General Discussion

@GhostSlugs That's really unfortunate. What site did this happen at? I want to know so I can avoid it XD

In combo with my own pictures I take (of animals) I use a certain method in adobe illustrator that involves tracing of a sort. So yes, it's tracing, but it's all my own combo of things to create art. I also think that if you are using free stock photos and some tracing to learn how to draw different parts (tails, ears, eyes, etc) that's fine as a teaching tool but it needs to be a spring pad for your own art, to learn and grow from, not to be the whole of it. And, as always, CREDIT the artist who took the photos, even if the photos are "free" stock. (Which, really, unless you have express permission, should not be used if it's not that type. This whole shebang is not to be confused with using a collage of photos for reference/etc.)

I don't really see it as problematic to trace other peoples art for learning purposes. It's not a good or effective way to learn, but for a lot of kids that's how we start out. We see a style we like, like a Disney or anime show or a superhero comic, and we don't really know how to become that good at that point - we just know we want to be able to draw like that! I remember starting off my 'art career' by tracing/copying a popular webcomic. None of it was ever uploaded, but soon enough I'd grasped the style well enough to draw my own stuff reasonably well. It became a sort of standard that I could compare myself to and that was valuable. Of course it was also a crutch and, like I said, not a good way to learn (the best way would've probably been to start from the beginning and do the "spheres, boxes cones" thing and because I started off this way, I had no concept of 3D form which became crippling later on. Tracing simply isn't a good tool for absolute beginners).

But yeah, people can absolutely do near-identical copies of other peoples drawings without tracing. Realism is a thing. Spend a few years learning how to copy what you see and gosh damn it you will know how to copy what you see! ... of course, these people won't have the shaky or stiff lines that most tracers do, lol xD

I don't like seeing traced artwork online, even if there's credit given. There are free pose bases available for people who can't draw and just want to make a character ref, for example. They're all over DeviantArt and are free to download. No need to trace other peoples things if you plan to upload it. Rather, at least trace a few different drawings, get a fel for it, then draw your own thing, from your head, based on what you just learned about style and proportions. It's still not a good way to learn, but that's going to be YOUR art, at least. You're not uploading someone elses hard work and use it for your own purposes.

ain't no rest for the wicked

I have to say some people are able to get very accurate from just having it sidebyside example: [img]https://snag.gy/FAUx9Y.jpg[/img] and [img]http://www.bhmpics.com/thumbs/canada_snowy_mountains-t2.jpg[/img] People trace because they might not know better people trace because it's encouraged in art class They trance because they like the attention and don't feel resource about taign undeserved credit.