As part of Project Educate Critique week, the Community Volunteers would like to share more art specific elements to consider whilst giving good critique.

Today we are looking at the Artistic Nude photography gallery and the Fetish photography gallery, with our Top Tips provided by the wonderful assistance of Nyx-Valentine

Mature Content

Mature Content

Mature Content

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Mature Content

The most important thing when critiquing artistic nude or fetish photography is to keep it professional.  Yes, nudity and fetish content can be sexy, or erotic, and you might think the model is "hot."  But a critique is not the place to talk about it.  Critique is for well...critique.  Not hitting on models.  

Critique is also not the place to focus on things you dislike about the model.  When you start commenting on "She should be a redhead" or "He's too hairy", these are things that the photographer cannot improve upon.  Critique is about technique, not personal preferences for someones appearance.  If critiquing the model, presumably, they have made the choice to look the way they do, and critiquing those aspects doesn't help them improve.

When critiquing a nude or fetish photographer, they are concerned with the same things every other photographer worries about – is the composition good, how is the lighting, what's the exposure doing for the shot, etc.  Focus on these things in your critique.

Good critiques for models include things like "This pose would be stronger if you..." or "I feel the concept would have been conveyed more strongly if you had..."

As with any portrait gallery, please tailor your critique to the deviant receiving it.  IE, if the deviant requesting critique is the photographer, critique the photography, and vice versa.  A critique about the lighting does not help the model improve.

While by nature, critique can be somewhat harsh, remember that you are critiquing a person who has put themselves in a very vulnerable position, especially models.  Be respectful of that vulnerability, and of them as a person.

While relevant to both galleries, this is especially important to fetish photography – fetishes are intensely individual, and may seem "odd" or "strange" to you if they aren't your fetish.  If you just think something is bad or wrong about a fetish, or about nudity, it might be better for you to critique something else.  Photographers in this gallery are generally assiduous about making sure their models are comfortable with what is going on, and are consenting adults.  There is no need to "white knight" or comment on how you find something repugnant, and so on.


Want to test out your new found critique skills? Check out the  Critiquable Art  avalaible on deviantART!

Many thanks to :iconquitechildae: for helping write this article!