Ok so this thread looks cool

Everytime i open a new Graphics Shop it fails and i end up never getting any requests...the only thing i can think about is opening a shop with someone else (so if anyone wants to open one with me them pm me) but what if that fails...has anyone got any ideas?

my suggestion is...to not worry about the number of requests you get and just make graphics to give people. I have honestly never cared about the number of requests I've gotten because I like making icons and stuff for fun. If you're in it just for the requests then I think you're in it for the wrong reasons

Like Si said, it's not about how many requests you make. Graphics are an art, not an endeavor of popularity or anything. You're not being paid, you're doing this for free, so have fun with it. =D A suggestion is if you feel you aren't getting a lot of requests, do some grabbags. Some people see icons others have made and want a siggy out of that, instead of a requested one. =] It gives you time to hone your abilities and show off what you can do. Plus, people sometimes get really stuck on a style that other makes have, so yours may be foreign to them. Give it time and see if they catch on.

However, opening with other people seems to have worked in the past, especially if you don't have a LOT of time to be making stuff. ^___^

Hey, Ross! I agree with Si and Ashlie. I understand that it's fun to get a lot of requests, but it's also just as fun to actually make graphics, whether they are for someone else, for you, and just as a grab bag. I recommend making siggy, avvy, and profile pic grab bags for your threads, too. You just have to remember that you may get one comment, you get twenty comments, but what matters is that you had fun making the graphic and you got a lot of good practice in. I still have tons and tons to learn graphics-wise, but just getting out there and making as many graphics as I can has helped me grow tremendously from where I started.

Sooo I have a question/possible discussion topic.

Photoshop animations. How do you DO them? How? I messed around for like five hours one day trying to make an animated icon work and it was all an epic fail. Now, I know some of you (coughLauraLizziePhillipcoughotherstoocough) can do animations so.... would anyone be willing to do a tutorial on them here? Pleeease?

LOL Roro, I shall do a tutorial for youuu if you like.

I'll have it in Sewing Lessons ASAP.

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY Laura! I'm excited. Heeheee.

Just while I'm in here, I was wondering if anybody has any ideas to ensure that requesters follow all rules in the thread they request from. I've spoken to Ama about it, and she and the rest of the mods are brainstorming.

I think us as makers could take a zero-tolerance stance to our rule breakers. I'm quite bad in that I usually allow people to break my rules, but it just encourages more rule breakage.

I don't know what you guys think, but I know there are loads of you pulling your hair out at getting about 20 requests at a time or people providing 100x100 images for a signature, etc.

Ideas?

Well, I know it would be rude but Ernie and I specifically said that we would ignore anyone who'd request after the requests are closed. And we did do it. lol. I don't regret it, really. It'll let people know just what to do when they want to request from us.

As for pictures... I dunno... specify a size? Nothing lower than 500X500? (That's an example) and if anyone would give us lower, it'll be ignored.

Half the problem is, though, with the pictures, that is, not everyone understands the concept of picture sizes. They just think that we can make the image bigger and it'll work. They don't always understand that trying to use a tiny image for a large graphic would include serious pixelization and blurring. I don't know, I feel I can't be harsh towards them about the picture size rule.

Usually, if they do that, I just PM them and let them know why the picture won't work and explain what might be better or offer to find a larger picture myself. This way, they understand the concept of why and hopefully, in the future, they won't make that mistake again.

Yes, the picture thing is difficult. Even if someone gives you a big image, it can be such bad quality that it's un-usable anyway.

Do you think it could be an idea to produce a "guide for members" on images, to explain basically WHY we need such big images? Like a sticky post at the top of the forum in capital letters so people actually read it? I think quite a few members just think we're being picky. If we clarify it for them, then they'd understand that they're graphics will look far better if the images they give are large and HQ. I think some members think we're image magicians and can remove any watermark and resize any image and it'll still look perfect.

^ That might be a good idea. And give examples, explaining exactly what HQ is, and how that is different from just a very large image. I mean, it's not like they're giving us tiny images just to spite us and, especially for those who don't understand why, I'd feel bad about ignoring them. D: We could collab on a group "project", though, where we explain what good pictures look like, pixelization, HQ, etc. etc.

I like the idea of a sticky explaining image sizes. Maybe we could have examples like "this is what 500 x 500 is, notice it compared to the size of a signature/avatar" and so on. Put it in context people get.

I, for one, was UTTTTTERLY clueless about image sizes and stuff until... well it took me a while, let's just say that.

Yeah, we could actually do that... make a list of Guides and Tips to Siggy Requesting and all that and sticky it. Sounds like a good idea.

Usually, though, when I take requests and people give me images that are too small... or that I feel aren't good enough quality for me to work with, I'll just choose my own. But then again, I would have put a disclaimer in my first post saying that I would do that =P However, this isn't always possible because sometimes there are requests that need certain specific images.

So yes, that sticky thread on tips on requesting is actually a very good idea. We could continue brainstorming here on what else to include in that list before the MM mods compile everything and write it out for the thread.

And we can show them HOW to check their images sizes. Way back when, I didn't realize how to get to the properties. xD

That would be a lot more useful - this way, the first time someone has an image issue, we can just direct them to the thread, and then from all times after that, we can come up with some way to handle them. Obviously, though, a lot of shops aren't always as lenient as others or aren't so strict, so the idea of everyone ignoring requests that break rules or this is how we all handle rule breaking being universal may not be a good way to go about handling this.

Rather than ignore those who break rules, I figure, just as mods do, we ought to explain to them what they are doing to break the rule. Perhaps persistent rule breakers could be taken to mods/forum mods for further action?

Ahh, this is all coming together swimmingly. I think this would be brilliant and help towards solving the problem without us having to explain about the images every time.

Another thing for request numbers, etc., I was wondering if the entire forum could have a request limit? Sounds slightly drastic, I know, but if there's one rule, people would know it and hopefully conform. However, some people don't look or read the posts before them to see if there are any queue spots open, so that suggestion could be pointless.

Yes. You could use those 100x100 images and make blurry signatures.
If a requester forces you to find a new graphical way, you can ignore the request or take the challenge. Consequences: The customer will provide HQ images next time, or they won't come back. Problem solved.

I tend to take the action Nabs does and replace the image with one of my own. However I LOVE the idea of a sticky explaining image sizes. I know requests can sometimes be tedious when you have images that are small and of horrid quality.

Laura: a limit of requests for the entire forum? I dunno if that will work considering the fact that some people like to do large amounts of requests and some (like myself) like to do requests in smaller quantities. You'd have to ask all of the makers in MM's if they want a limit set on the number of requests. If such a limit were to happen, I'm just not sure of how MANY a good number would be.

Request limits as in how many graphics a person can request from one thread at one time? Or how many requests a person is allowed to make in the whole forum at one time? We really can't control the whole forum thing, but we might be able to do something about the request from a thread thing.

Like Si is saying, I find people who have a shop of two people and between them only allow 3 requests at a time, and then I have a shop with just me and can take up to 5 requests. I don't think we can limit the number of requests per shop, because even if we did, even if there WAS a rule, as you just said: people don't always check the posts before them. If they're already not looking, what will make them look now?

I agree with YOU ALL. What I was thinking is every shop having a request limit of 3 requests, or something else that we could all try to agree on. But it's inpractical, I know. It's just such a huge problem when people either don't look at rules or can't see that when a person has about 8 requests on, adding another might be... annoying.

A possible solution could be people editing 1 QUEUE SPOT OPEN in huge letters into their top post, but that would be such a pain to have to do, and if they forget and 5 million requests come in then they can't really turn the people away if there was nothing to tell them requests were closed/ how many spots there were.

Hmm. It is a pickle.

*peeks in*

Ok, here is my two cents

Maybe rather than set a specific number of requests for each shop, maybe just have a rule that each shop HAS to put a limit on how many requests they do. I know my head would explode if I had more than three but other people (especially joint shops with more than one owner) can handle more. Maybe if we made it an MM's rule to put a limit on requests for each thread, requesting members who read the rules will see that each shop only takes a certain number of requests and then they're DONE and it would encourage them to check the first post to see what the limit is for that particular shop.

Of course, that is assuming people read the MM's rules. Which we know doesn't always happen. But it's just a suggestion

In the meantime, since things have ALREADY gone completely out of control in my shop that I opened YESTERDAY, I'm going to start turning down requests if they can't read and don't pay attention to the number of requests I take. This was the way me and Anna handled things when it came to requests:

We basically did what Ernie and Lowlow do, which is turn away requests that were made AFTER we closed our request line. Nice and politely of course We'd basically tell them that we were closed and to come back once we opened the line. BUT we made it VERY clear that they would have to re-request once it opened up again...it's a hassle for them, yes, but if they had read the rules in the first place they wouldn't have to do it We had a lot of people PMing going "Why am I not on the request line? I requested before so-and-so!" Cause if we just added them to the line once a spot opened up, that defeats the whole purpose of a request line. And it's not fair to the other people who are waiting for the line to open, only to find that spots have been filled by people who can't read and requested in a closed queue.

I really like that method, actually--cause usually once we do that with one member, they learn their lesson and don't have any issues with them later on

*update* I've just finished writing the "Guide to Requesting for SS Members" and sent it off to Ama and Nabs so that they can review and change the bits that are naff.

It's got all the information about Large images, awful images, images with watermarks etc. and I added a bit about what people should do before, during and after requesting. Basically, if people haven't read the guide when it's up, we'll definitely know.

Bearing in mind, we don't want to be all control freakish here in MM's, because well, we have to remember that SS is where people come to have fun. We have to keep things fun for us by making these rules and all for requesting, but we don't wanna go all nutso and be all "OMG YOU'RE NOT READING THE RULES, WE SHALL NOT MAKE YOUR GRAPHICS!!!1!!1!ONE!1!" at the members. Yes, some members don't read, but we have to bear in mind that some members are new and therefore not as familiar with the unwritten site rules, as well as the layout and arrangements of the threads and site.