Andy Rouse in Abergavenny any one go?

[JB9302]

Originally Posted by Blackbrook Eye

Don't rush of Andy, there is much more to this forum than just criticising others but members tend to speak their minds and that can be a good thing, very rarely is it meant in an unkind way. You should have read some of the comments regarding Johny Kingdom in earlier posts, that poor devil took some flack from several of us. I suppose it goes with the territory if you make a living by being in the public eye, it would be nice if you could find the time to stay with us, as a friend and not just as a mere celebrity.
Welcome to WAB !!!

Keith



Keith

Well said

[andyrouse]

Thanks guys but I have to disagree. If someone has a problem with me then why not email or speak to me in person man to man, why air it to thousands of people online? Why take the trouble to logon to a forum and do it if you don't wanna be malicious? Just see it from my point of view, I don't really need the hassle and coming onto a forum takes my time. If all I get is this then, like all the other pros, I just won't bother to look. I am sorry but I cannot agree that I am fair game, I am human being with feelings too and am hardly a bloody celebrity and don't court the press! It is just a shame and leaves a bad taste in my mouth that someone would rather slag me off online than email me directly, I just don't see why anyone would think like that. Perhaps one day I will find a forum where we are treated with respect, then I will give back a lot, until then I guess that I will keep looking. Will see some of you at the Nikon event I am sure so do say hi!

[StuartDH]

I think the issue comes down to separating Andy Rouse the person, from Andy Rouse the product/business/company/brand etc.

I think Badlarma was expressing his opinion on a product/service from a business that also happens to share the identity of a person. If his comments had been about a WWF talk (with an anonymous speaker), it would have probably read differently. Similarly, if the comment was about a written format with a book reviewed as "good content, but bad storytelling" then that's fairly typical of thousands of book reviews.

I don't think there's anything in the post that's offensive, it's just his opinon on the service he received after he bought and paid for a product that maybe didn't meet his expectations. If anything, it's criticism that (if he's right) could be worth bearing in mind so that others don't have the same experience in the future. If it's completely unjustified because it's untrue then that's also different, but it seems to be a valid account of his experience...and he also balanced the opinion with many positive comments too.

Here at WAB, we get some fairly harsh criticism ourselves...for a service that's provided by a charity, run entirely by volunteers and it's completley free! We tend to take it on board and make some changes, or wet our sides with laughter at someone's rant, ignore it and move on. .

Obviously, if the comments are personal or directed at the volunteers, and not just about the product/service, then that's different...and it can be a fine line between the two sometimes

So I wouldn't worry about it Andy...the good news is that most of the time the comments are more positive and that's why we keep on doing what we do .

Stu

[stephen p]

Not a problem Andy.

I have to agree with you. I dont understand why certain comments are made, but they are it's a shame.

Anyway Andy would like to say how much i enjoyed Slimbridge Seminar, was a great day and good to see how you work.

And theres a lot more to this Forum keep with it

Cheers,

Stephen

Originally Posted by andyrouse

Thanks Stephen, I felt I had to respond. That comment was totally tongue in cheek and I spoke to the guy afterwards about his question, he saw it was a joke too!! Cmon guys, there has to be humour. Also you should realise that it was not a photographic audience but, like all my talks these days, are a moxed bag. So talking about processing is not going to happen as it will bore half the audience senseless and it is not the time and the place as it will take a long time to answer. This is why I suggested my seminar (which got a big laugh) as I spend the whole afternoon doing it, the 100 or so people that attended it a few weeks ago loved it. And by the way we had a full hour of Q&A where I was bombarded with questions and I answered every one to the full - this is according to the client critiques and not my own ego.

So I think it is unfair to sully my reputation based on something that actually you misinterpreted as, like I said, the guy who asked it was perfectly happy and saw it as a joke. I had already signed a book for him in the interval and he had asked me something similar which I answered for him. I don't upset audiences, else I would not be in this game for long. Of course some people do not agree with what I say about photography or my views and that is very cool, we are all human beings, I just wonder why people then choose to come onto a forum and slag me off? It's not very nice and is against the spirit of the wildlife that we are all so passionate about. 99% of the people in that audience, and in all my audiences, go away inspired, educated and entertained and that is all I can ever hope for.