How to Judge a Photographer's Work

Determine the quality of a photograph.

Whether you're a teacher, judge or just a friend of a photographer, it can be a difficult task to adjudicate a photograph. While each photography judge has his own criteria for what the perfect photo looks like, it can be helpful to keep a few of the most basic assets of a photo in mind while you're judging: quality, subject, composition and uniqueness. Before you begin to judge a photo in a composition, independently judge a few of your own photos to help decide what you're looking for.

Instructions

1. Determine the quality of the photo. If the photo is blurry, foggy or the subject is out of focus, take points away from the photographer's overall score.

2. Evaluate the subject of the photo. Reward a photographer who captures an interesting or intriguing subject. Take points away from a photographer who presents a mundane or uneventful piece. One way to evaluate this quality is understanding that the photo must tell a story without explanation or exposition.

3. Critique the composition of the photo. If the photographer finds and captures unique shapes and a perspective that emphasizes a line or curve, reward them with a higher score. If there seems to be no correlation between the objects in the photos, penalize the photographer with a lower score.

4. Assess the uniqueness of the photo. If the photo is interesting and taken from a unique perspective, reward the photographer with a higher score. If the photo looks similar in subject and technique to other photos, penalize the photographer with a lower score.

References

• Black Star Rising: National Geographic's Jim Richardson: How I Judge Photo Contests; Jeff Wignall
• Photo Focus: How I judge a Winning Picture; Scott Bourne