How To Be a More Considerate Art Uploader
I say art uploader, because in the case of a commissioner or even Tumblr reblogger, there could still be a lot of submissions that link to Deviantart, SheezyArt, Imgur, Instagram, and several other sites with picture hosting.
Bear in mind, these are all optional. These are opinions, some of which actually aren't my own, that one should understand how they even came to be.
-First off, use DETAILED descriptions
If you're an artist who takes commissions, I respect that there's a degree of detachment to pictures that you drew only under payment. That's perfectly fine, but to deny even a short description to the people who watch you, and thus those who come to commission you in the first place, does little more than outright reveal the kind of detachment you have for the people who fund your luxuries, or even your very livelihood. While this has never struck a chord with me, I can see why commissioned artists have no real excuse to exclude a single sentence description. The description is right there in the PMs the person sent you about your commission. All you need to do was copy a few things down in the description box.
Another excuse is that the artist is uploading multiple submissions and doesn't want to waste time putting a description on each one. THAT'S WORSE! If this becomes your excuse, how does that not express an obvious detachment from your watchers? That every thinking, feeling, person-to-person transaction is just another order to fill and throw out for the watchers to lavish you with faves and compliments?
We hear words like "snob", "elitist", and in the furry community "popufur", and if it becomes a hassle to not spend a minute or two simply describing what's going on it a submission that could have consumed hours of your life, I can see exactly why that can viewed as detached.
So, do yourself a favor. Say something about your art. If not what's happening, tell your watchers the names of the characters, what part of the picture was most complicated or that you learned something new from. If you were given some artistic liberty in a commission, tell them what liberty you took, and why you decided on it. Art comes from emotion, and so do the styles of each artist that may make them more in demand from their respective communities. Spare the moment to tell your audience what part of yourself you put into a piece of art. Because you're an artist, not a craftsperson.
Also, if you upload something that someone has made for you, do us the same favor, but also provide the name of the artist, links to their page and original submission, and be kind enough to say something that shows you appreciate the time they put into it.
SEVERE EDIT: Commissioners, this article is purely opinionated. This is by no means required, depending on the uploader's own personal preference. This is only a suggestion meant to offer a way an artist can better connect with their audience by offering more than simply an artist/commissioner's account name. Reacting harshly against an artist/uploader for omitting a description or even the LENGTH of their description is uncalled for. You are not entitled to a description of a certain length, and if you act as such, the artist is right to ignore you and nobody will support you in such a ridiculous call to action.
-If you want people to find you, use tags.
This one is more useful to artists who aren't as well known as some of the more popular ones. While making humorous sentences out of one word tags can be mildly entertaining, you'll find that you get more people visiting your page, and if tagged appropriately, watchers looking for more of their favorite subjects.
Do you find yourself drawing a lot of fan art? Tag those submissions with the name of the show/movie/franchise. Do you find yourself doing more work with a certain character as the star? Put their name in the tags and find more people who like that character as well. If you just have good quality submissions, even if your art doesn't have a specific theme linking them together, labeling tags on each one will send anyone doing a search to the specific submission they enjoy. Then they can spare the proper respects for something they may not have found any other way.
Tags can be used for anything from genre, art style, character names (even OCs), franchises, species, and so much more. Only people who can find you and see the work you do will want to watch/follow/subscribe to you. So make it easier for them.
-Don't make a liar out of yourself
If there's one thing that's important, even when you don't know somebody, it's trust.
The Terms of Service is the universal contract of a commissioned artist, and while it's best for protecting you under threat of dishonest or exploitative commissioners, it can also be a hanging weight ready to crush you if you pull the wrong wire. If your ToS does not cover something you expect the commissioner to abide by, edit it in immediately. Any information not covered by it or law immediately favors the commissioner (ie. whether it can be posted to their sites/pages, how it can be used or edited) once money has changed hands, because the contract that has been agreed to has been closed. Protect yourself appropriately. If you're a commissioner who plans on using the product of a commission in any way besides displaying online without profit, Screenshot the artist's Terms of Service with an acceptable date displayed (meaning the date of the most recent ToS and a site like timeanddate.com on screen) to make sure you're covered in case the artist alters their ToS in the future. You have only agreed to your own contract, not one that has been posted after your commission has finished.
If you create a price list in your ToS, this is what commissioners will be paying. Unless you quote a higher price for any issues you think may encounter based on the commission info before you accept the commission, this is what the person will expect to be paying when it's completed. You also have the right to quote a higher price if a radical change is required only if it contradicts the original information, but do so cautiously on a case-by-case basis.
Make sure any links to Terms of Service are correct and delete any incorrect or outdated versions you have in journals or placed up on any of your websites
Do not bait and switch. This shouldn't even need to be said, but do not say one thing and do another. For example, if you post a stream ad online saying you're offering requests in stream, do not be surprised about people leaving if you choose not to do requests at all, or if the requests are only for close friends. Same for if you say you're working on art, but instead choose to play games in stream instead. Using content to draw in masses, but not actually offering that content is irrevocably shameful, and will usually do nothing but make your audience feel insulted. It's lying at its most basic form, and you shouldn't be surprised if people do not want to tolerate it. There may be plenty of lies and liars here on the internet, but there are also those who take some form of pride in choosing to be honest. If you as an artist do something that contradicts what you've said you would do, then being called a liar is all you've accomplished.
And most importantly for art uploaders, do not take credit for an artist's work. ALWAYS provide the artist's name and relevant accounts for any work that they've done. This applies even if you've edited the artist's work like coloring or shading, and only if it's been approved by the artist who have drawn it. No matter who any characters belong to, provide the list of who owns which character and where the owner's account can be found, to resolve any theft queries.
-Price your art appropriately.
If you've decided to take commissions for your work, no matter the quality, make it sure it accurately reflects the demand people have for it. A lot of artists think they can break into the commissions game with $5 pricetags, only to find that no one decides to take any slots for it. The problem is not necessarily that the artist isn't good enough, but that there may be artists offering more complete or defined works at the same price, if not cheaper. As much as I hate to say it, with the rise in the number of new artists taking commissions, less experienced artists will need to eat some of the cost of their work for lower prices, or even harsher, take a few requests to hone their skill and increase their presence in the community before they can get more beneficial prices.
There's a reason that some of the more expensive artists on web charge the prices they do, and that's because of supply and demand. They charge higher because they regularly get commissioners who will fill up the slots they offer at that particular price. Eventually they raise prices to see if the reduced demand will still fill slots, and if the cycle continues, you can and will find artists who can sell digital art for a hundred dollars per commission. Even if you choose to believe your art deserves the same attention, do not price your art at those levels unless it actually has the same degree of attention.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, respect your watchers. There are a lot of artists who offer outstanding qualities of work and quickly fill slots, but choose not to raise their prices beyond a certain point. They believe they're offering a fair price to their commissioners, so that they aren't immediately favoring well-to-do commissioners that always have the money on hand over their average watcher. Compare your own situation to artists that have reasonable prices, but are regularly closed, to others that are expensive but typically open. Use whatever experience you've had with actual commissions in the past to determine if you'll be able to justify raising your price. Don't be ashamed to lower your price again if you aren't able to fill the slots you would like. You may actually get more people interested in the long run.
These same ideas can also apply to minimum prices for advertised Pay What You Want or Drawing For Donations commissions. If a commissioner can't justify the expense of even the minimum price over the commissions another open artist can offer, chances are the turnout still won't improve. You also may not get any commissioners willing to pay above minimum either.
Lastly, never forget that the product offered by an artist and the money used to pay for it are both represented by real human work. No artist is in the wrong for charging the prices they do for their work or for not taking requests and trades. Even if you do not get any slots filled or consistent amounts of commissions, your price is the one you feel is comfortable for the amount of work you're expected to do. But if you really feel like you want to attract commissioners above all else, your only choice may be to lower your prices or even make a brief sale until you have a decent amount of demand to raise the price back.
-Treat your commenters and PMs with the same (or more) respect they treat you.
Positive commenting is truly a minority in this day of Youtube, Facebook, and several other areas on the internet. If someone has taken the time to speak positively of the work you've done instead of simply offering a like or favorite, take a moment to appreciate it. If someone comments with a "great work" or a few heart emotes, consider sending at least a "glad you enjoyed it" back to them. While it may not do much at first, people will soon wish they had been sending more personalized and thought out messages.
When you reach that point, make sure the people who are giving more detailed and expressive comments are getting more individualized and appreciative replies. Just respecting that each of those comments is more unique with replies specifically for them shows that you truly care, and at the end of it will attract more people who want to individualize their comments, maybe with questions or constructive criticism.
That brings us to our last point, which is criticism. Anyone popular enough for positive attention is also bound to receive negative attention. I don't want to waste time saying you need to be a perfect saint, because some people react impulsively by nature, so I'll allow you this. You can react just as hostilely to someone being groundlessly rude to you, but no more. If you absolutely feel like you need to respond negatively at that moment, allot yourself the same attitude and number of profanities they've given you. Use that limit and think out an equally rude response, if not slightly less. When you have to stop just before hitting "Send" to consider "how rude is this person actually being to me" in order to make that your limit, it puts some perspective on how aggressively you were about to respond to them, to see if you weren't becoming the lesser person in the argument. If it's clear that they're trolling, feel free to block them to prevent any future defacing comments on other submissions, but always consider the option that someone simply has a different opinion than you and are just commenting on impulse. Feel free to ask them "could you elaborate, but be a bit nicer about it?" How they respond will let you know if they were really worth your time.
NOTE: The above only applies to comments and replies between the artist and original commenter. Any interjections provided by the artist's fans should be completely civil and non-derogatory in nature. Do not continue if the artist is already handling the commenter in question.
This has been a short editorial to educate both artists and uploaders about a few ways to keep a positive image in the eyes of their viewers in the hopes of being able to attract new watchers and avoid the common pitfalls of public image that ends up befalling people labeled as "elitists". Nothing was intended to insult, demean, or undermine the efforts of any specific artist or group. Everything stated above was opinion, and not completely versed in the aspect of what the average commission artist deals with on a regularly basis. I apologize if anything theorized turns out to be wholly untrue on the part of any individuals.
