Why you should show your photos to many people
Photos are made primarily for yourself. If you are satisfied, it's okay. During a Storytelling Masterclass I heard a quote from my mentor; "You don't take a picture to put in a desk".
Both are true, one no more or less than the other.
The question is what you want to do with the photos. Do you really create it all for yourself and keep it on your computer, or are you going to print it and post it somewhere? As soon as you bring the photo out into the open, the viewers will form an opinion about it, which they may also share with you. And you can only be glad about that. Criticism of your photos is not as nice as praise, but it is far more useful. You learn from it. So it is wise to show your photos to as many people as possible and absorb their comments like a sponge. Sometimes you can find some use for them, often not. In any case, think about it, because it can bring you a lot.
Real people, not followers
I'm talking, of course, about comments from people you really know. People who you know have an understanding of photography, or who know you and what kind of photos you produce. Not the followers on your Social Media channels who only give you a like (or not) and don't get any further than 'Nice pic' or 'Well done' or 'Love the composition' as a comment.
A great personal example that shows that presenting your photos to many people actually works is from a few years ago. At a meeting of my Photography Collective, I showed the photos I had taken for the Storytelling Masterclass with the theme 'The Feeling of 17'. At the time I had also brought a few photos I had taken of my youngest son as test shots. After some comments and shuffling, suddenly a picture of him and one of me were put next to each other. Like showing a graphic narrative in 2 pictures of how it was and how it is now. Funny, because although I had printed those photos weeks before, I had not put them side by side like that and seen the connection.
It just shows that your photos do more when you let more people look at them. What can happen when you show your work to many people? That there will be different opinions? Is that a bad thing? No, just a blessing in my opinion. Because you can hear (or read) those opinions and extract what is interesting for you.
Use it to your advantage!
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