I absolutely agree with you. It is quite difficult. People are confusing art theft with tracing, and that's a mistake. I'm glad you see this error too. VnV

Personally. Not a fan of tracing, but i dont judge because back when i was young. i traced too. Theres nothing wrong with it and people can cool it on the hating.
Because honestly. who are they to judge another when what tracers do has nothing to do with them.
So in my opinion, if someone traces. more power to them as long as you enjoy it.

Tracing is completely fine as long as you dont trace another persons art and claim it as theirs.That would be called bad tracing. I used to trace but in a good way! i dont do it anymore tho : )

I trace from my sketch book.

Tracing is completely helpful [i do myself for body reference] But its always good to give credit from whom you've referenced from. Yknow ? so that person isnt angry er anything!

-u-

Thank you for your comments! I'm so glad there are people who agree with me! And yes, that was something I forgot to mention--it is definitely a good idea to credit the original artist. As I see it, a trace is congratulations to the original artist that they had a picture good enough to inspire someone to recreate it.

School for me starts 8-25-14....

But there is a difference between tracing and drawing. You don't technically draw when you trace, your just copying someone else's work. That's why it's mostly frowned upon.
I don't approve of tracing because there are drawings out there that have twice as much work on them, and it's kinda sad to see when a traced picture gets more feedback than one that wasn't

Ruination - and that's why I said that tracing is its own, separate thing. I agree there is a difference, and I understand what you're saying about it, but I don't agree that one is any better than the other. It is my opinion that, as the phrase goes, you can't compare apples to oranges--these two things are indeed different, but one is no better than the other. They are simply different.

Also, the feedback has more to do with followers and popularity rather than the art or the artist, so there's always that to take into consideration before passing judgement.

If you were to sort my gallery by likes, the top picture is, in fact, the one I traced--and I don't regret it. I put a lot of time and effort into that painting--not only the drawing of it, but also searching to find the perfect picture to use. Just because something was traced doesn't mean it's a cheap knock-off and doesn't deserve any credit. It doesn't mean the artist didn't put any effort into it, and it doesn't mean the artist is any less of an artist for what they do. All it means is that they found something they liked enough to want to copy it and share it with others. Really. That's all it means. Despite the details of their reasoning (for me, a school project), that is the essence of reasoning behind all traced, copied, or otherwise referenced drawings.
...I hope I'm saying this in a way that makes sense...

I understand, but it doesn't really apply to everyone though. Some people just.. trace. Copy someting they didn't do, like lineart or something simple like that.
I see how getting details in a trace can be difficult, but getting that perfect shape of the drawing would just be too easy. You have a reference when you trace, but when you freehand, it's all up to your imagination. You have to use what you know about drawing.
I'm not perfect, I used to trace all the time, so I don't have much room to talk. But everyone's opinion and how they do things is different. But for me, it would be a little bit more settling if they said 'I got the idea from yadda yadda,' or 'the concept was from so and so'. I don't exactly think it's fair that someone else is getting credit for something they didn't entirely do.

And the photo ref. icon doesn't always mean it's traced. I know cause I've done it several times. Like you seen something on the internet and drew it freehand on paper, and used that as a ref. Technically you freehanded it, and there's no real evidence that it was traced. I disagree with people who go out willy nilly saying all ref.ed paintings are traced, but sometimes you can just tell that it was taken from a movie's commercial poster, or something like that.
But I'm not gonna be that one hard head person that doesn't know when to take a hint. I know there's pros and cons on both sides, and people just need to see both of them

Thanks for replying. Once again, all good points. I'd just like to say, I totally support tracing as long as the person isn't claiming it as their own work (tracing your own drawing from a sketchbook, etc--totally different). As soon as you claim a trace as your own original piece, that's art theft--not cool. Anyway, tracing isn't about the imagination, it's about ... giving new life to the product of someone else's imagination. It's about admiring the work of someone else and wanting to be a part of it. Whether or not you agree with this, do you get what I'm trying to say? I can try to rephrase myself if I'm not making sense...

'mkay, I'm gonna try to tell you what I think you're saying to make sure I understand where you're coming from (please, correct me if I'm wrong). So, you're saying that when you're just tracing a part of a drawing (ex. the lineart) and then making it your own, that's what you don't like, especially when no credit is given to the original artist.

And yes, I definitely agree there is a huge difference between traced versus referenced. ...haven't personally run into anyone like you've described, but there are certainly enough people that someone's gonna be thinking like that...

(and I've done that plenty of times, too. That's when I make my best drawings--either looking at the real thing or a photo of whatever/whoever it is.)

Yeah! I completly agree with this! I'm a tracer, and I'm proud! I even spent over 4 HOURS on my first picture here, that was traced! #Tracingproud !

Ive been quite down lately because i trace and feel kinda ashamed of it. I trace because i cant draw that good, but this has really lifted my spirits! :D Thank you!

#Tracingproud

No problem :) thanks for commenting

Yeah, I hear you. The way I see it is this: people use painting to forge famous works of art, but that doesn't mean painting is bad, or anyone who paints is bad. It's the same for tracing--most people who trace are great, it's just a few art thiefs and the whole group gets a bad reputation... yeah, you know what I'm saying.

I cant quite agree. Tracing is really good for practice, to get a feeling for something youre drawing for the first time. But that is all it should be used for! Tracing is NOT an art style! If someone traced my work without asking me for premission and without crediting me in the description Id simply report them for stealing art. Because thats what tracing and uploading IS. No matter how much effort it takes you to COPY something, the one who originally made it, put A LOT MORE effort and time in it. Again - tracing is no art style!! Use it to get better but keep it to yourself OR ask for premission before you upload it and credit the original artist! Otherwise its art theft and nothing else!

thank you, i keep telling people traceing is a form of art, but they ignore/insult me when i do this seemed to draw, more attention. again, THANK YOU

@ILoveDisney hey get over here this might make you feel better about stuff if ur sad ig idk