How to Estimate the Real Effort Behind a Commission
The real work rarely happens during the shoot itself. What effort actually includes, where people misjudge it, and how to calculate it beforehand.
The most common misjudgment in commission work is measuring effort by the result. Ten photos sound like nothing, so you say yes, and it turns out to be six hours.
The reason is always the same: shooting is the smallest part. Everything else is invisible until you're in the middle of it.
What the effort is actually made of
Clarifying what's wanted. Before anything happens, it has to be clear what's being asked for. If that's not written down, it's back-and-forth questions, answers, misunderstandings, and one more question.
Preparation. Outfit, setting, lighting, tidying up. For a commission that departs from your usual setup, this is often more time than the shoot itself.
The shoot. The part everyone means when they talk about effort. Usually the shortest one.
Reviewing and editing. Sorting, cutting, correcting. This scales directly with volume, and more steeply than you'd think. Twice the material means more than twice the review time, because comparing takes longer too.
Communication during the commission. Progress updates, follow-up questions, coordination.
Follow-up work. Change requests, corrections, reshoots.
Where people consistently misjudge it
On volume. The jump from a few pieces of media to a lot isn't a straight line. Past a certain number it tips from "I'll knock this out quick" into "this is a project".
On special requests. A specific outfit, a specific location, a specific time. Every extra condition can double the prep time, even though it was just a side clause in the text.
On follow-up work. Anyone who doesn't budget for the possibility of changes always cuts it too close.
On switching tasks. A commission squeezed in between other things costs more than the same commission done in one block, because setup and teardown don't shrink.
A useful rule of thumb
Estimate the pure work time. Then add the prep you forgot the first time around. Then add something on top for communication and possible follow-up work.
If you'd still say yes after that, it's a good commission. If you hesitate, you have your answer, and you have it before you're in it instead of halfway through.
And how this is handled here
The problem with this math is usually that you can't do it at all. As long as it's not settled what's wanted and what the outcome should be, you're estimating blind.
On NaughtyBounty both are settled beforehand. A Challenge describes the theme, format, and scope, and the reward is fixed when it's created and doesn't change afterward, neither up nor down. So you do the math before applying, not after saying yes.
Follow-up work is capped too. If a delivery doesn't match the description, a revision can be requested, which a moderator reviews and which is capped at three. And anything beyond what's described, you don't have to deliver, because the description holds for both sides. More on that in Setting Your Own Limits.
That removes the part that usually eats the most time: clarifying things before it's even clear whether it's worth it.
If you feel like doing the maths
You can look through the open jobs and work out in peace what one would cost you. The Model page explains how getting started works. Sign up for free.
Frequently asked questions
From the Challenge. Theme, format, and scope are listed there before you apply.
Not without your involvement. Anything beyond the description, you don't have to deliver.
Revisions are capped at three and are reviewed by a moderator.
Then you apply differently next time. You only ever commit to what you've already run the numbers on.
