Wow, thank you for the honesty. I am taking your feedback to heart. I did ask for it, and I'll try to do better in the future regarding the technical advice you offered. If you couldn't already tell, I am a hobbyist with no formal training besides teaching myself the basics of DSLR shooting, Photoshop and Lightroom. No, I didn't use my DSLR for this photo (I only post iPhone photos on my Instagram) and no, I didn't postprocess the photo in PS or LR (I only use VSCOcam on my Instagram photos). Sorry for that - I should have specified these details in the original post.

I normally don't bother defending myself to internet strangers but because, as you say, you were honest with me I will be honest with you. Maybe I'm soft, but personal comments like the ones you made are a big reason why I don't usually post anything on Reddit, and I think it deters others from contributing meaningfully to a potentially vibrant forum. Even though you might disagree, a few of these comments weren't constructive in any way towards improving my (minimalist) photography skills, which was what I asked for. You made some off-base assumptions about my character that I really don't appreciate while I also find irrelevant to judging the quality of the photo:

As somebody who spends a lot of time in Berlin this is the most Cliché thing ever. Well maybe a selfie in between the rows would be even more so.

It doesn't take a lot of creativity, has been done thousands of times before and isn't anything more than a boring unnamed picture accompanied by 20 hashtags taken to stroke your ego with meaningless likes.

I took the photo because I felt it created a sense of confusion and unease (perhaps, even probably, as the architects of this memorial intended), while also being visually interesting with repeating simple and sharp geometric shapes, minimal textures, and a two-toned colour palette, and if I didn't convey that sense with the photo then I certainly need to do better. I mean, it's embarrassing having to explain the reasons for taking a photo, so clearly I need to take better photos. You are correct, I did not selectively edit areas of the photo and I did not attempt to add depth to the photo, because I did not intend for there to be any obvious depth cues in the photo to help convey the feeling it gave me. Do you have any specific advice here regarding what you would recommend I selectively edit? I think you would agree that taking, editing, and sharing a picture which an intent of conveying an emotion is a reasonable purpose for taking a picture, but I need to work on the execution.

Furthermore, besides telling me that the photo you posted was the most valuable photo ever sold you didn't expand on why it is amazing enough for someone to spend so much money. Personally, I don't find the image compelling at all, but maybe if I understood what 'details' you're talking about that make it so great, I would. Then I could say something about it and this would be a helpful, constructive exercise.

I did not realize this was a photo taken thousands of times before. I had never seen it before. I don't do a popularity check on a location that is obviously a tourist spot in a very cosmopolitan city before taking a photo of something that creates a very personal emotional response, regardless of how many other people see this same thing every day. I think avoiding taking a picture of something because someone else probably has taken it before is an objectively terrible idea that stifles creativity and expression, but that seems to be what you're implying. You go on to (helpfully) criticize the spiral staircase photo for being off-centre and with the wrong focal point, but then arrogantly state that it looks like something someone would do for a photo class, for no intelligible reason other than to ensure that I know you're (clearly) an expert.

I also did not realize that I would need to defend Instagram as a social networking platform by posting this photo and my profile here. Instagram exists for the purpose of sharing photos with others, often people you don't know personally, so that you can make connections with people who share similar interests. Of course, the photo quality and the real reasons people use it varies hugely, but it's ultimately just a networking tool that people use however they want. To use that tool, people use hashtags. In my personal life I don't know anyone who shares my photographic and travel interests, so, unfortunately, I feel the need to use hashtags to connect with these people, despite the obvious stigma that you perfectly illustrate. I won't lie, it is nice to get affirmation that other people like the same thing you liked enough to take a picture of. That said, there is a difference between stroking an ego and simply trying to connect with people whose photos inspire you, even if the two do go hand in hand sometimes. My advice to you: try not to be so judgmental of people you don't know personally. And when people ask for feedback on something specific, give feedback on something specific.