Advice on what to charge for Commission work...

[dj fatman]

i have just started doing commission work and found a simple way to price for me. i charge 50% of the price of the mini or box set. i just love to paint and am trying to build up a reputation again after 15 years out. im going to try to post some examples of my stuff up when i get a decent cam. just using my galaxy s2 cam and cant get it to focus.

i did win northern ireland heat of golden deamon 3 years in a row and won the games day speed painting comp many years ago, but now ive started learning nmm and airbrushin thanks to the guys here.

i guess you have to price your work acording to how much you value yourself. how much would you be happy paying for the quality of work you produce? its trial and error but you will find your own ballence you are happy with.

 

[StillLifeMiniatures]

I've always had trouble with pricing but I had some help from a long time customer to find a formula. I charge 1.5 to double the retail price of the model as a base price. It includes the paint, assembly, basing, some freehand... simple stuff. If there is sculpting, lavish freehand, custom bases, then I add a little more. With wargaming models this generally comes to $10 per figure for infantry and more for characters due to the price increase of the actual mini for better details. If it's a large commission that will make a repeat customer, then I take some of the price down.

I think the most important thing to remember is that you need to do this because you love it. If it's solely to make money then it will show in your work and you have a difficult time finding commissions. I take commissions because I'm not a collector or gamer but I really enjoy painting..... pretty much anything.
The second lesson I've learned is to stay communicative with your customers and keep your prices a little flexible.

Good luck with everything....

 

[dj fatman]

thanks so much guys. 1st client just took away his calgar and i told him to pay what he thought was fair since he was taking it back to his friends. he paid £85 which floored me and he even refused when i tried to give him most of it back. im a painter first and collector next. ive never been into the gaming side as it just too expensive for the average joe to get it started but i do so much love painting. its like a drug to me and this site has been a godsend to me after being out of the game for so long.