Also... don't get me wrong when I say this... bonsai is an art form that naturally invites critique. To develop really good trees usually requires a combination of time, technique and vision. I am not aware of anyone who one day picks up a tree at Home Depot and the next day becomes an accomplished bonsai master. There is a huge difference between being someone who loves plants and has a green thumb, and someone who can develop and maintain top bonsai.
Now I love my baby trees from seed
In fact, even now we are having a six-year contest to see who can grow the best Japanese black pine bonsai from seed. However I have many trees that are in the seedling stage, or the early grow-out or development stage, and they are
not bonsai. They are simply plants that make me happy and that I have a vision for. Call them "sticks in pots". Now if I show up on this site with one of my sticks in a pot, and start talking about it, I can guarantee you that the first thing that is going to happen is that people are going to start to critique it and let me know all the things that I need to do to make it a nice bonsai tree... even though I have been doing this for 30 years and am probably just as aware of all of the material's flaws as they are.
It's ok though... because I recognize their criticisms for what they are, and in the majority of cases I agree with them!
However when first starting out you may not always understand the short-comings of your trees. You may feel that criticisms of your trees are actually attacks on YOU (the grower). You may feel defensive... I know that when starting out I did. Just let it go and read the comments. Seek to UNDERSTAND them before you judge them. And if someone with lots of experience critiques your trees, learn to value their input. Whether you do something about it or not is strictly up to you. But rarely are people posting just to score ego points. Usually they are posting to share their thoughts, and usually it comes from a place of trying to help.