ExposureRoom benefits its users in many ways but, for me at least, I look at it as a place to learn and be inspired. What makes a community like this work is participation.

Participation takes a lot of work and that can be hard given that many of us are coming from post-MTV generations with attention spans shorter than that of a gnat (of course, some of us simply don't have the time because of our busy and productive lives). For instance, we love the classic one-liners when giving feedback. Here's a sampling:

"Looks great"
"Wow"
"LOL"
"What settings did you use"
"Who's the chick?"
"I loved it"
"Nice work"
"LOL"
"Cool"
"Looks nice"
"Who's the chick?"

None of this commentary requires any commitment of time and/or effort from the authors. It also doesn't help the owner of the work one little bit. For the most part, whether good or bad, people who post their work have put quite a bit of time and effort to get it to the point of being presentable. It has taken some people months to even work up the courage to post their meager efforts in the hopes that other users won't be too hard on them.

We all fear rejection and are sometimes relieved by a simple "looks great". It's almost like we just want to grab that one comment and run with it. I think this kind of commentary can be more damaging than good. No thought has gone into those words. Maybe the person posting really did think it was great but I think it is an obligation for them to explain what made it great. Similarly, it is also a viewer's responsibility to give negative feedback if there is a good reason for it.

It's difficult on both sides sometimes. Viewers don't want to offend their fellow filmmakers so they make harmless comments of encouragement. The contributor of the work also doesn't want to be offended and is reluctant to be too demanding of honest feedback. So we reach an impasse or standoff, I don’t know which.

Result: no one is offended and no one learns anything. The next time the contributor shoots something, they make the same old mistakes. They don't realize that the quality of their work is less than the best they can do and they fail to ever rise from the ditch of mediocrity.

What am I saying here? I'm glad you asked because I was beginning to wonder that myself. I love bullet points so let's do some.

For those posting their work:

1. Approach ExposureRoom as a place to learn and teach.

2. Keep an open mind when your work is criticized.

3. Don't defend your work unless it is absolutely necessary. If a viewer has a negative response to your masterpiece and it is backed up with substantial reasoning, it cannot be ignored. Look at it and take what you think is valuable and leave the rest. Don't get defensive because if you believe in your own work, you really do not have to prove yourself to anyone. Remember that there is no penultimate opinion. Everyone's thoughts are subjective deriving from a lifetime of unique experiences that conspire to develop personal preferences.

4. Don't be lazy. Make the work you post be the best it can be.

5. Take pride in your work. Don't make excuses when you post your work. Make it attractive to people so they will actually look at it. Typical posts I see include: "I just slapped this together," "the quality is really bad," "I had no tripod," etc., etc. Let your work speak for itself. If you feel you can't post it without a bunch of excuses, don't post it. Work on it some more or go shoot some more.

For those leaving comments:

1. Be kind but honest. You don't have to insult someone to get the point across that they don't have much experience or their work is bad.

2. Give only constructive criticism. Help to make people better at what they do. Tell them what you liked and what you didn't like. Give them the gift of your time and they will reap the benefits.

3. Don't go off topic with juvenile tangents such as "LOL", "that's what she said", etc. Threads like this get bloated and sometimes the posted work is completely ignored. Respect the owner of the work.

4. If you are going to comment on someone's work, please make sure that you really look at the film or clip and that your comments accurately reflect how you feel. If you are distracted and don't understand a concept, it may not be the filmmaker's fault.

By slowing down a bit and really absorbing the work of some tremendous talent on ExposureRoom, you will have a richer experience. Oh, and one more thing…don’t quickly scan through films and then comment. This is a really bad habit.

In summary:

Constructive criticism is a positive thing, even if the comments are negative, so be honest and write something of substance. Be respectful of the people on whose work you are commenting.

If you post work, be prepared to accept constructive criticism and try to learn from what is being said. Respect the people who comment on your work because they are giving you their time and you should appreciate that (unless they are just being mean-spirited).

Adhering to these simple suggestions can make for a thriving community where there is a fertile ground for teaching and learning and where friendships can flourish. We all win and, let's face it, who doesn’t want that?