New to the forums? Please read this!

Welcome to CGArtNexus where everyone from beginner to professional is welcome to post their work and exchange feedback and criticisms in order to help us all grow.

If you are new to the forums, there are quite a few things that may be useful for you to know. We’ve tried to list them below, but if you need more help don’t hesitate to post a question or send one of the forum moderators a private message (pm) by using the little speech balloon under our avatars.

Introduce yourself
It’s always a good idea to post a little something about yourself when you’ve joined up, to let people get to know you. It also helps if you mention your skill level (student, hobbyist, pro, total beginner, and so on) as well as post some images you’ve done. It’s much easier for others to give you advice geared towards your skill level if you’ve shown us what you can do!

To critique or be critiqued…
The old Imagine FX forums were appreciated by most of its members because we offered each other honest critique instead of general “oooh’s” and “aah’s”. Here at CGArtNexus we want to continue this tradition of genuine and helpful critique.

Both giving and receiving critique can be difficult. This means that sometimes you may feel hurt or upset by what is being said about your image(s) or skills. Take a breath and remember that we’re not trying to be mean, but trying to help. Pointing out flaws will help you get better, whereas ignoring them won’t.

If a piece of seemingly harsh critique makes you upset, try not to lash out. Take a moment until you’ve calmed down and then look over the critique again. What is it really saying? Perhaps there is a point to it, only it was poorly delivered? Sometimes our own perception of our skill level differs substantially from the perception of our fellow artists. Critique can help you understand how others perceive what you do. And remember that your current skill level isn’t as important as working to improve it.

Also be prepared to put in some effort yourself. Look around the forum and see what other people are posting and what they need help with. If you can, offer advice or answer questions. Try to offer some feedback on other people’s work. It’s easy for newcomers to merely post their own requests for help, without realizing that we’re a community of people, not an answering machine. You may feel daunted, but regardless of skill level you can always provide feedback. You can let the artist know what mood the image evokes in you, if you feel something needs work or clarification, or maybe if it just looks too dark or washed out on your screen, etc.

When giving crits, try to not only point out faults but suggest how those faults can be fixed or improved, as well. Be polite. And remember to mention the good things too. Critique isn’t only about finding faults! You might also need to adjust your crits for things like age and skill level of the other person.

Finally, if someone does deliver really harsh critique that you feel is unjustified, rude or includes personal insults and the like, do feel free to object and/or contact the moderators for support.

Join the challenges!
(pending updated rules and structure for challenges)

Naming your threads and posting your images
A thread or post can be edited and renamed once submitted to the forum, so it’s not the end of the world if you misspell something. What is important is that you try to give your thread a name that tells the rest of us what it’s all about. If everyone named their own sketchbook thread “my sketchbook” there would be no way to tell them all apart. Same thing if everyone posts a new thread with their latest masterpiece calling it “new image”. (Also, “new” tends to get “old” rather quickly…) So add your name to your WIP, sketchbook or finished art threads, and name image specific threads things like “The fall of Sauron” (or add your name again).

And remember, images in your posts are better than links to images or off-site galleries. When using links, clickable ones are much preferable to non-clickable ones. If people have to copy and paste a url to see your work, most will be too lazy to bother. (CGArtNexus will convert a url to a clickable link automatically.)