MicrostockGroup
Illustrators Corner - Microstock Illustrators Forum => Illustration - General => Topic started by: Microbius on May 18, 2012, 05:50
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I've always steered away from using text in my illustrations because I have wanted to be able to upload to all sites including IStock. I am now think of trying a couple.
If you use text in your designs for labels or placeholder text in designs like those on SS what are the rules. Do you leave the text as text or convert it to outlines?
I'm guessing outlines as otherwise the illustration will look completely different if the user doesn't have font, and you would need to make sure it wasn't embedded right?
Does SS have guidelines for what is acceptable? Are there any sources you trust for public domain fonts that would be okay to use (curated sites so you know the fonts haven't been nicked)?
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You do need to convert text to outlines.
As far as publication rights, almost everything out there on the freebie sites is nicked from somewhere.Just like "free stock photos" on the usual suspect sites. Better to stick to what came on your machine.
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I created a couple fonts for myself. It seemed easier than worrying about what was public domain.
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Thanks for the feedback. Creating your own font is definitely the safest way to go.
I also found this http://www.fontsquirrel.com/ (http://www.fontsquirrel.com/) which look pretty legit, and what about Google's offering http://www.google.com/webfonts (http://www.google.com/webfonts) ?
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Unless this has changed recently, IS does not allow the prominent use of fonts in vector submissions. GL doesn't like it either. (Hypocritically, IS prominently uses free fonts from Dafont in the designs on its site.)
If you are worried about SS, include a note to the reviewer about where you got the font and that you have the legal right to use it. Sometimes I do that if the font is distinctive.
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Unless this has changed recently, IS does not allow the prominent use of fonts in vector submissions. ....
That's the main reason I haven't really done it before, but I am thinking about doing a few designs just for SS and the other sites who are interested.
I found a bit on the SS site saying that all fonts have to converted to outlines so that clears that up.
I guess it's a matter of tracking down the original owner and double checking license terms for any fonts that appear to be free for commercial use.