Stock and Resources

   
  
    

Besides being an integral part of photomanipulations, stock is useful for drawings and paintings, especially if you can't draw or paint from life. I use stock all the time in my drawings. There's many fine pose references that help with drawing or painting hands, feet, foreshortening, or other difficult poses. AdorkaStock has one of the largest galleries devoted exclusively to pose references. Tasastock has a good selection of hand, feet, and nude stock that is great for studies. Null-Entity and jademacalla have great action orientated male pose references.  Pose-Emporium has a wonderful and growing selection of pose references. Brushes have been invaluable tools when I have worked on design projects. Tutorials, of course are helpful when you're stuck on something or want to learn something new.  As I mentioned before, when using stock you have to make sure to read and abide by the stock provider's TOU which are usually posted somewhere in their journal or on their profile. Often stock will have a link to the TOU in the artist comments or a summary of the TOU.

Here's some wonderful examples of the myriad ways that stock can be used.

    
   

 

How to Make Stock:

So maybe you've been toying with the idea of posting some stock or perhaps haven't even thought about it. Maybe you've already posted some stock but aren't really sure what you're doing. There's many different ways of making stock. But there's a few things you need to consider before stocking such as, "Am I comfortable with people using my images or images of me?" and "How will I manage my stock?". The most important thing you should ask yourself before uploading images you think would be great stock: "Is this useful for artists?"  This means that the image needs to be sharp and clear, not blurry, and preferably without distracting background elements. Also the image shouldn't be overly grainy, pixelated, dark and/or light.  If it is model or animal stock, no limbs should be cut off in awkward places. DeviantART has policies on the image size and quality that you should keep in mind as well. Be sure to check out FAQ #809: What are DeviantArt's stock image guidelines? to make sure your image fits DeviantART's stock criteria. If the answer to the "Is this useful?"  is no, then don't do it. If the answer is yes, go right ahead and share your stock.

Making stock can be very easy. Walk outside, look around your yard or neighborhood for interesting things such as flowers and animals to photograph.You don't always have to go somewhere exotic to make great landscape or animal stock. You can pin or tape up a sheet and take a few shots of yourself in various interesting useful poses with your camera's timer function and tripod, or if you're not into modeling, ask a friend. Are you a Photoshop whiz? You can try your hand at making brushes. Do you like 3D art? You can make 3D model stock. The possibilities are endless.

Make sure you have written a terms of use outlining how your stock may be used. Looking at other stocker's terms of use can be helpful. You might have to rewrite it a few times to get the wording you want. I've rewritten mine 4 times over the past year.

Don't get frustrated if people don't use your stock right away. I look at it as a waiting game. It took two months for someone to use my stock after my first set was posted. Some ways to promote your stock include submitting to stock groups, featuring stock and art (especially art made from your stock), interacting with artists and stockers, entering stock contests, and holding your own contests centered around your stock.

Some nice stock groups to consider submitting your stock to: , , , , and .

These tutorials are invaluable resources for all stockers, new and old. They offer great advice from experienced stockers.
              How to Stock 1- Setting up a Shooting AreaWelcome to "How to Stock," a new short series of articles on how to do some stock basics.  We'll ask the big names in stock for their tips and opinions on how to get the best out of your stock shoot!
For the first article, I asked faestock, Tasastock, and kirilee all about how to set up a shooting area.  Let's see what wisdom they have for us!


What are the best kind of lights? How many should I have? What kind of bulbs give the best light?
:iconfaestock: Faestock says:
If you have access to studio lighting then I prefer to use a large Elenchrom soft box. The soft box provides a soft flattering light for most subjects. A direct flash can be harsh, using some kind of filter, like a beauty dish, grate or soft box is better. I would also suggest rigging the stand with wheels so it is easily adjustable, as one inch to the left can make all the difference when you  How to Stock 2- PosingWelcome to "How to Stock," a short series of articles on how to do some stock basics. We'll ask the big names in stock for their tips and opinions on how to get the best out of your stock shoot!
For the second article, I asked AdorkaStock, DaeStock, and jademacalla all about how to pose. Let's see what wisdom they have for us!

How do I decide how to pose?
:iconsenshistock: SenshiStock says:
Try thinking about what kind of image you want to create. If you are dressed in a costume, then you have that as a starting place. Try to become the character you're representing. What kind of actions would they take (leaping, running, sneaking, flying)? How would they move around (slowly, crawling, jumping, skipping)? If you're like me and you're focused solely on the pose, sometimes you still have to get 'in character' to come up with ideas. I like making a list before each   How to Stock 3- Playing a CharacterWelcome to "How to Stock," a short series of articles on how to do some stock basics. We'll ask the big names in stock for their tips and opinions on how to get the best out of your stock shoot!
For the third article, I asked Null-Entity, kirilee, and Tasastock all about how to play a character. Let's see what wisdom they have for us!

How do I get into character?
:iconNull-Entity: Null-Entity says:
It depends on the shot/character (I have not done many characters yet) but for my "Gent's Last Act" set I imagined an entire scenario with scenes, and simply played it out from start to finish in-front of the camera.
As for shots with Tasastock, it was a matter of thinking of the theme and playing along with it, it helped a lot to play off her!.
:iconkirilee: kirilee says:
If you are wearing a costume, think about where the character wearin