Hi Boris -
I have not been following the 'stinkin filters thread, but I'll jump in here
anyhow :-0
I sell a fair number of photos, both as individual prints and for
publication, and I also do the occasional art fair and stint on the sales
floor in gallery co-ops, so I've had a chance to see what goes into people's
decision making process when buying photos or other art work.
To be frank, the general merits of the piece, the subtle aspects and nuance
of design and composition, are more or less secondary in most purchase
decision. Subject is one of the primary drivers. For individual print
sales, people look at the subject matter first, then colors, size, how it
integrates with other decorative objects, and somewhere down the list - the
overall quality of the piece. Color is important - people walk up to photos
and paintings holding paint chips from their newly redecorated bedrooms, and
look for decorations that match them - size is important, and only somewhere
down the line does quality and impact of the work come into play. I've seen
many situations where people stop to admire a particular work, return to it
often, but don't buy it because it just won't work in their homes. So,
except when the for the rare connoisseur or collector comes into play, I
don't think sales of individual pieces means a lot in terms of the pure
quality of the work. You can learn more by watching people's reactions to
photos, than by what they buy.
Publication photo editors are more sophisticated, but again are driven by
objectives other than just the quality of the work. Size constraints,
aspect ratio, blank space available to have text laid over it, how the piece
integrates into the overall layout and design of the article are all factors
that drive the selection decision. People who are laying out publications
are probably more driven by those issues than just the quality of the
individual piece - for them, the photos that they buy are the building
blocks of a larger work that they are constructing.
And in all cases - don't forget price. Both individuals and photo editors
are working within budgets, and will juggle their purchases to try to stay
on target.
And, of course, the trite and the hackneyed have tremendous marketability -
even more than the innovative and sublime. So at the end of they day, I
don't think sales really tell you much.
I also participate in juried shows and I do think that they provide a good
sense of what a particular individual thinks about your work. Getting in,
getting an award, getting a sense of the competitive field and the
qualifications of the juror are all useful. But it has its limit. I've
talked with jurors who tell me that they are concerned with 'building a
coherent exhibit," so - like the photo editor - they may be looking for
pieces that work together and that may be mean that really spectacular
pieces get set aside, because they don't work with the balance of the whole
show. And with jurors and judges, individual quirks and biases come into
play. You may have a juror who is not a photographer and will judge work
totally differently than a photographer, for example. So, the juried shows
and competitions offer more valuable feedback, IMO, than just sales, but you
are looking at a fairly narrow bit of feedback (the opinion of the judge or
juror.)
Personally - what really matters is your own feeling about the image. People
bring their own biases and experiences to a photo and that affects how they
react to it. Last year I sold a landscape to someone who had a couple of
family members die at the very place I chose for my photo. For them it was a
very moving image, but in a context totally different than what I intended
when I created it.
IMO - If you can look at a photo for a year and still like it, if you can
articulate what the photo means and how it expresses that, if you can
understand how the design elements in the image work, then it's probably a
good photo. If other people don't 'get' it - you are hanging in the wrong
crowd. If people see something there that you don't intend (or don;t even
see) - don't let it go to your head. Ultimately, the validation (and harsh
criticism!) has to come from within - I don't think its something that
others can impart, no matter how much stuff they buy, medals they award, or
insults they hurl.
My two cents!
- MCC
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Mark Cassino Photography
Kalamazoo, MI
www.markcassino.com
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----- Original Message -----
From: "Boris Liberman" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <pentax-discuss@pdml.net>
Sent: Sunday, July 03, 2005 12:43 AM
Subject: To Herb Chong et al
Hi!
Herb, I followed the "no stinking filters" thread for some time. I have a
question.
You may argue that if a photo sold, it means that it managed to overcome
some competition... Hence it is rather good one...
What about those photos that participate in (international) contests and
get mentions or even prizes?
Boris
