OK I am NOT about to read all that--
but really-- it's very simple--
people can pretty much do whatever they want with
the source and the deciding factor is your votes.
Let me also mention that there is
"A MATTER OF DEGREES" situation here.
which some people are not "GETTING".
PSC is pretty much ALL ABOUT pirating shite and messing it up--
now---straight up just posting a tiny paste and trying to pass as
a full chop is totally allowable--
it is the voters discretion that makes the difference.
I personally wouldnt go busting anyone arse for doing the EZ SLEEZY chop unless
they did it
all the time , and then I'd mention it in their comments everyday in hopes
of damaging the vote count they receive.
Folks, you've been letting this upset ya too much--
minds around here need to be focused on their own
creativity and enjoying the PSc experience.
*edit* oops, f'got this guy-----

i really don't have anymore to say but i wanted to thank everyone who took the time to read this thread and especially those who replied-i genuinely appreciate your points of view

Well, 1st of all, i'm a rookie in Photoshop. And this site, with the contests and forum is helping me alot learning how to use the software at 100%. My first works were very poor, and probably i done the same thing as using great part of stock images without crediting them. I've done that not because i wanted to be recognized by other people's work, but because my resources and knowledge were poor. I think with time i'll be able to use less stock images and more chopping work. And i think this aplies to the one's u mentioned. Give time to people to understand the full essence of Photoshop.

HOLY SMOKES!

This IS WHAT HAPPENS HERE. IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING SINCE I GOT HERE A YEAR AND A HALF AGO. If you ask the OLD OLDIES I'm sure they will agree it has happened since this site was created.

YOU ARE GONNA SAP ALL THE FUN OUT OF IT IF YOU KEEP WORRYING ABOUT SHIT LIKE THIS.

IMAGES ARE USED HERE. "USED". That's what HAPPENS HERE. We MANIPULATE IMAGES here. ANY IMAGE. There is no policy of "HERE IS MY LIST OF PHOTO CREDITS FOR EACH PIXEL I HAVE BORROWED TO CREATE MY AMAZING IMAGE". THANK HEAVENS FOR THAT! - it would suck ALL the fun out of this site (this particular site) to need to worry about that each post.

FUN. This word keeps coming up over and over. The person who designed and created this site, JMH, continually mentions this word: FUN.

It ain't fun for most creative people I know to have to RESEARCH all their sources here, and REPORT all their sources. AND the added horror of being a viewer of final pic and having to POLICE it to make sure that ALL CREDIT HAS BEEN GIVEN HERE - shite, I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

I know I'm ranting on here, and I'm not mad at anyone in particular (specially you Nikon - this matter really needs to be discussed and put to bed!) BUT IF YOU'VE BEEN HERE LESS THAN 1/2 A YEAR THERE IS A RISK THAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THIS SITE YET. I'm not making you "bad" or "stupid" or "wrong", I'm saying THERE IS A REASON THIS SITE IS SO POPULAR WITH THOSE OF US WHO STAY HERE. And for most of us it is because we have FUN here.

Votes. Credit. Praise. Etc. THIS IS NOT WHAT THIS SITE IS ABOUT!

Learning to CHOP. Learning to CHOP better. Helping someone else CHOP better. Giving others a laugh or a "whoa, that's cool!". Smiling your ass off as you either stick your two pixels onto the source, or totally create the next Picasso. THAT IS A PART OF WHAT THIS SITE IS ABOUT.

This is NOT REAL LIFE HERE PEOPLE. Just a wee part of it. You wanna sit on your death bed (hopefully in the far future) and worry about how unfair and misguided PSC was, well you go ahead. IT JUST AIN'T THAT IMPORTANT.

ReinMan Sez: "Shut the F* Up n' CHOP"

(aplause) well said ReinMan! thats why i keep coming here every day!

As I see it, this site is about chopping. To chop, contestants take the
daily image and airbrush their own stuff into it, they can combine two or
more images into one, or blah blah blah...
The point is, take the daily image and make it into something it is not.
Then it is up to the voters to decide whether they think it is a good chop.
The voters understand what it means to chop and they vote based on the
end result. Everyone who can vote knows what it takes to get a good chop.

When I look at this image http://photoshopcontest.com/view-entry/75054/display.html
I can see for myself how much of it is the original daily pic, and how much is added. Do
I think the guy drew the ankles, toes, and shoes? NO! Do I care if the PSC
contestant took the photo of the ankles, toes, and shoes? NO!

I base my decision on the creativity of the idea, and the ability of the
contestant to make me believe the end result is a real possibility.
And of course, this is my $0.02