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FA and Photo Policy
16 years ago
General
Its not new the complains about people posting self pics and daily life photos in FA, I think that for those who are not talented for draw, write, or own a fursuit, well the bets way to express would be with photos of themselves and daily life, FA is about that, be a fur and whow it to the world. The link to the journal of a friend who faces this problem.
http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/889727/
http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/889727/
Most of my submissions have been music, which at first I didn't even realize I could upload here; I initially thought the forum was only for graphic art. Some of my submissions have been vaguely anthropomorphic but others clearly aren't. There's nothing in the AUP which dictates that the music has to have any "furry" identification at all; how odd to think that such an issue would be raised with photography. FoxAmoore, the music mod, seems to be a rather sensible fellow who doesn't foster undue drama; if only his attitude could be the contagious one...
these have no artistic value and neither required effort..
That said, the admin in that journal was absolutely out of line. I'm personally quite annoyed that people like that are admins now and allowed to speak to users that way. I got lectured once for being >mildly condescending< while issuing a warning to a user who had typed a page long description of methods of suicide in graphic detail, urging another user to try them out when that user made a cry for help type submission. Seeing an admin be that nasty that fast over what should not have been as big of an issue is infuriating.
The rules regarding photography and what is or isn't allowed have always been vague and unclear and a source of user confusion and conflict. The problem is mainly that Dragoneer doesn't want rules that sound mean or excluding or strict, but also doesn't want those kinds of photos all over the site. So even when all of the admins got together and worked with me on an AUP revamp that we all agreed was clear in the removal of general casual 'this is me and/or my stuff' photography, it was shot down by two admins who felt it would be unfair to remove. Yet still, they try and remove those photos anyway, but without putting the rules in clear and specific writing to back up their removal.
Again, I don't mean to be a dick, nor am I trying to be dismissive of people who can't draw or write or make real artistic photography. But those things are what this site is meant to let people share. Not general self-interest casual snapshots. That's how it's always been, despite Dragoneer being unwilling and unable to make that clear to people.
But I do agree that the way your friend was spoken to was not acceptable. No, the staff does not decide what is or isn't art. But they do decide what range of "art" their site is here to host. And whether they ever manage to put it into clear understandable writing or not, the apparent intent has always been, and seems to still be: drawn or written works, and photography >which was intended by the photographer to be a display of their personal artistic skill< and which can show that there is some minimal level of understanding and skill in their photography. Photos of self and stuff, just meant to share personal interests, are not what this site was ever intended for.