I have to take a break from voting on the "Color" challenge. I just scored a decent photograph with an awful border. It was all I could do to keep from giving it a -1 (which I wish I could do some times). I have seen about two photographs where the border enhanced the image. A few where the image does not detract. And many where the border detracts and sometimes ruins the image.
The initial impression is so important. I ultimately gave the image a 6, but I almost punched the 1 without looking further.
The border should have a purpose. It should not be used just because ...
Dennis Ranting
Glad I just don't use em. I would rather have the photo judged and critiqued. Yes, a border can sometimes make it look better (I think this may come from getting the "it is framed" look), but I would rather save that for DPC Prints, even though I only put on a white border.
I have a problem with the colors of the frames sometimes. Matching a color in the photo is the idea I guess. Something that gets me is, I keep noticing that my deep blue skys in PSE 2, turns into a more cyan colored blue with the web-only colors, and I would hate to have that happen in a frame.
I won't mark down a pic with a frame, unless it is absolutely horrendous and is more the focus than the picture.
I agree with you (dacrazyrn), I rarely use borders myself or mark down for them unless they are really bad and detract from the photo, in which case I usually leave a comment stating that. And I rarely mark UP for using them unless they really compliment the pic, which I have seen a few times.
I actually like some borders, but I have to agree that many borders go too far. When you think that your image is being set against a gray background, most images do not look all that great against gray. A modest border can really help add zip to an image.
However, if you bring up an image and you immediately think: This has a border!, it is probably detracting from it. I really don't care for multiple color borders either. That usually means they are too thick. But I almost always have a small border, just to make the image pop more from the screen.
I think the adantage of a border is that it places your image against the colour you choose, rather than (as David's pointed out) grey. I rarely use them, though I'd emply a small black border for a dark shot, or white for a very light one.
However, I never print a shot without a white border - who knows what colour the wall or frames going to be?
E
PS. Your absolutley right though Dennis, in re the colour challenge.
I was editing my weather entry the other night when the missus got home from work. I had the unbordered version on one screen and the bordered version on another. Her first words were 'I can see why you add a border now'.
I agree that a border can be done badly, but I don't add a border so that someone will consciously vote my shot up because of it, I add one when it frames the image better than the grey background on the voting page does.
Should a bad border get a mark of 1? No! What is more important the border or the photograph? The photograph. I personally disregard all bad borders I see, and will vote only on the photograph itself. I will tell someone when they have a border I don't agree with but I certainly won't mark it down.
Should a bad border get a mark of 1? No! What is more important the border or the photograph? The photograph. I personally disregard all bad borders I see, and will vote only on the photograph itself. I will tell someone when they have a border I don't agree with but I certainly won't mark it down.
Should a bad border get a mark of 1? No! What is more important the border or the photograph? The photograph. I personally disregard all bad borders I see, and will vote only on the photograph itself. I will tell someone when they have a border I don't agree with but I certainly won't mark it down.
I totally agree ! :)
I agree too, but in the same way that a good border can make an image look better surely a bad border can make it look worse, no matter how much you try to ignore it.
I have never consciously marked down (or up) for a border, despite initially thinking I would (my reasoning - it's part of the submitted image), but when you have a 2 second window to make an impression on many of the voters you don't want them to have to start trying to ignore borders.
Borders are only bad because somebody says they are bad so everybody thinks they must be bad. Kinda like one little kid not liking peas because they heard some other little kid say they didn't like peas.
