Brooks Jensen on print pricing in Lenswork

[Henry Ambrose]

Did some of you read Jensen's rant in the latest Lenswork about pricing of prints?
I found it very interesting and hard to argue with, especially his example of the $4000 print from the unknown photographer. I'd love to hear what others think about this article.

[Neal Wydra]

If $4000 is too high, don't buy it.

[David Luttmann]

I agree with him, Henry. I've had no problem selling 16x24 that I print on my Epson 7600. My prices are between $125-300. I've never had complaints with this. Two photos that I sold to a bank to put in client board rooms were 16x24 that I sold at about $85 a piece.....but they ordered 80 copies of each....so 160 prints. I was OK with $85 and so were they.

All too often I see pretentious rubbish for thousands of dollars. I guess they figure they only need to sell one. Very often we have photographers blathering on about the integrity of their art. They price sky high. But just as often, these people sell nothing. I think Jensen hit the nail on the head with that article.

[Michael Gordon]

The problem with Brooks' article is that there is no middle ground in his argument; it's either $20 or absurdly overpriced. While there are certainly more than a handful of darlings in the gallery scene selling for pretentiously silly sums of money, there are who-knows-how-many selling prints in the 100's. What about this price bracket?

There's a very fine line between 'just right' and overpriced, but in my opinion $20 prints can be just as harmful as a $3700 print. Americans pay a couple of bucks per liter for designer water, and didn't really understand the value of gasoline until it hit $3 per gallon. How would most value a $20 print? Art, or something to use the back of as a notepad in a pinch?

[tim atherton]

it's very similar to the stock photography argument in recent years - one sale of $3000 for one-time use to a prestigious magazine (who are no longer willing to pay that) - or 1000 $3 RF sales to school kids , scrapbookers and community newsletter.

Again, the middle ground has probably turned out to be the most profitable - even though most focus was out on the extreme ends of the spectrum.

[paulr]

Different markets have different prices ranges. You can price yourself out of a market by going too high or too low. You won't sell a $3000 print at craft fair, just as you won't sell a $100 print at a Chelsea gallery (the gallery would never agree to sell anything at that price ...It would lower the perceived value of what they represent, it would arouse mistrust in their collectors, and it would never pay the rent).

Your personal ideas on what your work is worth are equally valid. If those ideas are above what the market will bear, you won't sell much. It's up to you if you're ok with that or not.

Personally, I'll steal hubcaps and knock down old ladies for their purses before I'd sell prints for under $500.00. If this means I don't sell much, that's perfectly fine. I'd rather work on finding the right market than simply lower the value of the work.

[Bruce Watson]

I can't afford Jensen's magazine - I've gotta put my money into film, ink, and paper. Maybe if he'd lower the price...

[Christopher Perez]

What is the average sale price of a good photographic print over on that auction site?

A friend and I were talking about the price of prints over dinner last weekend. He noted that photographers who sell Azo prints for $50 may be completely nuts. A scarce resource being sold for next to nothing. We speculated that such prints (in the $50 range) were being sold to other photographers.

I don't know, but the argument sounded nearly reasonable.

[Henry Ambrose]

I'd have a hard time selling fiber 8x10s for $20.00 - I'd like more return for my darkroom time and cost of supplies. Inkjets as well - I don't think making up a loss on volumn sales works. Unless I was selling alot of them like maybe from some event or sitting that I'd charged another fee for. On the other hand I've given away plenty for free so maybe it would be nice to get $20.00 instead of nothing.

Now please, no one get upset by the next question--

I have wondered how many people there are who buy big expensive Epsons and actually make money with them. Sometimes reading internet boards I get the impressioin that some folks buy the newest latest thing out every round of improved models. Where does the money come from for that? For that matter how many travel the world and make a real living at it? "It" being selling art prints. And I don't mean the trust funders or someone who's living off his Microsoft stock sale.

It seems to me if you are doing these things and making a living or maybe more than a living you're a pretty damned creative business person. Now I don't expect anyone to spill their guts on-line so just keep it "I know this guy who's cousin makes loads of cash doing................."

: >)

[Henry Ambrose]

One last thing - I didn't mean to offend anyone who is well-off. I'd like to be that too.

Seriously, I am asking to see if anyone is making a real, going business of it in light of the original post I made about Jensen's article.