But Hardly Anyone Ever Buys Them
Although there is not clear-cut data from a Google search to tell me what object is the most often photographed, I would bet on
"Flowers" being very
close to the top of the list if not first. And for me, next to sunrises & sunsets, flowers have been one of my least selling genres of works. (Note: I am pertaining to fine art flower photography and not image purchased for commercial uses).
But it seems we
just cant get enough flower shots captured once we have a camera that is capable of decent macro shots.
And that sentence there
seems to answer pretty much the whole mystery.
In fact it is so much possible for
just about anyone to take macro photographs since the typical camera available now will amaze you with
how close they can get. And then on the
DSLR and especially with the "
crop frame" cameras
and a macro or macro zoom lens, you can get stunning images... absolutely stunning.
Having been in the photography business even back in the "
Film Days" I can say that
flowers were also one of the
top subjects photographed.
Even as I scanned through my own
archive of film images, I did find a high percentage of flower shots. And a much higher rate of
shallow depth of field images as compared to what I have shot since going digital.
With the ability to
crank up the ISO to 800 or so, you can get use out of those
tiny little f-stops like
f/22 and
f/32 and still at a shutter speed fast enough to
hand-hold.
Out of all the years I have had
photographic art works of flowers, the most I have ever sold of 1 piece has been
only 5 sold of this piece "
Spring Fusion". Several others I have sold 4 of, but for the most part they are
not a big mover in my offerings, when compared to the other subject genres.
And from my times spent not only with
my own gallery, but having works in
other galleries and working as an employee in galleries... Sales of flower photo art were
minimal if at all.
If it's that easy, I am not paying for it.
I think one of the biggest things that keeps
photographic art from selling is the basic fact of what it is.
Such a large majority of the population
does not feel that
photographs are art, and certainly not fine art.
For the most part people think that
anyone can take a camera make a picture of a flower, print an enlargement and hang it all and call it art. Of course
actually anyone can do that, it's just the
interpretation of what art is can vary between person to person. Then when they think
how easy it is to take a pic of a flower (whether or not they actually do know how) that just makes it that much less attractive to buy, but will be admired by plenty.
In fact one of the
funniest lines I have heard time and time again from gallery patrons whispering to each other was
"Yeah, I took one just like that". And that is pretty much gonna cut off the chance of making a sale to those types since they "took one just like that". That mentality has now grown to about almost all genres of photography subjects. Whereas,
if they think they took one just like it, or could go take one just like it, they are thinking why would they want to buy it.
Sometimes It Just Needs To Be Their Favorite
As in the case for this piece "
Daisy Chain", the fact it was daisies has been the reason it has sold the few times that it has.
I have had an adopter take home 3 different Tulip works simply because
Tulips were her favorite flower.
And of course I have seen some
pink flowers go to new homes simply
because they were pink. But, overall it can be hard to see any noticeable numbers on
botanical photographic art going to new homes. And so, I can't stress enough...
Do not get discouraged if sales of your flower photographic art is slow.
You just have to
keep on shooting for your own enjoyment and keep the fire alive to
produce the best flower photos that you can. Out of the ones I have on my gallery web site, I have only ever sold 20 of the 55 different works offered. Yet I still shoot and produce new
botanical works regularly.
Add In Some Bonus Subjects
You may find that images with dew drops, rain or insects can add to the appeal of the image. As in the case of "
Pink Tunias", I personally don't think I would like the image all that much if it wasn't sprinkled with fresh rain drops.
With fine art flower photography,
play the numbers game. You may hear a
thousand compliments about how great an image is but yet
only ever sell one of it. That just seems to be how it may be... then of course you could be in a select lucky group that sells lots and lots of flower works... Then my hats off to you.
There is an incredible amount of fantastically done flower photographs out there in the world, and
especially on the web.
It's all gonna go down a lot easier if you just realize the fact that so many people don't buy photographic art simply because of the medium it is... a photograph! Then add in the extra fact it's a flower that is abundantly visible out side, and therefore...
you could shoot it yourself.
Well, I think you
get the picture by now, but don't stop making those great flower scenes.
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