This article is a general guide on selecting photographs to buy.

It would be good to first read "Why collect photos"
 
What to buy, well, our photographs of course, although there are other choices so we will try not to ramble on about our own photographs.
 
Choosing photographs is simple, you either like it or you don't.
Photographs should give you joy and you want that joy to last as long as possible.

A theme.
Many great collections are based on a period, genre, style or subject that the collector likes and enjoys researching and you do need to research, only then can you be sure what you buy is worth collecting.
 
Ask yourself, what do I like, maybe people, old homes, places or landscapes, this will give you a theme to build your collection on.
It is better to become an expert on one theme that you enjoy then you are less likely to make mistakes, after all you may be spending a lot of money on your photographic collection.

B&W or COLOR ?
This is a question being asked more often.
I hear some people say that B&W is real art, yet the real art in photography is in creating an image that captures the feelings of that moment in time, it does not matter if it is B&W or color.

Having said that our world is color, beautiful vibrant colors interwoven with the massive details of nature. My photographs rely on color and would not be the same without it. Can you imagine a sunrise or a waterfall cascading through a rainforest in B&W.
Sorry, I said I wouldn't ramble.

What to buy.
What you should buy are photographs that you like
and hopefully will increase in value.

Many factors influence the present and future value of photographs.
Is the photographer accepted as collectable, are they already in private or public collections and will they still be collected in the future?

Each photographer has their own style and the best are recognized by their style, of course the price of their photographs will reflect this.

To be collectable is important but ultimately you still should buy what you like.

So now we want to find collectable photographs that we like.

It is best not to buy a photograph that has been printed thousands of times or photographs that are now printed as posters and postcards.

What we want are photographs that have been or will be printed in limited numbers and most importantly, will never be printed again.

Limited Edition photographs are a perfect choice.
They are printed in Limited Editions, numbered and signed by the photographer and once the edition is completed they will not be printed again.
Of course you must rely on the photographer not to print any more and keep a record of each numbered photograph so no duplicate numbers are made.

It is usual to find editions of 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000 or even more but smaller editions of 25 or 50 can also be found, but at a much higher price.
Limited Editions of 200 are a good place to start.

It is very important to receive a Certificate of Authenticity
with at least the image title, edition number,
date and name of the photographer on the certificate.
This is proof that you are buying a genuine Limited Edition photograph.

Limited Editions can be priced in a few different ways.
Each photograph in an edition can be sold for the same price.
Or at progressive steps in the edition (maybe every 20) where the price for each photograph will increase till the last (maybe 20) will sell for a much higher price.
This ensures that all the photographs in the edition become more valuable.

Hopefully these ideas have helped you to make a more informed decision.

  View Limited Edition photographs now