Heck with all this. Read Brooks Jensen’s article.

…..

I discussed this topic over the past year with a couple posts (first post, second post), and I have come to the conclusion that it is best for me to break the limited editions for all of my prints.

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Specifics

Instead of offering my prints in a limited edition of (say) “x of 250”, each new print will have a single number in the corner. This will basically be a serial number. It will represent the number of copies of the specific image in circulation up to that point (not respective of print size). Each of my Certificates of Authenticity will be updated to reflect this. For images in now-broken editions, I will continue the series of their print number but simply not write “/250” after it. As for the older prints in my inventory which still have “x/250” on them, the “250” will be rendered meaningless. New images for 2011 — which have not yet been printed — will not be in limited in the first place.

My reasons / assumptions

Side effects

Some art festivals and galleries have strict rules requiring digital photography to be offered as limited edition prints, and my decision is preventing my work from ever getting into those events. I’m comfortable with that. (This does not affect my ability to get into art festivals in Oklahoma.)

Even though this allows me to press the print button a zillion times, I will NOT abuse the privilege. To be honest, my edition of 250 for each image was way too high — In the three years I have been selling work, I have rarely printed over 30 copies of any given image, and I’m likely to get bored with an image long before I approach 250. In fact I have already stopped printing some of my first-year images due to a lack of sales. More will be rotated out in 2011. (They might be remaindered at reduced prices, we’ll see..)

Alternative

I have been bouncing around the idea of posting on my website the current number of copies of each photo sold so far. (I already keep a sales database, so this number is simple to generate.) This would serve as the “live” counterpart to the “/250” I was handwriting on the prints. This can also indicate the number of the next print for sale. If I decide to stop printing a certain image, I will mention that printing has halted, and that number will freeze.

Downsides