*please note that this part is not for the purpose of directing hate to anyone, or to humiliate anyone. This is just to bring awareness to an issue I've been made aware of. DO NOT send any of the users who "made" these creations any hate through pm, commenting, or message board posts!!*
THE ISSUE
I was contacted by a lovely user today (I'll be excluding their username so no backlash is sent their way) who brought this to my attention. After looking through both INCEPTION and UNIVERSE contests, they realized a common issue. Plagiarism.
They were kind enough and had the conscience enough to compile a list of graphics I have received as submissions, that they had SOLID evidence of them being stolen. I've caught a few people before who've done this, but never to this extent... Those of you who were caught before, know who you are since we've talked via PM and I've explained how you can make graphics without plagiarizing.
I have stated right in my rules that you're not supposed to plagiarize, and make something of your own. The fact that this has happened means you guys either didn't read my rules, or you simply don't care about them. Unfortunately from now on, I've decided that starting in round 9, all participants will have to post their resources/materials with their entry.
PLAGARISM IS SERIOUS! It is a crime, and you guys can face serious consequences and I know a lot of new graphic artists don't know any better. I myself was guilty of this when I first started, but I promise you there are better, less risky, and more legal ways to make graphics. Even if you can't draw your own pictures or take your own photos. There are ways! I don't want to see any of you get in trouble with the law over a contest entry!
For those of you who know what you've done, and are willing to fix your mistakes, please read on! At the end of this part I will tell you a few ways you can make graphics without plagiarizing!
THE EVIDENCE
These first ones are from INCEPTION, where this issue seems to be the most present.
This, being a professional artists work, could land you in big trouble. Works like this have legal copyright, and can result in jail time and/or hefty fines.
First off, DeviantArt is great for resources, but only if you're looking in the right place. Some creators make stuff for the purpose of it being used by others, but full on art works like this above, are not meant to be taken! Adding filters or text over someone else's work does not make it yours!
Pinterest is very sketchy to use for resources. Mainly because anyone can share anything to Pinterest. With so many users sharing things, its easy to lose track of the original artist, but that doesn't make it okay to use! If the artist hasn't said it's okay or given you permission to use something, do not take it! Also, please never use art that has been copyrighted for clothing, paintings, or posters! Once again, adding filters and text doesn't make it yours!
Something like this took a lot of work and time to make, adding some text and a sticker and claiming you made it is a big insult and blow to the original creator.
Watermarks are on works for a reason. If you purposely remove them, I feel like you know that useing the art is wrong and you're trying to cover your tracks. Art that someone else made isn't yours! Even if you take it, add a border and some text, or a filter, that doesn't change the fact that it doesn't belong to you guys. Please remember this!
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These next few are from UNIVERSE. This issue isn't as common here so far, but it's still there!
This is art from Instagram. The only thing the participant did to this was add text. This is not designing in any way, shape, or form. This is plainly stealing, and it makes me very sad for the original artist.
Again, this is from Instagram, and even though they removed the background art from both original works, and added the faceclaim art over a new background... It's still stolen. Someone else worked hard to make this, and it was taken and changed a bit, and someone else claims it as theirs. Things like this are very wrong, and you guys can get in trouble!
THE SOLUTION
Though there is not really a way to truly solve this, I do have some steps that I will take to prevent this from happening in my contest further (at least as much as possible) and some steps you guys can take to avoid plagiarizing someone else's work!
For me, as I stated earlier, I will be adding a new rule that will be active from round 9 and on. That rule will require you to have to post your resources with your entry. This may be a burden to those of you who are innocent, but please understand that this can help keep plagiarized entries from making it into the entries page.
You can help! If you see an entry, in my contest or elsewhere, reach out to the host. If you have evidence, and if the host is respectable, then there's a good chance they'll do something about it. Plagarism isn't fair to the theif, the original artist, the host, or other participants!
How you can make something without stealing another's work? The answer to that is simple. People make things for others to use!
Unsplash, Pexels, Pixabay, Gratisography, and there are many other sites that have great stock photos. If you don't know what stock is, it's royalty free images, taken for the purpose of being used by others. Most of these images are for the purpose of being used personally and commercially, but there are some who are against commercial use. Just pay attention to any rules the poster might have set!
DeviantArt as I mentioned before, can be great for resources. You just have to be careful! There are plenty of creators that make stock photos, borders, png packs, photo packs, textures, and other things that you can use non commercially. There are rules of course, and each creator is different, but credit is always a must! If you want to use DeviantArt, pay attention to what you're using. Make sure the poster intended for it to be used, follow their usage rules, and always credit them!
If you use Canva, they have some free stock photos, and free fonts pre set to the app, or you can pay for a subscription that unlocks more photos, and premium fonts.
Picsart is the app I used to use for editing, and although I got most of my materials elsewhere, the app also has usable options. They have free stock photos sorced from places like Unsplash and ShutterStock. They also provide a small section of free filters. You can unlock more filters, and many useful tools if you pay for gold (available in monthly and yearly subscriptions.) As far as picsart stickers go, it's best not to use them. Most of them are user submitted, and made from copyrighted images to begin with, making them plagiarism themselves.
ibis paint x is the app I now use for editing. This app doesn't have much in the way of resources built into the app, safe for a few filters and built in brushes, but it does have one thing that's really helpful. You can import brush codes. Again Pinterest is generally not okay to take images from, but you can find brush codes there, as well as on Instagram. Now, you can't just take these and end of story. Whoever made the brush, make sure to follow any rules they have for use! Credit them!
Polarr is an app that I am very new to, but it's great for filters. Whether its for covers or themes, they have some filters already loaded on to the app under the featured section, and they have a section for you to import your own. I know I said Pinterest was bad, and it is. For the most part. However, you can find QR codes for Polarr filters on there as well as on Instagram. You can scan these photos on the app to save the filter for you to use. Usually there will be a username attached to the name of the filter once imported. This is the creator, and they'll be who you need to credit! If there isn't a username, don't use the filter because you can't know if it's okay to use or who it's made by!
CoolText.com is just as the name states. Its used to make cool text. They have plenty of textured templates and designs that you can edit by changing colors or fonts and save as pngs to use on your graphics. They also give you the option to download their fonts and use elsewhere.
Dafont.com is simply a website where you can find and download fonts. Most of them are free, some of them are demos and trial fonts, and some have various licencing rules. The font usually is tagged with a category as to what it's for and what level of rights you'll have when using it before downloading. After downloading there is usually a text file with it that gives the creators rules and more information about that font. Make sure to read that file to avoid trouble!
Phonto is the last app I have to mention. This doesn't really have to do with the plagiarism topic, but I'm putting it out there anyways. Those fonts you got from CoolText or Dafont? Yeah, you can install those to this app to use alongside their free pre set fonts! The app lets you control color, stroke, shadow, opacity, bending, spacing, and blending! You can also save styles to re-use later!
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Having said all this, I will now publish this to both of my contests. If you read this part, I'd like to thank you! I can't be a hero and put an end to all this on my own, and neither can you... But if our words reach at least one or two people, and if they bury themselves in those peoples conscience and heart... We can at least prevent a few cases.
If you feel up to it, please spread the word to others, and keep an eye out for stuff like this, cause you can shed light on an otherwise dark situation!