Got one of my first 3D jobs, how much should I charge?

[Anonymous No.940182]

I'm converting a 2D logo for a hair product into a 3D logo, animating it so that the guy strokes his hair twice and so that the logo spins, and making nice lighting/etc. How much should I charge for something like that?

[the chair nerd No.940183]

>>940182
Is the client the final user or an agency. Remember don't sell your time sell value to your client.

[Anonymous No.940187]

You didn't ask how much he was willing to give you before doing it? Sounds like you should give him something.

[Anonymous No.940188]

>>940187
I haven't started the contract yet, no

[Anonymous No.940192]

>>940188
You know how unbelievable your taxes are going to get if you take any freelance job, right?

[Anonymous No.940193]

>>940182
The guy wants an estimate for how much it will cost, I literally don't have a fucking clue, someone knowledgeable give me a number please

[Anonymous No.940195]

>>940193
Idk how much time that will take you, just charge 1 month of the average wage in youre cunt every 40 hours or so.

[Anonymous No.940196]

>>940193
And specify that he is paying you the time of the project basically.

[Anonymous No.940200]

>>940195
The conversion and animation of the logo will *probably* only take me 2 hours. The animation of the hand moving is something I haven't done before and have no idea how long will take me. I don't think it will be overly hard, because it should just require me to move the curves around, but I'm not sure.

I'd like to just charge a wage after the fact depending on the time I spent, but he wants an estimate upfront.

[Anonymous No.940202]

>>940200
You're going to have to make a muscle simulation in houdini for a visible hand with vellum, model the individual bones and muscles, rig it, massage the results, then texture and groom. And thats only for the hand. You have no idea what you are in for.

[Anonymous No.940203]

>>940202
it's a super simple animation of a 2D hand moving back and forth

[Anonymous No.940205]

I'm undercharging a fuckton as an strategy to insert myself into the market.

[Anonymous No.940207]

>>940205
Yeah, I've had a problem before though of giving too low estimates, which has actually turned people off (idk if it makes them think the result will be low quality or makes them feel awkward or what), so it doesn't always work that way

[Anonymous No.940208]

>>940182
My strategy is to always ask their budget
>"What's your budget for something like this?"
And then go up a bit from there depending on complexity. If I have to make an entire city, that shit ain't gonna be cheap. I do try to keep things in their budget though, but I have to take shortcuts like reusing assets from older projects, or grabbing stuff online. Modelling takes time and effort, and most people are too cheap to pay for that shit unless they're specifically looking for it. Most people are coming to me for animations, so the more time I spend actually animating, the better the outcome, especially if there's a deadline.

For you though, I'd just ask their budget and take what they give you. That seems like a pretty simple job, but for all you know they might value your time better than you do and pay you a fair (or more than fair) amount.

[Anonymous No.940230]

>>940207
I have a portfolio so they have references to quality. At least when beginning, I need to get the first few clients to get things going. Then once you have consolidated yourself, you can start charging more adequately. Come and think, why would you switch from your trusty service provider if the other one doesn't offer anything different? A low price may get their attention and once you get their trust and they start growing on the market, then you charge adequately.

[Anonymous No.940231]

>>940208
That's a good one too

[Anonymous No.940547]

>>940192
>>940182
This OP, make sure you form your own buisness if you'll make a habit of this type of work. It's not very hard and you'll save money on taxes/ get tax write offs

[Anonymous No.940559]

>>940182
>>940193
Figure out your hourly wage based in what they pay for your level of XP. Then figure out the hours for the logo and pad them with 30% more, this will allow you to make a revision or something for free if you feel inclined to. Don't disclose the hourly wage, just the final. You could go lower in the padding if you want to give them a discount.