To comment or not comment

[swralph]

Hi everybody.
I wish to start this thread separate from Stu's thread about figure news.

I'm not the most talkative bloke on PF, but I like to leave a comment on a person's post to show encouragement to beginner's and expert's alike.However I have noticed that if you are a "Name" you will be jumped on with all the like's and comment's,not a bad thing until you realise that the lesser mortal's sometimes hardly get a look in.Surely this is why the lesser mortal's do not participate with their own pics of model's, thus one more person who won't get involved with PF.
I don't profess to be a great painter(pretty average really),but I do like to post what I have recently completed to see what people say.Not everyone likes a given subject but I do sometimes feel disillusioned when I only get 3 or 4 comments so much so that I think,why should I bother?.
I don't like taking pic's but I do so to contribute to PF.
I have very little contact with the outside world and PF is the only place where I talk to people,I really do like this site but I feel more people should step out of the sidelines and make PF an even better place to be.
All the best to everyone.
Ralph.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Perhaps some do. Or just follow friends and comrades.

What I do is that I click if the subject sounds interesting to me. I just cant go through them all.
On the other hand, the more active you are and especially in commenting others work the more you usualle get yourself, or at least thats what I think.

Cheers
Janne Nilsson

 

[stu]

PF too me is about involvement although of late due to work and esp Life I haven't signed in,,,just lurked.

As colin has said Use it or loose it,,,,its up to us all.

I use the like button a lot esp if I don't have much to say but Great,,,,the like button signifies this.

I don't paint ,,,I gave up to sculpt and cast etc etc so I appreciate.

If bill Horan was to put a painted piece on here it would have more flies on it than a turd,,,sorry its true !!!!

If you can say super or like his work try for everybody else I believe,,,its the ethos of what PF was about,,,encouragement,,enjoyement and shared interest.

If you have recently moved to facebook,,,we all have ,,,if you can like it there do the same here,,,,the bonus, you wont get asked to like candy crush !!!! and watch endless crap videos .

We have a shared interest,,,,lets share it !! I for one will be trying,,,lets all try and keep what we like active and alive !!!!

Stuart

PS there are some things I cant really comment on as I have vested interests and just cant comment as I may want too,,, I guess I need a personal profile as well as Stormtroopers etc etc

 

[legend69]

Hi Ralph,

I totally agree with your comments! This is a tough subject (but a noce one nonetheless)....nice and positive comments on your post are always welcome as they offer great encouregment and motivation to both beginners and experts alike....however I believe it is up to you how you view the lack of comments - is the glass half empty or half full? Do you see the lack of comments as a negative thing....they do not like my work... so why bother - or do you use the lack of comments as a positive motivating tool, to drive yourself to improve your work and skills in this hobby (that is what I do).

I regard myself as an average painter as well - I regard myself as a terrible photographer (absolutely horrid - I just got a digital camera and I just about managed to figure out how to switch it on), however I want to improve my skills, I will accept all feedback about my work, good or bad, wether it is 3 comments or 15. Next time I will try to do better....but I will do it for myself and not for "Likes" or "Comments" as Stuart said: PF is about,,,encouragement,,enjoyement and shared interest.

I agree with Stuart....

We have a shared interest,,,,lets share it !! I for one will be trying,,,lets all try and keep what we like active and alive !!!!

Stuart

Anthony

 

[housecarl]

I wouldn't take in personally Ralph.
The "like" button was implemented to remove some of the; great work, wow that's superb comments.
Some deride Planet for it's over fluffy clientele, stating not being critical helps no one.
I suppose we're all guilty of that.
I find it difficult to critique on-line, where non-verbal communication is lost. (not that my opinion matters)
Much easier face to face, and there's the added bonus of being able to see the piece in its true light.
Also half the time I struggle for what to say.

 

[Helm]

I post quite happily extremely poor photos of equally poor work compared to the many on here who are excellent at both, that said I appreciate any comments good or bad about the work I post here, I am in no way a name (except the occasional expletive) but I don't mind, naturally some people get more attention than others but that is just life and human nature. I post more on subjects I am interested in than those I'm not for the same reason at the end of the day for most of us on here it's a hobby and should be fun
Steve

 

[Colin_Fraser]

To a large extent I use PF as my filing cabinet. That's why I post everything I do under vbench....it produces a handy table of contents chronologically. I can go back and see how I approached a khaki or a face. The added impact is that the posts leave an sbs-like trail for others to look at.

Everyone likes to get nice comments. Perhaps the number of views is more relevant than the number foments or likes. Many of the threads with a lot of comments are interactions between the modeller and others. When a conversation starts or a modeller seek clarification, or even says thanks, the number of comments is magnified.

Everyone has their style and preferences in reviewing others' work.they are likely not specific to this site.

Colin

 

[kagemusha]

I am nnot ashamed to admit to finding a lack of interest/comments, on a piece I have posted, has a negative effect on how I feel about my work/standing in the PF community.
I have been accused of being overly sensitive, in as much as, I have wanted to pack it in on a few occasions solely due to the non response to a piece.
That being the case, and being brutally honest, it is difficult to except that there are more reasons to post/respond to a simple picture of pieces of a kit, that a member intends to start on, than to a completed work.
I have now changed the way I approach such situations, in as much as, when I complete a piece I am happy with, I simply put it in the cabinet and enjoy having completed something I have produced.
From a purely personal point of view, there is definitely a select group, who tend to favour each others work. That's cool. It's called 'choice'.
I have learned as much from getting a few well chosen words, as I have when a lot of members have followed one of the SBS's I have done, it just takes a little longer to realise the true worth of the few.

 

[Blind Pew]

This is an interesting and thought provoking thread.

I will say about 5 years ago I did a scratchbuilt flat of George Washington. I put it on here. I recieved two replies despite having 300-plus views. Wasn't even 1%. I thought to myself at the time, "Why bother?" I took a lot of time & trouble for those pictures!

I get more pleasure from giving a newcomer some encouragement rather than giving a pat on the back to somebody on here who is already well aware of how good they are. Although it is valuable to acknowledge expertise & class.

I know PF has received criticism for giving all out priase, but again that only highlights the eternal problem of critiquing work without upsetting somebody. And I'm always mindful of the fact that digital photography seldom does figures a favour.

If I do enjoy somebody's stuff, I like to say why - very important, especially for those who find themselves lone modellers.

All in all PF is a friendly place to visit 99% of the time and the community on here I generally found to be welcoming, generous and good sports for the most part.

 

[garyhiggins]

Hi Ralph, great idea for a thread, one of those that has us thinking about why we do what we do, which never hurts.
I know I like to comment, because I like to get involved, and I like to encourage. My problems with posting my work are that I am terrible at modern technology, can't take photo's to save my life (and anyway, digital photographs are very unforgiving),and if I ever think of doing a SBS, I don't know at what stages to take a break and take photographs (which I can't take anyway). Besides, I can't believe that anyone would be interested in the early stages of my work, when i am chopping things around and generally making a mess of things trying to work out the engineering.
On the plus side, the company's good and my spelling IS getting better
Best wishes, Gary.

 

[Wayneb]

Hello Ralph,
I agree with all of the above;.and PF for me is also my only outlet when it comes to modeling and miniatures as there are no clubs or even anyone I know that paints or is into miniatures.
I got into to it maybe three plus years ago because I used to sculpt and I love extreme detail and history;.started a small printing business and got locked in for 23 unsatisfied years.I happened to see an obscure display of miniatures at believe or not at a gun show that got me interested.
For me ,I don't need any be my friend praise;I don't even show my wife my finished work to say look what I did,although it sits in a cabinet and she is impressed,but what does she know.
I also enjoy looking at others work on PF as it gives me something to shoot for,but sometimes I have to back off because of the different individual styles can get confusing and discouraging while trying to develop my own style.
Don't want write a book but sure am glad to have landed on the right "Planet"............Wayne

P.S...I take that back......Everybody needs a little friendly praise now and then.......

 

[Tecumsea]

Hi Ralph. an interesting question. From my perspective even as a retired person I find the sheer volume of posts on here quite overwhelming. I use Blogtrotter and that results in 50+ mails a day. I was and still do spend too much time on the computer rather than painting. As my interest is 18th and 19th Century I now delete any post that doesn't match my period of interest that has enabled me to pass comment on the period that I like and upload material that will help with my own painting. I used to try and keep up with everything but this forum has grown so much that it is impossible.

I sometimes get frustrated that some of the really good painters on here who are judges and able to pass really constructive comments on the work of others are generally invisible. They are happy to post and accept the plaudits for their own work but seldom post encouragement or advice for others. I'll let you think about that.

I find it hard to comment on the work of others other than to praise as I consider myself of an insufficient standard..............I would hate to Judge because when I look at the figures at international shows to me they all look like gold medal winners-the World Expo was of an extraordinary standard, Mike Blank tells me they judged for 7.5 hours and I can well understand how difficult it must have been to separate out the medal winners. I have great admiration for those modellers on here who are generous with their time and consistently produce superb SBS's which are both inspirational and Motivational.

I'm not sure if I have answered your question Ralph, I have on occasion sent PM's to individuals rather than an open post, I'm sure others do as well.

Keith

 

[Bailey]

I'm active on a couple different forums and lately I've been spending more time elsewhere than PlanetFigure, so let me try to explain the reasons why. On a number of other sites people tend to do more of a running work in progress thread. Instead of creating a separate thread for each project (as seems to be the usual method here) I'll just have a single 'Bailey's WIP Thread' where I post updates on whatever project I happen to work on. It becomes as much about the process as the finished project, so I feel like you get more back and forth with people asking questions on how you did this or that or suggesting things to try and ways to improve. I find that way easier to follow individual painters either because I'm inspired by their work or because they've come to my thread asking for advice and I then take an interest in their projects. Yes, vBench has some similarities but it doesn't quite work the same way.

Furthermore, when people just post finished work here I feel uneasy chiming in with advice or suggestions unless they specifically ask. People are often rightfully proud of their work (be they experts or beginners) and I don't want it to seem like I'm picking out all the things they did wrong. Whereas with a work in progress it feels easier to offer suggestions as there's still time to change things. It feels more like I'm trying to help build someone up rather than tear them down (that's an exaggeration of course, but hopefully you know what I mean).

I try to post work in progress threads here for my various projects although some have more success than others in regards to comments. One thing I've noticed (and I believe Kagemusha alluded to it) is that the first post on a work in progress often gets a lot of responses and then the following updates get few if any. I think part of that has to do with the PlanetFigure notification system and makes the sort of work in progress threads difficult to do here. If I comment on someones work on PF I will get a notification when someone else replies to that thread. However, until I return to that specific thread I won't get any more notifications about future updates. So I have to keep checking in with the thread or else it will disappear from my radar. I understand you don't want to get overloaded with notifications but many other sites will reset those notifications each time you visit the site. So if I come back to site X after 2 or 3 days, it doesn't matter whether or not I clicked on all the threads I was following I would still get notified the next time someone leaves a comment on any of those threads.

What I'd really like to see is a feature/option where you were notified whenever the original author of the thread made a post. So if you're following a work in progress thread it's easy to see when there's another update.

 

[Mark S]

HI Ralph......No comment.

 

[Mark S]

Oh hang on, I thought of a comment.
I think it's also a shame that some members use this forum for selling items only, without making any other substantive contribution.

 

[tonydawe]

Planet Figure has been a part of my life since 2007 and I will visit the site several times a day (while at work) and check it a couple of times during the evening. It's the only modelling website I spend any time on and has become a pretty important part of my world.

For me personally, I like to offer support and encouragement to those modellers who post photos of their WIP and who ask questions and seek feedback. That way I know they will be more inclined to appreciate constructive criticism or suggested improvements, and less inclined to think I'm just being a bitch. Sometimes when I see a photo of a figure that is just not very good, I find myself reverting back to the old adage of "If you don't have something positive to say, don't say anything at all", and I suspect that same adage rings true for many others on this forum. Giving someone a pat on the back for a not very good bit of painting isn't being helpful in my view, so I'd prefer not to say anything at all than hand out false praise.

That is why when new members join Planet Figure I always send them a greeting, and I try to encourage them to ask questions and post photos of their figures to seek feedback and learn. Back in 2007 when I joined this forum, I went through a similar phase of anxiously waiting for approval from the "big names". Somehow it helped validate my existence and made me feel worthy. That might sound a bit pathetic but I'm still seeking that validation every time I post a photo or start a new WIP thread.

I know my painting has improved immensely since joining pF and learning so much from the modellers on this site, but in the end I don't paint figures to receive praise, I paint them purely for my own pleasure and satisfaction. So long as I'm happy with it, it really doesn't bother me how many likes or comments I get on my threads.

 

[ChaosCossack]

Great thread!
There are two sides to this question...

Leaving comments... Nobody can tell another when or how to respond to another member's posting. You may have a helpful hint or advice (purely constructive of course), give praise or support for the effort, hit the like button, all of the above... or none of the above. Your choice. Some guys are shy about giving advise, feeling they're overstepping by doing so. Some will only interact with members they personally know or only get involved with subject matter they find specifically interesting.
All these are viable ways to participate on this forum.

Receiving comments for one's posts... This is a little harder. I guess it depends on what you are looking to get out of this forum. If you are looking for confidence boosts, positive comments and likes will do that but a lack of them can leave you disappointed. Going by the number of views is a double edged sword... 2,000 views can mean lots of interest. 2,000 views and 3 comments/ 1 like can mean lots of people looked, but weren't overly impressed... Hard one to call. If you are looking for advice and help on a WIP and only get a few "atta boy"s... that can be equally frustrating too.

For me personally.... I tend to look at threads of subject matter that interests me. I will most likely check out a thread of anything dealing with 18th and 19th century subject matter and anything to do with Zaporozhian/Ukrainian/Russian Cossacks. It has to be really eyecatching for 20th century subjects to grab my attention, so it's rare you'll see me get too involved in a thread about WWII subjects... I don't know enough on the subject to contribute. I don't often weigh in with regards to busts either, because, frankly I'm just not a big fan of busts.

I figure I'm a mediocre to average painter at best, so what I want is input from the other members here so that if possible, I can make some kind of improvement with each figure I do. I try to post my projects as WIPs so hopefully things that might be lacking can be pointed out and fixed before the fig is completed and too late to fix. Since joining here 2 1/2 years ago, I really feel I have improved. I credit the input from PF members and by meeting local and international painters here on the forum who became friends and great mentors for me in this hobby. Of course a pat on the back is a nice boost to reinforce any improvements I may have made and keep me strriving to improve further.

Long story short, this is a great forum because of the participation of a fine bunch of members, creating a friendly, comfortable, stress-free place to broaden my experience in this hobby and also make some good personal friends along the way. The level and manner of participation by the members can be as varied as the number members here... that's a lot.

The best one can ask of a site like this is that it enhances their hobby experience... as it has done for me.

Here endeth my rambling

Colin

 

[pmfs]

Planet Figure has been a part of my life since 2007 and I will visit the site several times a day (while at work) and check it a couple of times during the evening. It's the only modelling website I spend any time on and has become a pretty important part of my world.

For me personally, I like to offer support and encouragement to those modellers who post photos of their WIP and who ask questions and seek feedback. That way I know they will be more inclined to appreciate constructive criticism or suggested improvements, and less inclined to think I'm just being a bitch. Sometimes when I see a photo of a figure that is just not very good, I find myself reverting back to the old adage of "If you don't have something positive to say, don't say anything at all", and I suspect that same adage rings true for many others on this forum. Giving someone a pat on the back for a not very good bit of painting isn't being helpful in my view, so I'd prefer not to say anything at all than hand out false praise.

That is why when new members join Planet Figure I always send them a greeting, and I try to encourage them to ask questions and post photos of their figures to seek feedback and learn. Back in 2007 when I joined this forum, I went through a similar phase of anxiously waiting for approval from the "big names". Somehow it helped validate my existence and made me feel worthy. That might sound a bit pathetic but I'm still seeking that validation every time I post a photo or start a new WIP thread.

I know my painting has improved immensely since joining pF and learning so much from the modellers on this site, but in the end I don't paint figures to receive praise, I paint them purely for my own pleasure and satisfaction. So long as I'm happy with it, it really doesn't bother me how many likes or comments I get on my threads.

Bingo!

Cheers

 

[garyhiggins]

Going on what others have said here, I can understand the do I or don't I thing. When I see something I don't think is very good, I don't want to criticise and perhaps put someone off, so just as an idea, how about a couple of extra clicks to go along with "like quote share", " can I criticise and yes please". That way you've made the offer without being overly committed, more interactive.
Best wishes, Gary.
PS Since pretty much all of my Gallery page falls into my don't like category, thanks for being sensitive Guys.

 

[Mark S]

While we're on the topic of Planet Figure participation and/or appreciation I have to say how surprised I am at the low percentage of regular users who have chosen not to take up the option of becoming a PF Supporter by paying the relatively low annual subscription which is only a fraction of what one might pay for a magazine subscription but without the huge archive of extremely valuable figure modelling expert advice and myriad of superb images which are available here.

Advertising on this site is removed for paid supporters, so if you want to pay the supporter fee you can do so by going into your profile info at the top of the page and then go into "Account Upgrades"where you'll find the option of subscription.