinks them right or wrong. The very best way to understand is to engage in a dialogue with the photographer. (Unfortunately competitions, by their very nature, inhibit or even prohibit such an approach so the web forum is a better environment for this approach.) Rather than say “I think…” the judge or critic should be asking, “Why did you...?”

Secondly, it is beholden on the critic to be knowledgeable about photography - not in some narrow, parochial way but in a deep and broad way. All too often those commenting on competitions or forums appear to feel that they are doing other photographers a favour by deigning to give an opinion, however ill-informed or biased that opinion may be.

Thirdly, the judge should be humble. The critics’ role should be to serve the photographers whose work they are appraising. He or she must bear in mind that whatever they feel about the image presented to them the person whose vision it is has no doubt poured their heart and soul into its making.

Fourthly, the critic must supply a reasoned argument for their opinion. It simply isn’t good enough to say that one doesn’t like something without backing up that opinion with reasons and examples to support one’s viewpoint. Any artist is not surprisingly apt to feel that unsupported criticism is a personal attack on them as creator of the work and become defensive. This defensiveness then stops them from listening to useful comments.

Finally, the critic should make suggestions on how to improve a work. If they don’t have any suggestions they have no business being critical!

It’s not wrong to be critical, though you might not think this from the almost universal, thoughtless praise one sees on web forums. The key is that criticism should be used as a tool to help other photographers not as a stick to beat one’s peers with. Used this way, by explaining why something works and constructively criticising less well-executed work, criticism can help others achieve a higher level of output. Judgements on photography or any other art must necessarily be relative, not absolute so this can never be an exact science. The preeminent characteristic of a critic should be that they wish to help others improve.

To return to my idle speculation from the beginning of this post, I’ve decided that I’m not really bothered what a critic thinks of my work unless they have some useful insight. After more than 25 years as a photographer I feel reasonably secure about my approach and the quality of my work but this is rarely the case for those starting out. I would advise that if you seek critical appraisal in order to improve the quality of your work you must also appraise the quality of the critic. Think about the comments that are offered and ruthlessly disregard those without a consistently reasoned argument, this goes for the mindless “Wow, great!” comments as much as for the “Don’t like it” ones. Above all be true to yourself and only heed those that are trying to help you on your journey through photography.

Biography

http://www.lightandland.co.uk
http://www.into-the-light.com

David Ward is one of Britain's most accomplished large format photographers. He has a very varied knowledge of photography, acquired while working for previous advertising, design and publishing clients. Over the years David has photographed everything from dogs to food to racing cars but landscape photography has always remained his passion.

In recent years he has concentrated his efforts on leading photography workshops for photo tour company Light & Land, taking groups to places as diverse as Utah and Norway. His emphasis in teaching is on the photographer's vision, rather than on what equipment is being used, and he passes on his knowledge in a uniquely humorous and accessible manner. Light & Land runs a broad range of photographic workshops for all levels of photographers – both in the UK and worldwide – full details can be found at http://www.lightandland.co.uk

David has recently hosted Landscape Beyond - a hugely successful exhibition of his work at Londons OXO Tower gallery which was also the launch pad for Davids most recent book of the same title.

All images in this article © David Ward

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