I think Doris' comments about critiquing the work of others is valid.
Especially your own. I find that asking myself what works and what doesn't
to be enormously useful, especially when squinting through that tiny view
finder and you've gone to all that trouble of setting up a tripod. I also
think a good exercise is to find an image that you really like and ask
yourself how it was techinically achieved. For example, how can you use the
fact that the type of light (sunny or overcast) changes the way your film
responds (e.g. shifting more towards blue).
Sometimes this is used deliberately and is a good exercise at using light
conciously. Also, I find that some of my images that I like the best are
either ones with something interesting going on in the foreground and
background. I almost always think about dragging my 24mm out before
anything else. It's one reason why an 18mm is on my list of future
acquisitions. I think Shaw has a good point though that many fine images
are made that emphasize the graphic element rather than the element of
grandeur. I can't explain it but I find that when I'm tooling along in my
Jeep or on a trail, such things usually leap out at me. I think this is
probably true for most people since our brains are always trying to find
order/patterns and are happy when they seem some sort of organization
amidst the chaos. Of course you can decide to be an iconoclast and try to
buck this trend but don't expect your friends to ooh and ahh during your
next slide show. Ultimately, I think a good way to hone your aesthetic
sense is to pick a subject and focus on it. Especially if you haven't done
it before. Right now, I'm having some fun playing with my plain vanilla
macro tubes. I've never had them before and I spent quite a bit of time
focussing on bits of moss on redwoods in Lassen. It's a good exercise
because you need to look for a pattern that fits the 'mood' or 'emotion'
that you are trying to evoke. For example, rather than photograph huge
expanses of moss which would be uninteresting and inundate the eye, I try
and find an interesting and small solitary bit of moss on an interesting
background. Also, ask others to critique your work. Its especially useful
if you ask someone whose opinion that you value as a fellow photographer
rather than just the average person on the street. Hope this helps
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