I cant seem to figure out the ins and outs of what scores well here...
my "best of" shot went into the crapper (some resons were valid some were not) by the way it wasnt my best shot but the rule set did not let me enter my best...
My current entry in in the tank (with a bunch of great comments)
I have had a MERIT print do a low 6 here...
maybe I should read the code of the "too dark" comments
I took a quick glance over your portfolio and you have some pretty good shots. Personally I wouldn't call a 5.7 "in the crapper", it's a respectable score. Just looking at your work, I noted an overall lack of contrast. Not to say anything is wrong with that, it's just that most of the DPC stuff that scores well is higher contrast work. Overall, your images fall a little flat by DPC standards. Your "Best of" photo is a great shot. Lighting is good, pose is great, concept is great, etc etc etc. I noticed one commentor pointed out the use of the gray background. I'm going to have to agree that a light background would give the image more "pop" and could have probably increased your score overall (all other things being the same). I wouldn't give up on this "damn site", I would say that this is a good group of people as a whole and you have received some good advice so far.
thanks for the comment !
The shot was actually a green screen shot as are a great majority of the portrait sittings that I do ... under the rule set I couldn't do what I would normally have done with that image ...
My point is I see other images that are not as strong shall we say that have done better ...
I am just getting very frustrated achievig the "DPC" look...
you have some great shots! it gets frustrating for a lot of people here. I've come to learn that most of the images that do better than mine are well deserved to be there.
I am quite ticked that someone faved my Best of 20006 entry throughout voting and then removed it right after the results were shown.
As I said in my comment to you - I have no idea where the low votes came from. I think that you may have to accept that there are some ultra conservatives out there who might not like the subject matter (who can control the audience/voters?).
I also thought that there were a huge number of weak images in the compo - I found only 2 10s and a handful of 8s and 9s - yours was one of my 8s.
Given the anonymity of voting, it is unlikely that you will ever find out the "real" reason (that's life).
Having looked at your profile, however, I may have spotted the problem: it appears that you are shooting with a "Nikon". Maybe it is time to upgrade... ; )
Truthfully, do the best YOU can do ... and celebrate when the voters love your work. A 5.7 is a fairly decent score... I know its not a 6 or a 7... but its decent!
(do not hit enter too early)
One thing you can do to develop your photos into what the voters are liking is to post one of yoru photos in the forum and ask how you can make it better. ITs one of the ways of DPC!
Dave,
[stuff removed]
Having looked at your profile, however, I may have spotted the problem: it appears that you are shooting with a "Nikon". Maybe it is time to upgrade... ; )
Yeah I have been looking at a 645AF with a Leaf back for some time now ...
I think that would be a good upgrade from the D2x - what is there any other... any thing else would be a big step backward!!!!!
Dave - There is no way to please the DPC lot so I would not bother trying to. Just shoot what YOU like and how YOU like. Dont change how you do things or the way you do things. Just do what gives you pleasure and enjoyment and let the rest be damned!
As I said in my comment to you - I have no idea where the low votes came from. I think that you may have to accept that there are some ultra conservatives out there who might not like the subject matter (who can control the audience/voters?).
It goes both ways, I did A U.S. flag and got slammed by the USA haters. So, votes go both ways. Not just conservatives like me.
I cant seem to figure out the ins and outs of what scores well here...
I took a look at your 'best of' entry. It's nicely done, but it's a portrait. Any time you post a photo here of a person (in any way), you need a hook of some sort to connect the unattached viewer (me) to the image. Who do you believe, here at DPC, is going to 'connect' with this image? The subect of the photo probably believes it to be the best photo ever made of him. He looks like he's ready to fight, has an attitude, and probably wants to kick my ass just for talking about him. Where does a kid that age come up with that much money? He's probably not on the way to the bank to deposit his allowance. It could be money to cover the photographer's fee though :)
I don't know where you live, but I would be fairly confident in saying that 'gangsta' mentality is not as widely accepted globally as it might be in your community. What you photograph has a lot to do with your performance here. It's not always about how well you photograph it.
How could you have made it better?
Hmmm... Do gangstas have a lot of studio portraits done these days? I'm not sure. Why not on a street corner? Along a railroad track? On the subway? If he robbed an old lady for that money, he might have been sweaty from running from the police. If he's headed to the bank to deposit his allowance, they aren't gonna let him in without a shirt on :)
