Photo Retouching - - 'My Experience at RetouchPRO' - Page 2

Calvinhollywood · #16 06-27-2007, 06:45 AM

I am really new here and i have to say ..... Its a great place where you can learn more as in every book

I know what i say.... I am a modarator of europas biggest fotocommunity

This is a great place

I am happy to be here

Lg Calvin

Britsdad · #17 06-27-2007, 12:56 PM

What's all that about then?......Poor sad little man! (or woman)

yelhsaneerg · #18 06-27-2007, 01:07 PM

he must have met ANT lol
sorry that was a little rude...but funny...i'm sorry

Greg13th · #19 06-27-2007, 01:16 PM

OK. Let me post my first note. Not in response to the dearly departed, but to the loyal remainders! I spend most of my "free" time on a photography forum -whose tone and demeanor seems to match those of you here in RTP. I am just getting more into "retouching" and stop in here periodically. It does not long to recognize a helpful and polite forum such as your Group here. I have learned much and do hope to contribute. Thank you. My Best to Everyone. Greg13th.

shellby · #20 06-27-2007, 04:54 PM

bye bye then

TheVeed · #21 06-27-2007, 05:06 PM

why feel the need to announce your departure, anyways? some people just want attention.

Caesium · #22 06-29-2007, 10:11 PM

I will throw in my .02 here. While there are some really helpful people here, there are a few "senior" posters who are not very helpful and seem to only know how to type USE SEARCH.

I made a post about a popular photog's look a while back and was promptly told to go search that it had been discussed already. I had, in fact, already searched and came up with nothing that addressed my question, however, since this guy's name had been mentioned previously, I was the idiot for making a new thread. Fortunately, a few helpful folks came along behind and posted some of their speculation which did give me some useful information.

So, my take on RetouchPro... Its hit or miss. Don't expect help from those you would think could be most helpful. They probably don't care enough to post anything useful. Instead, hope that some other guy who's new at this, just like you are, has lucked into the info you are looking for and is willing to share.

Thats my opinion and you are welcome to it.

creeduk · #23 06-29-2007, 10:28 PM

Like most public places on the web you have some good experiences and some bad, take the bad in your stride as in 99.9% of the case you will never see that person. That has been my experience. I have never really had a problem here, I have seen some who have and on occasion threads can get heated. Best bet is to stick to the subject matter. When we discuss pure editing little should go wrong. It is when ego and personal life gets in the way.

Ah well, each to his/her own I guess.

Dave.Cox · #24 06-29-2007, 11:36 PM

"Like most public places on the web you have some good experiences and some bad."

Yep, just like any other community.

I for one have found this to be a great and friendly site, and I have learned much here. It is a joy to be able to learn from, and to share ideas with my peers. As such, I try to give back where I can, as I think most here do. For me, I am just glad to have such a great site that we can go to and exchange ideas.

Gary Richardson · #25 06-30-2007, 02:31 AM

Like most forums we have many members, and from time to time some won't get on with each other, my advice when that occurs is "least said soonest mended". Remember you don't have to reply. If someone's being really abusive let a moderator know.

On the matter of posts. Just because you post something, don't assume you have a right to an answer. In most cases someone will reply, and their answer may be all you want, or it may be well short of what you wished for, take it for what it is. If it's not what you needed wait a while and maybe someone will come along that can give the help you're looking for.

For the most part I've always found this to be a helpful and pleasant place to be, (which is why I accepted the moderator post when it was offered to me) and I hope it is that way for the majority of people who visit.

But the old adage still stands, "you can't please all of the people all of the time" (bit of a misquote but you get my drift).

HroadhogD1 · #26 06-30-2007, 11:09 AM

Peano, The "AMF" was a nice touch, but it wasn't very nice. You know what they say--Dont let the door hit you in the................

Godmother · #27 06-30-2007, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HroadhogD1

Peano, The "AMF" was a nice touch, but it wasn't very nice. You know what they say--Dont let the door hit you in the................

I'm wondering about the AMF... can you explain what those stand for?

HroadhogD1 · #28 06-30-2007, 02:50 PM

Godmother- I would, but I would get in a lot of trouble from the moderators. This is a long time joke from when Harley Davidson was owned by the AMF corporation. I can give you the first word. "Adios". You will have to use your imagination on the rest.

DannyRaphael · #29 06-30-2007, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caesium

I will throw in my .02 here. While there are some really helpful people here, there are a few "senior" posters who are not very helpful and seem to only know how to type USE SEARCH.

I made a post about a popular photog's look a while back and was promptly told to go search that it had been discussed already. I had, in fact, already searched and came up with nothing that addressed my question, however, since this guy's name had been mentioned previously, I was the idiot for making a new thread. Fortunately, a few helpful folks came along behind and posted some of their speculation which did give me some useful information.

So, my take on RetouchPro... Its hit or miss. Don't expect help from those you would think could be most helpful. They probably don't care enough to post anything useful. Instead, hope that some other guy who's new at this, just like you are, has lucked into the info you are looking for and is willing to share.

Thats my opinion and you are welcome to it.

To quote the thread to which you refer (http://www.retouchpro.com/forums/pho...hill-look.html):

Anyone know the methods Dave Hill (http://www.davehillphoto.com) uses to achieve his look? Any tutorials or tips would be greatly appreceiated.

In all fairness...
* Your request for assistance did not indicate having already searched the archives without success before starting the thread.
* At that time this was your #4 post here at RP, so there was no way to judge your photographic, Photoshop or forum experience. It's not uncommon for forum rookies to not be aware of forum search capabilities. I, too, encourage people to use the search facility as well as leverage Google as an info gathering source, which is how I found the tidbit just added to your Dave Hill thread. (The intent of such advice is to teach rookies "to fish for themselves," vs. looking for a handout each time.)
* Within an hour you got two offers of assistance from Swampy. The first reply (within 15 minutes) contained an imbedded link, intended to be a slam dunk nugget of help. Unfortunatley the link was broken, but how much faster could she have replied? How much easier could she have made it?

Under the circumstances IMO the follow-on tip of doing a search was quite appropriate. I'd bet lunch doing a seach herself is how she came up with the [broken] link to begin with.

Had the reply been worded something like the following, perhaps you would have not been so put off: "I've seen a number of threads on this topic over the months and if you haven't discovered it yet, try the forum Search tool, and search on "Dave Hill". Hopefully what you find will get some ideas." It wasn't, but the meaning is essentially the same. Here's a rock to look under.

Look, I understand how you may have misunderstood that reply. Short and to the point can sometimes come across as brusk and unfriendly. (FYI: according to research "Interpreting meaning and intent from text" is ~ 10% word meaning and 90% assumption.) Could be she was late for an appointment or to catch a plane, who knows? But the point is she tried - twice in less than an hour.

FWIW I very clearly remember the day I walked into a senior tech's office and asked a basic question. His gruff and dismissive reply was, "Why don't you read the f--king manual?" (RTFM) I also recall the first time I got a reply to a forum post (not here) that was similar in meaning, but a lot harsher in tone to the one you got. Both incidents, neither of which were ego enhancing, made me a lot smarter in the long run.

If you have some time may I suggest you check out some of Swampy's 2,000+ replies in other threads and tutorials she has written that benefit many. In my seven plus years at RP I can honestly say she's among the most helpful members I know of, including other venues in which I participate. (No BS.) Maybe you'll concede the possibility that your opinion, based on a single, misunderstood incident, did not take all relevant factors into consideration.

So we don't have Misunderstanding II, I'm not saying you're an idiot, that your opinion is stupid or any of that stuff. Based on what I know, I can relate to and understand your reaction and feelings, what triggered them and why. You got off on the wrong foot and I hope you'll keep an open mind in the future about "senior posters" and their willingness to help.

=================

Back to the issue at hand... Sayonara from Peano.

I too, was surprised by the abrupt departure and the signoff. (AMF = could mean "Adios my friends," but in this case I took it as, "Adios Mother Fockers" [as in the movie, "Meet the Fockers"] -- another example of deriving meaning without the benefit of feedback, facial expression, voice tone, etc.)

He has a huge following at DPReview, where he is revered for his quite accomplished retouching work. It's too bad that one with such knowledge and experience decided to leave, but that's his prerogative and I too wish him well.