𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐦 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐂𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬...

We have to be more intentional about whose voices we let in. 𝐓𝐨𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧’𝐭 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦. You don’t need to internalize every critique, every offhand comment, every “you should have.”

I posted my photos in a group today — and kindly asked for just one thing: no feedback about cropping. I see this topic come up often, with opinions on the “right” and “wrong” way to crop, and frankly, I disagree. Photography is art, not a cookie-cutter formula. Sometimes I crop tighter to adjust the focal point, to guide the eye, or to create a stronger feeling in the frame. I wasn’t looking for a breakdown of what I should’ve done differently.

But of course, someone couldn’t resist.

She didn’t just disagree — she dismissed. She told me I was “just avoiding my mistakes,” that my photos were “obviously wrong.”

I replied once — calmly, kindly.

Then she pushed harder, demanding I “prove” myself and asking to see before-and-after photos of my work, saying that I “only wanted compliments.”

𝗜 𝘀𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸. 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻; 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹.

But curiosity got the best of me, and I went to check out her work — not to be petty, but to see who this “expert” was. And wouldn’t you know… her own photos had cropped fingers and half heads. Not once. Not twice. Repeatedly.

And it hit me: 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗽𝗵𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝘆. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲.

The truth is, not every opinion deserves space in your head. For an opinion to carry weight, the person giving it should carry credibility. They should walk the talk. Show integrity. Show depth. Show that they live what they’re trying to teach you.

Otherwise, it’s just noise.

Sometimes silence is your best response. Sometimes the high road is just walking away, knowing that 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 — or your explanation.

People will always talk. Some of it is worth hearing. 𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭.

Don’t give space in your head to those who haven’t earned it, who demand control instead of offering insight. Let them squawk. Let them judge. Keep your energy, your vision, and your voice for what actually matters. Walk the high road quietly, confidently, and leave the rest choking on their own noise.

Let's remember:

“𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙜𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙬 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨”