The holiday shopping season is approaching fast. Some of you may already be looking for those special gifts for friends and family.. This blog post is specifically for those of you who want to buy art from your favorite photographer. This isn’t just for my artwork, it's to help you buy from any photographer.
After 30+ years of selling prints to private customers & companies around the globe, I continually run into similar situations during the initial interactions. I've talked to many other photographers who also have similar experiences. I'll share with you what this is shortly but first let me say that most, not all, photographers are not sales people. We put our passion for photography into learning the craft, getting the best shots, post processing & working with the best labs to print our work so the end result is a truly amazing image you, our customers/clients will enjoy for a lifetime. It's pretty low on my list of things to do to try and sell you a print. After all, buying a fine art print isn't something you need, it's something you want.
The buying & selling process should be simple and straightforward but it rarely happens this way. I'll explain.
There are 2 ways to purchase prints -
From a website. This is the most easy process. You see the image on the website & order it. Depending on the website, you may get what you want or you may end up with an image that's cropped differently from what you expected. Some photographers sell standard size images like 8x10, 16x24 ect... As long as what they are showing you online is the correct format that's fine. Sometimes you may see a panoramic photo and the sizes listed don't match the file format. If you were to order it, it may not come as you expected. Generally, ordering from a website should be fairly simple.
Ordering directly from the photographer -
With every photographer being on social media, chances are you will likely see an image you want to buy on one of the social media sites. This is an example of messages I get on a very regular basis through my channels... Hi, I love your image of (insert image title here) how much for a print? While we appreciate your kind words about our work, your message is super vague and will now require more back and forth. When you see an image you like and want to buy here are a few things you can do to make the process go much smoother before you ever contact the photographer.
Decide where the image will go in your home/space - use newspaper to mock-up a spot for it and determine what size you'd like. Even an approx size is a good starting point.
If you're familiar with the various mediums, decide what type of print you'd like. Canvas, Metal, Acrylic or framed print. If you're not familiar, just let us know the approx size and which image. If the image doesn't have a title, send a screenshot, or simply comment on the image and ask for a reply.
A first inquiry to a photographer should be something like this -
"Hi Darren, I saw your image of "Bear Lake Holiday" and I'd like to get quotes for something in the 20x30 range on Canvas or Metal. A semi gloss finish would be optimal but I'm open to a matte finish too"
If we have this info from the get go, we can work much faster to get you the quote you're looking for in a much more timely manner.
It's all too often I get messages like this, "How much is the print of (insert any title here).
I then have to follow up with, "What size would you like and how would you like it printed?"
More times than not this is where we lose our customers.
I have worked with art consultants and interior designers for many years and each time they inquire about an image they always tell me exactly what size they want and which type of print they want. In order to better serve you, this is exactly what we want up front.
I can't speak for all photographers but I personally love working 1:1 with you and understanding your interest in the image and making sure you get the perfect print for the space you want to put it.
Another wonderful thing you can do is send a good phone pic of the space where you want the image to go and we can mock up the image for you.
The above is a design I did for a customer for her office. She told me the prints she wanted, the sizes, mattes and frame types and sent me an image of her office wall (left) I mocked up the images for her, sent her the quote & she approved it and we closed the purchase. After the images were hung she was kind enough to send me the image of the images after they were hung (right). This can be a great way to get a visual of what the image(s) will look like in your space.
The buying process should not be complicated for the buyer or the artist..
Let us know the print you'd like, the size you'd like it printed and the type of finished product you'd like i.e, Canvas, Metal, Acrylic or Photographic Print on Paper.. If you really want to save yourself time and get the most accurate quote possible. Please include the zip code where the image will be shipped so the quote can be as precise as possible.
If you're dealing with me and you've told me the above info I'll always reply with all the information you've asked for plus a quote for a size above and below the requested size.
I want your experience to be as smooth as possible when buying from me or anyone else. The more info you can give us up front, the better we can serve you.
Last but not least, over the years i've had several people email me asking what they can get for a specific budget. This is really good too because a lot of people who want to hang a pretty picture in their home or office probably are not going to be up to date on the latest and greatest mediums for printing. If you give us a budget we can let you know what you can get for that price.
I hope this helps to better understand the info we need to get you the image you're envisioning in your mind, hanging in your home or office.
With online shopping increasing every year, please connect with us earlier rather than later. Most of us don't keep stock on hand so when you do decide to order, each image is made just for you and sent directly to you. On average please allow roughly 2 weeks for your order to arrive. Each order will get a specific time frame for you to approve before the sale is final. Photographic Prints are the fastest, then metal and canvas with acrylics taking the longest to make just because of all the steps involved. (well worth it I might add)
If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to reach out. You will always get a response from me personally. I'm the sole individual of my businesses and I'm happy to work with you directly!
Darren
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