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UnderwoodART ![Pixel Perfection - I still call her Lightning Bolt Pixel Perfection - I still call her Lightning Bolt](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2024/3/31/1f17ded0-ef99-11ee-bd4e-02420a040004.svg)
![Shimmering Smile - Celebrated the 10th anniversary of Equestria Girls! Shimmering Smile - Celebrated the 10th anniversary of Equestria Girls!](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2023/7/6/544e36ac-1c28-11ee-8081-02420a010003.svg)
![Lunar Supporter - Helped forge New Lunar Republic's freedom in the face of the Solar Empire's oppressive tyrannical regime (April Fools 2023). Lunar Supporter - Helped forge New Lunar Republic's freedom in the face of the Solar Empire's oppressive tyrannical regime (April Fools 2023).](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2023/4/10/d88562ee-d7cf-11ed-afca-02420a020002.svg)
![Crystal Roseluck - Had their OC in the 2023 Derpibooru Collab. Crystal Roseluck - Had their OC in the 2023 Derpibooru Collab.](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2023/3/13/16787364340110250268177214.svg)
![Princess of Love - Extra special version for those who participated in the Canterlot Wedding 10th anniversary event by contributing art. Princess of Love - Extra special version for those who participated in the Canterlot Wedding 10th anniversary event by contributing art.](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2022/5/17/16527867596721690117334532.svg)
![Elements of Harmony - Had an OC in the 2022 Community Collab Elements of Harmony - Had an OC in the 2022 Community Collab](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2022/4/11/16496396930975760206846861.svg)
![Non-Fungible Trixie - Non-Fungible Trixie -](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2022/3/27/16483897828892240272071532.svg)
![Magical Inkwell - Wrote MLP fanfiction consisting of at least around 1.5k words, and has a verified link to the platform of their choice Magical Inkwell - Wrote MLP fanfiction consisting of at least around 1.5k words, and has a verified link to the platform of their choice](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2017/6/26/409657cfd64cb9feaf0146f.svg)
![Kinship Through Differences - Celebrated the 11th anniversary of MLP:FIM! Kinship Through Differences - Celebrated the 11th anniversary of MLP:FIM!](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2021/11/7/163631883453143704211737.svg)
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![An Artist Who Rocks - 100+ images under their artist tag An Artist Who Rocks - 100+ images under their artist tag](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2016/8/20/3862717a1e365bc5678193c.svg)
![Ten years of changes - Celebrated the 10th anniversary of MLP:FiM! Ten years of changes - Celebrated the 10th anniversary of MLP:FiM!](https://derpicdn.net/badges/2020/10/27/16038403983553320293616533.svg)
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Just Another Pink Pony
I’ve found a little magic that could greatly help art conservation for images and accounts already deleted from DeviantART.
Step 1: Go to the Wayback Machine and put in the deviation’s address if you know it, or try to navigate there via the deviant’s page or gallery (gallery offset probably won’t work, ‘solid’ links only). I was shocked to find that a no-name artist’s work had been archived in 2015, so it may well have been a site-wide backup; mileage may vary.
Step 2: Once the page with the image is loading, tap Ctrl+I to open Page Info (in Firefox), and navigate to the Media tab. Sort by file type and scroll down to the Images. Once you find what you believe to be the main image (it will share the name of the deviation’s link, and probably be the largest one), copy that link from the list (it will end in .JPG, .PNG, etc.). Don’t worry if the image isn’t loading in Wayback.
Step 3: Open Derpibooru’s reverse image search (or go directly to upload if you’re sure it’s not here already) and paste the link into the “fetch” bar. Remove Wayback Machine from the link so it begins with “http˸//img05․deviantart․net”, and fetch. As if cast by Star Swirl himself, the image should magically load in the preview! You can also put this link into your browser, to check the image at full size.
I have done this with two images now (albeit from the same artist), and for some reason it just works. Despite Wayback not being able to load the images, Derpibooru can somewhow yank them straight out of DA’s ancient cache. Give it a try and let me know if it works for you! As a staunch advocate for preserving all works of fan art (regardless of the artist’s wishes), I find this extremely exciting, and I hope others will make use of this method to preserve as much as they can!
Bonus Step: Thanks to the Wayback Machine loading the deviation’s page if not the image, you can also preserve the original description, which I highly recommend quoting in your upload!