Do comic artists buy 3D models? Or do they only use free ones?

[Vibrantes]

Hello! My name is Vibrantes, I'm new to the Tapas forums and also as a comic artist! I have some questions regarding selling 3D models to comic artists (but let me give some context first).

I have lately been doing my own 3D models to adapt to Clip Studio Paint for my stories and some of my peers said they look as good quality as the usual paid models in Clip Studio Assets. One of my friends actually suggested I should offer it as commission to other webcomic artists.

But I don't know if she was just being nice or if this is an actually desirable skill to pay for. I didn't find anyone seeking or offering it, more than the usual very expensive 3D sculpting for game and stuff.

So my question is, do comic artists actually invest money on good 3D models or do they only look for free ones?

As a comic artist, would you be willing to commission someone to make all the 3D backgrounds of your comics exactly as you want? Or you don't think it's worth it?

If you do, how much would you consider paying for a 3D commission of a whole room of your character? Or maybe for harder stuff to draw, like baroque/victorian-style comic backgrounds?

I mean, what would you consider it's a healthy price range that can fit the budget of a comic artist? I know it probably would be very different for casual and professional webcomic artists, but I would love any feedback you may have on this, even if it's just your personal opinion.

Sorry for all these many questions, I'm trying to transition to full-time artist and would love if I could offer something in the webcomic field, but I don't know what kind of things webcomic artists are looking for. So right now I'm trying to research a bit with more experienced comic artists what are the things they would consider hiring someone to help them with.

Any feedback is very much appreciated!

[nathanKmcwilliams]

I buy them. In fact I just commissioned a model of my main character. ($60)
Most of the models I've bought have been from CSP's asset store though.

[CarltonIsaac]

I hire a live model at times for poses photo-shoots.

[elyss]

I buy them and plan on commissioning a 3D artist soon knowing it'll run me at min $150. It can be very lucrative if you know what you're doing and get your work out to the right audience.

[kaetana]

As a comic artist, would you be willing to commission someone to make all the 3D backgrounds of your comics exactly as you want?

This is something that I'm actively considering right now, especially for some of the locations the characters will be in a lot, so I'd definitely say there's a market for this sort of service!

I don't really have a solid idea of how much it should cost, I'd definitely want to make sure the person making the model was receiving a fair wage for the amount of time they spent though! I've hired a friend in the past to create 3D models for some of the weapons in my comic that are complex in shape and hard to visualize at unusual angles, which did end up costing me a couple hundred dollars based on the time he spent on it. So whatever prices you end up setting, make sure you're getting fairly compensated for the time and skill you're putting into it.

[therosesword]

This ex live model thanks you on behalf of all of those who came before me and come after.

[feuersichel]

I actually didn't consider 3D models at all so far. So I don't really know much about them. Although I can see the use of them and I am thinking about getting 3D models for my two main characters. I don't know much about prices but 60$ do seem on the lower end. But it depends on the quality of course and how much time you have to put in. Especially if you have to work hours or days for a few bucks. Mind posting a reference?

[mannygart]

I would definitely pay for a 3D model of a unique room design, especially if you're going to be optimizing them for CSP. I buy background assets with commercial licensing pretty often, even on projects that I'm not currently making anything from, because I see it as an investment that has historically paid off. I would be willing to spend upwards of $100-200 on a room and more on a larger setting. (I would honestly pay more if I had more, but like many coming out of 2020, I'm a little broke atm lol.)

[mannygart]

You could also try creating a gig for it on https://www.fiverr.com/. I used to do storyboarding on there back when I still had the patience to deal with people ; it's pretty easy to get set up. I've seen a few 3D modeling gigs on there and they seem to be doing pretty well. There's also https://www.upwork.com/, but it's a little harder to reach people and they take a dumb-sized chunk of everything.

You may already know about these, but I thought I'd mention it just in case!

[rajillustration]

I wouldn't buy a custom one, since that would be much dinero, but if there was one on the store that was kinda generic but what I was looking for (so a pack of different types of chairs, or a pack of different types of bicycles, youknow--the hard to draw stuff that is set dressing) then yes. That would perk my interest.

[Vibrantes]

Thank you all for your answers! They were very enlightening!

I considered selling random models in CSP Assets, but unfortunately, they don't allow non-japanese users to sell things for real money there, so that was a big downer.

I took a look in Fiverr before, but I didn't know about upwork! I will take a look there as well, thank you!

I indeed wouldn't like to be underpaid for my work. I guess my concern is because I'm an aspiring comic artist myself, so my first intent was to at least try to be affordable to the average budget of a comic artist.

For now, I was considering going in the line of "cute, simple and affordable" as opposed to "complex and expensive". My potato computer cant hold uberly complex 3D either, though I intend to invest on a better machine later on to improve my 3D.

But this is how far I can go right now with the tools I have. My goal is to make them functional for both colorful comics and BW comics using the line extract feature in CSP. Well, they can be opened in Photoshop as well, but usually I optimize them with CSP features in mind.

[bear1]

Both, I buy 3D models and material and I look for free ones. Whatever is available and affordable for me
Also, currently I'm working on a traditional comic that will transition into a digital comic by mid 2022 (so it's a bit off still). When thinking about that I was indeed (and still am) considering hiring someone to sculpt some of the major BGs so I don't have to redraw them all the time.
I can only speak for me, tho. But I'm sure many creators who are like me and don't have the nerves to learn 3D sculpting are willing to pay for a custom job.
No idea about the price range tho. There are some tutorials about how to price commissions. I would look into those and maybe figure out a rate that fits your skill level and how long it takes you to make a model.
Good luck and I dearly hope this works for you. I really think this skill will be in demand for creators sooner or later

Edit: I just scrolled all the way down and read the other entries.
The models you posted look incredible! Your friend definitely did not want to be just kind to you, their words were 100% genuine.
My project is unfortunately more than a year off, but I'll definitely keep my eyes open for you to offer commissions and I'll start saving cash already. I really, really hope this works out for you. I think you deserve making good money off of this

Edit pt2:
Since Clip Studio asset doesn't allow you to sell models for cash, have you tried places like Turbo Squid yet?
https://www.turbosquid.com
I have looked at their page mostly for cars and such. but they also offer BGs and such. perhaps that's a place where you can offer random work of yours and maybe can earn some money. Just in case you'd rather keep on building stuff before getting into commissions ^^

[thedude3445]

If I ever get the art ability to make a comic I would certainly commission 3D models of common environments and maybe characters too. That sounds really useful.

[neginmrdeath]

i have a 3d artist who pose them for me.lol

[irene_addler]

if I could have afforded to commission someone to create 3d models of my backgrounds, I would have done it in a heartbeat. Also, yours look amazing!!!

[sushy00]

I don't use 3D models at all. I just try to draw it all even when the perspective sucks haha
I have considered learning 3D but I gave up after getting frustrated with Blender.

[Vibrantes]

I haven't tried Turbo Squid yet, but I have once tried CGTrader. But at that time I was basically posting my first 3D studies which were quite simple and probably not very appealing, so I didn't have much luck there. But maybe I should try again now that I have more detailed models.

It also could just be I'm a very crappy salesman hahaha I'm new to selling my art, so I need to learn how to better put my stuff out there.

And thank you so much!! I really hope it works out, I really love comics and wouldn't like to stray too far off from it! And good luck with your project as well!!

[rajillustration]

@vibrantes You can also make a gumroad shop so people can pay for downloads of 3d files--I've visited gumroad to get 3d things before of cars models (which are HELL to draw). I put em in blender, but I think those blender files can also work in Clip? I haven't tested it yet. But, that's an option if you want to sell things. Lots of artists on gumroad.