eclecticism

March 15th, 2005 |

I got a nice compliment from mom on one of my recent photos earlier today:

> You sure have some beautiful photos. You could open a side business (in your spare time) selling them for cards.

“

Thanks mom!

This makes me curious, though….

Might this be a viable idea? While I’m still not sure I’d call myself a “photographer” — I generally tend to prefer “some guy with a camera” — I do think that I do occasionally manage to get some pretty decent shots. If I could find a good way to produce cards or prints, anyone think there might be an interest?

And if so…any ideas where to look as far as vendors go? I know CafePress is one option — I’m using them now (if you can call the five or six sales I’ve made so far “using”) for my I’m Just Here to Get Laid, I’m Too Sexy for My Blog and I’m Too Sexy for Your Blog t-shirts, but the profit margin is so miniscule there that I’m not really sure I see using it for anything more than the occasional hobbyist cute idea (like the aforementioned t-shirts). Of course, if anyone is using CafePress more seriously than I am and finds it worthwhile, feel free to let me know. Any options other than CafePress?

I’m not entirely sure how seriously I’m thinking about this just now, but it’s at least worth poking around at a bit to see what I can find out.

“Attached” by Orbital from the album Snivilisation (1994, 12:25).

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7 Responses to “Cards, anyone?”

MMM Says:
March 16th, 2005 at 12:21 am

I’ve been thinking about the same thing for quite some time now.

I don’t know how profitable it could be selling my shots as cards or prints, but I would like to give it a try.

I haven’t found any online sites that could be a good venue for selling my photos, anyway I might try out cafepress for a while.

I’ll let you know how it goes with me there and if I find some other ideas. Do let me know if you come across anything interesting

Dan Wolfgang Says:
March 16th, 2005 at 6:19 am

I’ve been selling (mostly 8x10 prints) on and off for several years. I’ve never really pursued it—I show off my photography to friends and family, and sometimes I get lucky.

As cool as CafePress is, though, I just don’t think it’s worth it. I have some stuff in a few shops, but I see profit as a problem, too. (If I get what I think is fair profit, the items are all terribly overpriced!) That said, I’ve done a few bulk orders—which gets you a hefty discount—and those have been worth it. But even all that stuff is a bit questionable, quality-wise.

Having written this, I realize it’s going to be of no help to you. Oh well.

Michael Hanscom Says:
March 16th, 2005 at 10:16 am

Having written this, I realize it’s going to be of no help to you. Oh well.

Oh, I dunno — you’ve verified some of what I’d been thinking in regards to CafePress. At least this way I know that I may not be completely off base.

MMM Says:
March 16th, 2005 at 12:48 pm

Btw, doing another search today I came across http://dotphoto.com who offer a service where you can upload and share your photos as well as sell them.

I’m still setting up my account and stuff, but thought I’d let you know so you could check it out too, if u’re interested.

Splinter Says:
March 16th, 2005 at 3:59 pm

Let me know what you find. I am considering doing this as well.

You might want to look at iStockPhoto, you don’t get to choose what people do with your pics but it may generate some money. It seems photos that would be usefull for composits sell the best.

CPS Says:
March 16th, 2005 at 8:57 pm

Jenny and I have been using Shutterfly for the last year or so, as a print service for our web gallery, as a part of the Gallery software. We’ve made cards several times — and really liked them! — on a one-off basis, but they have bulk card printing as well. Something like that might be an easy way to get started, to see what cards print well.