[Brenda Ellis]

Here's my thinking:

I don't want to bring the perceived value of oil portraits down by charging too little. But then, I'm not a seasoned professional either.

I've decided to charge $500 for a head and shoulders portrait and go up from there for full body or backgrounds.
I have made peace with raising my prices from the advice I got from Cindy Procious who suggested that by raising my prices, those folks who already have work by me have somethign that just increased remarkably in value.

My clients know I'm relatively new to portraiture and it's my name that is a discount deal right now. But by the quality of my work, they can see that my name will begin to mean more over time as I increase my mastery of this art. I would hope to leave them with the impression that they did get a good deal and this art they now have will indeed increase in value as time goes by and as I raise my prices and build my reputation.

That's my thinking anyway, for now. Anything could happen to cause me to change my mind and have to adjust my strategy. I don't know if I'll ever make a living at this; I just enjoy it so much that I want to do it.

The other consideration is repeat customers. If I do a commission for someone at $500 and 6 months later they want another portrait of their other child, they might not appreciate paying $800 for "the same thing". If I start at $500, I have to be willing to increase my prices gradually. I would be wary of giving repeat customers "deals" as they might come to expect it every time and want another $500 portrait when my work now costs $1500.

That's my two cents worth. (Or $500 worth.)