@ lmckenzie - i'd entirely agree with you (instead of mostly)  if i saw in the movies produced after the birth of the video camera the same lack of individuality i do on this site  i didn't, and still don't.  i mean, i know that even porn got lower quality with the advent of the video camera and that the industry exploded.  but so did indie documentaries, animation, and other genres.  the underground of film was very diverse, and in my opinion, more diverse than here. i don't think it's just the democratization of tools.  it's also the particular culture of Poserdom.   i think it's due to a number of different factors, but i'm not sure what they are.

more people make stuff, but fewer seem to make original stuff.  most of the artists and merchants i've followed who have made original stuff (in my opinion, of course) have left the community.  some are still here, and i search pretty hard for new ones. i'm noticing that it's much harder than it used to be.  even a year ago i found more of certain styles of work in the gallery.

i'm not thinking about the exclusivity.  quite the opposite.  i've watched a lot of people whose work i respect (including newcomers who were just picking up Poser) turn away from this community and its culture over the years.  i sometimes think we don't realize how many are in fact pushed away by the culture, and turn away from what they see as a community that has no place for their type of work.  i mean, yeah, the site as a whole grows.  but as far as i've seen, the cultures of all the Poser sites are consolidating and becoming more uniform.  which isn't bad if you don't miss the diversity.  i do.

@moriador - i pretty much agree with you, too, except that photographers can do just Playboy  and Maxim shots with different women pretty easily.  and in fact, most of the photographers i follow here have left, too. again, i actively search for new ones, but i'm finding fewer and fewer.  i'm actually seeing some (not much, but some) of the uniformity of the dominant Poser/D|S culture creep into some of the other areas here.  while on other non-Poser gallery sites i look at, that doesn't seem to be happening.

i have a lot of sites for photo galleries and photographers bookmarked, and i haven't seen one like you describe.  but i'm most definitely not a photographer, so i don't know the culture or the online hang-outs like you probably do (from how you speak of them).

@Trekkie-Grrl - thanks so much for your creations.  i've followed your work for a while, and it's always been interesting.   i'm definitely not saying i think merchants shouldn't mix it up.  i'm not even trying to tell merchants what to sell like the "we want male clothes," "we want ordinary contemporary clothes," and "we want stuff for kids," threads.  i don't even think it's just merchants contributing to the state of the market, or it probably would change.  i think it's all of us.  and i'm very glad that you continue to be able to do your own thing.

@Apple_UK - as i mentioned to RobynsVeil last night/this morning, after looking at your work, i have no clue why you reacted to any of the statements here, including mine, as if your work had been criticized. that's not insight into your psyche, that's reporting on your behavior.  your work is high quality modeling (an area i never complained about despite you posting as if i had), and very original.  you are actually the type of artist i find it harder and harder to find.  i really  hope you put aside your emotional reaction to critiques and start selling.  i would hope that you could make a good amount of money, and i know that you would add to the diversity of the marketplace which i personally appreciate.

if you think it's unreasonable to have an opinion on creativity, well, that's very unusual. people comment on the creativity of all the fields i mentioned all the time.  just as an example, most conversations about any movie or movies in general that i've witnessed or have been a part of, both online and in real life, at some point touched on whether the movie was original and interesting or not.  and a fairly large percentage of those conversations touched on the originality of the film industry in general.  i see no reason why this community should be exempt from the same kind of analysis.

that said, i never said anyone was obligated to be creative.  i said i wish the community as a whole took more creative risks.  maybe you feel people are obligated to give you what you wish, but i do not.

as for your comments on my creativity, well, i acknowledge you  moving to personal attacks but i'm not going to respond in kind.