Constructive Criticism [Tutorial]

Started by Gary, the Magic Fairy May 23rd, 2009 2:14 PM
  • 1114 views
  • 4 replies
Age 30
Male
Your Mother
Seen June 29th, 2010
Posted May 29th, 2010
2,796 posts
17.2 Years

Obviously, this section needs more good, constructive criticism. I know there are a couple great tutorials in this thread, but I suppose this can't hurt. You should probably read those too, though.

Part 1: What not to do.



Well, first of all, if you're going to give criticism, you should do it to help the person find their flaws and fix them, not just to complain about their inferior skills. If you're unnecessarily rude, excessively state how “awful” it is, or just come off as a jerk, then odds are, they'll ignore you.

On the other end of this: don't be excited about every half-decent recolor you see. Feel free to give a little comment, but don't go on about how spectacular they are, especially when they're not. This can do almost as much harm as being rude. You could give them a false sense of accomplishment, and turn them into pretentious, mediocre spriters who shoot down anything negative said about their work.

I'm hoping most of you know this already, but just to be safe: "These are great! Keep it up!" and "I really like ____! You should make more!" are NOT criticism, nor are they constructive. At all. I'm fairly certain if your posts in this section consist of those, you will be getting an infraction.

Do not incessantly repeat comments that the spriter has heard before. Most of the time, you won't be the first person to comment on their sprites. If you see that two or three people pointed out a flaw already, there's no need to point it out again. After a while, it just gets annoying. Of course, if you would like to elaborate on something someone else noticed, feel free. But no one wants 20 posts in their thread that say exactly the same thing.

Do not give criticism if you don't know what you're talking about. Don't go into threads full of non-pokemon sprites and tell them they have their light sources wrong, just because they're using a different style.

And lastly, but most importantly:
Be specific. Your criticism is absolutely useless if they have no clue what you're talking about. Despite what some may think, “Work on your shading,” is not a good criticism. That's vague, and while obviously slightly relevant, that could apply to almost anything. What's wrong with their shading? Is it too square? Bad color choices? Inconsistent light source? Tell them how to fix it. Are they not understanding shading? Well, link them to a tutorial. Or, if you have time, make a quick example to show them what you're telling them to do.




Please inform me of any typos I may have made in here. I have a slight obsession with good spelling and grammar. Also, if you have anything you'd like to see added to this tutorial, please tell me, I'd love to hear it.
Age 30
Male
Your Mother
Seen June 29th, 2010
Posted May 29th, 2010
2,796 posts
17.2 Years
It's going to be two (maybe three, eventually) parts total. This part, telling what NOT to do, is complete, unless I think of something else that should be added.

Part 2 will be about what you SHOULD do when giving criticism. Lets hope I'm not too lazy to finish it. :D

mulch_ar

What should I type here?

Male
Jakarta, Indonesia
Seen February 27th, 2012
Posted December 6th, 2010
150 posts
14.5 Years
Great tutorial, maybe this should be stickied. Can't wait for part 2 xD
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