Click/Tap; it's just two drawings and a photo! (fullscreen to improve quality) Hey guys! I was in the middle of doing this for someone's critique, but they had to end the convo, so I didn't want it to go to waste. What had happened in their painting was they had used a photo of a person to base their art on, and said that the finished piece was their OC. However, they didn't change any elements of the original photo -- it was essentially a photo study, if anything. I'd just like to talk about making sure all of us are referencing creatively and ethically, and that when we do make studies, we give credit!
First and foremost, the photo I've included in this project is of DeForrest Kelly and one of his friends. I unfortunately couldn't really figure out who took it, but it came from an article discussing a book about him written by the person in the picture with him (Kristine M. Smith). The following drawing is a photo study of DeForrest, and the last drawing is of the character Ali (say it with me: from Emara Emirates Hero, lol) which used the photo as a reference. Onto my thoughts; First of all, be careful when confronting people about "copying" art. They may not realize that they are doing something wrong! And look out for yourself before anything else, lead by example and try not to get into unhealthy arguments. There is nothing wrong with using references! Artists and animators do it all the time, and even when they don't, they are referencing images and muscle memory stored internally. But, to reference when creating an original piece of art is not to duplicate. Most often, you only borrow certain parts of the image that you're having trouble visualizing on your own. Sometimes you might also take the entire pose as a starting point, but even then, things like the face, clothes, hair, environment, etc. should be different, and adjustments made to the pose for your own purposes. If you are duplicating, that is a study and should be treated as such if you choose to post it online. In the case of live drawings, there is no image you can credit, but you can note that it is a life or observational drawing. If the model is prominent you can also give them credit for helping you! If you are using a photo, include the photo with your post and the person who took the photo, if you know the information. Now other artists can see your starting point, which can be helpful to them, and people in general will know what photographer to go to if they liked the photo! Photography is art too, as any filmmaker will tell you, so try to treat its creators with respect :) Sometimes we forget this on Scratch (thanks to Creative Commons, which can be both a blessing and a curse lol), but it is also totally possible to get in trouble for stealing art or images - aka not giving credit, or in certain cases, not getting permission for use. So this is both to help yourself and others! Anyway, that's my PSA for the day. Hope everyone's chillin :3
