This note will self-destruct in...

I immediately deduct points for butchering a quote from Shakespeare and a reasonably good song by the scorpions... lmao... j/k

Beyond that, I don't see anything particularly wrong with your art. I even kind of like "Dark Seraphim" and "B-witching Hour". I do, though, see a few reasons you might have trouble.

Promenently displayed URLs and credits are usually a no-no, in that they really detract from the art and tend to be interpreted as spam. That's a small point, but one that can cement an otherwise hard moderation decision.

The main thing is that the work I see is very 'effects' based. I see clouds, I see scanlines, etc., without a lot of complimentary detailed craft. Effects, as a rule, are something to be used hesitantly, and only if they are going to *seemlessly* merge with what is otherwise already a pretty solid piece.

Here's an excerise that might help: look hard at the works in question, and in your mind remove every effect or filter you used, anything that you didn't do by hand. Now, what's left? Would it stand on its own? If not, then you are probably gonna be presenting something similar to what people have already seen a thousand times.

That's why there is a vibe, or a flavor, that makes most beginner's work appear very similar. They have all those filters, too, you know? Without an individual's actual craft, you aren't gonna get a true fingerprint of their style, only their particular arrangement of the same old effects. Never start anything with an effect or filter in mind; be able to do it all by hand. Filter's aren't a medium.

I don't think your problem is your subject matter or color schemes, and if you talk yourself into believing that you'll be off at some other half-assed art site that doesn't care, making the same stuff over and over. Stick you your guns on the aesthetics and colors, and make some original work; heavy on craft and light on stock effects.

I bet you'll have no problems getting stuff past moderation then.

Angela: I happen to think that you are an exceptional digital artist, and I have no problem with any color choice that you make, I love colorful desktop images! We have discussed this, and I sincerely hope that you continue to upload here. We need artists with a " different stance" on things. I wouldn't like it if you just tried to "fit in" with all the other stuff, go ahead and create what you want. There is an artist here called Starone, and she uses color to great effect and her work is very popular. You just need to keep throwing stuff at us until something sticks. And I'm sure it will. You have had some stuff posted, and that is an achievment in itself, we are quite tough these days!
And listen to Bakerstreet. He is 100% right! (He usually is, which is quite annoying really )
Looking forward to your next upload.......
Bryan.

hey, personally, i like the cool text wallpapers. (i like quotes)

you'll note exactly how many wp's we have floating around this joint with text on them, though, no?

everyone's taste is different. we just have moderators here who have certain tastes. they may range fairly broadly from a certain perspective, but they all leave out certain categories, and alienate some of us.

hopefully you can find the overall experience good, nonetheless. i think your work has kicked ass so far!

I'm quittin' my brief stint here as I feel my artistry is just too different to ever be really accepted as a "style" here

I'm not an artist nor do I regularly hang out on these message boards. I breeze in every once in a while and grab some downloads to to enhance my pc. In other words I'm one of the people that you are doing this work for. I went to your site and I downloaded almost all of your art. First let me say thank you for all the hard work involved in your artwork. Second let me say I don't know much about art, but most of yours makes me feel good. There are certainly some outstanding visual masterpieces on this site, But would I leave up for long periods of time? Not sure. Many of yours are the type that people will just leave on the screen, Please hang in there and don't give up. that would really be a waste. I look forward to seeing more from you, but if you do leave I saved the link for your site. Once again, Thank You

What CycleKitty said!!!

ditto?

three-times...the charm...

baker raises questions that are worth investigating. Wish you the best whatever you decide.

Cheer up ...you, nor your message nor your art will ever self-destruct.

shhhhhhhhhh...you can come back as the phoenix rising from the ashes!

help me please::::

I'm sorry that dark_seraphim didn't respond. I hope (she/he) has decided to keep trying.

: SURPRISED: Gee, I really didn't think anyone would give a hoot. I'm sorry if I came off like a cry-baby...not to go into too many... uh...personal...details but I lost a very dear person to me in September of this year and I haven't quite been myself since. *sigh* Hard to get out of that grief period and sometimes the most innocuous and innocent things can set one off...most unfounded...some founded...but all in all...I'm just in sad-mode which unfortunately colors my otherwise sound and sane judgment. IN other words, sorry if I'm being an *SS. )

Oh, and I thank all the gracious people who gave such great advice here and just good ol' fashioned luv-n-care...and those who took the time to peep up..*KISSES, KISSES, KISSES!*

BTW, sorry it took me so long to reply, I've been super busy and I make the worst kind of wincustomize citizen here I s'poze cuz I just don't have the time to commit as much as I'd like.

Smiles,

AngEla aka Dark_Seraphim

Okay, don't let it happen again or we will thrash you with extremely wet noodles.....
And it HURTS baby...

Wet noodles? MMMMMMMMMM. I hope those include lots of cheese!

(And it only hurts when the damned noodles show up on my scale the next day)!

Good point, and yes, there is lots of cheese involved...

Cheese! Cheese! Cheese!

Oh my, I feel like a giant bound-up mouse.

My latest work...took me almost two weeks to complete...*she blushes shyly* Anyway, here's the link...http://www.darkseraphim.com/ds/art/Quest%20of%20the%20magus.zip

I hope the link works...I took forever on that friggin' face of his alone. *sigh*

The concept: He's lighting his way through the deepest of woods...on his quest to his destiny...yadda...yadda. yadda

A great deal of it is implied. There is very little woods, destiny, and yadda, yadda, yadda. The figure itself looks to be a flat, vector object at first, but then you have shadowed the back of his head. IF you are going to give him realistic depth, the pattern on his clothing wouldn't be flat, it would fold and bend away with the contours of the body. It is kind of like you can't make up your mind how realitic to make the scene. There's nothing wrong either way, but you kind of have to pick one or the other.

This is definately a style. If this were part of an animation, it would be more understandable, but as a wallpaper, I'm not seeing it. I think the work you have done is really good, but I think you quit a little early. Embrace the idea of 'rough draft'.

Don't look at these things in terms of time, i.e. it has been x hours, so it must be done. Two weeks is a rough draft, imho. I let most things I do rest for a month and then go back to find lots of stuff I had missed. i have several works that have been underway for 6 months to a year. The one you are asking comments on, in my opinion, isn't finished.

p.s. the point is not uploading. If you look at it that way you won't be satisfied until it is uploaded. Make the work the point and you won't be satisfied until it is done.

You are extremely presumptuous, bakerstreet... who died and appointed you God?

JamMeister: hold that thought...

Is that your stock answer for everything you don't want to listen too?

Doh! you dropped it again. Try harder.

You are trying to egg me on to making a comment that will get me in trouble or banned entirely from this site. You are are the one who needs to try again. Ain't gonna work, Homer.

I wouldn't really mind if you got banned, but my post was a hint that you were being idiotic, adn that you should shut up. You just asked me 'who appointed you God' after trying to impose your own standards on someone else's site for hours... presumptuous? Um, yeah.

(Here, I'll try again)

Hold that thought...