Why are Pony Makers so frowned upon?

[Sazama Ichida 2,367]

I mean you can barely tell the difference between those and how the character would look in the actual show...At least with some of them. And they're great for if you can't draw or pay someone to draw your character for you.

[CheeryFox 23,824]

I think they're great! Idk why ppl don't like 'em. 

[Will Guide 21,371]

I agree with you that pony maker is a great tool for those who can't draw like me. People call it lazy. But the fact remains that not everyone can become good artists. So they should be allowed to use such tools to make their visions reality. And I only use the Pony Maker to make a basic form of my OC  Unicorn Will Guide based on what I wanted him to be. Everything else like his history and personality and such came from me.

Here's some very flawed logic I heard people said. "You can't draw, so you're not allowed to have your own OC that fits in the MLP World" It's unfair to deny people the freedom to come up with an interesting character just because they can't draw.

In Fact, Walt Disney himself was not a good artist when it comes to drawing, but he was a genius storyteller who assembled a team of artists to make his visions of animated films like Snow White and Bambi's a reality. He acted out the whole story of Snow White he wanted to tell to the world via a full length animated film and all the hard-working artists made it possible.

Here's what was written in the opening credits to Snow White

But I disgress.. 

Despite the obvious fact that I can't draw, the more important thing is coming up with the character's personality, history, abilities, and what you want the character to experience in their life. While a drawing of a character can be helpful is showing an audience what the character looks like, appearance is not the only important thing to make a great OC.

And the Pony Maker is a great tool to make part of creating a character a reality. 

Edited July 8, 2019 by Will Guide
Mentioning my own use of Pony Maker

[MangoFoalix 25,054]

Why? Because it's super overused. It's the clear sign of not much effort put into an OC.

[Will Guide 21,371]

16 minutes ago, TheTaZe said:

Why? Because it's super overused. It's the clear sign of not much effort put into an OC.

Did you not read what I wrote up there? Some people are terrible at drawing and STILL would have to put effort in everything else about the OC for it to be good, including backstory, personality, abilities and experiences the character goes through.

Through your logic, my OC had no effort put into him whatsoever even I came up with his history and what he would experience in his story on my own. I even came up with the design of his cutie mark on my own but had to pay someone else to draw it

Therefore you're claiming I put absolutely no effort in coming up with my OC's life? What silly nonsense!

5 minutes ago, Bakugou Is My Man ❤ said:

It is lazy. I fully understand the fact that there are people who do not have much artistic ability and see Pony Creator as an easy and efficient way to create their MLP:FiM OC. However, some people would rather see terrible art with effort put into it than easy, cheap art with no effort put into it. 

And that goes for you too.

People just don't respect the work I actually put into my OC in his personality, backstory and what experiences he shall behave and instead focus on where I had to take the easy way, his design. 

Edited July 8, 2019 by Will Guide

[Usager 433]

i dont look it with bad eyes, its a fast way of getting an oc with a standard look.

tho, its way better a draw fully made by yourself. a lot more freedom can be achieved. you dont need talent to learn how to draw 

[Will Guide 21,371]

18 minutes ago, Bakugou Is My Man ❤ said:

@Will Guide

And I agree with you. As someone who has created an MLP:FiM OC and various anime OCs, I know that putting time into creating a backstory, personality, and flaws into any OC takes effort especially if it’s completely original material. I wasn’t picking on you or any other person who uses Pony Creator. I was just stating a fact: use of this program is considered lazy by some. 

Fair enough

[MangoFoalix 25,054]

10 minutes ago, Will Guide said:

Did you not read what I wrote up there? Some people are terrible at drawing and STILL would have to put effort in everything else about the OC for it to be good, including backstory, personality, abilities and experiences the character goes through.

Through your logic, my OC had no effort put into him whatsoever even I came up with his history and what he would experience in his story on my own. I even came up with the design of his cutie mark on my own but had to pay someone else to draw it

Therefore you're claiming I put absolutely no effort in coming up with my OC's life? What silly nonsense!

No, I did not read your essay. No need to come and attack me with it either. I don't like OCs from pony maker because I view it as lazy.

[Will Guide 21,371]

12 minutes ago, TheTaZe said:

No, I did not read your essay. No need to come and attack me with it either. I don't like OCs from pony maker because I view it as lazy.

I'm sorry, but I think it's important to see things from the point of view of someone who can't draw like me. And to realize that the word tool means it can be used brilliantly or lazily. The Pony Maker is a tool and therefore can be used very well just as much as being used lazily. It all depends on the person using it, what they're trying to make with the tool and for what reason.

I wasn't trying to attack you like that. More to defend myself. More to point out why I wrote that essay-like post about why the Pony Maker is not automatically a bad thing. I put effort into everything else except drawing my OC, and your original post felt like you were ignoring my hard work. So you can see why I got defensive

I apologise for coming off like I was attacking you. Just trying to make my point clearer. I can respect you calling the Pony Maker lazy as long as you don't call my hard work I do with the other aspects of my OC's development lazy.

Edited July 8, 2019 by Will Guide
More apologies

[Usager 433]

5 minutes ago, Will Guide said:

I'm sorry, but I think it's important to see things from the point of view of someone who can't draw like me. And to realize that the word tool means it can be used brilliantly or lazily. The Pony Maker is a tool and therefore can be used very well just as much as being used lazily. It all depends on the person using it, what they're trying to make with the tool and for what reason.

I wasn't trying to attack you like that. More to defend myself. More to point out why I wrote that essay-like post about why the Pony Maker is not automatically a bad thing. I put effort into everything else except drawing my OC, and your original post felt like you were ignoring my hard work. So you can see why I got defensive

I apologise for coming off like I was attacking you. Just trying to make my point clearer. I can respect you calling the Pony Maker lazy as long as you don't call my hard work I do elsewhere lazy.

 

sorry to pour my spoon. calling the pony maker "lazy" is not attacking your hard work on the story of your character. is just that, lazy visuals, which is not bad if you dont want to draw.

[Cash In 23,029]

While I'd much prefer seeing OCs created through other means, I do understand that some don't exactly have many other means to create one. Some just find that it's overused, which is fair as well.

[A Small Bear 60]

If you wanna make a pony OC and aren't all that artistically inclined, I suppose there's not necessarily anything totally wrong with using a pony maker, but to say you can hardly tell the difference is a bit of a stretch, and using a pony OC maker can be seen as kind of effortless.

That said, of course, I'd much rather see a hundred pony maker OCs than a hundred people requesting free art which takes time and effort.

[Misty Shadow 8,195]

The Pony Maker is fine so long as you're using it to create a character you've put time and effort into actually writing a background and a personality for. I don't care what tools you use, I care about the effort and the intention behind the character creation. If you're truly devoted to giving your OC a unique design, you will eventually try to draw it yourself. The problems of it being overused and creating clutter are the fault of people not putting effort into writing a good OC and being complacent with their work. 

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 42,202]

People get far too worked up over characters made with those creators. The entire point of any kind of art is expression and if someone is using it for that purpose, I have no reason to criticize it. 

[CypherHoof 26,483]

I hope to teach myself how to draw well enough to go beyond what a ponymaker can give me... but frankly, that's a high bar.  If I could get a decent model of my pony for (say) opentoon, I would use that instead, but pony models for that seem thin on the ground.

[Kamii 596]

I have nothing against people using pony makers, specially if they just wanna have fun with the thing for a while. But the problem, I suppose, is that the ponies made from those can only be so unique and creative. You have a set number of accessories, characteristics (such as eye shapes, manes, etc.), markings, etc. Again, I've got nothing against using them but if you wish to create a OC, specially one that represents you in some way, you're better off trying your hand at drawing it yourself, making the OC be as personal as it can be to you. Using the pony maker as a start for its creation is understandable, but you could always give it characteristics you wish that make it more unique.

I recall Mad Munchkin did a video about this topic and why she hated it. Check it out if you're interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1t_jl7Clxs

[CypherHoof 26,483]

1 hour ago, Kamii said:

I have nothing against people using pony makers, specially if they just wanna have fun with the thing for a while. But the problem, I suppose, is that the ponies made from those can only be so unique and creative. You have a set number of accessories, characteristics (such as eye shapes, manes, etc.), markings, etc. Again, I've got nothing against using them but if you wish to create a OC, specially one that represents you in some way, you're better off trying your hand at drawing it yourself, making the OC be as personal as it can be to you. Using the pony maker as a start for its creation is understandable, but you could always give it characteristics you wish that make it more unique.

I recall Mad Munchkin did a video about this topic and why she hated it. Check it out if you're interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1t_jl7Clxs

Worst case you can use them as a base and customize though.

[Steve Piranha 29,496]

I know some people can’t, nor have time to learn how to draw, so Pony Maker is a good way to make a draft, an initial concept your OCs looks. However, I do agree on the other side as well: Pony Maker is very limited, making the ponies look generic and bland. Doesn’t help most of them have the same standard pose and face because most don’t even bother to play around with the expressions 

[ExplosionMare 21,317]

It’s probably just the fact that the person didn’t draw out the character. (Or if they try to SELL them!). They’re not bad, pony creators make for decent bases and concepts. It’s just more fun to see someone go beyond the limitations of online pony making rather than making something that can be easily copied.

[EpicEnergy 23,244]

I like them, I see nothing wrong with them.

[Jesse Terrence 2,971]

The problem lies with people relying too much on them and never actually trying to make their own art. The generic pony maker doll seen on avatars over forums and all kind of social media accounts give me a bad vibe, and while I understand most people are uncapable of drawing their own ponies (just as myself), people should try at some point instead of taking a defeatist position and always excusing themselves with a negative mentality of "I just can't".

There's also some heavy offense when you see people actually trying to sell pony maker ponies as adoptables or comissions. And there's even more to point out about this whole pony maker issue, but it all derives from the lazyness of many who won't try anything and take the easy way all the time.