No More Rating the Photos in the Gallery?

I don't feel that we need a rating system. I enjoy seeing everyones pictures, and we can all get ideas and help from everyones pictures. I believe that all cakes are beautiful, and any one who takes the time and effort that it takes to do cake decorating deserves 5stars. I have not yet posted a picture, but that is due to lack of a good camera. No one should be discouraged by these trolls
Wilma

I just want to say thank you for taking the request seriously. I feel much better about this to know people are listening and caring and trying to figure out how to make things work better here!

When trolls are on here and just rating everyone low, the rating system doesn't help anyone and may indeed cause discouragement. Beyond that, we're all at different levels of skill on our cake decorating and a newbie with no experience compared to a professional decorator of 10 yrs or more experience are going to definitely have different levels of quality. It's fun to share our pictures and get comments regardless of skill, but feeling judged to that extent of star ratings is not really helpful, IMHO. As an optional thing (if some people still want it) or for a contest would make sense, though.

Thanks again!
~AngelWendy

I agree with cake77. We can all get ideas from eachother, no matter what our skill level is. I enjoy getting feedback in the form of notes, etc., not a rating system which can be very discouraging for many, especially newbie decorators with not much experience.

I know that is how I look at it. I love to look at the pictures to get ideas, and rather the cake is bad or great, each one has something to take in!!!

I am new to this site, discovered it by accident and got hooked right away, due to the fact that I found a site I can get and give ideas about my passion...CAKE DECORATING! I haven't posted pics yet, but I am not sure I would want a picture rated, but rather I enjoy reading the comments from other decorators and getting their input. There is such a wealth of information to share on this website, and ideas that are priceless coming from people all interested in the same thing....decorating. So, my vote would be to not "rate" someone's decorating techniques, but rather encourage them or give praise for the effort they put into it. Cindycakes2

I don't rate pictures. I would want to discourage anyone from doing what they enjoy. Who am I to judge anothers work, unless it's a contest.

The only time I ever rated a cake was for the contest. From my experiences with CakeCentral ~ everyone here is always positive and tries to help and encourage each other. If there's someone out there rating cakes poorly i'd take it with a grain of salt. Listen to what the people that are willing to put it in words and attach a name to it have to say!

Happy Decorating!
Debbie


We all had to start somewhere ~ i'm glad it was here!

I think my vote would be to make it optional, but since so few people actually vote on the (non-contest) pictures, maybe it's really not necessary. I personally really like to use the stars, but have found is discouraging that very few people have voted on my pictures. I love the feedback comments, too, but those also seem to be in short supply. I love having the picture galleries available. there are some great ideas out there!

To be honest with all of you. I love to view the photos and to be given the chance to give comment or a rating is a good thing BUT I thought I can't leave anyone out. I tried to give comment or rate all the photos.. LOL It stopped me and said something about I had already posted or something like that..Sooooooooo I think it would be ok to remove it. Phew I was getting tired..Just so all of you will know I think ALL the photos in here are awesome, creative and Beautiful!!!!

I wondered how people felt about this. I noted that very few people used the ratings.
For one thing, I know just how sensitive people can be about their cakes and also, I can imagine how devestated people would be if they got poor ratings. And of course, there are always going to be those that like to play games and be negative on these sites. I think that when people post pictures of their cakes, they need to make some kind of comment that informs the public about what they are looking for in sharing these pictures. If they truly want constructive criticism and information on how to improve their work, it is helpful for them to state this. If they are pleased and proud of their work, saying so would allow folks to understand that they are strictly sharing and not looking for any form of critique.
I have not seen any bad cakes on this site, just cakes with varying degrees of skill levels, presentation skills, creativity levels etc. Sometimes the brand new decorators come up with new concepts or approaches that just blow me away. So whether or not they are new or accomplished, there is always something there to appreciate. I particularily appreciate the cakes that are done well at the particular skill level that the creator is at.
But I do believe that people have to be upfront about what they are expecting when they share their work. If you state you are looking for constuctive criticism, then you need to be sure that you can handle that. I can remember people stating this on the Wilton site and then getting very offended and defensive when it was offered in a positive way. It tends to make people be less than honest with any advice they have to offer, for fear of being offensive.
Cakes are like any other artistic endeavour that you put out there in the public eye. Once they are released to the general public, they will be subjected to the same evaluations that any other item in any market is subject too - sculptures, works of art, paintings, craftwork, handcrafted furniture, custom homes etc, basically any other product you can make. If you call yourself a professional, then expect to receive public scrutiny. If you call yourself an amateur, you likely will be treated with a little more sensitivity. At any rate, don't take the critiques to heart and allow them to discourage you. Everyone has room for improvement, everyone has something to learn.
I personally, appreciate the generally positive and helpful and friendly attitude of the folks on this site and that of the very special owner. It takes a special person to run a site like this one and also, to be sensitive to the desires and needs of the membership. So kudos to you! You are doing a great job!
Hugs Squirrelly Cakes

Amen to SquirrellyCakes!

Debbie

I don't rate pictures either. I would want nothing but encouragement for my work. It does give me lots of ideas for which I am grateful.

I second the "Amen" to SquirrellyCakes! Yeah, what she said!