But that is exactly what keeps most solo artists from financial success. To you it's a short drive to a familiar place, friend in hand, inner tranquility, an expectation (from experience) of what might unfold and how you might capture that. Then, SNAP! Simple, yes?
But what is really there behind that experience are hundreds of practice hours, thousands of pounds' investment in hardware, software, travel and subsistence and The Eye to get your art in an attainable medium. That's the vast investment that needs to inform how "the public" views your oeuvre. My mother paints commercially, and all she sees is recouping the cost of a canvas, a mount, a frame, a tube or two of paint and some sedentary fun. That does not reflect what the market sees and the value the result in their eyes. I priced all her pictures until she got the hang of it, and felt comfortable with legitimate price her market would pay (at least three times what she thought).
Top tip: show framed/unframed prints as you would sell them to colleagues (rather than friends) and ask them how much they would pay. Set your price at the average. This Christmas I am giving two family members framed and mounted tryptichs (three photos) of local landscapes. It's costing about £50 for each gift, but well worth it.
