Beginners' Guide to Scoring Your Images
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 15 сен 2023
- For many years now I have been scoring my images from 1 through to 5 with 1 being the worst images imaginable through to 5 which represent the best of my collection. I often get asked how I apply this grading system in the field, so I decided that a beginners' guide to how I do this would add some value to the channel, especially for those who are just getting started in nature photography.
Support me here
Become a channel member
/ @simonboothphotography
/ simonboothphotography
Or say thanks with a small donation:
www.paypal.com/donate/?cmd=_s...
Links to all my socials media and supporter pages: linktr.ee/SimonBoothPhotography
My Amazon Shop www.amazon.co.uk/shop/simonbooth
Affiliate Products: Kase Filters, Kingjoy Tripods and Valleret Photography Gloves simonboothphotography.com/aff...
Music: Epidemic Sound
As they say, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder". Having said that, I would be proud to have most of those images on my hard drive.
Simon, I find it hard to believe you still get any 1 or even 2 star images these days. You have an impeccable eye. Most of your compositions I would walk past/through without ever noticing for myself. I would give the 1st image maybe a high 3? So a 4. Thank you for the wonderful content, as always.
No I don't take 1's or 2's other than for illustrative reasons such as this. For the record, I would give that fist image a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
Love the explanation on why and how the scene works!
Very very intresting lesson Simon....thanks!!
Great video, Simon. This is the kind of material that really helps one to see critically and evaluate composition. Thanks!
Glad you enjoyed it and found it useful.
Hi, Simon. What a great video for education. I would put the first image as a 3. What brings it down for me are RH corner highlights. I love your explaining, as it assists me greatly as a camera club judge, where we see ones through to the fours and every now and then, fives. Cheers
For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle? I'd be happy to say three either way.
1st image 4 thanks for an informing video I learnt plenty
So well put together Simon 👍🏻
Cheers buddy.
Your 1s are my 5s, Simon. Thank you for a very informative and entertaining video (as always!)
I doubt that very much.
Nice work again Simon. The beech tree one is my favourite. Going back to that day in the Peak District my wife and I came across you. Cheeky me asked for a selfy with you and you abliged. Stay safe. Rodders 👍
I remember it well. It was the last time anyone has asked :-)
Those beech trees in Padley Gorge are in one of my favourite and regularly visited spots since seeing it one autumn as we were walking our dog. I've worked that clearing for photos so many times - I went this morning and there's been a couple of neighbouring trees fallen into the clearing so that view is now filled with big horizontal tree trunks and severed branches - such a shame. Thanks so much for your excellent videos and beautiful images - such an inspiration
Ooo that is a shame!
Interesting video Simon. I would rate the 1st image as a 4. For me, it could be improved slightly by giving a little more room at the top of the image to the horizontal branch. In addition, I feel a little more contrast to the foreground would accentuate the brighter background . With a couple of tweaks it could perhaps have been a 5. Nice image though and well developed composition.
Very informative, you always give me some more advice to take with me on my next photographic venture. The first image I would give a 3 towards a 4 but I might be biased as I love woodland and trees. Your superb 5 image I think was taken in one of my favourite locations 'Padley Gorge' a photographers paradise especially in Autumn. The leaf I would happily put on my wall. Thanks for keeping me focused.
Thanks Annette. Glad to help out.
I don't disclose locations so I will refrain from saying where I took the two trees.
I really have to compliment your style of photography youtube vlogs/videos, Simon. You really keep it photography focused and don’t get bogged down in making a ‘RUclips video’, with faux excitement or comedy. Some of the most informative videos - when it comes to explaining compositions, and you’re very knowledgeable on the flora and fauna too, you’re one of the best imo. You really honed in on identifying composures, how to stay composed in the field & not lose sight of problems outside of a good, strong subject.. I hope that wasn’t to much! lol 💜
That final image has to be at least a high 4! I’d hazard a guess that it’s a 5 even
Some would say I'm a little too serious, but I would argue that it's how I relax. Thanks for respecting my style.
Thanks for the video - always informative. I rate the first photo a 4 for its bucolic feel but mostly for the progressive flow of the shades of green. Generates an immediate restive ahhhh feeling.
Thanks Bill. For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
spectacular!
Lots of winners throughout. I particularly liked #1. Had you not mentioned the derelict wall I may have missed it. That wall really made me think of how old it may be....Roman, pre-Tudor, pre-Stuart. If walls could talk. Notwithstanding your comment about some photographers not doing much with macro, did you give macro a look at the moss spore capsules on the log where you sat for the final ~9 minutes? Initially they were backlit, but became shaded as you finished. Thanks for making my Sunday afternoon.
I think the wall is only Georgian. An old farmstead I think. I did see the spore capsules but I was focused on closing down the video on that occasion.
I may be mistaking the exact thought but someone once said about pornography that it’s tough to define but you know it when you see it. As usual Simon helps to define but that seems to apply here as well. Judging by the websites I’ve seen which apply the same 1-5 system, high drama and heavy post processing seem to garner the highest scores and likes. I’ll take Simon’s precise quality any day.
Thank you. Did you mean to write photography or the pornography? 😉
Oh, pornography for sure. It may be apocryphal but I believe the thought was expressed in a US Supreme Court case. If i didn’t make myself clear I was trying to say that we know an exceptional image when we see it and we often see it in your images.@@SimonBoothPhotography
In my photography I use a golf style scoring system. Plenty of below par images & rarely any albatrosses. As subjective as it is I am aiming for birdie images to put out for others to see!
I like it 👍
Hello Simon
Interesting video with realy nice images, but scoring images is always a matter of taste and the mood of the moment. Your first image I would rank as 4 to 5. It is like from a fairy tale and says, stand up an go through. Left all the sorrowes of the world behind you :-).
Have a nice time and see you in your next video :-).
For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
Hi Simon, great video and for me the M50 image is a 4 for me , it has more depth to it and the details are more visible... Possibly would crop it as you did in the stills image to remove the sky from the top.
It's an amazing little camera.
Long time subscriber and follower of your channel. Your rating system hit home with my own process. Many years ago I created a rating system of my own using some logical guidelines, however as you pointed out, there is a lot of personal subjectivity involved. It is also noteworthy to state that this is within one's own body of work... My 4 is probably your 2 or 3! 😀
3.1 Rate Photos in the Library module. Ratings are from 1 to 5 starts. Each rating as a progression from the previous level. However, these are guides and subjective personal preferences and experiences must be factored into the grading.
1 Star = Technically acceptable only and not interesting.
• Records of locations, family functions.
2 Star = Engaging with some redeeming quality.
• Faces, Interesting objects and subjects, juxtapositions.
3 Star = Compositional elements which are easily defined.
4 Star = Minor flaws prevent this from being a 5 star.
• A minor thing which cannot be corrected in post processing.
• Lack of shadow or highlight detail.
I would agree with all of these.
HI Simon, what a great tutorial I really learnt about composition and rating. I would give the first image a 4 . I think it would only improve if it was re taken in the heart of autmn with all the golden colours that would give. Thanks again and please keep them coming. I so look forwad to them .🙃
Will do Alwyn, will do...:-)
Great video Simon it's a 3 for me
At close to 40 mins this was a very long video to watch but enjoyable and certainly educational in it's content. I would be honest and say I don't take enough care over my images as far as composition goes - I have a thought plan that if I like a scene I will shoot it. Of course I will try and use rule of 3rds etc and try to eliminate distractions out of the scene if I can but I don't worry too much about it. With that in mind & having really tried to take on board your tips regards marking images I would say my own photography is full of 1s & 2s. You woodland floor / close up images are something I have always admired and I have often gone out with trying to shoot a "Simon Booth" but I always come back disappointed - I did that very thing this morning in my local woodland. The subject matter was great but getting it back home it didn't have that wow factor... I gave it a 1.5... lol. I gave your opening image a 3. The 5 star beech woodland image is easily 5 and we can all see why - a question would be that if the light was not as good as it was would it have dropped to a lower figure in your estimation? regards Alan
I was a but worried by the length but my partner said it seemed to pass quickly so I went with it. I'm not sure what to say about your woodland floor images. Perhaps pop one on my Facebook page. In terms of your question of light. Yes, it would have reduced the score for sure. Everything has to be right to gain the highest award in my ranking system.
Great video Simon but so subjective. The first image for me is a 3; the fungus is a 4. The Beech trees are easily a 5; faces in the water a 2 - sorry. I have given up submitting lanscape images in camera club competitions, they never do well.
A difficult one Derek. If you would give the fungus a four in light of what I pointed out, perhaps give these areas of concern some more thought rather than looking at the just bigger picture. I could never give it four or even close to a four. In fact, it's already in the recycling plant. Don't give up though. I get loads of unfavourable critique on here, but it doesn't put me off.
Loved that first shot,did you just put your hand up to the lens hood to bloke out the unwanted light?
I don't use lens hoods but yes, my hand did the job.
Lovely video, Simon. Thanks. I would rate your first image as a 3.5 going on 4. My reasoning? The image invites you on a journey to who knows where.
That's exactly what I would have assigned it.
As it passed by, I immediately went for 4. Then I paused it and stared at- the trees, roots and moss (?) on the left I found appealing. Something looked wrong on the right side and the path. So.... a three, maybe a shade towards a 2. That said, I've fully equivocated- gut reaction was a 4, but the considered view dropped it to 2 or 3. What do I know? Great presentation! I would love to know how you processed that water image- Cheers!
For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
I love the first image and my initial reaction is a 4 star ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I thought the first image was a 3.5 to a 4. But I preferred it on second view at the end of the video than the first time you showed it in the film. I was wondering about the trunk on the left hand side of the frame and whether we need to see the source of that arching branch, or have that branch arching in without seeing the rest of the tree it came from. I can’t decide.
Neither could I. I think it becomes a distraction when it's included.
First image definitely ranks a four for me. It conjures up visions of the enchanted forrest. A mystical rabbit steps onto the path in the distance only to be hit by a sunbeam,,, Always enjoy your films. All the best from the Philippines...
Wow, that's some reach, thank you.
Simon, another great edition, thank you. I would give your first image a 4…. Curious what you rated it? As always, keep snapping!
Between a three and a four.
Thanks Simon…
Really helpful way of thinking about the quality of images and their potential. I find myself making faces or noises when I take an image - that acts as a guide for me - my own reaction when I first look at the back of the camera. Ooooh. . . . Is usually a higher quality image! Hahah. As for what I think that first image is . . . . It ain't a 1, I'm debating a 3 or 4, leaning more towards 4 I think.
Exactly the same score as me. 3, going on a four. I do love your approach using faces and noises. I may adopt that too.
@@SimonBoothPhotography Hahaha - all around the world photographers will indicate their sense of images with oohs, aah, and meh. . . .
Interesting to see your rating process. Mostly agree/understand the ratings (which don't mean I could do it myself). The exceptions were the "high key" ones and the last five star which I don't get at all.
In term of the last one, I tried to explain (not very well) that it was a five based on the creativity of it. Images that are outside of the box score really well for me if they are executed well and the are meaningful to me. They are however, not always to everyone's own personal taste.
I heard your comments in the video and my comment wasn't meant in a negative way. It's more that it's beyond me. Maybe to an extent personal taste, but I think it's more. One of my other favorite channels is Ben Horne and I love his videos and many of the images, but fairly frequently he see something I just don't.
Photography is so subjective. It is an expression like any other art. Ansel Adams said there are two people in every photograph. The photographer and the observer. Both independent. The photographer's job is to show what he saw and what he felt. The observer is to judge what that meant to them. Sometimes it's the same thing. Others not.
I gave that first image a 4, it held me and fascinated me.
The initial image is very nice. I would say 4 stars.
For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
Look at you with your snazzy red trousers!😂
I know :-). And I have recieved a complaint about them too. Too jarring apparently.😂
It’s a 5 from me 😊x
Personally I’m against the whole idea of rating images. I find it arbitrary and formulaic. I also feel we need some distance from the experience in the field to judge an image. I do agree we tend to work our way towards an improved or refined composition and this is something worth exploring. I enjoyed the video and your photography, however. A pleasure to watch you work, as always.
Thanks Simon. It's not for everyone. I do it not because I want to, I seem to find myself grading them as part of any outing. I will see something and just say "nah, that's a three" and move on. It seems to help me avoid battles with subjects but of course, like I said, it can be very ambiguous.
I would rate it a 3 star, get the feeling the left is carrying the right side of the image. Just a personal thing judging images. I agree with your 5 for the beech trees, it draws you in
I agree with that. I was edging between a tree and a four but I do agree with your balance issues.
I'd quite happily give that first image a 6!!!
Golly gosh. For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
5 for me
Thank you
Well, using this method I have only gotten as high as a three so far for any of my images. And the image you asked about, I think you scored it as a 3.5.
We are always our harshest critic
It’s a 4.5 from me… just needs someone wearing a bright red raincoat to walk into frame ((o;
I would give it a three to four star. One if it included a bright red raincoat.
In my dull and mundane photography "journey," I'd score that woodland path image a 5 for me, even though the path leads to nothing remarkable.
For the record, I would give it a three to four star. Assuming I'm allowed to go in the middle?
Is your first image a 4 Simon?
I would give it a three to four star.
ide mark it a 3 star
I'd give the shot a 4, do I have to say "all day long?" 😏
Though I'm not against rating it's not something I do regularly and think there is enough subjectivity in many aspects of photography without adding another layer.
Cheeky ☺
The rating system has always helped me. I don't get bogged in the detail of it. It's quite a natural process for me.
Definitely at least a 4
Very interesting video. I think your first image is a 2/3 for me. it's good but just not enough interest to hold me for too long. I don't and never will have your 'eye' but like a lot of comments scoring is down to personal choice and we don't all see things the same way. for example I would have deleted the image you gave a three star rating as it didn't do a thing for me and I really didn't like the top left brightness one little bit. good job we're not all the same eh?! thank you Simon for a very informative video.
Yes, I will do the same. I generally don’t keep 3 star shots
There is something you've overlooked .
Pics shouldn't be taken to keep others happy . You take pics that makes YOU HAPPY .
That's the end game
It is my scoring system for me. I do it subconsciously most of the time. You are right of course, take pictures for you and nobody else.
Simon sound quality is very poor, hissing and fading as move away from your camera.
This was explained on the intro. The rest of the film?
Really enjoyed watching and how you score your images. We just love order don't we. Based on my own scoring I have 3.5K - 1s, 126 - 2s and just 7 - 3s. I've not reached the heady heights of a 4 or 5 yet 🙂 Liked your first image looking down the path towards the light and of course the 2 trees at 32 mins.
I'm sure that can't be true. Keep plugging away and the treasure will come.