As a popular past-time in the mid 19th century people collected carte-de-visites of their friends and family and put them into albums. Foreshadowing our present fascination with Hollywood personalities, they were also avid collectors of celebrity images. The very wealthy would often set off on “the grand tour,” and instead of taking their own photographs with the cumbersome and complicated equipment available at the time, purchased photographs of each place, later putting them into albums. Many photographic albums were also published in the 19th century. Examples include Peter Henry Emerson’s Life and Landscape on the Norfolk Broads, or John Thomson’s Street Life in London. These were precursors to the photographic portfolios produced today.

The first auctions of photographs took place in London in 1854 and, a century later, in America in 1952 (the Marshall Sale, held by Swann Galleries). The renowned photographer and publisher Alfred Stieglitz had galleries in New York from 1905 until his death in 1946 and exhibited photographs alongside modern art. Along with Stieglitz, Julian Levy’s gallery in New York (1931- 1949), introduced the public to many photographers, including Weston, Sheeler, Strand and Atget. After a dry period in the 1960s, the early 1970s saw the beginning of the photography market as we know it today.

Left: Tree and Wall, Arnold Newman, Philadelphia, PA, 1941; Right: Georgia O’Keefe and Alfred Stieglitz at American Place, Arnold Newman, New York, 1944.

Arnold Newman/Getty Images

A Very Short History of the Market

Most collectors know of the rise and fall and rise again of the Ansel Adams’ market. Photographs by Adams which were selling in 1975 for $400, were selling for between $4,000 and $16,000 by 1979. By the early 1980s Adams prices had dropped to between $2,000 and $10,000. Today, they are as high as $350,000 for particularly fine prints of his signature 1941 image, Moonrise Over Hernandez. What happened? In 1975 the limitation of Adams’ prints created rarity, which coincided with a widespread demand for photographs. Then came a bad economy, and supply began to exceed the demand.

Today, “blockbuster” museum shows and auctions contribute to a larger public awareness and increase the value of a certain photographer or period. In 2007 the average sales price by lot in the New York photographic auctions topped $40,000. Auction houses have changed the structure of the contemporary art market and, with more public attending auctions than ever before, will continue to do so.

Why Should You Collect Photographs?

Investment potential is an obvious answer but aesthetic considerations are far more important; you might have to live with a photograph for some time before you can sell it, so you had better like it.

What to Look For

There are a number of criteria to consider, which are the same ones appraisers use in establishing values for photographs:

The artist: who is he or she, where do they fit into the history of art, the history of photography? Is their work exhibited regularly, is it critically acclaimed?

The Image: do you love it? Can you say, as did the well-known collector Arnold Crane in responding to the question, “What do you look for in a photographic work?” “I look for nothing! It looks for me! It hits me first in the gut and then in the eye!” How does the subject relate to the particular artist’s body of work – Berenice Abbott is best known for her architectural views of New York, but she also took portraits of important artists and writers. Arnold Newman makes portraits, but he has also taken landscape and still life photographs, many of which are very good images.

Left: Berenice Abbot Flatiron Building, New York, 1938;Right: Berenice Abbot James Joyce, Paris, 1926.

©Berenice Abbott/Commerce Graphics Ltd, NYC

The Date: When was the print made, is it vintage (made close to the time the photographer made the original negative), or contemporary, or something in-between? Who made the print? Weston’s photographs are either true vintage prints; prints made later by himself from earlier negatives; “project prints” made under his supervision by his son, Brett, in the 1950s when Edward developed Parkinson’s, or posthumous prints by his son Cole. Whether one is better than the other is a matter of taste, and in some cases, budget.

Medium: What kind of print is it? Is it stable? (Platinum is, while early calotypes can continue to fade.) Is the process what this photographer did best? Penn’s later platinum prints are probably better than his earlier silver prints. Printing styles in the same medium can also change depending on available papers and the age of the photographer; Bill Brandt’s prints became darker after the 1970s – deteriorating eyesight, or photographer’s choice?

Signature: Consider the norm; an unsigned contemporary Adams photograph is a problem; an unsigned Walker Evans is not unusual. As John Szarkowski once said, “Buy a photograph for what’s on the front, not the back.” Good advice, but what’s on the back helps date the print, (though it is not a guarantee. Photographers have sometimes used older stamps on later prints).

Condition: is very important but only relevant to what is normal. Most contemporary photographs, with the exception, perhaps, of the Starn Brothers, are expected to be pristine. Holly Hinman’s large architectural studies are an example. Photographs by Weegee are expected to be creased or marred, but not in a uniform way, which recently tipped off one dealer to a group of fakes. 19th century prints are often faded; the richest examples are already in private collections or museums. Buy the finest example of an image you can find and afford.

Left: Anonymous, Portrait of a Japanese Woman, c. 1890. Right: St. Paul’s Chapel, New York City, November 2006, 40” x 30” C-type Print

Holly Hinman. Courtesy of Higher Pictures

Size: is only important when considering what you like and can afford. However, a collector should be aware that certain smaller editions, such as Sally Mann’s 8 x 10 inch prints, will probably never go up in value like her larger in size but smaller editioned 30 x 40 inch prints.

Extant Prints: Rarity is important. For contemporary works this information is often available by the edition, but prior to the 1980s there was no need for photographers to limit their prints. Artists such as Ansel Adams, Harry Callahan or Andre Kertesz produced a lot of images without numbering their prints.

Be aware of how each image is limited, e.g. prior to her new large-format landscapes, Sally Mann used to print some images in an edition of 25, in 20 x 24 inches and again in 8 x 10 inches while reserving the right to produce another 25 in 16 x 20 inch format. So you might never know how many prints exist without checking with the artist or her dealers.

Provenance: is fast becoming important in detecting forgeries, and for the possibility of increased value due to the reputation of a previous owner.

Market: know the sales records for the artist and for the particular image before buying a particular photograph.

Other Considerations: Eventually, you should decide on the kind of collection you want. Should it be “investment grade,” i.e. well-known photographs by well-known artists, or up and coming artists who can be found in benefit auctions like those at the Center for Photography at Woodstock (CPW), NY? Are you interested in collecting a particular period or genre, or exploring a particular artist in depth? Be careful of trends – what is fashionable today could be in the trash heap tomorrow, so buy what you like. The worst that can happen is that you will enjoy it for many years to come.

Where to Buy

Establish a relationship with one or two dealers or galleries. Don’t be afraid to go into the fanciest galleries – they’re generally run by nice people who want to sell you something! Most importantly, loyalty to a hometown dealer who has spent time helping you will pay off with offerings of special prints and good prices.

Follow the auctions; Sotheby’s, Christies, Phillips and Swann in New York City, smaller regional houses around the country, and European sales in France, Germany and England. Start with the previews, observe the prints close-up, and listen to interesting comments by others. Observe the bidding. When you finally bid, have firm top bids so you won’t be swayed by auction fever.

An exception is benefit auctions. Go to as many as you can (there are numerous throughout the country). Buy for fun, and your support will usually result in your acquiring good pictures at way below their retail values.

Attend dealer’s fairs. The Association of International Photography Dealers’ (AIPAD), the largest, is held annually in New York, in April, and recently showcased in Miami. Fotofest is in Houston every other year. Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles now have annual fairs, as do Paris and other European cities.

Becoming an Informed Collector

Visit museums. Museum shows are curated by academics who often help us see work in new contexts, with one caveat: the label “masterpiece” affects our judgment. Never be afraid to criticize or disagree. Find your own masterpieces.

Subscribe to publications such as Photograph, www.photomag.com which lists exhibitions around the country, and The Photograph Collectors’ Newsletter, http://www.photoreview.org/collect.htm which reports on auctions, analyzes the market and gives the latest gossip. Subscribe to all the major auction catalogs for condition reports and price results even if you don’t go to all the sales.

Read, read, read more. The website www.photoeye.com is a good source for photography books, and the websites www.luminous-lint.com and iphotocentral.com are great resources for where photographers are represented.

Finally, understand value. Understand that it is not solely inherent in the photograph but rather is a result of many market conditions, understand that the lowest price for a particular image may not be the best buy, that price should reflect quality but does not necessarily do so, that one person’s idea of a masterpiece may not be another’s.