Best Auction House/Site for selling High-End Original Photos?
 

Hello all,

Just was curious to get a few opinions on the best route to go in selling a few high-end Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth Original photos? I know Henry Yee is a can't miss and always generates a large crowd, but with the eBay charges he is getting hit with now, the consignment rates are extremely high. Are there any other major auction houses or sites that others have had success at using for high-end photos?

Thanks for your help,
Bryan

Henry Yee

Henry Yee = sliced bread.

I don't eat wheat.

When considering where to take them, you might also keep in mind that giving up a larger percentage of the final price might not be such a bad thing if the price realized is considerably higher than they would bring elsewhere. Just be sure to consider all the numbers, including whatever buyer's premium the auction house may employ, because they all factor into how much money goes into your pocket once the dust settles.

best for your photos
 

I must go with the flow!
I've bought many photos from Yee and love the merchandise and am grateful for his help and expertise way beyond the call of duty.

all the best,
barry

Henry is good. Additional - for type I photos with values of 3k+ I might go with REA. And if signed, either REA or Heritage. REA has been doing well with prewar photos. And both REA and Heritage in pre war signed. some high end collectors may follow only catalog auctions, and from houses where there has been a late history of top photo offerings, if that is their area of interest. The general pre war high end collectors who dabble in a nice photo here and there may also be more likely to see if offered by such a catalog house. That being said, I follow and buy at Henry. and there are also a good number of collectors that are more likely to bid with Henry via ebay, than via live or at 4am with a catalog auction. Another positive with Henry, that leads to higher bidding, is acceptance of Paypal.

If Negro League or Cuban League photos, definitely go with Hake's.

Bryan,

Unless you have spoken to Henry recently, my understanding was that he was not accepting consignments due to the high eBay fees.

+1

I contacted Henry within the past months because I had a fairly large consignment I wanted to send his way, and that was the response I received.

If it's primo sutff, it sells itslef, you just want to be sure you get it in a high traffic, high profile venue where people don't have to search and hunt forever to find it.

the high end photograph collectors will look at all the major auctions so as long as it gets in one of those, i think you are good.

+2

Henry told me the same... he is currently only selling his own stuff. Photos only (no memorabilia).

He said he would potentially be entertaining consignments again for his December Ebay (Holiday) event.

Assuming you want to be paid sooner, I would contact REA for inclusion in their new Fall Auction (provided these are indeed high-end original photos).

Thanks for all the advice everyone. I had a few items consigned to the last REA auction and while some did well, I was disappointed in a few prices realized. Obviously it can be hit or miss sometimes, but just wanted to get a few opinions before I chose which route I wanted to go.

In a conversation with Henry, not too long ago, he also told me he was getting to be fed up with Ebay. He said he was thinking of not doing it anymore. For photographs many of our advertisers will be a good choice.

Leon's right, Lelands has done well with high-end photos and probably has a nice following in that market.

Hi Bryan,

I'd be happy to take a look at your photos, and would let you know if I thought Heritage would be a good venue for you to sell. We have done very well with high-end images recently.

I would recommend checking past auction results of the AH's you are considering, by doing searches on 'Burke' or 'Conlon'. You might also want to reduce your risks by consigning through two or three auction houses - I've seen great photos go cheap one day, and similar ones go very high in later auctions run by the same AH.