Sold my very first photo . . . . January Bridge CC Welcome

[Kathy O]

Just sold this photo as a canvas print, I was very surprised when I was approached to sell this photo. Thought I would share the photo with you. Constructive Advise is welcome.

[Shadowman]

Congrats.

[Manfred M]

Congratulations Kathy. I hope you got a reasonable amount for it.

This is a very nice shot, although I would probably clean up the bottom left edge as the bright piece of a branch /reed is definitely distracting.

[Kathy O]

Congratulations Kathy. I hope you got a reasonable amount for it.

This is a very nice shot, although I would probably clean up the bottom left edge as the bright piece of a branch /reed is definitely distracting.

Manfred, I am sure I did not charge enough. It cost 82.69 to have a 16x24 canvas printed, how much would have you charged the customer? Thanks for your input . . . oh that piece of branch will be wrapped around the bottome of the canvas so it will not show. Thanks for the tip.

[Benjy]

Good on you Kathy,well done..

[Manfred M]

Manfred, I am sure I did not charge enough. It cost 82.69 to have a 16x24 canvas printed, how much would have you charged the customer? Thanks for your input . . . oh that piece of branch will be wrapped around the bottome of the canvas so it will not show. Thanks for the tip.

There should be two parts to your costs.

1. Time and materials - cost of the print, you going to the printer and picking it up, any shipping costs you are paying, the cost of the print itself, etc. Figure the total out and then double it (at least). This is pretty standard practice in retail. Look at a basic hourly rate to do all that stuff and figure out (to the nearest hour, rounded up) the time you spent on this; multiply the hourly rate times the number of hours to get your labour costs built in.

2. Cost of the piece "art"; i.e. your image. I assume that the sale is not exclusive and you can sell more copies if you want? That part should be worth a couple of hundred at least.

My guess is that unless you sold the piece for at least $400 - $500, you are probably taking a loss.

[Donald]

It was on here that I was first directed to the 'rule' that the standard procedure was 1) Compute cost, including time and , 2) Add 223%.

Seems that was/is an accepted percentage to apply. Don't who arrived at that figure, or when.

[Mike Buckley]

Well done, Kathy! Gorgeous photo!

[Nicks Pics]

It's a good photo Kathy. Congratulations. Did you sell it from a website, or to a gift shop, or was it to friend/family etc.?

[Texas Dave]

I happy for you! ...here's to the first of many!

[JBW]

Pleased is understandable but surprise that someone would buy a shot as beautiful as this? Well done!

[Manfred M]

It was on here that I was first directed to the 'rule' that the standard procedure was 1) Compute cost, including time and , 2) Add 223%.

Seems that was/is an accepted percentage to apply. Don't who arrived at that figure, or when.

It would be interesting to see the workup to that number. I'm not a great fan of formulas, unless I understand what went into them.

In my experience the "producer" doubles their costs, i.e. 50% gross profit margin and then the retailer does the same thing. Costs have three basic components; material; overhead (electricity, insurance, depreciation on equipment) and direct labour. Something that has an intellectual property content, that will be either be included in the overhead numbers, for instance a "goodwill cost" and license fees, but that tends to be for mass produced items. For something like a piece of art, I prefer to see that as a separate cost breakout, as the value of the IP (intellectual property) can go up (or down) over time.

A photographer who is just starting out could charge something fairly nominal for the IP use, but would ramp that up if their work becomes more popular.

[Rita]

Congratulations Kathy. It is a beautiful image.

[Kathy O]

It's a good photo Kathy. Congratulations. Did you sell it from a website, or to a gift shop, or was it to friend/family etc.?

Thank you Nick, I actually sold it to a gal who I am aquainted with, I only know her because she is from the area and saw my photo on my facebook page (a photography group call "Nebraska through the Lens") Thanks again or looking and commenting on my post

Kathy

[Kathy O]

Congratulations Kathy. It is a beautiful image.

Thank you Rita

[Kathy O]

Pleased is understandable but surprise that someone would buy a shot as beautiful as this? Well done!

Thank you Brian

[Stagecoach]

Congratulations Kathy

The feeling from having produced something that someone else wants is perhaps greater than the monetary aspect

[Kathy O]

Thank you Donald and Manfred for the very useful information and for taking the time to look at my posts.

Kathy

[Manfred M]

oh that piece of branch will be wrapped around the bottome of the canvas so it will not show. Thanks for the tip.

You might be okay as the highlight would be on the bottom of the wrap, and would likely be low enough so that it is out of sight.

On the other hand, as canvas is wrapped, I would still pay attention to see how the borders might be affected; you don't want any distractions that the viewer is going to pick up on to the detriment of the viewing experience.

[rpcrowe]

Lovely image, congratulations...