[leejo]

> Only 1000 editions of Private Views were published

For context this is towards the higher end of a standard print run in the photobook world. Most niche art/photo books will be printed in runs of only 50, 100, perhaps a few hundred, or at most 1,000 so "Only 1000 editions" is actually at the upper end and this is in no way "limited-edition". Unless the project goes viral it's unlikely the book itself will ever be sold out, such is the nature of the [lack of] demand for printed photobooks.

So getting the project featured on various sites helps sell a few dozen here and there and works towards clawing back the initial investment. Clearly this was an expensive book to produce as single copies are in the range of €70, which is almost double what most niche photobooks sell for. I'm sure some of the subjects included in the project will be interested in copies, so there's a meta aspect there.

If the book does sell out then the price of [secondhand] copies will increase above the original price, and you can find the value can double, or even increase by an order of magnitude. So a project about views you can't see unless you can afford them, becomes a book about views you can't see unless you can afford them which itself you can't afford. Another meta aspect.

[biztos]

Veering off topic but: there is a photography vlogger named Jared Polin who is producing a crowdfunded photo book and vlogging the process. It’s pretty fascinating if you’re casually interested in niche photo books.

https://youtu.be/NloBEbN7qo8

[leejo]

That video gives a good general idea of the costs involved in creating high quality niche photobooks. TL;DW way more expensive than most people realise. Very few photographers make any profit from books however, unless they are very well established. So the emphasis on profit in this video is rather misleading.

There's also a big error/assumption from Jared when he covers why he is self-publishing rather than going to dedicated publisher in that he talks about the publisher giving "an $X thousand dollar advance" - this simply does not happen with photobook publishers, they usually just give you a certain number of copies of the print run to sell yourself.

Even with 1.3million followers Jared probably wouldn't sell the 2,500 copies he is talking about printing here - this is why people go the Kickstarter route as you're pre-selling and can print to demand (plus a few copies on top). People don't really buy art, very few people are willing to drop $50+ on a photobook.

A reason people do go to publishers is that they have the marketing clout to get your book into independent photobook shops, visible at photobook festivals, into award listings, featured in newspapers, online, etc. That's the hard part in self-publishing, and even established publishers go the Kickstarter route if they're unsure about the potential demand for a book.

[biztos]

Thanks, that's an interesting take.

I agree Polin seems to undervalue (or just not understand?) what a publisher brings to the table, but I did get the impression he is trying to do this as an offshoot of his vlogging business more than "as a photographer" and for that, flying solo might have advantages outside the actual sales and publicity of the book.

Funny that you say people don't really buy art: the primary complaint from artists about the art world is that there's too much money in it. Lots of people buy art, and lots of people make art, and lots of people sell art: for at least these three measures, more people than ever have at any previous time in recorded history. But sure, more people don't than do.

[rocqua]

Interesting, my first thought uppon reading this was "huh guess I can't buy this limited edition book" weird to see hoe wrong that was. I wonder how many lost sales thoughts like mine cause in the end