Feasability of selling Impossible Project 8x10 prints on the street?

[jbenedict]

Here's a suggestion which might be a little different and maybe not what you are looking for but....

If you could get a "partner in crime" i.e. the owner of a bar or another business to go along with you, you might be able to make 'real' photographs. We hum and haw about developing times, solutions and etc. but you could probably expose, process and print a piece of film in a half an hour. In the "old days", portrait photographers used 5x7 (or a 3.5x5 x2 split back) and contact printed. Some of my older relatives have dozens of portraits which were made that way. If the business owner could give you some space in a closet for a darkroom, you could take the shot, develop and fix the film in 10 min and 5 min. later, contact print it on RC and have it ready to take home in under an hour. If funky Polaroid would be good enough, the results from this would be good enough. If you had a van and a couple of layers of black paper, you might not need the cooperation of a business owner to have a dark closet.... 5x7 film is not cheap but it is less than Polaroid, especially in 8x10...

I know this is the Large Format Photography forum but, on second thought, the thing that would probably sell is a digital shot printed with a inkjet printer with a cost of about $10. But, considering that most folks are happy with selfies, I don't know how many you would sell....

[Tin Can]

I have my local trained and ready for me to shoot in the bar.

And I will train my victims to wait 3 days for prints.

Regulars always come back.

If I really wanted to mess with them, I would bring a model...

[steveo]

brightmatter, sounds like the sort of thing that you might pilot, at least, at the Edinburgh Festival (Fringe). Nice compact area with lots (and lots) of passing pedestrians many of them in the mood to spend money.

I just don't have the time or the people skills but I'd love to try one of those Afghan box camera things with 5x4 direct positive paper at the festival.

[goamules]

As far as making an instant photo, that's why wetplate is so great. From having a customer say "OK, I'll take one" to drying the plate is only about 10 minutes. But then you have to varnish it, though I've told customers in a hurry just to spray it with Poly when they get home.

With film, I'd consider what Jbenedict said above, with the Randy alternative - shoot the pictures, and have a "wall of fame" where you post prints each week. People pay you up front to take the shot. Then they return next week to pull their photo off the wall. If they never come back, it's advertisement for the next customer. Pick a busy bar, once a regular has done it, they probably won't need another one.

[Gary Tarbert]

Your first question was feasibility ? , The answer not feasible , The instant gratification market is digital , And even worse mobile phone

[Corran]

I think it's completely feasible depending on the market, marketing, and product.

When I was on the street doing this, I had my camera setup on a tripod and a table showing off prints and instant portraits. I only did it on busier Friday evenings that were marketed towards a "night out on the town." People were immediately drawn to the camera and wanted to know what I was doing. I sold plenty of 3x4 prints and actually that size is pretty nice for most people. I think given the choice between that and 8x10 at 2-3x the cost, I wouldn't have any 8x10 buyers.

This was in my small and faltering city, not a touristy area at all, so I imagine in the right location you could do a ton of these. I've been to New Orleans several times in the last couple of years and I've thought about trying it somewhere around Jackson Square just on a lark. I bet I could sell tons there.

[HMG]

Some random comments:

• If selling to tourists (which might be your best bet), you need to have something recognizable in the background. I.E. photo in front of Buckingham Palace gates or whatever.
• Consider how people will deal with the print once in their hands. Will a tourist wandering London want to carry around an 8x10 print that doesn't fit in a purse or backpack?
• Assume some waste. 25-50% of your exposures will a) not be good enough in your eyes, b) not be good enough in their eyes, or c) be test shots. Plus 5-6 up front as promotional shots to display.
• Factor in other material costs. At a minimum, plastic envelopes and cardboard to hold and protect the print.
• I agree with the 4x5 suggestion. If you're looking for an excuse to buy an 8x10, then get a 4x5 back.

[brightmatter]

Thanks for all the advice and insights everyone! It's awesome that this thread has garnered so much input from the forum. I think the general consensus is that 8x10 prints would only appeal to a very small, niche audience so maybe I could buy a 4x5 reducing back for the 8x10 and offer both New55 4x5 prints and, as an option, the larger IP 8x10 film. New55 obviously isn't cheap either right now but it's nowhere near as costly as 8x10. I'd still want to use an 8x10 camera, partly to use it for other projects on colour negative/slide film and also for the 'wow' factor. As much as the rational part of me says that 8x10 instant film is a silly idea, I can't shake the desire to shoot it, even at the stupendously expensive price of £13/$20 a sheet.

[Oren Grad]

Just a bit of a reality check here: New55 is not yet a done deal. I don't mean that as a criticism - the amount of effort and problem-solving ingenuity that Bob Crowley and his crew are investing in the project are pretty impressive, and if there's any justice they deserve to succeed. But it looks as though at best it will be a while before there's a steady supply, and the price per sheet may remain high for a while, or indefinitely.

Also, you need to think about whether your customers will want a monochrome print, or whether color is a likelier bet.

Re a reducing back for an 8x10 camera: keep in mind that you'll need a second lens if you want to offer a choice between 4x5 (or 3.25x4.25, if you go with Fujiroid) and 8x10-size pictures that are to show exactly the same thing.

[brightmatter]

Just a bit of a reality check here: New55 is not yet a done deal. I don't mean that as a criticism - the amount of effort and problem-solving ingenuity that Bob Crowley and his crew are investing in the project are pretty impressive, and if there's any justice they deserve to succeed. But it looks as though at best it will be a while before there's a steady supply, and the price per sheet may remain high for a while, or indefinitely.

Also, you need to think about whether your customers will want a monochrome print, or whether color is a likelier bet.

Re a reducing back for an 8x10 camera: keep in mind that you'll need a second lens if you want to offer a choice between 4x5 (or 3.25x4.25, if you go with Fujiroid) and 8x10-size pictures that are to show exactly the same thing.

This is something I've been considering as well, always the caveat with using reducing backs of any kind! Impossible Project should soon be releasing a colour version of their 8x10 film, which should be amazing, judging by the pioneer film they released a few years back.