Critiquing
When looking at a photograph, there are many elements to consider when deciding if a print has been made correctly. One way to decide if a photo is correct is to critique it. The following criteria are important aspects to contemplate when critiquing a photograph.

1) Center of Interest: What catches your eye the most? Flip the picture upside down and decide which subject stands out the most. The subject that catches your eye the most would be called the center of interest. If it is the same subject that the photographer intentionally tried to make the center of interest, than the photograph was made correctly. Sometimes, photographers make their center of interest hidden so that the reader has to think about the picture more. Sometimes pictures do not have a center of interest, as would a picture containing patterns.

2) Cropping: How did the photographer crop the picture? Did they crop it correctly using the rule of thirds? Is there too much negative space? If there is an object in the picture looking at something, did the photographer allow negative space in the direction they are looking?

3) Rule of Thirds: Where is the subject centered? Does it follow the rule of thirds?

4) Quality of Light: What type of light was used in the picture? In a studio, the lighting would be artificial. Outside, the lighting would be natural.

5) Direction of Light: Which direction is the light coming from? Is the lighting front lit, back lit, open shade or available light/side lit?

6) Depth of Field: Is the depth of field minimum or maximum? Minimum would mean most of the picture is blurry. Maximum would mean most of the picture is in focus. Some pictures do not contain depth of field, meaning the subject is in the background.

7) Background: What does the background consist of? What role does the background play in the photograph?

8) Shutter Speed: Consider the time of day and if there was motion when the photograph was taken. Try guessing which shutter speed the photographer might have used.

9) Sharpness: How sharp are the details in the photograph? Could the photographer have made the picture sharper?

10) Tonality: Are there rich tones of black and white in the picture? If the picture seems flat, or has too many grays, how might this have occurred? It might have happened when they developed the negative or print, or if they did not expose the negative long enough in the camera.

11) Visual Elements: What are the visual elements that make up the photograph? Look for shapes, patterns, silhouettes, texture, and diagonal, horizontal, and vertical lines.

12) Visual Impact: What is the message the photographer might be trying to send in the photograph? What is the focal point in the picture, or what is drawing the reader into the picture? Is it an abstract, social or moral issue, or personal comment?

13) Balance: How are subjects balanced in the photograph? Is the picture symmetrical or asymmetrical?

14) Camera Angle: Where was the photographer when they took the picture? Did they take the photograph at an ant's eye view, a bird's eye view, or at eye level?

15) Format: Is the picture format vertical, horizontal, or at a diagonal?

16) Presentation: How is the picture presented? Is the picture mounted on matte board? Did the photographer use a ground out negative carrier? How is the overall performance of the picture?