Trying to address a few things, but please let me know if I missed anything! I've also added a "Notes and Future Revisions" section to the opening post to collect some of the things we'll keep in mind for our finalized policies.
EDIT: Also, forgot to say this, but thank you for all of the feedback and for voicing your thoughts/concerns thus far! It's definitely been helpful in figuring out what parts we need to revise (and this was one of our hopes in making this thread open for discussion).
This depends on how closely the referencing was, of course. We're going to clean up the wording a bit to maybe directly say "heavily referenced" instead, so it might not be an issue at all unless it looks very much like a 1:1 copy.
With regards to poses... There's a few levels here that we'll probably have to discuss some more! Referencing a model or something should be fine in general (especially if you're not doing a 1:1 copy but just using it to see how folds/curves/etc. are), but things like using a YCH pose base that someone else created feels like it crosses a line (into the "tracing/referencing fan works" territory).
It's a bit hard for us to clearly communicate where to draw the line (e.g. what needs citation and what doesn't, what asset is considered "small enough" to not warrant it, etc.) -- but even if you don't add credit, if it's something that is actually concerning, the idea is that we would just be able to ask you to add credit afterwards anyways.
Something like this would be perfectly fine as credit:
(i.e. just a collection of images that you used -- we typically know the source anyways!)
With that said, it is generally nice if you still source where you got some fanart from -- but that's etiquette, not a hard rule.
We definitely didn't mean for this to make future art contests more difficult/stressful in any way. Rather, the intention was the opposite: that it's a bit more lenient to allow for things like tracing, and that people who were worried their works looked too close to the original could simply cite their source (or be asked to cite it, if they forget).
From my perspective of things, I do believe most art events will be functionally the same in terms of submissions for most members. The only changes would be for people that want to trace.
EDIT: Also, forgot to say this, but thank you for all of the feedback and for voicing your thoughts/concerns thus far! It's definitely been helpful in figuring out what parts we need to revise (and this was one of our hopes in making this thread open for discussion).
Just including a screenshot would be fine!Also I often use my game itself for reference. For example I'll look at in item/character in game to draw them, how would I credit that?
This depends on how closely the referencing was, of course. We're going to clean up the wording a bit to maybe directly say "heavily referenced" instead, so it might not be an issue at all unless it looks very much like a 1:1 copy.
Inspirations and the likes don't need to be cited (although from my own perspective, as I said before, I really like seeing these. So it might be nice as inspiration for people! But that's not an actual requirement, haha.)Please tell me I understood correctly: if we want to use a large part of an asset as reference (e.g. a whole Tom Nook) we should reference the source.
However, if we put together an entirely new artwork using only small snippets of references, it is not required? An example of what I mean: Iโm drawing a character off the top of my head but need help from references with a hand or clothing folds, so I go online to look for something that might fit. At the end, the artwork is still a work of my own, but with some parts having been referenced (but altered). You wouldnโt need a list of every single reference used, right? Sometimes I steal how someone used accent colours or a particular texture I love (halftone brushes for example) but I still do my own thing with it - so I think I should be ok? Can someone confirm pls
Another question: what if a pose was traced from a reference, but everything except for the pose is original? Like using a base or an anatomy model of some sort..?
With regards to poses... There's a few levels here that we'll probably have to discuss some more! Referencing a model or something should be fine in general (especially if you're not doing a 1:1 copy but just using it to see how folds/curves/etc. are), but things like using a YCH pose base that someone else created feels like it crosses a line (into the "tracing/referencing fan works" territory).
As things currently are, we'd like you to credit those too (even if it's just including a collage of all the icons used) if it's very heavily referenced.Though, just to clarify further: when it comes to referencing small stuff like the AC leaf icon, reaction icons etc, are we supposed to credit those as well? Or is it only for bigger stuff like characters, poses etc?
It's a bit hard for us to clearly communicate where to draw the line (e.g. what needs citation and what doesn't, what asset is considered "small enough" to not warrant it, etc.) -- but even if you don't add credit, if it's something that is actually concerning, the idea is that we would just be able to ask you to add credit afterwards anyways.
Something like this would be perfectly fine as credit:
(i.e. just a collection of images that you used -- we typically know the source anyways!)
Those events aren't considered "Art Events" in this same regards -- you're free to do as you wish with avatars and signatures (as long as it's within site rules, of course).For instance, there are certain events where we decorate our profile to match an event theme, which includes not just Art but Photoshop or images one can find online. Will these rules be applied to that specific contest as well? Would we need to reference profile pictures we find online? I presume some people have used other peoples fan art for the contest, if we were supposed to reference but canโt use fan art, would that be against the rules going forward?
With that said, it is generally nice if you still source where you got some fanart from -- but that's etiquette, not a hard rule.
That wouldn't need a source! I do think we'll reword in our final draft to be more clear that we mean "heavily referenced" (i.e. something that is too close to the original source, to the point where we wonder whether it's traced or not).What about the artists that basically just want to use a reference picture of the official character as a point reference to what the character looks like, but draw an entirely different pose and artstyle for the said official character? Do we still need to post proof of reference pictures used or post our portfolio of past art?
We definitely didn't mean for this to make future art contests more difficult/stressful in any way. Rather, the intention was the opposite: that it's a bit more lenient to allow for things like tracing, and that people who were worried their works looked too close to the original could simply cite their source (or be asked to cite it, if they forget).
From my perspective of things, I do believe most art events will be functionally the same in terms of submissions for most members. The only changes would be for people that want to trace.