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Policy: No Photography

 
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Stratadrake
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PostPosted: Wed Aug 15, 2007 8:10 pm    Post subject: Policy: No Photography Reply with quote

([i]Forum Shortcut[/i]: Type [b]url:[/b][b]rules:photos[/b] to produce a link to this topic.)



Fanart Central was created as a place for submitting fanart. Since then, we have grown to accommodate original art submissions as well.

However -- one art form which we still do not allow is [b]photography[/b].

It's true that photography is a form of art, there's a type of skill required to properly compose and adjust for a shoot, but FAC is not a photography-based site, and now that we have our sister site, "[url=http://www.photo-lucidity.com/]Photo Lucidity[/url]" set up specifically [i]for[/i] photography submissions, this rule (which is mentioned in our [url=http://www.fanart-central.net/rules.php]official submission policy[/url], btw), is not likely to change any time soon.

Now, having said that, there are some types of artistic submissions that, well, [i]require[/i] taking a photo in order to submit. You can't exactly squeeze, say, an 18x24" painting or clay sculpted figurine into a scanner for a digital snapshot, can you? No, those kinds of art require being photographed, there is no other way to do it.

In short, photography [b]of[/b] an art form is fine -- but photography [b]as[/b] an art form is not.

With that in mind, here are the types of photography that we [i]do[/i] allow to be submitted on FAC:

[list][*]Photos of [b]drawings or paintings[/b]. Some of you may not have a scanner at your disposal, and some of you may work at large paper/canvas sizes that you wouldn't be able to scan anyway.

[*]Photos of [b]craft media or items[/b], such as sculpture or plushies.

[*]Photos of [b]cosplay outfits[/b]. Yes, if you've created and assembled an original costume yourself, a photo of you in costume is perfectly acceptable, because it's the [i]costume[/i] that is your creation.

[*]Body art, such as a face-painting, or tattoo designs. These can be considered a form of drawing or painting.[/list:u]

[i]Only[/i] the above types of photography are allowed [b]as[/b] an FAC submission.

Anything else, such as the following, is not:

[list][*]A random photo of yourself, another person, animal, object, scenery, or so on.

[*]A screenshot from a television show or film. Even if you wrote a funny caption for it, it's not yours to begin with, TV shows and film are legally copyrighted and we wouldn't be allowed to take them anyway.

[*][i]Any[/i] random photograph you found on the Internet. Again, it's not yours, it's copyrighted, we wouldn't be able to allow it anyway.

[*]"Manips", photographs that you edited or altered in some way on the computer. Yes, that picture you edited to make it look like you're holding a Star Wars lightsaber instead of a broomstick may be pretty awesome, but it's still essentially a photograph, and we can't allow it.

[*]A collage, montage, or 'comic' assembled primarily from photographs. Being able to arrange and composite several images into a single piece doesn't change the fact that it's still a bunch of photographs underneath it all with no other artistic content.[/list:u]

If/when you need to use a camera to photo your art for submission to FAC, here are some guidelines to follow:

[list][*][i]Focus[/i]: Remember, this is photography [b]of art[/b], not photography [i]as arti[/i]. Your photo must clearly showcase the art in question and should avoid including anything which might distract (or otherwise does not belong in the same scene) from the piece. Center it in your viewfinder and zoom in to fill the frame.

[*][i]Drawings or Paintings[/i]: Truth is, getting a good snapshot of a drawing or painting is what scanners were made for, and whether or not you can get the same results with your camera depends a bit on the type of camera you have, and a LOT more on how well [i]you[/i] know how to use your camera. Stand your drawing or painting vertically so you can point the camera directly at it (instead of at an angle). Set your camera on a stable surface or tripod instead of holding it in your hands. Try putting your camera on manual exposure and tweaking the brightness/contrast levels (and take several shots, one with each setting, so you can compare them later). And switch off that flash!

[*][i]Cosplay[/i]: Remember, the focus is on the costume, not its designer. If you're going to take a photo of the costume by itself, then take a photo of the costume [i]by itself[/i], without you in the picture. If you're wearing the costume, let someone else be your photographer. And please, no group shots with your friends, others you met at conventions -- group shots draw attention to themselves and distract from your costume in specific, they're photography [i]as[/i] art and not photography [i]of[/i] art.[/list:u]
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Last edited by Stratadrake on Sun Oct 14, 2007 3:15 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Stratadrake
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Joined: 05 May 2004
Posts: 13710
Location: Moo

PostPosted: Tue Sep 04, 2007 5:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Oh, there is one related aspect I forgot to mention:

Use of photography as a [i]minor part of[/i] a drawing or painting in digital media. Such as adding a photo-background underneath a character you drew in Photoshop -- we generally do not object to this, because the photograph is a minor element and it is the digitally drawn/painted character which is the real focus of the piece.

But this also means:
[list][*]A photo-background must [i]not[/i] distract from the subject of the work as a whole
[*]A photo-background [i]must not[/i] be obviously copyrighted material (e.g. screencaps from film or television shows)[/list:u]
_________________
Strata here: [url=http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/242293]Nanowrimo[/url] - [url=www.fanart-central.net/user-Stratadrake.php]FAC[/url] - [url=http://stratadrake.deviantart.com]dA[/url] - [url=www.furaffinity.net/user/Stratadrake/]FA[/url]
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