Project Educate Stock and Resources DD Criteria

Stock & Resources Daily Deviations.  What We look for, and what you should look for as well!

Its a regular question, and something that the other Community Volunteers get asked about as well. So during Project Educate Stock & Resources week I'm going to try and lay out some of the reasons behind our choices.

Stock & Resources Daily Deviations, and how they are judged by the Community.

Dan has already touched on this touchy subject in his "Potential" Article here - The Potential of Stock

There is something fundamentally different about stock & resources DD's compared to all the other DD's from all the other galleries.



 The Stock Artist/Provider/Creator has not submitted this work becasue they think its absolutely perfect and they want to show it off, they submit their stock because of a number of incredibly important facts, and they all boil down to POTENTIAL.  Its the very reason we share our work with you, the community - so that YOU can take our resources, and turn them into finished and hopefully beautiful, unique and interesting works of art.



So when you view a stock or resource image on the Daily Deviation page, hanging out with the very best the other DA galleries have to offer, just remember.  They aren't there to be sneered at becasue they don't conform to the requirements of finished professional photography, or put down because the costuming skills might not be perfect, or ridiculed becasue the provider is still learning how to make the best use of their camera and lighting, or digital software.  They are there becasue out of all the other images on display - they are wonderfully unique in the fact that YOU can take that resource and use it in your own work.

So what is it we actually look for?

Besides the POTENTIAL in a resource or stock image we also look for other criteria, which are very similar to what the other Community Volunteers look for in their own galleries.

Quality - is still very important in any resource.  The larger the file size or dimensions the easier it is for artists to utilise your resource in their work.
There are many things that sit under the "quality" tag, which include -
Stock Images & Textures - lighting, clarity, focus, and background clutter.
Brush packs - correct file type, easy to install, and variety of brush sizes within the pack.
Tutorials - Concise, free of typographical errors, easy to understand and follow, clear images or screen shots.

Other things we also look for - Imagination, execution, variety, and visual impact.

So what is it you should be looking for when you send us Stock & Resources DD Suggestions?

Well - pretty much exactly the same thing that I've listed above!  There's no reason you shouldn't be looking for EXACTLY the same criteria.

How much potential does this image have for other artists to use it?
Is the pose dynamic, or show off the costume or human form?
Are there any parts of the focus object, building or model cut off?
Is the texture in focus, or large enough to really be of any use?
Do the brushes in this set actually look like how they are shown in the preview?
Is the background far too cluttered to be able to make the focus of the image easy to discern?
Can you read through every step of the tutorial without getting lost?
If English isn't the first language of the creator of the tutorial, are there any issues with spelling, or grammar that might confuse other language speakers?
Is the cropped or "cut out" image actually cut out properly?
Is the "pre-made" blended well, with good quality legitimate stock that has been credited?

Thoughts to end with

Dan and I  - as current Community Volunteers for Stock & Resources hope that the information, articles and features during this week will provide you with a valuable insight into just how vast and inspirational our stock and resources galleries are, and why we take so much pride in not only the resource community but also their desire to give back to the larger DA community.  Which is why we are proud of the fact that we get to feature such inspirational and hard working members of the community with very well deserved Daily Deviations!

Daily Deviations are just that. DAILY.  For any individual artist this might happen only once in their time on DA, or a few times.  However, it is a 24 hour feature of a single image from their galleries - that WE have chosen, be that from a suggestion made by another member of the community, or something that has caught our eyes whilst browsing through our gallery.
Do NOT forget - the artist does NOT know about this before they are featured. So even if you hate the stock or resource WE feature, please show the artist being featured the same respect you would like to receive yourself.  If you truly hate the image that's being featured for 24 hours, please DON'T leave a horrid "this shouldn't be a DD" comment on the actual work.  Send US  - the Community Volunteer featuring the work a NOTE explaining why you dislike the image, or perhaps even a suggestion for a feature yourself.  Now there would be a novelty!

FAQ #18: Who selects Daily Deviations and how are they chosen?
FAQ #873: What do I do when I disapprove of a Daily Deviation feature?
FAQ #313: How can I find out if someone already has a Daily Deviation?