“Whether it’s illegal or not, it’s unethical” to issue new editions that previous buyers had no warning might be created, he says. Philadelphia-based photography dealer Alex Novak, for one, minces no words. New York, California and other states have statutes defining a “limited edition” and restricting what a photographer can do to capitalize on a single image. But many photographers have issued new editions at a later date in larger sizes, or using different print processes, or both: Sometimes it’s for creative reasons, but often it is to cash in on the rising value of a work for which the existing limited-edition prints have sold out. Collectors expect that the photographic prints they acquire remain scarce so they hold their value. Twenty years ago, an edition of less than 20 prints was rare now galleries rarely sell work by a photographer who prints in editions of more than ten. Raising your prices depends on many factors, gallerists say, including not only how well your prints have sold, but who has bought them. “I beg artists to issue one edition of three to five,” says New York gallery owner Andrea Meislin. Keeping editions small-ideally six prints or fewer, she says-is increasingly important, as more contemporary art collectors used to investing in one-of-a-kind paintings begin collecting photographs.
In addition to pricing their work too high before they’re established, emerging artists make the mistake of issuing editions that are too large. Gallery owners agree: You can always raise prices, but you can never lower them. Click on the headlines to read full stories. Their advice and experience, gleaned from articles in PDN’s archives, provide a guide for photographers who want to market their fine-art prints and advance their careers as artists. To better understand the workings of today’s fine-art market, PDN has interviewed numerous gallery directors, private dealers and collectors, and has also talked to photographers who have succeeded at building successful careers making art and selling prints both on their own and through galleries. They also need to understand how the market and the business of running a gallery is changing in the face of economic pressure and technological changes that provide new ways for collectors to discover and buy fine-art photography. Photographers who want to sell their fine-art prints to collectors or museums need to make decisions about how to price their work, what size their limited editions should be, how to market their work, and how to manage their inventory while making sales. The fine-art photography market has its own vocabulary, and its own methods for assessing value and price. An earlier version of this article was first published in 2015.
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