It just started raining alot and it's getting cold at night. Guess Fall decided to rear its grumbly head.

I figured out my problems with the digital camera. I had it set at the lowest resolution, which means it can hold tons of terrible pictures. With a better setting, it can hold about 5 good ones. I might retake the rock monster sculpture picture, but maybe not.

I haven't drawn much, since I stopped submitting things to DA. It feels like pretty much a scam, since I get nothing but satisfaction at seeing my art viewed sometimes, but they gain the ability to use my art anyway they like forever.

Yes it says if you remove all your submissions and send them a snail-mail letter they will not retain free use of our copyrighted works. But, when you remove your deviation it remains on their servers. We don't have the power to actually remove our art.

The contract has a clause to help the artist, but the artist can't possibly use it? It's actually rather common. I predict that when the time is right, Deviant Art will revamp this website and sell subscriptions to the new one, such that the subscription lets you access various pointless features on the website and gives you access to the pictures and text that we have all submitted. They'd be totally within their legal rights to do so - we all signed a contract that reads like a punch in the face. Like you all I read it and didn't completely understand it. It just wasn't important enough - all I could lose was my art, and it looked like I could get it back if I wanted. The contract is still binging of course.

To continue my prediction: the company that owns the DeviantArt website will open a new website with identical features to what DA is right now. It will collect another load of art, then shuffle the contractual rights it possesses to the DA art subscription website. Look around, you'll see ten websites around that seem very similar to this one. Maybe it's already in the works ...

Anyway, this is why I lost my drive to create. I was drawing because it was fun to have people see what I was doing. Then I realized I was being used - even if DA never changes, think about it. Why would the company do this if they weren't benefiting more than we are? I prefer to enjoy all the rewards of my labor, not just a couple of them. I certainly don't like to see someone else exploiting my creativity.

(If you think that's what just about every job does, don't bother mentioning it. This is a hobby. Nobody in the world has a right to benefit from it before I do.)

I've drawn a couple things, written a couple things. Probably enough to post one deviation per month. Before DA I didn't really draw or write for artistic purposes, just to do a job. I didn't really derive much pleasure from it. Now that DA has failed me, the silver city that is more tarnished than I thought, I don't enjoy it anymore.

Thank you, whoever you are, that by creating DA you made something that might have been spectacular. Instead, your controlling nature and perhaps your greed has made my smile fade. I'm certain I am not the only one. Thank you for reaffirming the realities of human nature. You've made my pleasant life slightly sadder. If only it were a crime.