Hi,
Well at first glance the art seems pretty good and I would say it's definitely worth more than what you paid for in terms of quality. In terms of accuracy (with the request) if it's not what you were looking for it's not worth paying for.
After reading the other comments that investigated the artist more thoroughly he might have used some tricks either to elevate the quality or to fasten the process.
So that you understand the artist's point of view I don't think any artist would take more than 2 to 3 hours on a commission worth $25 or so. What I think the artist have done is:
- looked at your character and decided to make something you are impressed with without wasting too much time.
- He loaded up a model on DAZ studio or similar 3D software and looked for his existing assets that matched your character the most, dressed the character, posed it, and made a quick render.
- looked up some other 2d art assets online or in his library and photo bashed them on top of the render.
- finally painted over the whole thing
- Artist with beginner skills that are looking for some extra money
- Artist with really good skills but without a big community and that are trying to break into the commission business. By lowering their price they are hoping to attract more exposure so they can raise their price gradually (if you are looking for a good deal you might want to target those)
- Artists that are not really artist looking for a quick buck by applying cheap ticks or stealing other artists works, fortunately, this type of people are easy to identify (at least most of the time) their art is completely inconsistent and usually make the stolen art worse than the original that they stole from.
The use of parts of other artists work as a base is debatable though but if the work is so different and the art they are using isn't the core of the piece I personally think it's ok, even though I have never done that I can think of some cases with a tight schedule that might justify that. but it's still in the gray zone.
Finally, some advice so that you don't get disappointed with your commissions again::
- Choose artists that you know and follow especially artists that post their rough sketches or the steps of their work. It's also better to support artists that you really rather than an artist that you just found online and you don't know if he's what he claims he is.
- Communicate thoroughly with the artists before you commission them and make sure you are on the same page and that he understands what you want them to draw.
- If the pay is cheap don't expect the artist to make research and try to decipher your request. so provide your own reference and be very clear and concise in your description.
- Provide the artist with pieces you like on their own portfolio or gallery that you want your commission to be like. The artist will love that you are interested specifically in their art and it makes it easier for them to know what you like about their work.
- If you're not sure of what you like and/or you can't describe don't spend your money on art that will probably disappoint you.
I hope all of this can help anyone reading it.
All the major parts of this "illustration" were just cut out and pasted as-is save for some colour shifting and painting to erase extra parts. Otherwise there is barely any other paint work done to make it a different piece. There is also no proof that the face and hair are drawn by hand. And looking at the artists' gallery I have a slight feeling that the face may be a filtered photo or taken from another source.
