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Over the years, I’ve become convinced that anyone with an
interest in photography, especially photographers, should be a
collector of photographs. There are many ways and levels at which you
can collect depending on your tastes and how much you want to spend. No
matter how or what you collect, it can be a wonderful way to invest in
photography. Investing not just in a financial sense (in fact, in many
ways this is least important), but also actively supporting a medium
the we see as critically important..
Collecting photography doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. Photographic books can be a very reasonably priced way to start Another wonderful alternative to original photographs are fine high quality photogravure editions that are available of some photographers work. In fact, for many photographers this is the only real way to collect their work. Some well-known photographers’ entire output is already in collections and museums and their prints very rarely appear, and then at very high prices.
Displaying photographs increases your own enjoyment of the work and makes a statement to visitors. The walls of my home and office contain not only my own work, but the work of photographers who I’ve known over the years and also some photographs from the early 20th century where the artist may be forgotten, but his vision lives on. When I visit a dear friend in Taipei, the first thing I do is walk to the wall where he displays his original Weston shell print and several Ansel Adams prints (the funny thing is that until I first saw an original Ansel Adams print, I was only moderately fond of his work, the originals are simply unreproducable using offset printing technology).
A fantastic way for a photographer to start collecting prints is a print exchange. This can be done on an individual basis or through formalised 'Print Exchanges'. However, since some photographs have begun to command high prices in the art market, this practice is becoming a little less popular because of the financial value of the work. However with the advent of affordable high quality ink jet prints, there is new interest in photo exchanges. In fact, the quality of inkjet prints has gotten so high that my color prints that command the highest prices are not, in fact, traditional Chromogenic prints, but signed limited edition inkjet prints on Arches cold pressed 100% rag watercolor paper.
High quality ink jet prints and high quality digital Chromogenic prints have really revolutionized fine art photography. For example, when I’m using traditional a darkroom to print, each print takes quite a lot of my time. In addition to manual dodging and burning, and washing and drying (often taking nearly an hour per print), each has to be individually spotted to remove any blemishes. Subsequent prints may take a little less time because as I’m already familiar with the various filters and dodging and burning, but it still takes a lot of time.
A single high quality digital print actually takes far longer to produce than the same print in the darkroom. Digital prints require much careful adjusting and retouching of the file (an example of how MUCH time is a recent limited edition I did of a Chinese farmouse; the file took nearly 9 hours, and began its life as a medium format 6cm x 4.5cm - ro 645 - black and white negative, which I then scanned, the resulting file was over 500MB, and the final print file is in the neighborhood of 300MB uncompressed; when you add the 9 hours to the 2 hours shoot setup and the hour or two of film development and preparation for scanning, you ge an idea of the commitment that a hybrid film/digital process requires). Once that is done, multiple copies are simply a matter of sending the file either to a competent Chromogenic output service or to an inkjet printer. Although this takes time, it is far less than the time required for a darkroom print.
Ten things to remember:
Collecting photography doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. Photographic books can be a very reasonably priced way to start Another wonderful alternative to original photographs are fine high quality photogravure editions that are available of some photographers work. In fact, for many photographers this is the only real way to collect their work. Some well-known photographers’ entire output is already in collections and museums and their prints very rarely appear, and then at very high prices.
Displaying photographs increases your own enjoyment of the work and makes a statement to visitors. The walls of my home and office contain not only my own work, but the work of photographers who I’ve known over the years and also some photographs from the early 20th century where the artist may be forgotten, but his vision lives on. When I visit a dear friend in Taipei, the first thing I do is walk to the wall where he displays his original Weston shell print and several Ansel Adams prints (the funny thing is that until I first saw an original Ansel Adams print, I was only moderately fond of his work, the originals are simply unreproducable using offset printing technology).
A fantastic way for a photographer to start collecting prints is a print exchange. This can be done on an individual basis or through formalised 'Print Exchanges'. However, since some photographs have begun to command high prices in the art market, this practice is becoming a little less popular because of the financial value of the work. However with the advent of affordable high quality ink jet prints, there is new interest in photo exchanges. In fact, the quality of inkjet prints has gotten so high that my color prints that command the highest prices are not, in fact, traditional Chromogenic prints, but signed limited edition inkjet prints on Arches cold pressed 100% rag watercolor paper.
High quality ink jet prints and high quality digital Chromogenic prints have really revolutionized fine art photography. For example, when I’m using traditional a darkroom to print, each print takes quite a lot of my time. In addition to manual dodging and burning, and washing and drying (often taking nearly an hour per print), each has to be individually spotted to remove any blemishes. Subsequent prints may take a little less time because as I’m already familiar with the various filters and dodging and burning, but it still takes a lot of time.
A single high quality digital print actually takes far longer to produce than the same print in the darkroom. Digital prints require much careful adjusting and retouching of the file (an example of how MUCH time is a recent limited edition I did of a Chinese farmouse; the file took nearly 9 hours, and began its life as a medium format 6cm x 4.5cm - ro 645 - black and white negative, which I then scanned, the resulting file was over 500MB, and the final print file is in the neighborhood of 300MB uncompressed; when you add the 9 hours to the 2 hours shoot setup and the hour or two of film development and preparation for scanning, you ge an idea of the commitment that a hybrid film/digital process requires). Once that is done, multiple copies are simply a matter of sending the file either to a competent Chromogenic output service or to an inkjet printer. Although this takes time, it is far less than the time required for a darkroom print.
Ten things to remember:
- Only collect work you genuinely like - whoever it is by or whatever its price.
- Don't buy photography as an investment - buy it for pleasure.
- Specialize in your collection - perhaps on one or two areas of work, or countries or periods.
- Keep as much as possible of your collection displayed in your home or office.
- Never hang photographs in direct sunlight. For older works and some special processes you may need to provide low lighting levels.
- Use archival materials to store and frame pictures, and try to ensure proper storage conditions.
- Spend at least as much on living photographers as on dead ones - it is important to keep the medium alive
- Use the knowledge and experience you gain in collecting to buy work from unknown photographers. If you enjoy the work, back your own judgment and buy it.
- Always remember that galleries are in the hype business - listen to their advice but trust your own judgment.
- Never pay more for a photograph because it is a part of a 'limited edition' than you would be happy to pay for it otherwise.
Guide created: 02/04/06 (updated 03/11/08)
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