drdougfresh

Updated the OP with 2015's winners and HOF inductees. Congrats again to all the winners!

I believe Brandon's last post answers that question:

no, it's hard to set a hard date with so many moving parts and no one can put it as #1 priority. but we're moving along well and im excited to reveal the nominees ASAP

We have full time jobs and commitments outside the boards. So yes, compiling a list of the best concepts over the past year has been relegated to a few minutes a day in most of our situations. Sticking to an arbitrary deadline isn't exactly a top priority . Thanks in advance for your patience.

Jordan, Brandon -- thanks for stepping up. Lots going on in the past month, so I honestly haven't had much free time.

If you have a website or Instagram username, use that as part of your watermark. That's how you get free publicity

Every January, amigo. That's our plan, anyway.

To be honest, I think the best defense (even more so than watermarks and all that) is being an active part of a network like Dribbble, Behance, or even here. I've gotten tips from people I've spoken to maybe once before on work that was being shared without attribution, all because I was visible and active on those networks.

So, while it may be tempting to shell up and watermark the ever-living out of your work, keep creating, keep posting it, and the general community will (usually) keep an eye out for your work. Think about it -- there are guys who post work all the time, and you know their styles. I hate to use the ever-common example of Fraser, but his work is unique and he spreads it far and wide. When someone steals his work, everyone knows because they've seen it somewhere. The more often you create those exposure opportunities, the more likely you'll be alerted by a fellow community member (if you don't catch it yourself).

If I see something familiar, I always look around to see if it's something I recognize for a reason, and then let the artist know. Yu Masuda's Bengal actually made it on to one of MVPTees' shirts, so I sent him a quick note.

We're much stronger as a community, think of it that way. It sucks that it happens, but threads like this give me a little bit of hope that our work is somewhat protected still.

I posted something, but I'm sure he'll delete mine too. Reported the post, too. I'll let Fraser know, he's good about this stuff (and entertaining)

well I'm not sure whether he has bought these logos from the maker, but here:

Stolen Saints logo: http://mvptees.com/collections/frontpage/products/kap-copy

Stolen Eagles logo: http://mvptees.com/collections/frontpage/products/t-dallascopy

Stolen Jets logo: http://mvptees.com/collections/football/products/packcopy-1

Stolen Colts logo: http://mvptees.com/collections/football/products/bosscopy

Stolen Browns logo: http://mvptees.com/collections/football/products/luckycopy

& I know he removed others from the site, but here is where the logos came from, I recognized them as soon as I saw them

I seem to recall seeing this Detroit Lions logo posted on here as well: http://mvptees.com/collections/frontpage/products/dencopy

Yep, pretty sure that's -(dp)-'s work...

Watermarking the hell out of my concepts hasn't helped. avconcepts went private and he's blocked me. Anybody want to spy on him?

That's kinda my point.

His bio now says "I make my own designs/logos and. (post concepts from all over )"

I asked him to stop 2 months ago, and he posted more. It wont stop me from creating and posting. Its just really annoying

I'm working on it. Then we can report the same way as the other account.

Looks like mvptees is out of commission -- no posts on their account. Nice work guys!

3/100 would be perfect.

I have also volunteered (and will continue to) to be a concepts moderator. It's something that's sorely missing, as GotPixels' flameout thread proved.

We'll be announcing the nominees for the 2013 Creamer Awards this evening! Stay tuned.

A big thank you to the award's namesake for pinning this for us. It appears that no one lords over concepts as a mod anymore (and Gary for sending Chris a message on FB for us).

We're shooting for a 4/1 announcement of nominees, pending the panel's schedules. We've got nearly 50 pages of concepts threads to sift through, so it will take some time to gather a list.

If a mod could pin this, that'd be awesome

Seconded.

The fact that a thread hasn't been pinned since 2010 is a bit concerning... I've reached out to several mods and haven't heard back. It'd be nice if we had a mod for (or at least a current mod that watched) the concepts section...

If a mod could pin this, that'd be awesome

It's not "just awards." It's a thread and concept dedicated to enshrining and awarding the best of the best. The initial 12 were the starting base that Matt and I felt needed to be enshrined. Going forward, 7 people a year will be selected as winners to join those 12 as winners of The Creamer Award.

The Academy (or Hall of Fame) will be selected by the panel on an annual basis. This will include 3 users and 5 concepts every year, as well as the one member and concept that won Best Concept. Each panel member will nominate their top 10, and we'll use a reverse point system to determine the top 3 members and top 5 concepts for that year's enshrinement. Again, for starters, we've enshrined the recipients of the first Creamer Awards.

If you read the OP, the Academy and Award Winners are spelled out pretty clearly.

Now that's an acceptance speech, Robb We're happy to have you listed as a charter member, you've inspired a lot of people to do great work on the forums.

Just a heads up to everyone that I've laid everything out a little better, and the panel has been set. I'd encourage you to take the time to read through it.

////

As a bit of a kickoff, we're going to be announcing finalists for the 2013 Creamer Awards in the coming weeks, with the "Awards Show" being held on April 1st. Stay tuned!

There are 2 more that we're still ironing out at the moment, but as mgdmhl said, there will always be snubs.

GFB and I have been working on the structure a little bit more today, I'll post some revisions this evening.

The concepts world is changing and growing every day, this is going to be an ever-growing Academy of concept artists. GFB and I drew heavy inspiration from the Academy Awards for this concept. It's meant to highlight the best of the best, selected by the best.

// GUIDELINES //

Recipients of the prestigious Creamer Award will be measured against the following guidelines:

• Quality over Quantity (10 exceptional concepts are better than 95 standard concepts)
• Original Ideas
• Deep and Well Rounded (does the concept go above and beyond?)
• Concept Originated on or near the CCSLC

None of these criteria are impossible by any means, but they will require dedication, innovation, and a certain "x-factor" that is not found commonly in concepts.

// AWARDS //

On an ongoing basis, we will be awarding 7 awards per year:

• Best Overall Concept
• Best (Individual Sport) Concept
• Best Concept Series
• Rookie Of The Year
• Most Improved
• Most Helpful C&C Giver
• Best New Template

Members winning Creamer Awards will receive their own award photo for use in their signature/avatar, as well as a permanent link commemorating their victory, listed below.

// HALL OF FAME & THE ACADEMY //

The Academy (or Hall of Fame) will be selected by the panel on an annual basis. This will include 3 users and 5 concepts every year, as well as the one member and concept that won Best Concept. Each panel member will nominate their top 10, and we'll use a reverse point system to determine the top 3 members and top 5 concepts for that year's enshrinement. In addition to being inducted into The Academy, these users will be allowed to vote on future ballots for The Creamers.

// THE PANEL //

Nominations and voting will be handled by a panel consisting of the following community members:

• drdougfresh - Doug Houvener
• GFB - Matt Kauzlarich
• CJWorks - CJ Zilligen
• raysox - Michael Taylor
• mattwillcox - Matt Willcox
• creativelysain - Jordan Sain

// THE MISSION //

I have no doubt that many of us (if not a majority) found and joined this forum because of the concepts section. We've learned from it, been frustrated by it, been inspired by it, and been disappointed by it. It's been the springboard for several people's careers, reignited others' design passions, and even taught several people new skills. It's a rare cache of creative activity and feedback, and it's something that we need to nurture, or it's going to continue to decline in health. These awards are a way to create something for new and established artists to compete for, to aspire to, and to be proud of. It is my hope that the community will openly compete for these awards, and hold them in high regard.

There are 12 Inaugural Creamer Award Recipients, listed below. These are concepts and threads hand-picked by GFB and I to represent the best overall body of work, and serve as a general guideline for the standard of excellence The Creamers dictate.

Davidson // CJWorks // PCGD // Raysox // Jaha32 // Robbman21 // Sparky Chewbarky // JuliusSeizure // AndrewHarrington // Conrad // Ren69 // GFB // Buc

// CHARTER WINNERS //

3D Rendered Helmet Tutorial // Davidson // THREAD // AWARD

Personal Football League Redesgin // CJWorks // THREAD // AWARD

The America League // PCGD // THREAD // AWARD

Yakball Association // Raysox // THREAD // AWARD

Elite Basketball Alliance // Jaha32 // THREAD // AWARD

Alternate Universe Series // Robbman21 // THREAD // AWARD

4 New NHL Teams That Should Be // Sparky Chewbarky // THREAD // AWARD

International Football League // JuliusSeizure // THREAD // AWARD

Adidas Techfit and Nike Pro Combat Vector Templates // AndrewHarrington // THREAD // AWARD

Fonts by Conrad // Conrad // THREAD // AWARD

Updating Vintage Logos // Ren69 // THREAD // AWARD

The New Blue & Gold Project // js° // THREAD (IMG / IMG / IMG / ARTICLE) // AWARD

// DISPLAYING YOUR AWARD //

Should you receive a Creamer Award and decide to display it in your signature, it is highly recommended that you point the image back to this thread, so this becomes a point of reference for future members.

// REASONING //

These awards are not a competition. We don't want people rushing their concepts, trying to sneak in under-the-wire to make the awards. In fact, we're hoping for the exact opposite, that this causes the artists of this forum to slow down and really dive into their concepts. We're trying to recognize the artists and members who go above and beyond, even when there wasn't seemingly an award for it.

// PREVIOUS WINNERS //

2014 Awards Ceremony

Best Concept // drdougfresh - 2013 NCFA Media Guide //

Best Individual Concept // mcrosby - Navy Midshipmen Logo //

Best Concept Series // raysox - US Soccer 2030 //

Most Improved // CAB - Sample //

Rookie of the Year // Daniel_Ramone93 - Sample //

Best C&C // BrandMooreArt //

Best New Template // Jayjackson3 -- “New Baseball Template” //

2015 Awards Ceremony

Best Concept // drdougfresh - 2014 NCFA Media Guide //

Best Individual Concept // AndrewHarrington - For the Pittsburgh People //

Best Concept Series // TheOneAndOnlyMau - NCFA Nike Pursuit Series //

Most Improved // JCRGraphix - Sample //

Rookie of the Year // McElroy19 - Sample //

Best C&C // MBannon92 //

Best New Template // TheOneAndOnlyMau - “Riddell Speed Flex Helmet” //

Ugliest commonly-used helmet/facemask combo to date:

If they are staying in Glendale, they should be the Arizona Coyotes because it makes better sense.

In case anyone would like to relive the fun:

Ah, thank you! I was wanting to use the statements from the public in this week's podcast.

Edit: This is definitely the meeting from last night, but why the hell are the dates so wrong in the link?

Edit 2: ...or maybe it's not the same meeting, it just featured the same people...

You're right -- didn't even look at the date. Sorry about that. Like you said, though, same :censored:/different day.

When it's uploaded, though, here's where yesterday's will be: http://glendale-az.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=1871

In case anyone would like to relive the fun:

They're talking about building more strip malls around Westgate!?

Right, because the current ones are just bustling. Westgate is such a weird area, I'll never understand it. It's in a bad area, and it's trying to be "the spot" in probably one of the more inconvenient locations in the valley (which I've maintained has been a large reason for the Jobing.com failure pile).

I'm just glad most of you now understand what we transplants get to put up with when we go see our teams play here.

When a city has to sell off its own facilities to pay for a for-profit enterprise, something is terribly wrong. The team has NEVER EVER made profit, neither will it ever make profit in the desert. I wouldn't be surprised if businesses all around Glendale start closing up shop soon, eventually leaving only the Jobberdome left there. Congratulations, Glendale, you're on your way to becoming a ghost town.

Stupid move, yeah. But you're seriously misguided if you think Glendale as a whole is suffering because of this. The part of Glendale that the arena is in is already pretty depressed already -- but to the north, economically speaking, anyway, Glendale is doing pretty well. The city is home to the most millionaires in the valley, and is a pretty large retail profit center in this quadrant of the valley. I doubt it becomes a ghost town as a result of this.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Should've moved the team a few miles away from downtown to south Scottsdale. Would've been a much better result.