Question 1

Can any photographer exhibit his or her pictures on BluePhoto.co?

Accepted Answer

BluePhoto Collective is a highly curated site and its storefronts are only available by
invitation. At the moment, we aren’t able to review unsolicited submissions. Sorry about
that. This may change in the future, so check this space.

Question 2

Why not allow all photographers to show their work on BluePhoto?

Accepted Answer

Mostly, it’s a question of not wanting to overwhelm potential buyers with an ocean of
images. As a curated platform, we will be searching through tens of thousands of
photographs to bring people a selection of images we believe are gorgeous, important,
impactful, and priced fairly. This is an extremely subjective process, and should a
photographer not receive an invitation to exhibit with us, it’s not because their work is
“bad.” God, no.

Question 3

How much does it cost to have my photos on BluePhoto.co?

Accepted Answer

Zero. Our mission is to help photographers sell their work and to help them keep the vast majority of the sale price in their pocket. There is no up-front set-up fee, nor is there a monthly or annual charge.

Question 4

So then how does BluePhoto make money?

Accepted Answer

We take a percentage of every sale. For photographs, we take 15 percent—far less
than a gallery, where the commission is usually around three times that. For books, it’s
10 percent, and for clothing, it’s also 10 percent. We want photographers to be
successful, so if they sell 10 prints or pull in $10,000 worth of sales over the course of a
year, our percentage will drop to 12.5 percent for future print sales. We do need to be
transparent here and say these rates are not set in stone. This is a new business and
there may be some tweaks, up or down, but we feel that this is a fair place to start.

Question 5

Why does BluePhoto take a percentage of a photographer’s sales?

Accepted Answer

Our fee will be used for the upkeep of the site, advertising, marketing, customer service
costs, and all of the expenses related to running a small business.

Question 6

What can be sold on BluePhoto?

Accepted Answer

BluePhoto is, you know, a platform for people who love photography, and so everything
on the site must be photo-related — and the photographer must own the rights to the
images he or she sells. For instance, a photographer may sell art prints, photo books,
zines, photography-based T-shirts or other image-inclusive clothing, as well as things
we probably haven’t thought of. This is the important part: The photographer must have
the rights to any image that appears on anything sold, and he or she must have
releases from any people depicted in the images if they will appear on merchandise that
is not a fine art print (that is, posters, t-shirts, etc.).

Question 7

What can’t be sold?

Accepted Answer

Photographers can’t sell photo gear. They can’t sell posters or apparel without a model
release for the image. They can’t sell anything if they don’t own the rights to the image
or have the appropriate releases.

Question 8

Can photographers whose work is on BluePhoto still sell prints and books on their own site?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely! BluePhoto Collective is meant to offer an additional distribution channel, not
take one away. We believe that pretty quickly — through advertising, social media, and
word of mouth — our site will be able draw quite a few shoppers that wouldn’t
necessarily have found the photographer’s site otherwise.

Question 9

Is BluePhoto a gallery?

Accepted Answer

No. We showcase, sell, and promote photographers’ work, but we do not represent photographers in the traditional, hands-on way that a gallery does. As a mission-driven collective that aims to get more photographs on more walls, we work with galleries to benefit photographers and, as mentioned just below, we do not ask for any exclusivity.

Question 10

What if a photographer’s prints are represented by a gallery or their book is being sold by the publisher?

Accepted Answer

Our goal is to help photographers sell their work and if that means directing a potential
buyer to a photographer’s gallery or publisher, we’re all for it. We will be inviting
galleries and book publishers to open storefronts on the site as well. If a photographer
would like to bring his or her gallery or publisher to BluePhoto, that’s great. Have them
send a note to Bill@bluephoto.co and we’ll explain how everything works, and get them
set up.

Question 11

Do print editions have to be limited?

Accepted Answer

No. While we believe that limited edition prints will be more sought-after — and that numbered prints can bring a photographer a higher price — we do not require that photographers limit their editions. Some photographers on the site offer both limited editions and open editions, even for the same photo. In this case, the physical size of the prints in the editions must be different: On BluePhoto, photographers tend to sell prints as open editions at a smaller size and limited editions at a larger size.

Question 12

Do photographers have to sign their images?

Accepted Answer

We believe that buyers will want a photographer’s signature on their print because
people like objects that were touched by the artist who created them. A signature helps
buyers feel more connected to the work and to the photographer. It’s just more
authentic, more special. We also believe that people will pay more for a signed image.
So ideally, yes, a photographer would sign his or her prints. This is not required, but it is
requested. In some cases, the photographers will sign the print itself; in other cases,
they will sign a Certificate of Authenticity that can be affixed to the back of the matted
print.

Question 13

Who pays for shipping ?

Accepted Answer

Shipping costs will be added at checkout, and they’ll vary depending on the size of the photo, etc.

Question 14

Are there restrictions about what kind of images can be shown on the site?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and honestly, this is a tough one because we’re in favor of artistic expression. But
as a new platform, we also want to approach this cautiously. We hope you understand.
First, let’s talk about nudity. We will not exhibit any nude photos of children or, for the
sake of clarity, anyone who is — or who might appear to be — under 21. At this stage,
we will not be showing photos that feature full frontal nudity. Likewise, we are also going
to be cautious about photos that appear to show extreme or graphic violence. Finally,
there will almost certainly be some tough judgement calls, and we’ll do our best to be
thoughtful, clear, and transparent about our decisions.

Question 15

How often will the site be updated?

Accepted Answer

Continually. We will be adding new photographers and images  all the time, and as limited-edition prints sell out, they will be replaced by other images from that photographer.

Question 16

Can photographers close their store at any point?

Accepted Answer

Yes. It’s their store. But the photographer must notify us 30 days before he or she intends to close it. The photographer is still responsible for fulfilling all outstanding orders or any which may have occurred before the store is removed from the site.

Question 17

Can photographers “pause” their store if they’re away on assignment or vacation?

Accepted Answer

Yes, with 10 days advance notice we will pause the store. Also: Enjoy that vacation!

Question 18

Are there any fees you haven’t mentioned so far?

Accepted Answer

No. Photographers will have to pay for printing, but photographers typically build that cost into their pricing. Shipping costs will be calculated at checkout and will be covered by the buyer.

Question 19

What if a photographer doesn’t have a great printer they love and trust?

Accepted Answer

We can help. We work with a first-rate printer, Brilliant Graphics, who prints for Sally Mann, Mark Seliger, George Tice, among others. Brilliant Graphics has agreed to give BluePhoto photographers a discount in order to keep costs down for buyers.

Question 20

How can a photographer get in touch with you?

Accepted Answer

Reach us at info@BluePhoto.co, but please understand that we’ve just launched and we’re a small team, so it might take us some time — maybe even a lot of time — to get back to you. On Instagram, we’re @bluephoto.co.

COLLECTIVE

PRINTS SHIP FREE IN THE U.S.