Redeye Critique & Advice Sessions


informal one to one portfolio & advice sessions

Come and discuss your work, career issues, problems and possibilities with one of Redeye’s regular portfolio viewers. They usually happen on the first Monday of most months (it will be the second Monday during Bank Holiday months and sessions will not take place in January or August).

Bring your work either in print form, on a fully-charged laptop, or by arrangement, on a CD or flash drive.

Book a 30 minute slot on this website or phone 0845 456 0260. Please also email in a paragraph about the kind of work you do and what stage you’re at so we can match you with a viewer.


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Is it only portfolio viewings?
No, you can come with any work-related problems that you want to talk about.

Do I have to be professional?
No, just serious about your work.

How far ahead do I need to book?
As early as possible, and at least a week if you want the best chance of a well-matched viewer.

What do you want in the text you ask for?
Something about the kind of work you do, where you’re up to, and what you want from the session. And a phone number, preferably mobile, in case of last-minute changes, and your email address.

Can I just send a CV or weblink?
No, the text we ask for is much more helpful in matching you with a viewer. You can attach a CV if you want but it’s not necessary.

Who will view my portfolio?
We have a number of regular viewers. Paul Herrmann, director of Redeye, views most months and can advise on career paths and developing your work. We have a number of curators and well-established photographers in many different fields also viewing. We try to match you with the most appropriate viewer. If there is a particular viewer you want please tell us at the time of booking.

Will you be mean about my work?
No. Our viewers are there to offer support. But it is helpful for you to come with an idea of what you want from the session. If you have work in development we will try and make suggestions about where to go with it. If you particularly want a robust critique we can try and oblige.

Will you pinch my ideas?
We very much hope not. We only pick viewers we trust.

What form should my work be in?
You can bring a portfolio, loose prints, or work on your fully-charged laptop. We can also sometimes look at work on a CD or USB pen drive but that might restrict who views your work if there aren’t enough laptops available. Please make sure if you burn a CD that you bring a back-up or a flash drive too.

Can I bring transparencies?
Not advised.

How may photos should I include?
The session is only 30 minutes long so it’s a good idea not to bring too much - it can be hard to look at more than 40 pictures in that time. A good number might be between 10 and 40 pictures.

Any special requirements for digital pictures?
They can be hard to see if they’re too small, and slow things down a lot if they’re enormous, especially if you are bringing a CD or pen drive. We advise bringing JPEGs sized between 1000 x 700 pixels and 3000 x 2000 pixels, with a colour profile embedded if possible. Use JPEG compression settings between 8 and 11 (approx 70 to 90%, or high quality).

Do I need anything else?
Pen and paper to note down suggestions.

What if I’m late?
Please try to arrive early. You will probably lose part or all of your session if you’re late. We can’t move things around too much. It’s a really good idea to arrive early anyway in case there are any cancellations available - we will fill these up free of charge.

Why did you move my time slot?
Sorry. There are sometimes last-minute changes we can’t avoid.

What if I have to cancel?
Please try to give as much notice as you can. At least the day before and sooner if possible.

What happens if I don’t show up and don’t cancel?
The consequences are too awful to contemplate. Firstly we get annoyed. Secondly you go on a list and if you book again, you will be at the back of the queue when we allocate viewers to sessions.

Why did you start charging for these sessions?
Because of the large number of people who didn’t show up. After we started charging the no-show rate fell by more than half.

£5 isn’t much. Are the sessions really worth coming to?
Yes. The price is heavily subsidised. We also use local viewers and an inexpensive venue to keep our costs down. We are happy to see work at every level. If you have top-quality completed projects that you are ready to try and pitch to galleries or publishers, we recommend one of the international-level portfolio events such as Rhubarb-Rhubarb. We can advise if we think your work is ready for that.

Can I book more than one session in one evening?
Yes, but your second viewer might be less appropriate for you. Please contact us to discuss it. Not more than two.

Can I come again?
Absolutely. Please give us plenty of notice if you want the same or a different viewer.

Once I’ve been, will everyone in Redeye know about me?
No. We will try and tell people we think will be interested in your ideas, But please also submit work for other opportunities. If you want just to send us images to keep on file and look at, send them to images@redeye.org.uk. Maximum of four images compressed to less than 1MB please.

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