Category: photography review

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How to receive feedback effectively

The effectiveness of feedback depends partly on the one who receives it – how open and willing you are to participate in the process. As a feedback seeker you can do your bit to make the process useful and effective for yourself. Here are some thoughts and tips to help you get the best out of your feedback sessions.

If you’d like to understand the importance and utility of objective feedback for creative work, then head here Why is objective feedback important for creative work

Find the right person

Right here means right for you. And that is not necessarily the most popular or the most successful person. Feedback is an important interpersonal process. It requires you to be vulnerable and share your work as well as parts of yourself with another person. Do the due diligence and find the right fit so you can get the best out of the interaction.

How to find the right feedback provider

You probably already have an inkling about who you want to approach for feedback. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to find the best match for you.

  1. Who are they? You probably already know them because of their creative work/profession. Are you able to gauge their skill level from that? Make sure they are competent in the craft so you can benefit from their skills and experience.
  2. What is their general outlook and ethos? You can easily get a general sense of this from your prior interactions with them (in person/online). Look out for how they describe themselves and their approach to the craft. What do your interactions with them tell you about them?
  3. What are their special skills and strengths? Make sure that those areas dovetail with your own gap areas. That way, they can help you where you need help.
  4. What is your optimal setting for learning and can they provide it? For example, can you learn better if you can see them? If you communicate better online, are they able to provide you the right tools and platform for the best possible interaction? Are they able to provide sessions at a time and schedule conducive to your own learning? (and so on…)
  5. Are your personalities well matched to take this journey together? For example, if you are an introvert and they have a big bold personality, would that intimidate you? If you are the kind that needs a cheerleader but they happen to be a quieter person, would you be open to learning from them?

Commit to the feedback process.

Since you are doing this for your own benefit, it makes sense to be open and willing to go the entire distance. Know that you are going to be okay, even if someone shows you your limitations. In fact, that would help you grow, so stay open to constructive comments. Don’t take things too personally. If you are too touchy about your work, it may block the easy flow of your interaction and you may not be able to absorb new & useful ideas or find new possibilities.

Do your homework well in advance.

Share your portfolio, profile and any other general information that might help the feedback provider understand you and your work better. You don’t need to become best friends or share personal details for this process to be effective. But if you do think that your life situation has any bearing on your work or your limitations, convey a few useful bits of information to the feedback provider so they can better understand the context. Remember that they are creatives like you and in all likelihood already know how to work with limitations and may be happy to share their tips and tricks with you.

Feedback is not a performance test

Don’t feel pressured to show only your best work. That would be counterproductive. Present a balanced assortment of your work to help broader and deeper understanding.

Be clear about the scope of the feedback.

Your feedback provider will be able to best describe the scope of their interaction with you, so just ask them for details on what to expect. In most contexts, feedback is not the same as mentorship or a workshop – they each have a different set of goals. Make sure you know what to expect so you can avoid disappointment and mismatched expectations.

Openness and trust

Be yourself and bring your work willingly. You are not required to accept or agree with any comment or suggestion offered to you during feedback – so there is no need to feel pressured. In the end, you are the captain of your own ship. So relax. That way, you can participate more fully in the process.

Be open to new thoughts and possibilities for your work. Also be open to the interaction. It is best not to have rigid ideas on how the feedback process must be conducted. Staying flexible and open creates a pleasant experience and usually gives the best possible outcome.

Sometimes these interactions with your fellow-creatives have long lasting benefits. Treat Feedback like an opportunity for growth.

More like this:

Why is objective feedback important for creative work?

Helpful tips for feedback providers

1-on-1 personalized image feedback package for food photographers

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How to give feedback effectively

A while ago, at a challenging point in my creative journey, I approached a handful of food photographers for feedback on my work. I knew them from social media and admired their work as well their general approach to creativity and work. I figured they’d be able to give me some useful insights on my own work. I wrote to them with my request and while each of them was generous enough to respond, I noticed that each of the responses fell within the framework of social media success and visibility. While this would have been useful if I was looking for that sort of thing, the fact was, I wasn’t. I was looking for a purely objective, technical feedback so that I could chalk out my own route from that point onwards, armed with grounding awareness about my craft.

Even though I was unable to apply much of the well-meaning feedback to my own work, there was an intangible benefit to the whole experience. It made me think about the way we understand the process of feedback on creative work. It also gave me valuable insights into the various ways in which people approach (or avoid) the process. I became aware of the unconscious assumptions and attitudes of feedback providers as well as seekers.

Over time, I’ve come to conclude that Feedback, to be really effective, must be a very conscious and objective process. Feedback must be mindful of individual goals and context of the feedback seeker. And to be really useful, feedback must be grounded in empathy on the part of the feedback provider, and willingness on the part of the feedback seeker.

My own observations as a feedback provider as well as experience as a feedback seeker, have together led to some interesting insights about this process and how it could be made more effective and beneficial to all of us who do creative work in isolated freelance mode. In this post, I’ve attempted to share a few of my insights as a feedback provider. I’ve also shared some tips for feedback seekers in another post – here.

To read more of my thoughts on objective feedback head to this post: Why is objective feedback important for creative work?

Stay grounded

Firstly, as a feedback provider, acknowledge the fact that the effectiveness of any kind of feedback partly depends on those who receive it. Of course you must do your best to create a conducive and useful interaction, but how much weightage a feedback seeker attaches to your comments and how much they are willing to or able to apply them is up to them.

Remembering this keeps you grounded, and in turn helps avoid heavy-handedness in your feedback methods. Feedback, especially on creative work, is most effective when approached in an empathetic, non-hierarchical and non-authoritative manner. There are many ways to reach creative fulfilment and there isn’t one single formula that works for everyone. By staying flexible and open, you might even find new ways of looking at things. And that’s always useful.

Are you the right person to give feedback?

Before you even start, make sure that you are the right person for the task at hand. If you don’t know the feedback seeker or their work already, ask for preliminary information about them and their work, before you even begin. Get a sense of their skill level and expectations. You can then evaluate if you are up for the task of providing feedback to them. It is okay to gently say No, if you find that you are not the right fit. It would save time and effort to both of you. Being clear and honest in your interaction builds credibility and trust.

Prepare in advance to ensure that your feedback is effective

Study their work well in advance. Look for patterns if any. Gauge strengths and weaknesses in the work and ask for more details and samples if necessary. It is important to justify the trust that the feedback seeker places in you.

Feedback is not just a feel-good or validation session

Even though it might actually end up being that, in many cases, it can never be the primary purpose of the interaction. It is important to keep growth as the primary purpose.

Feedback is not criticism.

Even when you analyse the limitations in someone’s craft, do it from a place of empathy and understanding. It is never useful to sound patronising.

Be specific in your feedback comments

Vague and overly generic comments will not be useful to anyone. Provide examples and actionable tips where possible. Most people (including me) find actionable advice more useful.

Follow-up on feedback

Consider offering to follow-up via formal sessions and/or informal chats, depending on your own mindset and convenience. In-depth evaluation and effective assistance require continuity. Creativity and mindset are complex and interdependent subjects and most of us benefit from longer collaborations.

A well-rounded feedback session should neither leave the individual dispirited, nor completely content. It should set them up for a period of analysis and action. It should open the person’s mind to “possibilities” and connections they hadn’t been able to see previously.

The goal of every feedback must be growth. The tone of every feedback must be empathy.

More like this:

Why is objective feedback important for creative work?

Helpful tips for feedback seekers

1-on-1 personalized image feedback package for food photographers