The excuses are used over and over and over. They're the "Dog Ate My Homework" of tracers.

At a glance, some of them might seem like valid arguments, but in the end, there is no excuse for art theft.

So, here are the top ten excuses for tracing- and the reasons that they don't work.

1. "I don't know how to draw."

Obviously not, or you probably wouldn't be tracing- but have you thought of learning? There are tons and tons of resources on the internet. Schools and colleges and other places offer drawing classes. You can find books in the library or bookstore or art shop about drawing. There's a wealth of information out there- this really isn't an excuse.

"But I can't learn to draw! It's too hard!" Yes, you can. How many thousands and thousands of artists are there in the world? So many people manage it. It is not easy, but it's not impossible.

2. "I changed parts of it, so it's mine."

Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as a "change 30%" law. While deviantART has recently (and foolishly) changed its rules to say that "tracing is okay as long as you add your own touches!" it does not make it legally okay. You are using someone else's lines- you haven't placed the lines with your own hand. Changing the colors or details means nothing.

3. "It's fan art."

So? The point of fan art is to show your appreciation and love for whatever it is you're drawing. The best part about fan art is putting characters you like in new and original situations. Nobody wants to see the same official art over and over again- you can find that with Google!

deviantART may have decided that tracing is "valid fan art," but many people disagree with this new rule and other sites (like MangaBullet and Elfwood) do not allow tracing. It is still a copyright violation, regardless of the rules here or anywhere else.

4. "It's not a tracing- it's a vector, jeez, get it right."

It doesn't matter what name you give it, or what fancy program you use to do it- tracing is tracing. REAL vector artists sometimes trace, yes, but they use valid stock resources.

5. "It's just for fun."

Do you shoplift just for fun, too?

6. "I see other people tracing all the time. It's no big deal."

Just because other people do it, doesn't make it okay. Anyone who's had parents should have heard this one: "If everyone else jumped off a cliff, would you do it too?"

7. "I said I give credit to the original artist!"

First of all, if you don't even know who the original artist is, and you are still saying this in your description, please smack yourself on the wrist with a ruler. Ouch? Good. You don't even know who the artist is- and therefore, you can't credit them properly.

The bottom line, though, is that whether or not you give credit doesn't matter if the original artist has not given you permission to reproduce their work and post it on deviantART.

8. "But I have no way to contact the original artist! I don't even know who they are!"

Tough luck.

Not being able to locate or contact the original artist does not absolve you from blame, no matter how honest you are about it.

9. "I'm not claiming it as my own. I'm just posting it here for people to see."

How nice of you- but the original artist is still not getting any credit, and their work is being used without their permission, whether you are "claiming it as your own" or not.

10. "I'm a beginner! I'm tracing to learn!"

Many professionals and teachers will agree- tracing is one of the worst "learning" methods out there. It seems like an easy way out, but in truth, there is no way to learn to draw without hard work and dedication. Tracing is the diet pill of the drawing world- fast, easy, possibly expensive (like if you get sued for copyright violation ) but in the end, it does little or nothing.

As mentioned in #1, there are many many other ways to learn to draw that are much better. Do a Google search for "how to draw" or look for some tutorials on deviantART. The internet is your friend.

Here is a list of resources that the club has put together for beginner artists.


So there you have it- the top ten excuses for tracing, and why none of them actually function as good excuses.

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