I’m not sure there are objective parameters to evaluate a photo in something like photography and art in general.
There is some stuff I can’t stand, but it might be just my point of view. My personal photo-breaking check list:
Presence of auras/halo around the subject
It’s noticeable mostly when doing an overdone HDR post processing. Sample from Google:
Wrong focus and/or too shallow depth of field
It happens especially when shooting with wide apertures. Sample from FStoppers:
Overwhelming presence of distractive elements
The eye of the viewer ends up not giving enough attention to the subject. Sample from my Spring-Summer 11.09.18 set; while post processing I removed the distractive element, (look at the person blurred on the right):
Skin tones not matching
Noticeable when there are skin with different color dominants. Sample from my Spring-Summer 06.09.18 set; her skin was particularly hard to retouch, if you look closely you can spot areas with different dominants, mostly magentas and yellows:
Horizon not straight or broken symmetry attempt
This is a no-no especially while shooting landscapes. Sample from Google:
Over smoothed skin
I like to make the skin smooth but overdoing it brings up a “plastic doll” effect I really dislike. Sample from a picture I over retouched a while back: |
![]() Luca Foscili is an italian professional photographer and retoucher specializing in portraiture. |