HOME | DD
stop-tracing — You're Doing It Wrong.
Published: 2008-08-30 03:15:22 +0000 UTC; Views: 87774; Favourites: 1093; Downloads: 32081
Redirect to original
Description
Inspired by the posters everyone has seen by now. Took the photos myself of course.
Are you against tracing? Join the club!
Related content
Comments: 344
I hope you don't mind, I posted this on my blog:
[link]
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
so does copying a piece of famous artwork in a different medium, but not physically tracing it (so it wouldn't be a perfect copy) still count as "tracing"? i'm sort of confused what exactly you mean by the word.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
That, I believe, would be called referancing. Referancing is fine as long as you credit the artist and ask permission to use their art. Tracing is where a person will take another person's art work, print it, and then use transparent paper or a light source and will lightly trace the lines of the art, and then darken it up, rarely changing anything from the original art. Then they usually show their friends 'look what I did!' and they usually don't give credit to the original artist either, taking full credit for it.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
ok. so referencing is acceptable is what you're saying? ('cause i do that a lot ... )
and tracing is wrong, even if you fully credit the artist? or is it ok only if you credit them?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Referancing is absolutely fine. I use it a lot for my art, whether it is for portraits or helping me ge fabric to look right. Just be sure that you always credit your sources.
A few people say that tracing s a learning tool to help artists improve. I say that it is a crutch (I traced for a 2 years and learned nothing) because it is a short cut out of learning some very valuable techniques and practice time. It's hard to draw those first few months without tracing and it's very frustraiting as well, but oh, is it worth it. That is my opninion on the matter, but if you do want to trace for whatever the matter, do so, but don't post it anywhere unless you have the artist's permission first, and if they give it, ask what catagory you should post it under.
We are all hilarious when it comes to our art, and we tend to veiw it as our own children for one reason or another. But if you find that tracing has helped you out, keep practicing and work away from tracing and keep drawing.
People say that tracing helps people and should be allowed. I think that is a concept, and until it is proven to be more than a concept and an actual theory, I am going to say that if you do trace, keep it to yourself and do not publicly display the traces.
Did I help you?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
i never trace, to be honest, but i do use references a lot, like copying a painting or a photograph. i personally don't think tracing helps you learn at all, because it's like copying an essay or something word for word (plagiarism) and you don't register or learn anything. but i try drawing things like photos or paintings or still lifes to help me learn.
i'm glad to hear that referencing is more acceptable than physically tracing.
i just have one more question--i copied this: [link] from this by picabia [link]
is that kind of referencing ok?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I would honestly not be the best person to make that call. That is your desicion to make. You did credit the artist , which is good, but I am not too sure to be honest with you.
The best thing to do if you are uncertain is to ask an admin, sending them a link to the pic, as well as the original pic like you did for me.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
ok. thanks for the help anyway.
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
I lawld
OH NOE, I IZ BAD ARTIST?!?!?!?!?!?11?!?!?!?!/1?! D: I don't think I ever even traced as a kid, cuz I always thought: "But that's not what I want to draw! I need to make them!"
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
tracing bad to a certian point. if you are tracing poses or proportions to make your own drawings thats ok, but if your tracing the whole thing, your not making art
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
some people just think that it its a nice way to learn how to draw
i don't think that its really valid,when i was young i used to do his ,but, i stoped with this when i was 6 xD
try different ways will be surely better!
unless you're under 6 =3
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
I have no problems with tracing to try and learn something, but if you actually try and call it art, and say you drew it, you suck.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I did that once and immediately felt horribly guilty about it.
Never did it again...
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
Actually, I believe tracing is a wonderful way to improve your artistic skills, especially for those new to the art world...
...but nobody needs to be uploading tracings to dA...
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Maybe wonderful if used in combination with other techniques, but no one should rely on tracing to teach them
You are absolutely right though. C: No need for it here.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Well, of course not, but you could most likely agree that it is a very useful and helpful teaching tool, none the less ^^
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Actually I have to disagree just a little with that. It doesn't teach nearly as much as drawing from life or even just eyeballing, and it's really easy to not learn from tracing if you don't think as you do it.
I'm not gonna say it's a totally invalid learning method, but it's pretty low on the scale compared to all the other things you can do.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Well, not necessarily. Eyeballing is certainly a good technique, not to mention the one they force you to use if you actually receive artistic training XD (like I did for a while), but I still see tracing as valid. I do see your point, though. It would be at the bottom of the scale, probably the first thing you'd use to help you learn to draw, since it's an easy way to help you learn shapes, curves, etc.
But none of this is really relevant. Tracing shouldn't be allowed on dA because it's not the artists original work. And on that, at least, I believe we can both soundly agree XD
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
The thing is, tracing doesn't teach you how to translate 3D to 2D, and that's how it can really hold you back. 
You are right though, in the end it isn't relevant. 
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Oooooooo, good point. I totally should try tracing stuff first when I get a tablet. It's going to be hell to have to re-learn how to draw lol
But yes, agreeing FTW and I wish you luck with your cause
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I still can't actually draw well with the tablet, lol. I'm so impatient. And you can't "turn your paper" with one of those.
Thank you
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
That's very true lol But I'd really like to be done with the whole "scanning" process once and for all. It's more trouble than it's worth XDDD
And you're most welcome!
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
I'm favoriting this. And as such, I'd like to point out that I haven't intentionally favorited anything in.. probably years.
I Can't tell you how many friends and/or relatives I disowned by the time I started highschool, because they concluded that it was perfectly okay to trace and re-trace pictures I'd drawn for them and run around with a false sense of pride.
Actually, It's why I stopped giving anyone who wasnt a very close and trusted friend artwork of any kind.
I really don't understand how anyone over the age of 10 would conceivably think that tracing something constitutes artwork. Hell, I can't even trace my OWN pictures (like, say, I screwed up royally when inking a drawing, and wanted to trace the piece onto a different piece of paper so I didn't have to start over) without feeling like a dirty cheat.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Yeah, funny that. I lent a drawing to a friend, we had a fall out, and she never gave it back. Fortunately I had a coloured copy of it, and traced that in order to make changes on it.
It felt weird, tracing, even though it was my own work.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Oh I know, right? Like if I have a sketch and manage a really nice hand, and then realize the placement for it is wrong I'll trace it onto another sheet of paper, erase the original and then trace it on again in the appropriate place, and it always makes me feel like a cheater.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
You know, I might just do that, what a great idea! I screwed up something in a wip, and have to redo the entire thing, and I really don't want to start from scratch.
👍: 0 ⏩: 0
What do you guys think about reference work? There's been a new argument about the differences between reference and tracing (even though tracing requires actual tracing, haha). Thoughts?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Mm, well, I think you should ask the original artist's permission before directly copying anything. But referencing is definitely a different bird. It often involves using more than one image as a ref and the purpose of it is to study and figure out how to draw something, not to just copy it. It's like when you write a paper. You need to look up information to get it right, but to take someone else's paper and just copy it is plagiarism.
So, I think the key is to avoid being a Xerox machine.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I agree. There's been some fights over that though. Some people are calling referenced works "copies" in the same sense that tracing is "copying." That's why I use the words trace and reference, not copy. I think they're extremely different. Some people apparently do not. The big issue has been centered around the fanart gallery, where there is the most leniency. Back in the day, I used to make animated fanart icons and they would get deleted all the time for "copyright infringement." Nowdays you can pretty much make any kind of stamp or icon you want. I even made a watercolor painting of hyrule castle that was referenced from the game and it got deleted twice for "copyright infringement." It was a bad painting. There was obviously no way I traced it or anything, lol. dA has in many ways gotten more relaxed about the idea of fanart, but in other ways they've been getting a little too relaxed.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
My definition goes like this.
Tracing - obviously, actually tracing over the work.
Referencing - looking at a picture to get an idea of how to draw it, but not to make an exact copy.
Copying - Making an exact copy of a work, line-for-line, or maybe changed a little bit to your own tastes-- but visibly identifiable as a copy.
I agree with you, we're too relaxed now.
👍: 0 ⏩: 2
Referencing - looking at a picture to get an idea of how to draw it, but not to make an exact copy.
Copying - Making an exact copy of a work, line-for-line, or maybe changed a little bit to your own tastes-- but visibly identifiable as a copy.
Okay, I'm a little confused, because it sounds like you're saying Copying is the same thing as Tracing, but you changed it a little... which basically makes it a highly Referenced copy...?
So like if I vector traced a character, gave her a hate and changed her clothes/colors, would that be copying? Even with the said changes?
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I'm confused as to where you're confused so it's all good @_@
To define something as tracing, it must actually be traced.
If you trace and change it a little, that is still tracing.
If you don't trace, but make an exact copy of the work, that is copying.
If you very very loosely copy something-- but it is still mostly your own work, despite looking at something else to help you draw it-- that is referencing. The more heavily you reference, the closer it gets to being copying.
It's hard to define referencing exactly though.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
So then this [link] is copying?
All the anatomy and shadows of the central figure is vector traced, but I personally changed the hair, skin color, and gave her a completely new wardrobe. I also removed a hand, replaced the hand, and adjusted the bust.(BG was me, too).
So does that still fall under If you trace and change it a little, that is still tracing.?
Considering the changes are pretty dramatic compared to the original.
Forgive me, but the DA ID is pretty dogmatic and it's actually making me uncomfortable and paranoid about my art and potential uses of tracing as an art study. Which is ironic because I pretty much never trace, lol.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
If you traced it and changed it a little, yes, it's still tracing. Just changed a little.
Ah, the question here, I think, is not whether or not it is tracing or copying or whatever, but what it is traced from. 
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
No permission. Which is apparently taboo by your standards.
In my defense, I gave the name of the original artist... which apparently doesn't matter at all to you...
*paranoia*
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Well, I had my doubts before posting. But frankly, I wasn't planning on joining your group anyways: I personally believe tracing is valid way of learning.
It doesn't fall under your standards, but it hopefully meets DA's official standards.
For what it's worth, those two pics are the only vector traces that weren't 100% original to me.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
It can be a valid way of learning, but that's not the argument here. It really all boils down to copyright law and artists' rights.
I've no ill feelings toward you, don't worry. I wish we could come to an understanding, but... you win some, you lose some.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Yeah, but let's face it: tracing and fanart are just two ways entertainment companies get free advertising.
To be honest, I'm not sure how Japan's copyright laws apply to American copyright laws. I just know that the stereotype says that westerners are always eager to sue each other.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I thought waging war, being fat and ignorant was the American way
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Those too.
And don't forget getting butthurt over the very mention of race or religion.
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
Haha, very true.
We'd better shut up before the Patriot Act starts kicking in...
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
👍: 0 ⏩: 1
<= Prev | | Next =>