i dont like them. me and my mate agree its a lazy way for someone to take something they trashed a while ago and then try to pawn it off on the rest of us.

I feel like they kinda take some commission chances from those on a tighter budget at times, I've only involved myself in a couple of auctions, normally lost too.

It definitely has some things going for it. For the artist, they get to be sure they're charging a price they're comfortable with, and drawing poses and situations they want to draw. For the customer, you get to see a preliminary sketch before paying so you have a good idea of what you're getting (essentially, like getting a wip preview from the artist, but before any negotiations have ever even begun). If the price is also lower due to the convenience for the artist, that's also good for the customer, though arguably not necessary to make this a worthwhile idea.

Still, there's definitely something to be said for more creative freedom and control on both sides of things that comes with traditional commissions.

Like most things, they're good in moderation. It's fine if an artist wants to do one every now and then, but as a sole method of commissions? Nah.

They're nice though if a commissioner can't think of an idea for a picture, and nice for an artist if they REALLY wanna draw a specific pose or situation.

I tried to do a YCH last weekend but nobody get ineterested.
Maybe is better to do regular commissions.

I agree with this

I 100% agree with you.

Feel they are just cookie cutter poses to make a quick buck. I don't like them at all. Would rather commission artist (When I have the money) for my ideas then enter a YCH.

The more unique YCH's are admittedly more appreciated to see. But in the end they're just another product intended to appeal to different types of customers who don't have at that time as large a desire for something uber specific in terms of your standard normal commission.

There are pro's and con's to both types of commissions and some folks they're just not meant for.
However artists who do NOTHING BUT YCH's depending on the artist and their circumstance it can really suck for them or the consumers, but that is situational.

In the end as long as people are willing to pay for them then I see no reason to hate on them. Besides if YCH's were really all as cookie cutter and lazy as some people whine that they are, then they wouldn't continue to be growing in popularity so steadily.

on an additional note

The majority I have been seeing only want male or females in their auctions
A lot of those artists don't mind doing non-binary if you take the initiative to ask if they're ok with it.
Male and Female characters are the majority of consumers with the exception of maybe herms coming in close behind that. So it's probably just absent mindedness that they don't list EVERY POSSIBLE GENDER/SEX combination they are ok with in each auction.

I can save my money for real artists
People who do YCH's are Real artists as well. Regardless of when the commissioner comes into the image, the artist still draws it from start to finish. When the purchaser comes into the equation doesn't make the artist any less real. You don't want to come off as ignorant by mistake.

Don't you just love it when the internet hides a sense of humor in your words?

A sense of humor is better when it's not hidden.

I particularly like your rebuttal, but I'd like to add a little bit of my own. I for one can't afford to commission artist's. And even if I could I don't have a great imagination. I enjoy seeing the YCH, because I've seen poses, backdrops, and props that I'd never even fathomed. So really... I'm a fan of the YCH because in some situations it's like the artist crawled into my head, which is quite a dangerous place, and ripped some great idea's from the black abyss that is my imagination zone.

That's one of the "PRO's" of YCH that I've always had honestly. Alot of people tend to struggle coming up with ideas, so YCH are a great way of crapshooting for something you may end up liking.

One of the arguments people make AGAINST YCH is that the artist is lazy and does cookie cutter poses.

Well.. commissioners often ask for the same shit when normally commissioning artists to begin with so there is no special difference there.

Now I don't know about cookie cutter. All the YCH I see are rather original.. you can only draw doggystyle, or missionary so many way's after all before ti's all cookie cutter... And I don't feel that YCH is that way. Cookie cutter would be using that same image over and over again and say "first hundred people to pay me gets their character here".. I haven't seen that. I've only seen one-off's in the YCH.

I feel that another pro to a YCH is that the turn around is faster as well. Everything's outlined, it just needs finalized. Instead of getting added to a queue that has a dozen people ahead of you, you pay you might not see any results for 6 months. Most YCH's I've seen.. a month at most. Also you get an insight into the Artist's mind. Allot of time the artist gets overlooked most of the credit goes to the commissioner for their idea and little credit to the artist. Maybe what everybody else does is cookie cutter and the artist's are doing the YCH to get different poses and idea's out into the community...

And now I feel that this is becoming a conversation

I would hardly know. I never win them because my budget wont allow for winning bids.

I say when am I finally gonna be popular enough to get to try my own YCH Auction? I guarantee that if I try to run one with only 381 watchers I'd be lucky to get even one bid.

I don't even know what a YCH auction is.

a YCH is something like this: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/13397480/
Where an artist draws a pose and auction the spots for people's characters to be in that pose.

A "fill-in-the-blank" pre-made commission, of sorts. Gotcha.

Thank you Xianos.

I just can't stand auctions, period. Most of the time, especially when it comes to artists I like, I can't even blink before the price is run way over my budget. I don't really have that much money to work and pay my bills with, let alone blow on yiff art. Auctions really only cater to fanboys who have nothing better else to spend their money on.

As for YCHs, I can see both sides of the argument. I can gripe about a lack of creativity and be justified, but it gives customers an idea as to what they're buying, and the artists are doing stuff that they know they can do. Personally, I'm not a fan of them, but I have gotten them in the past.

not my style, though I can see the appeal of having a template to work off of.

I think the auction part is a great way to actually have your time adequately compensated since prices for competitively priced commissions work out to far below minimum wage when you tally up how long it takes to finish commissions.