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Made a start on my Grand Plan to have a decent number of small originals for my table at A-Kon. This is the first.
Mugen, from Samurai Champloo, natch.
With any luck by the time I've finished all this I'll have a better hang of markers. His face turned out kind of interesting although the subtleties wher e- hah! - killed by the scanner, although his clothing ended up my normal boring markery stuff. The paper is Deleter A6 postcard-size paper.
You think $10 would be a decent price for things this size? It's kinda small, but OTOH it took me the better part of 3 hours to do it. Hrm.
Mugen, from Samurai Champloo, natch.
With any luck by the time I've finished all this I'll have a better hang of markers. His face turned out kind of interesting although the subtleties wher e- hah! - killed by the scanner, although his clothing ended up my normal boring markery stuff. The paper is Deleter A6 postcard-size paper.
You think $10 would be a decent price for things this size? It's kinda small, but OTOH it took me the better part of 3 hours to do it. Hrm.
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*Will probably buy something from you at A-Kon. Money-allowing.*
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Next do Jin!
Maybe you should do larger originals-- they might take the same time but you could charge more.
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PS
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BWC Photo Imaging
http://www.bwc.net/
They have a price booklet on the site
http://www.bwc.net/pricebook/PriceBook.pdf
For ED2's cover, I had a it photographed then a 4x5 slide of it made which I took home and scanned (this was done for other covers). The number I remember for that was $35?, but it's been a while. I've had a drum scan done for one thing, which for the life of me I can't remember what it was, but it was rather large, 17x20? It ran $80 or $100 I think. I can't remember why we went with drum scanning over the slide option.
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But speaking of cons, I've been meaning to work up the nerve to ask you for some advice for a while now. I'll be selling in an artist's alley for the first time, at Animazement (in Durham, NC) in a couple weeks, and I desperately need some advice. I guess what I'm most lost about is how many prints I should make of each picture. I have NO IDEA how many I'll need, or what stuff will sell better than other stuff. I've done fanart from Inuyasha, Bleach, Naruto, FMA, Rurouni Kenshin, and D N Angel, to mention the main stuff anyway, but I really don't know what will sell the best. Animazement is a mid-sized con (around 3,000 attended last year), but its artist's alley was really good last year, and it has an art contest and auction as well, which a lot of cons don't.
Anyway, I'd really appreciate any advice you have. *grovels* Here's a link to my DeviantArt gallery (http://eldanis.deviantart.com/gallery/), if you want to get a better idea of the saleability of my stuff.
Okay, shutting up and returning to stalker-mode now...
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My really really big profit-makers are the 11x17" prints for $12. Man, they go like hotcakes, and it only cost me $1-2 for each. I do need to generate a few more of those for the con.
Anyway: amounts to print. I don't know. I never get it right. :) OTOH, I sell at at least 2 cons per year, and if I make too many for one con, it's just backstock for the next con. Things I've noticed:
People buy for the character, not for the quality of the art for the most part, although a well-done Kenshin will sell better than a crappy Kenshin, and as your art is pretty darn good, you'll sell better than will someone who's not as good in the alley.
Fanboys don't buy art. Fangirls buy art. Your shirtless bishounen will do well. :D
No matter how many prints you make, you'll sell out of some things and not sell out of others. And you won't be able to figure out which is which or why.
I would look at how much it's going to cost you to make the prints (ink, paper, whatever), how much you're planning on selling them for, assume you'll sell 30-50% of them, and work out how many you need to sell to at least cover your base costs for the con - hotel, food, table, etc.
Of the ones you've listed, I'd suggest hitting the Bleach, Naruto, FMA, and InuYasha harder - things on Adult Swim will probably be more popular. My Rurouni Kenshin things sell well only when RK fans drop by, but my Saiyuki and Inu-Yasha go like mad.
Also consider offering deals: $5 each but 3 for $12, or $8 each but 3 for $20. That tends to push people juuust that little edge over into giving you a bit more money. :D
Be friendly and approachable - I know I'm more likely to buy from someone if they make eye contact adn say hello. I won't buy from someone who ignores me, or who continues talking to someone while I'm standing there trying to catch their eye (obviously, I don't want to interrupt a transaction or some industry schmoozing, but just a quick "I'll be with you in a minute" that shows they're not ignoring me is good). I also remain nice to the people who say up front that they don't have any money - people do remember artists from year to year and come back for specific artists. If I let someone look through my stuff when they have no money, if they see something they like they'll often come back for it next year.
People will paw through your stuff, drop junk on top of it, sit on it, and put sweating drinks on top of it. If you don't have bags on it, or don't have it in a portfolio, keep only one copy out for the masses to get their grubby paws all over it and keep the rest safe. GAH I've had trouble with people dropping a load of stuff on top of original pieces. *twitch*
If you do con sketches, there's always one Creepy Guy [tm] who wants you to draw something icky. Do not be afraid to be firm in refusing if it goes beyond your personal squick factor, and do not hesitate to call con staff over and complain if he's persistent.
If you cosplay, wear a costume. If you don't and you have friends who do, ask one to sit with you - costumes tend to attract people's attention. :D
If you have misprints where the ink cartridge ran out or the picture got tilted on the page, shove 'em in a folder marked MISPRINTS and sell them for a buck. People will buy anything for a buck, and it'll pay for the cost of paper and ink. (Assuming you're making your own prints and not paying a company to do it for you.)
Practice saying "No, thanks, I'm not interested in drawing your gawdawful comic" in a polite manner.
If you can make oversize prints, do so. People love 'em. Otherwise, I've found out out that the smaller prints are usually too much work for not enough profit.
Make friends with the artists sitting next to you - we all talk and Word gets Around if you're a bitch. :) And if you're friends with them, they can watch your table while you run to the bathroom and vice versa.
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As far as presentation, I was planning on the 'big binder of prettiness' approach, with just a few other things laid out individually on the table, since I only have a half-table, so space is a little limited. I only have a couple of watercolor originals, and they'll be going in the auction, so damage to them won't be an issue.
Also, it being my first time and all, I wasn't planning on doing con-sketches, or on-the-spot commissions, or whatever-you-call-'em. Should I be open to the idea anyway?
Again, thank you so much! I think I'm a little less lost now.
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Of course, the next year I made 6 copies of my Saiuyki "Boys in the Band" print and sold out on Friday. :/ I'll be making like 10 or 12 of them this year, and probably will sell three, because that's just the way it goes.
I'd be open to con sketches - I ended up making about 25-20% of my total take on con sketches the first year. Less last year because I decided I wasn't going to take many of them, but I still made a good $50-60 in con sketches over three days. If you do that, don't overcommit yourself - it's easy to say Yes to 3 or 4 people, and then it's 6PM and you've only just started #3. :D
*feels silly*
Re: *feels silly*
It's basically an at-con commission. You can decide if you want to do pencil, pen, marker, whatever. If you get commissioned by someone's who's done it before, they'll probably bring reference as to what the character they want you to do looks like. There will still be people who are amazed that no, you don't actualy have a photographic memory of what every single character ever looks like.
I started with charging $5 for pencils with some quick inks slapped down, but I got too many commissions and it took way too long to do it - it takes me 2+ hours to do one picture. So I bumped it up to $10, which runs off most people. If someone wants a marker piece, I charge $25. There's usually one or two people who want a marker piece.
Some people will have insanely detailed requirements. Others will have only a vague idea of what they want. Yet others will look at all the artwork on your table, commission you do to a character, and then get upset because they don't like the style (what on earth were you thinking, people? you can see what I do!)
If they ask you to draw their original characters, they'll invariably have an exact, detailed list of what they're wearing, what their hair looks like, and the color and shape of their eyes, but be unable to give you any idea of their personality. I ask for the personality because that helps me figure out a pose, but 80% of the time, the answer I get is something like "She's spunky, but with a serious side." Okaaaay ... happy? sad? a joker? sensual? sexy? studious? "She's got purple eyes." That's nice ... sad eyes? cheerful eyes? flirty eyes? "And blonde hair with purple streaks that match her eyes!" *grab by throat and bash head against table a few times*
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You're right - personailty is one of the most important parts of a character portrait, so OF COURSE it's also the part that people can't tell you...
But anyway, thanks again for all the pointers. Glad to know I don't belong in the people-who-ask-stupid-questions camp. Annoying, maybe, but not stupid. *whew* ;D