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Evaluating Photographs


excerpt from Natural Design: Image Design for Nature Photographers

To get the most from the visual experience it helps to understand as much as possible about the image including subject matter, style and execution. Before delving into the composition I look at the image in a broad overview including the following:

Artist’s Intent
With the exception of experiments, document images and tests, photographs usually have a meaning or a message. That could be as simple as showcasing a pretty flower or as abstract as a pure white wall.

Before rendering criticism, I try to see a photograph as a whole, complete image - as the photographer would have me see it. I try to find the artist’s intent. What result or effect was the photographer trying to achieve? What is the purpose of the image? To document a scene? To dazzle? To relate a story? Once I understand the artist’s intent, I can use my understanding of the situation, subject matter and processes involved to evaluate the image and form an opinion.

Emotional Impact
One of the most powerful aspects of a photograph is its ability to affect us emotionally. The effects of a photograph are immediate and thrust upon us with little warning or time for mental preparation. The first impression of a photograph is an extremely critical moment in the viewing process as it can set the tone for the entire viewing experience.

Often photographs are created specifically for the purpose of extracting emotions from a viewer and some photographers are very good at what they do. At times they can be aggressive in their efforts to stir their desired emotion and other times they can be subtle.

It is important to remember that it is not necessary to be clobbered with emotions when studying a photograph. We need not wind up sobbing on the floor or flying above Cloud Nine for an image to be effective in stirring emotions. It’s best to recognize the nature of the emotions experienced by an image and keep them in perspective. For example, a field of pale clover will not have the high drama and impact of a field of screaming yellow sunflowers. But the field of clover may have its own quiet qualities that can evoke even more powerful emotions. Both high drama and subtlety are well represented through the medium of photography.

When we see a photo for the first time, if we recognize the subject or message we connect it with our own personal experiences. We carry the memories of these experiences with us through the viewing process and this can make for an extraordinarily moving viewing experience. That is why photos of human suffering are so powerful. We’ve all gone through pain and we can read a sad face and it can bring back memories of our own pain. This is how we can have such diverse and personal viewing experiences and why there are no right and wrong ways to interpret the emotional aspects of a photograph.

Evaluating the Light
Light is highly subjective in evaluation. There are various ways to look at the light in an image and as artists familiar with the properties of light we probably have our own ideas as to how it should be captured in photography. It’s important, however, to put aside those preferences and try to see the scene how the photographer might have seen it.

When evaluating the light in a photograph take a look specifically at the following:

  • Is the main subject adequately lit? Should it be brighter or darker? Was it exposed well?
  • Was flash or any other artificial lighting technique used? Should it have been avoided?
  • Is time of day evident? Does that add to the image?
  • Does the light make you feel anything? Does it contribute to the mood of the image?
  • Examine the brightness of the light and note whether it causes any prominent highlights or shadows.
  • Evaluate the light’s perceived weight. Does it seem thin and light or thick and muggy?
  • Look at the directness of the light. Check to see if it is direct or obstructed or filtered. What do the obstructions, if any, do to the quality of the light falling on the subject? Would it have been better to wait for a different time?
  • Look at direction of light. Is it side-lit, front-lit back-lit or lit from above or below? Would it be more effective another way?
  • Does the light cause any noticeable effects such as creating glare or extreme contrasts that can add a sense of drama? Did the artist purposely over- or under-expose the scene to create a certain artistic effect?

These are not questions that should be answered for every photograph, nor are they applicable to every photograph. They are simply a range of questions and points to bear in mind when evaluating the light in photographic images.

Structure
The physical structure of a photograph can be categorized in one of three ways: formal, informal and abstract. Examples of a formal, rigid composition can be found in such images as one comprised entirely of a brick wall; a honeycomb, or other pattern created by regularly occurring shapes of equal or similar size.

An abstract structure is usually an unordered composition comprised of elements or effects that are not immediately recognizable. An abstract composition can be considered one where order, structure and predictable flow do not exist but the viewer is left to explore the image on their own.

It should be noted that the term abstract is used both in the context of structure as well as to discuss content. For example, with creative treatment of subject matter a formal, structured composition such as a honeycomb pattern can be considered abstract conceptually.

An informal composition is not rigid like a pattern nor is it loose and unstructured like an abstract. It includes a good mix of both abstract and formal elements, to form a composition that is fluid, cohesive, interesting and with purpose. Most nature photographs have informal compositions. In an informal structure there is organization and a sense of order, predictability or fluidity in movement.

Execution
Rendering a three dimensional scene through a camera and onto a piece of film or a digital sensor is tough business, and we must have absolute control over our equipment in order to do this. With digital cameras you can check your technique right in the field and make real-time adjustments. With film we don’t have the luxury of seeing our results until it is processed so we need to perfect our technique and get to know our gear intimately.

When I evaluate the technical aspects of how an image was captured I generally look at sharpness, exposure and lighting. I look at how selective focus was used and for things like camera shake, blown highlights, blocked up shadows, filter use, lens flare, focal length, color quality and saturation and effects created by artificial lighting and reflectors.

Advanced Evaluation

  • In addition to the things already mentioned, take a closer look at the following:
  • Distribution, position and the relationships of shapes, forms, lines and points;
  • Visual paths -- movement and motion within frame;
  • Visual balance, symmetry, space and negative space;
  • Color palette, color distribution, color saturation and color harmony;
  • Distribution, weight and balance of tones;
  • Textures and how they are lit;
  • Extraneous objects and their effects;
  • Weather and atmospheric effects;
  • Equipment used, settings, accessories and their effects. Effectiveness of equipment choices and use; and
  • Sharpness and blurring techniques.

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excerpt from Natural Design: Image Design for Nature Photographers

Revised June 23, 2008
Text and images copyright Gloria Hopkins


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