This is the last in my set of three postings regarding creating photos/pictures in a series. This was, for me, a very big sale at Fine Art America.
I took a couple of photos in Orange, California of a tattered piece of paper on a pole. Actually, it was a tattered piece of paper and some partially erased graffiti.
By chopping everything up in the photo and then rearranging it, I created a series of maybe twelve photos that were all different yet had the same "look."
Fine Art America had a wholesale decorator plan going on at the time (don't know if they still offer it) and what I think this sale was all about was for either a hotel or a suite of offices. Because FAA was selling these images at a bulk discount, my take was smaller than it ordinarily would have been, but still. Eight photos in one swoop! The paycheck was quite sizable.
You may look at these images and wonder, what the heck was the buyer thinking? These are nothing, really. And I can understand your thinking. But I think they're very cool.
My point is that if I'd made just one version and stopped, I would not have gotten the sale. I offered a bunch of similar images, and that bunch is what made the images even more salable. And is what paid the mortgage for a couple of months!
How do you apply this to your own work? Simple. Don't stop at one. If you photograph mailboxes, one might be nice, but a series of mailboxes is even nicer, is more interesting, tells more of a story, and, if you market your work, gives your buyer more than one reason to purchase your pictures.
A series of greeting cards all created using the same color palette, or with the same subject matter, is more appealing to a buyer than one card of a butterfly, one of a macro shot of ice, another of a farmhouse, etc.
And thus ends THIS little series. Until I think of another one . . .
©Carol Leigh
All text, photographs, and other media are ©Copyright Carol Leigh (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from Carol Leigh. Thank you!
