I must say I am so amazed at how nice and friendly and helpful people are at cake central. Its just wonderful.
I feel like I am sometimes one of the few who offer suggestions or say what I would prefer when placing comments on photos in the gallery....
is this the wrong thing to do.... should you only comment if you think its fabulous... or is it meant to be feedback...
I want feedback not just compliments on my cakes and wondered how others felt.
I think there was a really long thread about this topic. I really like to get feedback on how I can improve, however I believe the consensus was that we shouldn't leave negative feedback on the gallery shots because many people get upset when they get negative feedback. However if you want honest feedback to post your pic in a forum and tell people to give you feedback. I myself appreciate even negative comments because I would like to better my decorating as I go.
There was a thread on this maybe a week ago and it actually turned into a touchy subject. Some say its ok and some say you should only leave feedback when its asked for.
i also love this site the people are the best and by far the most helpful.
Melony
here's a thread that discussed this near ad infinitum! 
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-13865.html
Doug you beat me to it I was just about to post the thread.
Yes I remember seeing a thread about some cakes getting lots of comments and some getting very few and it looked touchy.
If the photo has been posted into the gallery isn't that why it was posted.
I am not ever nasty or rude but a cake I saw earlier was all white... while I appreciated its workmanship. of being soooo smooth .. (and I said so) I thought it was a little plain. I meant no offence by it, just a different view.
I guess I best only comment on cakes in the gallery if I love them... even though its not what I thought it was all about.
You cannot improve your work if everything is wonderful and perfect. We can all improve.
Looks like I opened a can of worms.. sorry
to sum up what SEEMS to be the consensus:
make nice unless poster specifically requests BB & CC (aka Brick Bats and Constructive Criticism) even then be polite!
yep a can of messing frosting for sure.....
we all put so much of selves into cakes, hard to distance self from product.
I call it the baby syndrome and it's corallary the grandma syndrome:
your baby is the cutest baby and according to grandma the cutest grandkid too.... (and grandma esp. and mom probably too has pictures to prove it! --- fun to watch grandmas engaging "photo" wars!)
Oh I saw that cake too, it was very plain. I like the simple elegant look sometimes though, I just assumed that she was doing exactly what the bride asked for. However I think it was fine for you to state your opinion, you didn't do it in a negative way at all.
But after reading the previous thread I just decided to stop commenting on the photos that I didn't like.
Please feel free to critique my cakes anytime though, I just started decorating in the past few months and really would like to improve enough to do this professionally, although not right away, but any feedback is useful in my opinion.
Doug how funny you say that I also have a photofighting granny but now she has new ammunition, a great grankid lol.
DKY
The thread you're reffering to was a different one I remember that one too. The one Doug posted the link to was specifically about what you asked here "should you only comment if you think its fabulous"
If we could post pics, my kids would win hands down! HaHa
I agree with the sentiment mentioned, I was thinking that tonight, how *very* helpful and kind everyone is, especially to new people like myself. The cakes here are beautiful, something to aspire to and also intimidating so the kinda advice and warm welcomes are so comforting!
I call it the baby syndrome and it's corallary the grandma syndrome:
your baby is the cutest baby and according to grandma the cutest grandkid too.... (and grandma esp. and mom probably too has pictures to prove it! --- fun to watch grandmas engaging "photo" wars!)
I think the saying I've heard goes like this:
There is only one CUTEST baby in the world....and every mother's got him!
Yep...I agree....cakes are a labor of love and it's hard (for me) to take criticism...
I guess I view my kids the same way... there is no point claiming they are perfect, most beautiful or the next world genius if they are not... we love them all the same. I look at cakes the same way (sorry for the comparison kids). But I take all that you said on board and will bow out of this one quietly.
Here is the thread about that... Everyone has their own opinions. Personally I "ask" for critiquing. Then when it is given I appreciate it.
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-13865-.html
Lazy_Susan 
I would never offer constuctive criticism unless specifically asked just because we are all really strangers here. I think it's just common curtesy--I would NOT appreciate a stranger coming up to me and saying "Oh, you know your haircut is cute--but it would look even better if you'd grow your bangs out and pull the sides back...." I mean really! I think it's kind of an ambush. So I leave positive comments that are sincere. I don't leave comments I don't really mean. And of course, you don't HAVE to comment! It's optional!
Its funny that people thought that other thread was touchy, especially enough to lock it, I guess I've been on some bad message boards before, because I didn't see where it was going bad!
I never really thought of the gallery as a place where people would offer their critisism...whenever I wanted a suggestion I posted a thread. I saw the gallery more as people getting inspiration from other people's cakes, a lot of what I see are people asking questions, like, "how did you get that cake to stand up so straight?", or "what did you use to make it shine like that?". But that could just be the way I saw it. I get enough unasked for advice from my mother, lol 
Plus I just like to have them put into my portfolio, so I can see the progress. I think if someone states that they want suggestions or advice then people should feel free to add their (tactful) two cents.
If I want help or suggestions, I just ask for them (I really appreciated all the help I got with the big green goo fiasco! 
). Guaranteed I always see more flaws then anyone else does in the cakes I do, I am still learning and most the times I know what I did wrong, just the execution isn't there yet. (or realize after...oh yeah, that was supposed to be about twice the amount of icing sugar in the mmf! 
)
I think different people are looking for different things, but if you would like your cakes actually critiqued, you would get more response from posting in a thread, sometimes cakes get overlooked in the gallery just because of the sheer number of them.
I have always thought of the galleries as a showcase or showplace for our work and the forums as a place to ask for help or critique of our work. I can be so linear sometimes-I never thought about it any other way until that other thread came up the other day.
I think one of the reasons it did get locked so quick is we all do try very hard to keep this a very positive website! The administrators and moderators do a great job keeping track of things and keeping things from getting heated or turning ugly. too much of that stuff in the real world-don't need it in my cake cyber world too!
I have always thought of the galleries as a showcase or showplace for our work and the forums as a place to ask for help or critique of our work. ... I think one of the reasons it did get locked so quick is we all do try very hard to keep this a very positive website! The administrators and moderators do a great job keeping track of things and keeping things from getting heated or turning ugly. too much of that stuff in the real world-don't need it in my cake cyber world too!
so, in summatation -- and then, please let this discussion fade away in a cloud of powdered sugar --
1) cirtique --- ask for in a posting to a forum thread.
2) gallaries ---- ooh, ahhh, so green with envy -- i.e. make nice
no need to mix apples and oranges...linear can be a good thing
(esp. when doing string work!)
I have always thought of the galleries as a showcase or showplace for our work and the forums as a place to ask for help or critique of our work. I can be so linear sometimes-I never thought about it any other way until that other thread came up the other day.
I think one of the reasons it did get locked so quick is we all do try very hard to keep this a very positive website! The administrators and moderators do a great job keeping track of things and keeping things from getting heated or turning ugly. too much of that stuff in the real world-don't need it in my cake cyber world too!
Ok, here is the official guidance from Jackie and I. This quoted area is exactly right in all aspects.
1. Galleries are for showing off work, lets try to just use comments for encouragement.
2. If you want a critique of something, post it in a forum thread and ask for the feedback. Don't do this unless your ego is prepared for the criticism.
And yes it is a fine balancing act of keeping this community happy, wonderful and fun, while at the same time everyone having thick enough skin, and open enough minds to grow as decorators and people. Sometimes we might lock a thread at what appears to be an early stage, but we have been running this forum long enough to know what topics will degenerate into hurt feelings or unnecessary arguements.
I didn't mean to imply that anyone jumped the gun locking the thread, sorry that I gave that impression 
I think I best go back to JUST LOOKING, and perhaps avoid comments and forums.. I might be safer.
Apologies for the stir up it was not my intention.
Can I suggest that when people INITIALLY JOIN they be given the prev info about the guidelines on the gallery and the forums... that way it will avoid the topic coming up again and again, while some of you have been around for a long time some of us are new and we cannot possibly go back and read over all past forums.
K
I just don't understand why people think a nice comment is not sincere. Someone made a comment that these type of statements..... like good job, or I love it..... translate to " We feel sorry for your cake". I don't get that. I have never left a post because I feel sorry for their cake, and want to stroke their ego. It's so fun to look at all of the cakes and this group has some truely talented cake artists. If I put "I love your cake"...... I am totally sincere in saying so.
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