To sell, or not to sell digital files? That is the big question of the new decade. Professional photographers seem to be in two totally different camps when it comes to whether we should sell, or give away our digital files. It’s true that we live in the digital age and that Social Media is king these days. But, what are clients actually DOING with those digital images? We know they are sharing them on Facebook, Instagram, and all the other Social Media platforms out there. But, are they printing them? If so, are they having them printed by a reputable company? If not, what is happening to them? CDs and jump drives end up buried in the junk drawer or in a box. Computer hard drives crash or become corrupted and unless they have been backed up somewhere, those images are lost forever.
I love digital files. They are my bread and butter. And I have been playing with and creating fine art with digital files since Photoshop first emerged on the scene and blew the minds of creative people all over the world. Believe me, it was not a hard sell to get me to put down my film camera and pick up a digital one. Half of my prints have been digitized, still working on the other half, and I love sharing photos online. How else can my sister in North Carolina, my aunt in Tennessee or my cousin in California get to see how much my daughter has grown and what she is doing as an 11-year-old?
But digital files are temporary. They won’t last. The countless framed prints of my daughter from birth to 5th grade that I have hanging on the walls of my home…those will last. And the best thing about prints is that I can see them all the time. I don’t have to dig through multiple layers of files on my computer or try to find that Facebook post from March, 2016 when I THINK I posted that photo from the Irish Festival.
This is why I’ve decided to change the way I sell my portraits and to try to encourage prints over digitals. Whether you purchase a 16×20 inch fine art, wrapped-canvas print, a photo book filled with memories, or a few 4×6 prints to share with family, the print is right now and it’s long-lasting. It stirs that emotion instantly, rather than building up frustration while digging through the junk drawer to find that jump drive that you are pretty sure you tossed in there thinking you would get those images printed “one day”.
I still plan to share digital images with my clients, because I know how important it is to share those images on Social Media. For every image you purchase (and yes, this includes images in photo books) you will receive a Social Media friendly digital file of that image. Plus, you are welcome and encouraged to share any of your own photos that I share on my website, Instagram or Facebook. I am excited to begin helping clients choose what photos to print and provide them with beautiful works of art to hang on their walls, or enjoy in a high quality, personally designed photo book. Let’s join the movement to bring back the beauty of prints, because when we are gone, will our great grandchildren know what’s on that jump drive hiding in the back of the junk drawer?
Located in Fort Worth, Texas 