Questions about selling prints

[vintagesnaps]

Glad it went well, thanks for showing some pictures of it and sharing your experience. Congrats on selling a print.

 

[Steve5D]

One of my favorite places on the planet is the Morrison Hotel Gallery in Soho. If you're a music photographer, it's a must-see.

I don't believe I've ever seen a signed print in that gallery, even back in the days when they had galleries in California (La Jolla, Del Mar and Los Angeles). The mattes are always what are signed and numbered. That's not to say the prints aren't; maybe the signatures are covered. All I'm saying is that signatures on the mattes are visible.

For me, personally, if I'm going to sign a print I'm going to sign the back. If someone asks me to sign the front I certainly will, but I don't want my chicken-scratch detracting from an image. I've done it, but I prefer not to.

I really prefer to sign the matte...

 

[limr]

Were the prints made so there was blank paper to facilitate the mat?

No they weren't. In the future, I'll probably be sure to get that white border so I can sign the border. What I ended up doing was buying a scrap book type of portfolio with plastic sleeves. I put the prints in plastic envelopes, put them all in the sleeve, and had tags with pricing (matted/unmatted) and my email address. I signed the prints on the back. If someone wanted to buy a print right then and there, unmatted, they could. If they wanted a mat, I would take their address and mail it to them matted. It was the best compromise I could think of. I couldn't afford buying all the mats up front.

I do like the idea of signing both the white border on the picture (or on the back) and the mat, and that's how the framed pictures were displayed. That way, they can see the name, but if they want to change the frame/mat, then my signature still remains on the picture itself.

 

[KmH]

Over time a mat (and backing) absorbs contaminants from the atmosphere, becomes more acidic, and has to be replaced if damage to the photograph is to be avoided.

The time factor is variable based on where the print is hing, the glazing in front of the print, and the original acidity of the mat/mount materials used.

So signing the mat may mean a signature on a mat gets discarded sometime in the future.

 

[limr]

Over time a mat (and backing) absorbs contaminants from the atmosphere, becomes more acidic, and has to be replaced if damage to the photograph is to be avoided.

The time factor is variable based on where the print is hing, the glazing in front of the print, and the original acidity of the mat/mount materials used.

So signing the mat may mean a signature on a mat gets discarded sometime in the future.

This is why I've decided that I prefer signing the print itself. This was the first time I've printed a picture that was not for myself or as a gift. If I do anymore with the idea of selling prints, I'll be sure there is the white border and I'll sign that.

In April, I'll have recovered negatives from Fuji pack film that can be printed the same way (from Adorama, with the border this time.) If I display the original prints, or transfers/lifts, then I'll sign on the border or the surface that the emulsion is transferred to. I'm actually going to start working on that because this show will be only me and one other person, so it requires a bigger, more diverse collection of images and sizes.

 

[KmH]

For whatever reason this thread is attracting an unusual amount of Spam and is now closed.