A vector is a type of digital image built from shapes instead of pixels, which can be scaled indefinitely and modified without loss of quality. They look like this. You can find a more detailed description on Wikipedia.

What does it look like to create a vector?

How can vector files be used?

Only a few programs can create vectors!
Examples of proper vector programs are Inkscape (free, most recommended), Illustrator (also recommended), Ponyscape (experimental derivative of Inkscape, recommended), and Photoshop (not recommended), while programs which CANNOT make vectors are, for example, GIMP and Paint.NET.

Membership in this group is only for people who create vectors that can be contributed to our gallery.
But please note that you have the ability to watch us for new deviations by simply clicking the +Watch button on the sidebar to the left. If you do want to join first read the rules listed below under How to Join. Requests are NOT automatically accepted and if you haven't read the rules you will not qualify!

This group has a high quality standard.
Please- we know it's really difficult, but please don't take it personally when we point out problem areas and ask for fixes in your vectors- this is normal. We have nothing but a tremendous amount of respect for anyone willing to put themselves out there and create new material, so we just want to see your work be the best it can be, and are willing to volunteer our own time to help you out with that. It means you have our support in making show accurate work- if that is what you're going for. To that end, we watch out for gallery submissions with the common errors explained in our illustrated pony quality guide and tell you about it so that it can meet our Submission Rules. r/MLPvectors on Reddit is another great community for vectors that specializes in helping newcomers.

Members who are banned, who delete their accounts or haven't submitted anything for 6 months may be removed until they return with new material that meets the current group standards.

When you use an existing vector, link to the source to credit the original author.
Adding a watermark or refusing to acknowledge the content owner is considered serious art theft. Follow sharing etiquette! If the owner stated they want no reuses of their work you should never be posting any.

The admins have the right to make the final call in all group related decisions. We WILL judge all gallery submissions based on subjective criteria, including whether your work is safe for kids, has a high quality design, good colors, and a close resemblance to the show. We have the right to remove gallery items that have already been accepted for subjective reasons as well. Membership is not guaranteed to anyone, and we can remove users from the group if we decide it is necessary.

You MUST have a least 4 show-accurate pony vectors that meet our Submission Rules in your gallery made entirely by you, so we can see if your work has the quality we're looking for.

If you get declined, you can always try again in the future. There's no harm in getting a denial from us. Also, remember that you can simply add the group to your deviantWatch (click the +Watch button on the left sidebar) to see new vectors added to the gallery.

Submit a membership request by pressing the "Join our Group" button in the sidebar. Please let us know you agree to our rules via the button at the bottom of this post. If you have any questions you can add them to the body of your post to get a reply. Please post the links to your 4 vector works you want in the group, and please tell us what program you made them with.

We only allow show-accurate images - with the notable exception of the Original Style folder. You can do crossovers, edits, ponysonas, etc, but they have to be on-model to the show's style.

Low quality, low accuracy, rough images are not accepted here. Please practice, read a tutorial and be sure to read the illustrated quality guide, or we'll explain these problems to you when we see them.

The only accepted raster format is PNG. JPEGs are not accepted due to the format's lossy compression. Download links for more formats can be put in the description.

Please post your SVGs, PSDs, AIs, FLAs and other vector source files with a Sta.sh download link in the deviation's description. Tutorial here. Vector source files are mandatory for anything that contains traces from the show, but are optional for everything else. You can also upload them to your Scraps, Minus (but create an account so your file won't expire), Dropbox, or another file host. Other file hosts shouldn't have fake download links or other bad ads, or restrictions on guest downloads.

Exported images must be high resolution, so upload your work at minimum 3k x 3k, and recommended 6k x 6k+ so it's as detailed as possible. This applies to ALL submissions including cutie marks and objects.  Wallpapers are the one exception; see the wallpapers section below.

Do not put a watermark on your image, and if there is text that isn't central to the image please submit another version without it. On an OC you could only put a signature if it is very unobtrusive, but this is heavily discouraged. They are distracting and disrupt the file, making it useless for people who would like to use it for other projects or personal use. Any submission with DeviantArt's watermark will be denied.

Content in the group should be safe for all audiences including younger kids, like the show is. For this reason we judge submissions for child safety for each particular case, and reject anything unsuitable for our group's standard. The most that's allowed is light shipping (cute and not suggestive), and very small amounts of blood like a small cut.

To prevent flooding our gallery and watchers, instead of sending in different versions of the same image, send a pack of the full collection. You can use a ZIP download or links to the other deviations in the description. There is a limit of six deviation submissions per day to prevent members from submitting their entire galleries all at once.

In addition to our main folders, there are a number of subfolders. Group, CMC, Celestia and Luna, Minor Characters, Villains, Resources - Objects and stuff, Tutorials, and Other have subfolders.

If it has a background put it in "With Background", but if it is a background alone, put it in "Backgrounds" instead. OCs with backgrounds still go in the OCs folder.

Individual ponies from the Mane 6 should be put in their respective folders if they are in the same style as the show. Otherwise, they are put in the "Other" folder.

Desktop wallpapers go in the "Wallpapers" folder. We do not accept JPG format images, but you can put formats other than PNG in the description. Submissions to this folder must NOT be the kind of content anyone can create in a matter of minutes, and they have to be entirely or almost fully vector based and at a large display resolution 1920x1080 and above. Please include your vector file as well!

2+ canon characters should be put in "Group". Groups of OCs still go in the OCs folder, and mixtures of canon and OC go in "Group".

OCs must be high quality just like any other vector submitted to us. Also, they can't be based on any pose from a pony creator, or be recolors of a canon character or an existing vector.

All ponies that don't have their own folders, but are more popular and well-known are in "Minor Characters". This includes subfolders for characters like DJ P0N-3, Octavia, Lyra and Bon-Bon.

Winged Twilight Sparkle (alicorn Twilight) has a special subfolder in the "Princesses" folder, called "Princess Twilight Sparkle".

Generally obscure characters should be put in "Background Characters".

Non-pony creatures, animals and pets should be put in "Creatures and pets".

Villains and bad or 'mean' characters (including Gilda, Trixie, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon) should be put in "Antagonists".

Objects and the like should be put in "Resources - Objects and stuff". Please remember that this folder has multiple subfolders, so submit your deviation to them if you think that there is one that fits!

Crossovers with characters from other media should be put in "Crossovers".

Cutie Marks, either from the show or OC, should be put in "Resources - Cutie Marks".

Animated works should be put in the "Other - Animations" folder. FLA, SWF, SVG and APNG are accepted, but not GIFs alone! GIFs are a poor choice of format for publishing your work if you don't provide alternatives, because they can only have 256 colors and very rough transparency, where the others have full support for millions of colors and transparency.

Vector-related guides should be put in "Tutorials".

Anything in a very different style from the show goes in "Other - Original style", including ponies with no fills or only black outlines.

"Other" includes everything that does not fit any of the remaining folders, such as logos, templates and miscellaneous characters.

The administrators are keen-eyed volunteer vector artists from the community, who run the group and double-check submissions for problems before they are approved.

Please understand that denying submissions is the most difficult action required of us to keep the group going. Much of the effort spent when critiquing you is to deliver the advice without causing offense by sounding unintentionally hurtful. We are dedicated to giving everyone who is denied the information they need to work on their issues and have their work accepted.

Every resource should be provided for in the group description, so please read it through. If there's anything else, feel free to contact one of us with a comment on the main page or a note, and we can answer questions or give constructive criticism.