How to Sell Landscape Photography Prints and Make Money

Can you really make money selling landscape photography prints? Photographer Lynne Douglas explains how she built a successful print business, found her niche and learned some valuable lessons along the way.

For years, photographers have been told that selling landscape photography prints isn’t a realistic way to make a living.

The conventional advice is often to teach workshops, run photography tours or offer training instead. Print sales can be treated as an additional income stream rather than a business in their own right.

But there is another market worth considering: fine art and home décor.

People still want artwork for their homes, offices and other spaces. A digital photograph might live on a computer or smartphone, but a carefully produced print can become a piece of art that people display and enjoy every day.

Photographer Lynne Douglas has built her own experience around this market, concentrating on large landscape prints and selling through online art platforms. Her journey has involved considerable experimentation, some significant successes and a few expensive lessons.

Here are some of the key things she has learned about selling landscape photography prints.

Can you make money selling landscape photography prints?

Yes, but selling prints successfully requires a different approach from simply being a good photographer.

One of the biggest lessons Lynne learned was that creating photographs and selling photographs are two different businesses.

Having a beautiful portfolio doesn’t automatically mean people will buy your work. You need to understand who your potential customers are, where they shop, what they are looking for and how much they are prepared to spend.

Print sales are also a numbers game. The more appropriate people who see your work, the greater the chance that someone will find an image that fits their home, office or collection.

That means photographers need to think beyond their own website and consider where their potential customers are already looking for artwork.

Find your niche before trying to sell

One of Lynne’s most important lessons was to identify exactly what made her photography different.

Rather than trying to appeal to everybody interested in photography, she concentrated on a particular type of buyer interested in large photographic artworks for interiors.

This changed the way she thought about her photography.

Instead of asking:

“How can I sell my photographs?”

the more useful question became:

“Who wants to buy this particular type of artwork?”

That distinction can completely change your marketing strategy.

For example, a photographer producing dramatic coastal landscapes might find customers through interior design, home décor and fine art channels, rather than focusing exclusively on photography audiences.

Likewise, an architectural photographer might find opportunities with interior designers, property developers, hotels and businesses.

Your niche doesn’t necessarily have to be defined by the subject you photograph. It can also be defined by the type of customer who buys your work.

Think of your photographs as artwork

Another important change in Lynne’s approach was to stop thinking of her images purely as photographs.

She began considering them as art for the wall.

That opened up a much larger marketplace.

If you are trying to sell a photograph as a £50 print, you are competing in a very different market from someone looking for a statement piece of wall art for their home.

This doesn’t mean that every photograph needs to be enormous or expensive. It means you should think about the complete product rather than simply the image file.

Consider:

• The size of the finished print
• The paper or material used
• The presentation
• Whether the work is framed or unframed
• Whether it is part of a limited edition
• The title of the artwork
• How the image looks in a real interior
• Who the artwork is intended for

The photograph is only one part of the product.

Why large photography prints can work

Large walls create a particular opportunity for photographers.

A small print can be beautiful, but a large landscape photograph can become a major feature within a room.

This is particularly relevant to photographers whose work has strong visual impact when enlarged.

Lynne found that concentrating on large landscape prints helped define her market and differentiate her work from the huge number of smaller photographic prints available online.

However, bigger isn’t automatically better.

The quality of the original photograph, the viewing distance, the printing process and the presentation all become increasingly important as the size increases.

Before offering very large prints, make sure your files and printing workflow can deliver the quality your customers will expect.

Where can you sell photography prints?

There are several possible routes for photographers wanting to sell prints.

Your own photography website

Selling directly through your own website gives you the greatest control over your brand, pricing and customer experience.

You also avoid paying commission to an external marketplace.

The disadvantage is that you have to find the customers yourself.

Simply uploading a gallery of photographs and waiting for sales is unlikely to produce consistent results.

Your website needs to be supported by marketing, search engine optimisation, social media, email marketing or other methods of attracting the right audience.

Online art marketplaces

Online art platforms can provide access to people who are already looking for artwork.

For photographers, this can be particularly useful because the platform itself may provide some of the audience, marketing, fulfilment or printing infrastructure.

Some platforms are curated and require artists to submit their work for approval. Others allow almost anyone to upload their work.

There can be significant differences in commission rates, fees, marketing support, printing options and customer service, so research each platform carefully before committing your time.

Don’t choose a marketplace simply because it is easy to upload photographs.

Ask instead:

Does this platform attract the type of customer who would buy my work?

Galleries and exhibitions

Traditional galleries can provide credibility, exposure and access to collectors.

Lynne experienced this first-hand when her work was exhibited in New York.

Although she didn’t make a sale at that particular exhibition, the experience helped confirm that there was a market for her work and gave her greater confidence.

However, a gallery exhibition isn’t automatically profitable.

Consider the costs of printing, framing, transportation, commissions, travel and your own time before deciding whether an exhibition makes financial sense.

Find the right customers, not just more customers

One of the most valuable lessons from Lynne’s experience was that footfall doesn’t necessarily equal sales.

At one stage, she and her husband opened a gallery on the Isle of Skye.

The location attracted large numbers of tourists and the gallery became popular with visitors and locals. But that didn’t mean those visitors were the ideal customers for large, high-value landscape prints.

Many visitors were interested in coffee, souvenirs and the experience of visiting the location rather than buying an expensive piece of artwork.

Meanwhile, the customers who were already buying Lynne’s work online were a much better match for her products.

It was an expensive lesson, but an important one:

Your ideal customer isn’t necessarily the person who sees your work most often.

It’s the person who wants what you’re selling and can afford to buy it.

Research what actually sells

If you want to sell photography prints, spend time researching the market.

Look at successful photographers and artists working in a similar area.

Study:

• Which images appear to sell well
• The sizes being offered
• The prices being charged
• The colours and subjects being used
• How the artwork is presented
• The titles used
• The descriptions
• Whether editions are limited
• How the artwork is shown in room settings

This isn’t about copying another artist’s work.

It’s about understanding the market you’re entering.

Your photography can remain completely your own while your business decisions become more informed.

Pricing photography prints

Pricing is one of the areas where photographers can easily make mistakes.

It is tempting to calculate the cost of the paper and ink, add a little profit and arrive at a selling price.

That isn’t enough if you’re trying to build a sustainable business.

Your costs may include:

• Paper or other printing materials
• Ink
• Printer maintenance
• Packaging
• Postal tubes or boxes
• Courier costs
• Studio costs
• Computer equipment
• Software subscriptions
• Website costs
• Marketplace fees
• Gallery commissions
• Payment processing
• Returns and damaged items
• Wastage
• Discounts and promotions
• Your own time

If another company takes a percentage of the sale, that commission needs to be included in your pricing calculations.

Likewise, if you regularly offer discounts, don’t price your work as though every customer will pay full price.

Work backwards from the final amount you need to receive.

Selling price − all costs and commissions = actual profit.

That final figure is much more important than the headline price of the print.

Should you sell framed or unframed prints?

There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

Framed prints can provide customers with a finished product that is ready to hang, but framing introduces additional costs, logistics and potential complications.

Large framed artwork is expensive to transport and more vulnerable to damage.

It can also create additional customer service work because buyers may want advice about frame styles, colours and finishes.

Unframed prints are generally simpler to package and ship, while customers can choose their own framing to suit their interiors.

There isn’t a single right answer. Consider your market, your price point and how much additional work each option creates.

Show customers what the print looks like on a wall

One of the challenges of selling artwork online is scale.

A customer looking at an image on a laptop or smartphone may struggle to understand what a 40-inch, 50-inch or 60-inch print would actually look like in their home.

This is where high-quality room mock-ups can be extremely useful.

Showing your artwork in a realistic interior helps potential buyers visualise the finished product.

It can also communicate something that a product photograph cannot: scale.

Just make sure your mock-ups are convincing and high quality. Poorly produced mock-ups can make an otherwise excellent piece of artwork look cheap.

Consider colour and interior design trends

Photographers don’t have to chase every interior design trend, but understanding what people are buying can be useful.

If your target market is home décor, look at interior design publications, websites and current collections to understand the colours and styles appearing in contemporary interiors.

This doesn’t mean changing your entire photographic style to follow fashion.

Instead, it can inform the work you create in the future.

For example, photographers may find that particular colour palettes, tones or minimalist compositions work particularly well as wall art.

The important thing is to research rather than guess.

Don’t underestimate the importance of the artwork title

A photograph’s title can influence how people perceive it.

A descriptive title may tell the viewer exactly what they are looking at, while a more imaginative title can encourage them to spend longer considering the work.

When selling photography as fine art, think about the complete presentation of the piece.

The image, title, description and presentation should all contribute to the same story.

Build your print business gradually

One of Lynne’s biggest lessons was not to assume that early success meant it was time to abandon everything else.

Print sales can take time to develop.

It took years of experimentation, research and consistent work before her online sales became significant.

During that period, she continued working her day job rather than relying immediately on photography income.

That is sensible advice for anyone considering photography as a business.

Don’t confuse occasional sales with a sustainable income.

Before giving up another source of income, establish whether your photography business is producing consistent sales and sustainable profit over a meaningful period.

Keep testing and improving

Successful print sales aren’t simply about taking photographs.

You need to be prepared to experiment.

Try different:

• Image sizes
• Materials
• Prices
• Descriptions
• Titles
• Platforms
• Presentation styles
• Marketing approaches
• Customer groups

Then look at what happens.

If one particular type of image consistently attracts attention and sales, investigate why.

If another product takes hours to produce but generates little profit, reconsider whether it is worth offering.

Your photography business should evolve as you learn more about your customers.

Can you sell prints and run photography workshops?

Absolutely.

There is no reason a photographer has to choose between print sales and workshops.

They are simply different business models.

Workshops sell your knowledge, time and expertise.

Prints sell your artwork.

The audiences may overlap, but they don’t have to.

A photographer could potentially generate income from several complementary areas, including:

• Fine art print sales
• Photography workshops
• Photo tours
• Commercial photography
• Licensing
• Books and publications
• Digital products
• Talks and presentations

The important thing is to understand the economics and workload associated with each one.

The biggest lesson: find your buyer

Perhaps the most important lesson from Lynne’s experience isn’t about printers, paper, galleries or online marketplaces.

It’s about finding the right customer.

She discovered that the people who appreciated her large landscape photography and were willing to pay for it weren’t necessarily the people walking past her gallery.

They were people actively looking for artwork that suited their homes and tastes.

Once she understood that, her approach to selling became much clearer.

For photographers considering print sales, that’s a useful place to start.

Don’t begin with:

“Where can I upload my photographs?”

Start with:

“Who would want to buy this artwork, and where do those people shop?”

Once you know the answer, you can build your photography business around reaching them.

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Lynne Douglas

Lynne Douglas is a landscape photographer whose work focuses particularly on large-format photographic artwork. Her experience of selling prints through online art platforms and galleries has given her first-hand insight into the opportunities and challenges of building a photography print business.

This article is based on an original feature by Lynne Douglas published in Professional Imagemaker, the magazine for members of The Societies of Photographers.