Hey all! I figured I'd start posting journals with discussion topics every so often to encourage interaction with you guys (or just so people can glance through my incoherent babbling.)

Today's topic is what I look for when glancing through the gallery/profile of an artist that I'm thinking about commissioning. It's hella long, so I certainly don't blame you guys for not reading. Though I know a lot of the people that watch me take commissions, so I figured they might be interested in seeing what customers are thinking.

Just as a disclaimer I totally don't mean this is a condescending way! It's just how my mind works tbh.


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Here's the main things I looks for:



1. Variety of Body Types: If I had a dollar for every time I came across an artist that only drew/posted one or two body types (namely skinny and/or toned) I'd be able to commission several of them. Anyone that takes a look through my gallery will quickly notice that I have a ton of characters that don't exactly fit that category. Many are chubby, fat, or even obese. Some are lanky, monstrous/bestial ,and/or have really abnormal anatomy.

This may sound silly to some, but I can't really trust an artist with drawing my characters if they've never demonstrated that they can draw body types outside of the standard "Thin human-like furry with standard anatomy". I know that not posting a certain body type doesn't mean they CAN'T draw it, but there have been WAY too many instances where artists like this have drawn my characters far too skinny or with the wrong proportions.

Don't get me wrong, I certainly encourage people to draw the types of characters that make them happy. However, showing that you can draw a variety of body types will more than likely draw in more customers that have characters like mine.


2. Variety of Species: This one is kind of unique to the furry fandom since it's one of the few situations where knowing how to draw a bunch of different species is relevant. Obviously many artists tend to stick with felines and canines since those are the most popular, and they're the ones a lot of people start off drawing. Though I know that myself, as well as many others, like to have a large variety of different species for their OCs/sonas. I mean my fursonas alone are two dragons, two hybrids, and an opossum.

Practicing with the unique features of each species is time consuming and difficult at times, but showing that you can draw a bunch of different species will encourage customers with less common species to commission you. (Plus you can avoid that "Dog-Face/Cat-Face on every species" syndrome that a lot of people suffer from.)


3. Personality: This one will probably get me quite a few side-eyes, but one of the major factors I look at when commissioning people is their personality. If I come across an artist that seems rude/stand-offish or uncomfortably formal, then I keep looking because they don't seem like they'd be very pleasant to work with.

If I'm EVER a repeat customer to an artist it's mainly because I like their personality. They're formal when necessary, but they're also casual/friendly enough to not make things uncomfortable/nerve-wracking. They're more than willing to put up with my nit-picking(within reason), and they always encourage communication/critique when it comes to the commission.

Obviously interacting with customers is a lot easier said than done, but the way you go about it can really make a different.


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Uhhh I think that's about it?? I may add on some stuff later.


Feel free to comment with what you look for when commissioning!! I'm really interested in seeing how other people think.