I think you said it perfectly!



Part of my commission message is:



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Then I state what the goal I wanted to get, that I think the image would produce. Then I tell the artist, if you can meet my goal some other way DO THAT. If you think you need to, run the idea by me, but in the end, I'm hiring an expert, and I trust their judgement. I can safely say that probably 99/100 it works. I've commissioned > 200 pieces, and I'd say that MAYBE I have 2 images that if the artist just did what I originally asked I think the image would have been better. But I have 20+ images where the artist COMPLETELY ignored my initial pitch, did something else, and it's BETTER and what I didn't know that I wanted. And probably another 50 or so where they asked some questions back, and we dialed into a slightly different idea through a conversation, and IT was better than what I asked for.



So, yeah. I try to get close to something the artist likes to do, and then let them do their thing.



And a few times, they say, Hey instead of this thing, let's do something TOTALLY different. And usually, I want that thing too just as badly, so we do that. I've had 2 artist say "I can't draw that", and to both I said, "Then let's find something I want that you DO want to draw" and it was all easy and friendly. I don't understand people who feel entitled to try to force and artist to do something. I'd 100x rather have an artist happy and drawing something they want, than fighting to make something they hate.



I think the "State what my goal is from the image" gets me far more form an artist. Some don't want that freedom, but I think most do.