Behold - I'm fooling around with various ideas on internet popularity, when it comes to DA. No, not how to gain it, but what it seems to mean about the people who watch someone. Not so much about the person who's being watched.
For various commissions I've put out, by favorites on DA amongst three ladies of great skill:
Jennifer's work I don't have access to the list of pieces by favorite count, so... yeah. Thus no third column for her pieces. I use these pieces because they a) are the top three artists' pieces b) also are the top eleven of my commissions for fav count. It also brings up some interesting points, especially while I was looking over the gallery info for both Oni and Kacey.
For instance, Oni has a piece that, I'm sure,
boggles her mind as to why it's quite so popular. From her comments, I'm seriously doubting that she ever expected to see 10,084 (as of this writing) Favorites&Collections on it. She isn't even watched by that many people. Most of her most popular work is fanart - not exactly unexpected as most of her exposure is at anime cons. Over on FA, she doesn't have quite as many watchers, which ties into the differing subject matter and that she's only been there since 2006 rather than 2002.
On the other hand, Kacey thrives primarily on commissions... but the work she does to push herself often rates quite highly. Of interesting note, at least to me, is that Dance of Five Tails and Dancing in the Dark are so similar in count, but the people favoriting them don't overlap all that much, nor do the commenters. Of course, the content is wildly different too... I think this has something to do with why her favs/piece is so much more moderated, even without taking into effect that outlier that Oni's got. She carries a more diverse interest group, showing a rather wide range of interests in the furry fandom. Most of whom are quite capable of appreciating expensive artwork.
Also interestingly, Trimming the Tree got the most comments (77) from any of these pieces. That, at least, I can work out some of the reasoning behind - it elicited so many warm emotions from people.
Thirdly, in somewhat distant place, we have Jennifer. Who I doubt minds not having hundreds of favs... gunning for, aiming at, or even accepting the lime-light isn't her style. Like with Kacey's pieces, the happy dancing picture does well - this seems to be a universal "yay" subject. Lovely Rita is pretty recent, likely benifiting from people also liking the Charolette and Tiffany works, as well as being her featured piece. As for Krinele Reading - well, the description says plenty. Jenn's watch-base is a niche group who can appreciate a good space bear smashing things for the emotional merit. Plus your rabid art-loving fans who may fall over themselves when she does offer the occassional badge or pinup for a convention's art show.
Basically, e-popularity is an interesting thing, and all analysis of it should be treated with as much seriousness as e-popularity itself. None. I've been bored these past hours that I've been meaning to actually go to bed during, and... yeah. It shows.
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databank's journal
Re: general popularity on dA, I think we all know what's popular on there. On the lower end are good emotions, especially dancing or action shots, but at the higher end are a) a certain female figure type, b) showing off, c) bare, d) in a photograph. You get more view/fav/comments the further you go up that chain. It's made some folks feel quite spiteful.
Fanart adds another dimension, adding an immense number of fans depending on how popular the original work is. And of course, artistic ability and blind luck have a lot to do with it as well (I know of a few artists on there with wonderful styles, but very few views. Fewer than Jennifer by far... sadly, many have left, and I've lost the links.)
And finally, "Fields of Naruto" wins for a different reason. Fishcake fishcake soup!