I have to say this has been a painful one for me to vote on so far, and I suspect this will be one of the lowest scoring challenges in terms of my own voting.
On the candid challenges, I give a good bit of weight to whether the photographer made any attempt to leave their comfort zone to get a shot, or whether they just snapped something and considered it to be a candid.
I'd say that a good 75% of the shots are simply NOT candid, or little effort went into them. I don't want to be any more specific than that during voting, but I really feel like most of these shots are skirting the challenge.
Sorry to be mopey and whiny... must be the weather :)
I agree on both accounts - the fact that a lot of them aren't candid and the weather. It's horrible right now in these parts of te country ;(
I have not yet seen all the pictures in this challenge, so I cannot comment on the quality of the photo's, but I would have to say that the precedent was set in the last two Candid challenges to be quite different than what some would call "Candid". I think there is an "idea" that candids require you to be hiding on a street corner waiting to catch someone who looks different or has a sparkling personality - I have this "idea" when I think of candids. However, when I looked at the last two challenge winners, 3 out of the first 5 in Candid II where basic children shots and 5 out of 10 of the top 10 in Candid I were (what I call) basic children shots. And (no offense to Manny, it was a great picture) but his 4th place finish in Candid II - that picture is hardly out of his "comfort zone" and not one that I can really tell is candid or not. I think these two prior challenges set the precedent for what you are seeing in this challenge. I know if it weren't for those past challenges, I would not have entered the picture I did in a "candid" challenge, as it is not what I think of as being candid, and it's definitely not out of my comfort zone, but it's also currently scoring slightly above a 6 - go figure.
One thing to keep in mind, regardless of this Challenge is that even the worlds, absolute best Candid shooter might come up with nothing in any given time frame....days...weeks perhaps months.
Votes: 55
Views: 68
Avg Vote: 6.1273
Comments: 2
Do I smell a Blue? LOL.
I do hope that people aren't voting angry and making assumptions about what was posed or not...although some very well fit that bill.
....and at the risk of sounding totally cocky, by comparison, I think my image should be in the high 6's. Can't figure out why???????
I'm usually not one to moan and groan about my scores, as I don't take the opinions of the DPC masses too seriously. But in this challenge, I genuinely believe that my submission deserves more than it's currently getting. I submitted my entry with the expectation of hitting the top ten this challenge. But as it stands, I'm currently at ...
Let me add my candid experience to the discussion.
I shot out of my comfort zone. I took pictures of strangers and felt very strange about it. I could have shot a very interesting character while I was out but I didn't have the nerve. It had something to do with the fact that he was walking and talking to himself and seemed a bit unstable.
What makes a candid? I had many good shots of my stepdaughter while she was out and about. She was oblivious to the camera. I believe these are considered candid but didn't want the typical "kid shot". I choose instead the stranger picture because I found the subject more interesting.
Lesson learned here is to take more chances. I looked back at Candid II but decided to follow my instinct of what candid means to me instead of trying for a high score. At least the comments make it worthwhile.
I shot out of my comfort zone. I took pictures of strangers and felt very strange about it. I could have shot a very interesting character while I was out but I didn't have the nerve. It had something to do with the fact that he was walking and talking to himself and seemed a bit unstable.
I had the same problem, which ended up hurting me. I felt like a stalker or a PI hired to get info on someone. I tried to take a shot without people noticing that I was shooting them, but it definitely didnt work out as well as I had hoped. :(
Have you been to Times Square in New York City? You can put your camera right into a person face from about 4 feet and they won't even see you ... it's a lot easier there.
Originally posted by CzechMan:
I tried to take a shot without people noticing that I was shooting them, but it definitely didnt work out as well as I had hoped. :(
Have you been to Times Square in New York City? You can put your camera right into a person face from about 4 feet and they won't even see you ... it's a lot easier there.
Originally posted by CzechMan:
I tried to take a shot without people noticing that I was shooting them, but it definitely didnt work out as well as I had hoped. :(
oh well, not all of us are that lucky
I had to use the zoom on maximum, to be able to take the shot I did, without the person noticing me.
OK, I just recieved a comment on my photo which confirms what everyone in this thiread is saying. The score killers in this callenge are from voters who think a shot DNMC by definition of "candid". My advice to voters is this: Do not assume you know what you're looking at! You cannot look at any of these pictuers and decipher...
a) the level of interaction between photographer and subject
b) the subject matter itself
So why base your voting on these criteria? Instead use the technical merits and emotive quality of the photos as your guidelines. Street photography and candids are my favorite areas of photography, so I guess I feel a little on the defensive side with people suggesting that my shot does not fall under this category.... Now I remember why I participate in fewer and fewer challenges these days.
OK, I just recieved a comment on my photo which confirms what everyone in this thiread is saying. The score killers in this callenge are from voters who think a shot DNMC by definition of "candid". My advice to voters is this: Do not assume you know what you're looking at! You cannot look at any of these pictuers and decipher...
a) the level of interaction between photographer and subject
b) the subject matter itself
So why base your voting on these criteria? Instead use the technical merits and emotive quality of the photos as your guidelines. Street photography and candids are my favorite areas of photography, so I guess I feel a little on the defensive side with people suggesting that my shot does not fall under this category.... Now I remember why I participate in fewer and fewer challenges these days.
Isn't each voter entitled to his/her interpretation of what a candid shot should be? Everyone has their own view, and they should vote accordingly. If there were a 'standard', it would be made explicitly so.
i don't live there ... my submission wasn't easy either.
i wish i lived closer, this challenge would have beenmuch easier :)
Originally posted by anotherday:
oh well, not all of us are that lucky
anotherday, i had to utilize my max zoom too. I guess there was more than one of us. :)
hopper, i wish i was able to shoot pics in NY too! Being in LA, IMO, works against me. It seems that people are a little more worried about what you are doing and why you are doing it.
My advice to voters is this: Do not assume you know what you're looking at! You cannot look at any of these pictuers and decipher...
a) the level of interaction between photographer and subject
b) the subject matter itself
I NEVER, ever complain about comments but I did recieve one from a baghead who critiqued my subjects attire or pieces of it, as if I had some sort of say in the matter or could have changed it. WTF?
Edited: Uh ohhh! No longer a baghead. Now I understand the comment. LOL!!!!!!!!
This is going to sound really, hmmmmmmmm, silly? But how do you see your stats during voting?
I take it you mean # of views, # of votes, score, etc...?
Make sure you have the checkbox selected for the following on your preferences page.
My Scores Show scores and comments for my submissions during voting week.
The score, etc... will show in the upper left area on the DPChallenge home page for you.
I hope I'm not misleading you as I can't remember for sure what Registered users vs Members see.
Isn't each voter entitled to his/her interpretation of what a candid shot should be? Everyone has their own view, and they should vote accordingly. If there were a 'standard', it would be made explicitly so.
You're absolutely correct. Each voter IS entitled their own interpretation, assumption, etc on what a candid shot should be, and will vote accordingly... Even though they may be wrong. But I guess that's OK as long as THEY believe they're right. And why shouldn't there be a standard? The category of candids is much broader than many on here percieve it to be.
The breakdown, if you mean how many 1's, 2's, etc. comes after the challenge. Some people also constantly monitor their scores using the update button and are able to infer that they just received a vote of X or Y that way.
Hey if I can get a candid here in good old Utah then you should have no problem in LA.
I just take their picture and if they say anything I just punch'em in the face!
Sorry heard the Jerky Boys this morning...must be rubbing off. ;-D
Originally posted by CzechMan:
Originally posted by hopper:
i don't live there ... my submission wasn't easy either.
i wish i lived closer, this challenge would have beenmuch easier :)
Originally posted by anotherday:
oh well, not all of us are that lucky
anotherday, i had to utilize my max zoom too. I guess there was more than one of us. :)
hopper, i wish i was able to shoot pics in NY too! Being in LA, IMO, works against me. It seems that people are a little more worried about what you are doing and why you are doing it.
