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Common Misconceptions: Daily DeviationsHello everyone! In this “Common Misconceptions” blog we’ll be covering the often-debated topic of Daily Deviations, more commonly known as DD’s. This topic is probably most talked about above any other here on deviantART and I don’t think it can be discussed enough when it comes to misinformation. So, let’s begin!

A Daily Deviation is an award
Deviousness is an award (and honor). A Daily Deviation is not. A Daily Deviation is a 24-hour site wide feature of the artwork of the community. Think of it as a showcase, not an award ceremony. Artists are supposed to showcase their work occasionally, and it’s not an award to have your work shown.

If you’re friends with a CV or $taff, you’ll get a DD/that person got a DD because they are friends with CV and $taff members
NOPE. First of all, our $taff and CV’s are great people, and if you don’t know any, take the time to g

Common Misconceptions: Crediting + CopyrightsHello everyone! In this “Common Misconceptions” blog we’ll be discussing “crediting” and basic copyright issues that have been circling around our community! As always, if you have any issues after reading this (or have any other points to add/knowledge to share)

I can upload images I like that I found from around the internet
Absolutely not. This is DeviantART, the images you upload should either have been made by you, or you have permission to upload them. It’s also expressly against dA’s terms of service. If this is something you do, I warn you to stop. This is an offense that can result in being suspended or banned from deviantART. Furthermore, this is theft pure and simple. Don’t take anything that doesn’t belong to you. You wouldn’t want someone taking your hard work and using it without permission, so don’t put another artist in

Common Misconceptions: Traditional ArtFirst of all, hello!

It's been almost a year since I contributed a blog post to this lovely group so I want to say hi I'm back folks! I have a lot of artsy things to share with you all that I've learned (and am still learning) so hang on tight! While I was thinking what to write as my first topic, I decided to kind of go back to the beginning as far as our thinking as artists goes in the creation process. I've come up with a short series called "Common Misconceptions" just to debunk some myths and misguided trends that are so often part of what we experience as we grow. This first "Common Misconceptions" topic will focus on traditional art.

Traditional is better than digital because it takes more talent and skill
WRONGWRONGWRONGWRONGWRONGWRONGWRONG. Did I say that was wrong, I'll say it again for emphasis WRONG! Like all mediums, digital art is simply different than traditional art in the same way photography is different than fi

How to feel good about your ArtWe've all had those moments as an artist where we just can't seem to like what we're doing, where nothing seems sufficient and everybody else seems to draw so much better than ourselves.There's a few simple things you can do to avoid feeling like that or that you can remind yourself of should you already be right in the middle of this mess.
Draw for yourself, not an audience!
The first and probably most important point, especially for any artist on here who in one way or the other seeks feedback and recognition from their fellow deviants. You should never forget that your art is after all YOUR art, so it should be a means to express yourself, relax yourself, be proud of yourself etc and not anyone else. Never let yourself be pressured to do anything you don't want simply because your watchers might demand it or do anything for the sole purpose of getting more attention. It might make you happy in the beginning but loosing track

TUTORIAL - Tips for All ArtistsHello everyone!
I have written a tutorial like this before here. But recently I have had more thoughts about it that I decided to share. As you may have noticed, I am not a professional artist, I am a hobbyist and self-taught, and what I will expose here is what I've learnt from my own experience. Even so, I hope this tutorial will be helpful to you!
Another note: English is not my first language, so I apologize if I commit any mistakes.
Feel free to correct my grammar any time, as well as make suggestions or asking questions!
This tutorial is for every kind of artist, but sometimes I will focus more on visual artists (since it's my speciality).
I believe that everyone can be an artist, and this tutorial has not only the purpose of providing advices and tips, but also motivation for all.
Contents
1. Your Image as an Artist on dA
2. Your Image as an Artist outside dA
3. Your Popularity
4. Your Art Process
5. Your Artistic Style
6. You

The Artist Hopsital Helpful Video Catalog!LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOK!
I got something!
So I made a bunch of videos plus I fav a bunch (mostly SAI but what you see can be translated form program to program). I thought I would be nice and share the ones I've found the most useful and fun to watch. I promise, these videos along with an abundance of tutorials, you won't even know which one to experiment with first!
And this is just the tip of ye old iceberg! When I find more I'll post them.
Have some videos?
Why not drop them in the comments, nyo? I'll take a look and add them to the list! I'll also try to get some more manga Studio stuff up as well.

Manga Studio EX4 Videos:

Sketching and Inking
Toning/Finish work

Painttool SAI Videos:

Sketching
Inking
Selectio

Tutorial Showcase #8DeviantART is a great place to find not only art but also some awesome tutorials. It doesn't matter if you are interested in photo manipulation or writing, usually there is a tutorial for that. But at the same time there are so many great tutorials outside of deviantART and most deviantART users might never find them unless someone shows these tutorials to them. So I'm happy to introduce you a new journal series called "Tutorial Showcase" which features some awesome tutorials outside of deviantART. System is pretty simple. Every showcase journal showcases five tutorials from a specific category and this category changes with every new journal. There's no special placement, all of them are equal. So here we go!
Theme for this time is:
3D text effects in photoshop
This Adobe Photoshop text effect tutorial is definitely a quite easy one and you don't have to know much to get it done. It is a useful tutorial for people who would want to get t

CSS Did You Know? - November 28th, 2012

Photography Troubleshooting: Understanding ISOHeader created by ~TouchedD
=TheGalleryOfEve asked recently about SLR settings and in particular, a troubleshooting article focusing on ISO. So here it is! Hopefully this article will help you to understand ISO better, whether a beginner or not.
What Is ISO?
ISO within traditional photography, was an indication of how sensitive a film was to light. Within digital photography it measures the sensitivity of the image sensor. Basically, the lower the number then the less your camera is sensitive to light. Higher ISO numbers are generally used in dark situations to get faster shutter speeds but this can often mean that your shots are noisier. ISO 100 is the most widely used and gives crisp shots with little to no grain. Shooting in automatic means that the camera will select the appropriate ISO for the situations that you are facing, and work out the rest for you to reduce noise as much possible. But it's when you start getting more technical and

PE: Guidelines to Starting your Own Craft BusinessGuidelines to Starting your Own Crafting Business
So you make cute crafts, and probably someone offered you money for them. Maybe you need the money, and if you're like me, you need it to buy more crafting supplies. Whatever the reason, starting your own crafty business is a decisions that you should take seriously... it's not as easy as opening an Etsy account and setting some random prices for your work. There is a lot of things to consider to keep the business going, your money safe, your name clean, and your costumers happy.
By no means this is an absolute guide, merely a few guidelines of things I've found important or questions I get asked often by people interested in opening their own business. Most of this tips are intended for online selling, but they should apply for other ways of selling too. I will probably do more detailed guides in the future, as I learn more myself.
To begin with, don't forget to research as much as you can! If you're rea

Common Misconceptions: Copyrights and YouHi peeps! In this “Common Misconceptions” blog we’ll be tackling more copyright issues as they pertain to us artists! This can be somewhat confusing territory, so getting the right information is key to knowing how to effectively protect your work and rights. *Please note that all of the information here applies to the laws in the United States Copyright Office. If you do not live in the US, be sure to review your country’s laws on copyright*

I have to register for a copyright to own the rights to my work

In the simplest terms, if you made it (and it’s 100% original work) you own the rights to the work. In fact, anything you make that you do not sell the rights to is copyrighted to you for a whopping 70 years after you kick the bucket. If you were commissioned to do a work and retain the rights, that work is copyrighted to you for 95 to 120 years after you

Before you throw that pity party read thisBeing in touch with your weaknesses is important in order to grow as an artist, but are you so hung up on what you can’t do well that it’s holding you back? I'm not talking about the intermittent (or frequent) attacks of complete blockage, or even lack of inspiration, but full out pity parties.
I’ve seen far too many people on dA who post exercise after exercise, writing in the artist comments that once again they’ve failed, they’ve read hundreds of books, studied the masters for so many years, and they still cannot draw a photorealist rending of a man’s head. First of all let me say that I highly respect “self taught” artists and I’m not discouraging anyone who chooses (or must) go that route. However, setting realistic goals and finding your niche is extremely important. Let me say this: not everyone will be able to paint like a Baroque period artist! But that doesn't mean you can't be a painter, it just means

PE: Tolerance Towards Daily DeviationsIf you're like me, one of the first things you do every morning is turn on the computer to check the DDs for the day, if you make this a habit sooner or later you'll see something featured that you won't like at all, making you spill your morning coffee all over the screen.

Oh the crime! That poor coffee going to waste.
Before you hit the Caps Lock button and begin an essay about the drop of quality of DDs, stop. Take a deep breath, maybe walk around for a bit to cool down, and think about what you're going to do. To begin with, complaining about the DD leaving a comment is extremely disrespectful for the artist because most of the time, they didn't even ask to be featured. Instead, take a moment to consider why was it picked, DDs are chosen for far more than just being visually attractive, as the article Daily Deviations - The Myth and the Legend explained; we often look f

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Common Misconceptions: Digital Art

by =Xadrea, Jan 3, 2013, 9:57:56 AM
Journals / Culture / Editorials

Common Misconceptions: Digital Art

Hello everyone! This is the second installment of the series of “common misconceptions” surrounding different areas in art. This blog will cover the most prevalent myths that surround the medium of digital art. (it's chock full of super sweet images, check out the wonderful artists!)

Digital Art requires less skill than Traditional art

This is probably the top ranking myth. There is no “shortcut” when it comes to making good quality art period. It is not any easier to paint a beautiful image on a computer than it is with a brush and canvas. Most people who make that argument don’t really have any personal experience with creative software or they chalk up digital art as simple drawings in MS Paint.

Digtial Art requires less practice, anyone can do it

Like any skill out there, digital art needs the same amount of practice as you would need with a pen and paper. Actually perhaps even a little more, because not only would you have to learn to handle a mouse/tablet, you would have to learn the software you were using. Some obviously pick up certain skills faster than others, but that shouldn't deter you from practicing like you would for anything else.

You need expensive software/a certain brand of tablet to make good art

Also wrong! Sure the Adobe Suite is nice to have, but honestly, you do not need it to create wonderful works of art! There are many many many open source image softwares out there that seriously offer the same things for FREE. On that same note, if you choose to buy a tablet, please don't think that you have to spend hundreds on one! Yes, more expensive tablets have more settings, more options, better sensitivity ect, but if you're like me, it probably isn't wise to spend that much for one. Mine was $20 from Amazon, it's lasted me almost 3 years and I'm very happy with it. However, you don't need a tablet to make really good images either! A trackpad or mouse in an artist's hands can do amazing things as well! Here are some examples of really great artwork made without Photoshop or Illustrator for you skeptics out there:

_{Painter Classic/Corel GIMP Inkscape PaintTool Sai}

_{Pixia Paint.net DAZ Studio Apophysis}

Digital Art is "low brow" or kitsch

Kitsch and "low brow" art existed LONG before the advent of computers so it's incorrect to give this medium that label. I'm not one to say that all art is inherently good either, because that's impossible. However, there is a small trend I've seen circling about dA of people somehow thinking that digital art cannot also be fine art, that somehow it's a perversion of skills that others who work traditionally spent years honing and now it's become a fad. For starters, digital art isn't even the largest gallery on dA (it's not traditional either)...it's Photography! So before you grab those pitchforks, get a little insight

It's no secret that there are numerous fan groups here in dA (I'm a part of some of them myself!) so naturally there are MILLIONS of images relating to the fandoms, many of them are digital works. Some astounding, some not so much, but those images are not all the digital gallery has to offer. If you seriously think you can sum up the entire digital gallery in a mediocre Sonic the Hedgehog drawing, you're being lazy.

Digital Art does not exist outside of the internet

This is also an incorrect idea. Digital art has been gaining more and more respect over the past decade and yes there are exhibitions out there around the world specifically for digital art and new media, I've been to a few and they are awesome! The Soho in New York has a gallery made specifically for digital media in fact. There are juried exhibitions for photographers and digital artists set up at exhibitionswithoutwalls.com. Here are some examples of digital exhibitions:

_{Collider 3: Transform, Enusu Kang}

_{Superflat, Takashi Murakami}

_{Nothing New, Lowell Nickel}

If you guys have any more questions about myths surrounding digital art, post them here and I'll do my best to answer them (or find someone who can!) The next blog will be about copyrights and fair use

=Xadrea

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~LizanaBee May 4, 2013 Traditional Artist

Having grown up with traditional art and then tried to expand into the digital realm... I feel like digital work requires a far more analytical approach than traditional artwork does to create (at least for me, it does). I realize that someone who basically 'grew up' working with the digital might feel just the opposite because of what they're most familiar with.

Trying to create things from scratch in photoshop always makes me grumpy because I just want to use a pencil that acts like a Pencil! lol I don't have fancy software and the tablet that I got years ago sits in a bag most of the time. For myself... I tend to use digital media just for basic editing (usually necessary because I'm not skilled at photographing artwork).

I must admit that I've thought many of these myths from time to time... at this point, I just figure that it's Different. Digital art isn't really my cup'o'tea, right now, but I do enjoy seeing other's work. I do grow jealous sometimes since it seems that digital work is already "prepped for prints" but ah well. C'est la vie, eh?

Anyway... thank you for the article.

~Oharya Apr 3, 2013

"Digital Art requires less skill than Traditional art

There is no “shortcut” when it comes to making good quality art period. It is not any easier to paint a beautiful image on a computer than it is with a brush and canvas. "

I call bullshit. Traditional art don't give you any chance to mistake. You need to know a shitton of techniques, buy extra good paper, extra good brushes, extra good paint just to make your work look at least decent. There's much difficulties in the process of painting itself.

~LizanaBee May 4, 2013 Traditional Artist

I used to think this, as well... but buying the special paint, brushes, paper, etc is akin to buying the expensive programs, tablets, and computers that the digital work is created with.

Yes, in traditional media mistakes are often much harder to fix... but if one is familiar with their medium, they're usually not entirely irreversible (I'd also argue that the feature of traditional art that makes us work with our perceived mistakes can be a great strength rather than a weakness)

Great art can be made in both realms without the fancy materials... is it different? Yes. Is it necessarily easier? I don't think so. Depends on what you started with and how you think (as with any medium).

~the-Loony Jan 15, 2013 Student General Artist

I don't wholly agree.

If you´re a digital artist, there are many ways you can make your work easier by using several different programs - presketch architecture or just perspective, create a 3d model which is painted over, the use of grids is extremely easy in digital media aswell as tracing outlines.
etc, etc.
but what is certain, is that the process of creating a painting, even with so much help by way of using different aiding programs or sth. similiar, does NOT require less skill.
the artist still has to create atmosphere by the right choice and placement of FG and BG, colors, motion, .... blah blah.

so my conclusion is: in digital art you can create more impression with less time/effort if you know how.
but even that is an art form by itself ;D

=Xadrea Jan 20, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

Time in art making isn't really an issue for me, because at the end of the day if it's done and I'm happy with the outcome, that's good

There are things you can do to shorten the length of time it takes to make something, but even that requires skill, not everyone is going to understand the algorithms and tricks to even make a 3D model

~the-Loony Jan 21, 2013 Student General Artist

time in art making is an issue in the idustry tho. it concerns you as a professional. =/

But it doesn´t matter - i already said so too: a good artwork requires skill, whichever media or process you choose.
Everything comes right down to the artists themselves. it´s up to them to make the decision how to use media, whether to make it a ritual, a personal artwork into which you put your very essence, or make it simply so it suits the needs of the client.
the digital way can be just as meditative, enlighting and educating as the usage of traditional arts, tho those offer more different features of their own.

i myself do a lot of digital work. but i'd recommend to every artist to try out as many different media as possible, simply because it will broaden your horizon so greatly. (and the other way around)

once more: in the end it remains the artist decision how to create art. and it´s up to the observer, to decide what to make of it.

=Xadrea Feb 1, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

That's true

I've got a few deadlines coming up myself. I was just talking about in general when people say things like "how long did this take you" at some point that really doesn't matter if the work is good

~the-Loony Feb 2, 2013 Student General Artist

yeah, with some stuff that´s totally true

=ColorofAshes Jan 13, 2013 Professional Digital Artist

I went to a comicon once and I was surprised that some very talented/professional comic artists had said myth 1 when I said I was a digital artist.
It really shocked me, considering that they were obviously educated about art...especially when they're at a comicon.
A place for geeks and nerds alike, lol.

Just like 3D, it's just a medium to work with.
You have to know how to work with the same elements that traditional artists do.

=Xadrea Jan 20, 2013 Professional Traditional Artist

A lot of people feel that digital art is easier simply because you can create faster (in theory, but hey a 20 hour painting is a 20 hour painting) and of course ctrl+z. Being able to erase a mistake doesn't make something easier, if anything it's more annoying because you can literally sit for hours trying to draw a straight line

I digress, anyways, I think it's a shame that they thought that. I can understand why they may think that, especially if they all still ink by hand and do that, but the digital process really doesn't require less skill. One cannot simply "pick up" Photoshop and be Degas!

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