I've got a mix of questions for you about this that I can't answer, so I'm hoping some of you on here will be able to help! This is an area I don't have any experience in.

I was drawing in town yesterday and a guy came up to me and said my picture was good, asked if I was doing an art course and chatted to me about art qualifications. Then he said he had a picture he'd been wanting a bigger version of - wasn't sure if he was talking about a little picture or a photo - and asked if I'd be willing to do one. I was a little surprised, but agreed to meet him on Saturday to have a look at the picture and see if I think I could do it, what exactly he'd want doing and decide what I might charge.

Obviously I'm meeting him in a public place - when I got back my housemates thought it was pretty weird, but that didn't really dawn on me because I could imagine either of my parents doing what the guy did. So you don't need to worry about that. What I want to know is, how much do you think I should charge? What do people generally charge for drawings?

My style is detailed but not realistic; my housemates say it's graphic novel-esque, so I guess I've been unconsciously influenced by my reading habits. He seemed to be indicating quite a small picture with his hands, A2 maybe? But I'm not sure about that. And the size he wanted was quite large - longer than A3, seemed almost like he wanted a panorama-style, much bigger length than width thing. It'd take a while to enlarge something and make it good enough to put on the wall of someone who's not your parents or a family friend.

So, estimates? Have any of you ever sold your work? What kind of thing was it, and how much did you charge? I feel like such a mercenary, but I am a poor student so it can be justified, I think.

I would be wary and probably take a friend with me if I'd arranged to meet a random, even if it is in a public place.

www.a-n.co.uk should have some info on costing for commissions, but I'm not sure if you have to be a paying member to access that area of the site. I was taught to think of a realistic wage (given the ammount of years you've been a graduate for and your experience) and divide that by the ammount of days you'd work a week, for how many weeks of the year. So say you wanted to get paid 20k you'd then say work for 48 weeks of the year, 5 days a week, 9-5 so that'd be £416.00 a week, £83 a day, working 9-5 with 1hr lunch, £11.90 per hour... so lets call that £12 per hour.

Then you work out your over-heads. Electricity, heating, materials (usually something pathetically small) and add it on.

It might be easier to look on deviantart and etsy to see what people in a similar position to you are charging, but that's how my uni taught us to work it out

btw you said he was "indicating a small picture with his hands, A2 maybe". A2 is fucking large!!

thats so bloody exciting?!
i have no idea btw?