How to price your landscape photos

[AdventuresInMyTrustyBoots]

I'm curious how everyone prices their landscape photos that they sell.

I generally do my printing on Canvas, metal or photo prints and either sell them at a local gift shop/gallery or by people who contact me. The gift/gallery shop charges me 25% commission. I tend to eat that commission cost, for fear that I add it on it will bring the cost up to much and discourage buyers.

I was told that I should take what it cost me to print and double it to get my price. When I brought my work to the store, one of the other artists commented that I priced my work to high. ($225 canadian for a 16X24 canvas).

 

[john.margetts]

Most retail pricing (not just photography) is based on what the customer is willing to pay, not on cost of production.

For me, that means that for art outlets locally I charge £100 for a mounted and framed A3 print. For a non-art outlet that reduces to £30.

Sent from my A1-840 using Tapatalk

 

[KmH]

I always recommended at least 3x what the print cost you and 2x for the presentation - mount, frame, media (canvas/metal).

However, if you're wanting to sell to the average person you have to be price sensitive.
Selling to the average person I would not be making canvas or metal prints because of their cost.
But prints are a luxury item and are best sold as such.

I wold make C-prints, mount the print, and put the print in a simple metal frame.
A 25% commission is quite low.
All the galleries I worked with charged between 30% and 40%.
But the galleries I worked with did not cater to the average person.

Do your prints include an artist statement and information about the print (print type, paper type/brand, media), info about the longevity of the work based on the print type and media?

 

[Designer]

I generally do my printing on Canvas, metal or photo prints and either sell them at a local gift shop/gallery or by people who contact me. The gift/gallery shop charges me 25% commission. I tend to eat that commission cost, for fear that I add it on it will bring the cost up to much and discourage buyers.

I was told that I should take what it cost me to print and double it to get my price. When I brought my work to the store, one of the other artists commented that I priced my work to high. ($225 canadian for a 16X24 canvas).

I'm not a pro, and I don't sell photos myself, so this is coming from a customer's perspective.

The 25% commission should be added to your regular price. The gallery has capital invested, and must charge something to recoup the cost.

I do not think your prices are too high. If I see a print that I want, I will either pay the price or not, but that is not your call. If you were to sell unframed prints, the customer would be faced with lots more cost in getting it matted and framed, so your prices are probably too low.

I don't know your relationship with the gallery, but I would suggest that they date your submissions and after 6 months, lower the price by 25%. Of course, the gallery will still take their regular commission, but you will move more photos over time.

 

[tirediron]

....I was told that I should take what it cost me to print and double it to get my price.

You were told wrong! You need to start by figuring out how much that print REALLY cost you to make (You had to plan the shot, drive to the location, shoot, drive back, post-process, gas, insurance, wear & tear on gear, clothing, etc) all of which cost your time and resources. Once you get a real cost, you also need to figure out how much you want to put in your pocket for your trouble... say the image represents four hours of work; what is four hours of your time worth? Now you have a realistic and accurate cost to base your price on.

... I tend to eat that commission cost, for fear that I add it on it will bring the cost up to much and discourage buyers.

Unlikely, at least not in the right type of gallery. There is a HUGE amount of snob appeal amongst art buyers, and the more they pay, the more they can brag. In general, for the same item, a higher-priced version will sell faster in the right setting than a lower-priced one. Whether your current gallery is the right setting or not, is of course the question...

 

[KmH]

. . . There is a HUGE amount of snob appeal amongst art buyers, and the more they pay, the more they can brag. In general, for the same item, a higher-priced version will sell faster in the right setting than a lower-priced one. Whether your current gallery is the right setting or not, is of course the question...

Yep.
A friend of mine sold landscape and fine art prints at art shows but wasn't selling very much. Lots of people stopped to look at his work, but few bought anything.
He had negative cash flow. He was spending more to produce his work, to travel to the shows, and to pay the show vendor space fees than he was making from sales.

I suggested that with so few sales he had nothing to lose by significantly increasing his prices. I recommended he at least quadruple his prices.
He did - his sales increased dramatically and he started making money well above his costs.

 

[Boy_Cringe]

It should be based on the quality of your work and your finished product and the second for me is the perceived value of your products.

 

[AdventuresInMyTrustyBoots]

Thanks for all the helpful tips. I will definitely take them into consideration. I feel like most of my work is under priced, and I am not really making anything off of it.

On a bright note, The local Art Gallery has asked me to put on a show! So far my prints have only been in a store gallery for sale. This is a totally different event and place. I've never done a show, so this will be a new experience for me. I still consider myself a newbie. I've been ordering prints like mad to prepare for it. My work will be featured on display for 3 weeks.

 

[tirediron]

Thanks for all the helpful tips. I will definitely take them into consideration. I feel like most of my work is under priced, and I am not really making anything off of it.

On a bright note, The local Art Gallery has asked me to put on a show! So far my prints have only been in a store gallery for sale. This is a totally different event and place. I've never done a show, so this will be a new experience for me. I still consider myself a newbie. I've been ordering prints like mad to prepare for it. My work will be featured on display for 3 weeks.

Spend the money on display & presentation and crank the prices!

 

[OldManJim]

I have nothing on the subject of selling prints - although it interests me. However, a number of years ago, we lived in upstate New York. My wife made small dolls from clothespins with a scrap of material and some paints. She tried selling them through a local tourist shop and priced them at $1.00 each - figuring they would appeal to small children.

After 2 months of selling nothing, the shop owner suggested she increase the price. She did - to $25.00 each. We ran a "sale" at $5.00 off and she sold out of the dolls in 2 weeks. I always thought this was an interesting lesson in perceived value.

Unfortunately, we moved away before she could become independently wealthy.