Anyone ever sell or exhibit their work?

[prolesunited]

Just curious about personal experiences here. I've seen so many fabulous shots here that I was just wondering if any of you were getting your work out there.

[TahitiNut]

1. I have a related question: Who here BUYS the photos others have taken?

I ask this because I've fought that temptation all of my adult life. For some reason, I just cannot bring myself to hanging the photos others have taken on my walls. Maybe it's a guy-thing. Dunno. I'd just rather do my own - even though I haven't, really.


Yet I've only had one photo I took myself enlarged and hung on the wall (of my bathroom). It's an angularly-composed photo of a school of horse-eyed jack taken at about 100' deep off the Atlantic continental shelf. I was doing a wall dive, still camera in hand, and just turned a corner and there they were. Sadly, I wasn't able to find a lab that knew how to enlarge and reproduce underwater photos, so the color balance is whacked out.

I have hung Ansel Adams calendars, though. He's different.

[intheflow]

3. I can't bring myself to buy other people's photos, either.

I have my photos hung all over my house. A series of buoys in the bathroom, western landscapes in the living room, scenic ocean shots in my bedroom, family pictures in the kitchen, hallway, and office. I worked as a picture framer for a long time so was able to get slightly damaged frames cheap and put them together myself, so really my biggest cost was the enlargement. That makes a big difference in hanging your own art, too.

Of course Ansel Adams is different. He's one of my inspiratons in photography. I've been shooting for over ten years now trying to capture a Ansel-esque kind of picture. Obviously, nothing I do even comes close. Sigh.

[FloridaPat]

8. I've bought other people photos. Two wildlife photograhers photos.

I took a workshop from Arthur Morris. He was selling his 16x20 prints at a discount. The other were from a couple at the Florida Wildlife Art show. Polar bears that were just too cute. I won't be photography them any time soon.

[RetroLounge]

9. I've bought some other's photographs

from the Wisconsin Historical Society.

RL

[FloridaPat]

2. I have a friend that sells photos at craft shows. As for people that buy

photos, interior designers do. Lots of photos. I've bought some wildlife photos myself. They look nice hung up. Photos for decorating are a hit - again back to the interior designers, but people that do that themselves. Tourists that see a great photo they can't shoot themselves. Unusual collections. Unusual subjects.

Then there are the big guys - museums, restaurants, office buiildings.

[randr]

4. I sold a shot for a book jacket

A friend of mine published a book last year and asked if I had a photograph of a particular scene. I did and I sent it to the publisher.
I was paid $300 and am now concidered a "published photographer".
I have been asked to submit other images for different projects that have not been accepted, so far.
All took place on line and I probably have a total of 15 minutes of my time involved, includeing takeing the photo.

[amazona]

5. I used to sell in the 80s and early 90s

Most of the photos I sold were support for my writing. They weren't always of the highest quality but sometimes for illustration purposes you would take what you would get, especially before the widespread availability of digital cameras, photo editing, etc. made good images so easy to get.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[intheflow]

6. I have made cards out of my photos

to sell as fundraisers for various groups. If you're interested in that kind of thing, check out the catalog for card stock especially for photographs, Photographers Edge. They also have display racks, plastic sleeves, calendars, some limited mat-cutting equipment, etc. You'll have to order their free catalog, they don't do on line orders, but you can see what their stock looks like--it's very professional.

I was also a picture framer for many years, and recommend cutting your own mats if you want to sell larger prints. Cutting your own mats will save you boodles of money. For example, you could buy one poor quality, acid-filled/photo-eating, ready-made mat for an 8x10 frame at Michaels for maybe as little as $2, but you could buy a 40x32 sheet of acid-free mat board for $10 (much less on line) and get 12 mats. $24 dollars for 12 pre-cut mats, or $10 for 12 you cut yourself. Mat cutting is super easy, doesn't take much time once you get the hang of it, and the initial investment in the tools have the potential to pay for themselves with the sale of just a few prints.

Good luck!

[idiosyncratic]

7. The first photo I ever sold was used for a San Diego Magazine cover

I sold another picture that was used for a poster, and some others used to illustrate a magazine article I wrote.

Shortly after that initial success, I quit my job and moved to a scenic area where I sold my photographs off the walls of a restaurant and at Art Festivals.

Since it is so hard to sell unframed photographs, and since it is so expensive to get things framed, I ended up opening a Frame Shop of my own.

Keeping the business going meant doing less and less photography, but I bet some of my pictures are still on the walls of offices, homes, and a restaurant in that area.