For a couple semesters in college, I tried my hand at being a photographer. I was average at best, but enthusiasm carried me through the classes. Of all the things that I learned from both a technical and aesthetic standpoint, the critique sessions are what stick with me.
I have very clear memories of my professor standing in front of the far wall of the classroom where all the students’ assignments had been mounted. He’d walk up to each photograph, hunch over to examine it, and scowl. Then he’d invariably say the following, “You shouldn’t need a caption to tell me what it’s about.”
I think about that phrase all the time.
Maybe it’s because our defeats cut sharper memories than our victories. Perhaps that’s why they motivate us so well, because they don’t easily fade. I prefer to think that this particular memory endures because it was really great advice. In essence, the professor was saying to any of us who were listening: show me, don’t tell me.