How much would you pay for a *COMMISSION* ?

I uh, always feel a little guilty asking for money for what I do.. because I know there are many who do this way bettert han I can. so usually I only charge barely enough to cover my costs..

Of course I think each piece needs to be priced according to the amount of work that goes into it. Small, little pieces that take an hour or so to compose, shouldn't cost as much as something you spend a couple days on.

For a signature type piece, or a wallpaper, and the fact that the pieces can be used over and over again (unlike oil paint/canvas, etc.), as well as the general intangible nature of the piece, I've rarely seen anything I would spend more than $100 for. This doesn't mean there isn't digital art out there that I don't think might be worth it...but I've yet to see much that is being offered for sale, nor can I imagine what a piece like that would look like really.

/shrug I know with the craft things I make to sell, I never get compensated for the actual time that goes into the piece. If I can recoup the cost of materials, and a little more, I'm happy. To really make good money I think you need to deal in quantity, or create things so phenomenonal that the 'wow' factor allows higher prices.

Just some of my thoughts.

Scenario 1:
1 Basic character - no background.

you get a brilliant idea and spend 2 hours on it. You charge client $60.

Scenario 2:
1 Basic character - no background

you're stumped for days, you don't like what you keep coming up with, you still charge client $60.

.. there is no gray area for that sort of thing den, the only time you charge different is when the client keep changing their mind about what they want and having you redo it.

Sorry Vex - but I think for that type of graphic it should be the same price. The time involved for composing the pic, whether it takes you 10 minutes or two days, shouldn't be passed on to the consumer. I think too that both parties need a really good communication between each other up front, so the risk of not getting it right quickly is lessened.

And if once the initial 'sketch' is completed and agreed upon, then yea, any changes by the customer should be reflected in additional costs.

I've paid from begin $5.00 right up to $300.00 for individual commissions. If the style and quality of work produced by the artist is worth it, then I tend to pay the asking rate.

I will and have paid 100+ bucks for commissions. I'm quite vain in that respect =D I suppose some people can look at a certain medium and think that one shouldn't charge as much as the next. Personally, I believe in paying for time invested or just paying a base price. Examples...

I used to charge 60 bucks for a screenshot sig/mag/desktop. For poser, the limited commissions I've done - I've charged people for the components. If someone changes their mind midstream - I either won't do it and not charge additionally or make the change and definitely charge up the wazzoo for my wasted time.

Art from Adiene, Vex, Sabby, etc - Personally I think you undercharge, but that's me. Charging 100 bucks for a portrait sig isn't unreasonable to me - it had just better be exactly what I want. With that being said, I would make it clear to the artist that I'd like to approve WIP's so I'm not stuck with something I don't want. To artists - showing your WIP's will save you time in the long run.

Honestly, considering my stuff is still crap, I wouldn't know what to charge if someone actually said they wanted me to do something. But if I wanted Vex/Adi/Sabby to do something for me, I'd be willing to pay at least $100. Again, considering that I'm still learning and even though my stuff is crap, it's still just for me, so I won't be needing to buy anything. LOL. But I would charge at least $100 plus costs if they want something special that you know you've seen and would have to buy.

Let me also ask this--when you do a commission, do you create the character yourself? Do you take like V4 and manually make the character yourself, or do you use a pre-made character? If you make the character from scratch, you need to charge at least $200 for the piece, because making the character from scratch is a pain in the ass. I've tried it, and after an hour I gave up. If it's from scratch, you need to charge out the wazzu!

The lowest that I've charged someone is $100 (for a small, simple sig) and the highest is $350. If I'm doing a full-on painting at a high resolution for a commission, I'll charge at the very least $250.

I usually will work on a big piece over the better part of a month. I always have a lot of communication with whomever I'm working with, and I keep them up to date with something akin to a private WIP thread so that they can see where I'm headed. My full paintings end up averaging $300 -- I spend 40+ total working on those.

I think a rock-bottom minimum for any piece in any medium no matter how simple should be $60. If you are taking professional care of someone's needs and expectations, it really is a big deal. For a reasonable minimum, I have to agree with WildHunt on her pricing terms.

I think pricing protects the artist from being trampled by a client. Someone paying $100+ will be in a more respectful frame of mind than someone paying $15. We aren't vending machines, we are people spending what would otherwise be our precious free time making someone else's dreams and expectations come true.