For me, it depends.
If it is likely that I am going to play that new course once (like many exclusive private courses), I want to know about that course as much as possible before I go. I would love to see all the photos available, and even better, I would love to play that course many times on computer simulation so that I know how the course really plays and I have some idea on where I should aim and what I should avoid.
If it is likely that I am going t o play that new course multiple times (as I will at Old Mac), I don't need to know as much going in as I will figure it out as I go along on multiple replays.