[thecatspajamas]

Mark, +1 to everything you just said.

I think that photographs will first and foremost always be valued primarily based on their content and quality. A Type 1 photo of Ty Cobb's mother isn't going to sell for more than a Type 2 or 3 photo of Cobb himself in uniform, and a faded out-of-focus Type 1 snapshot of Babe Ruth probably wouldn't bring as much as a sharp, clear in-period wire photo (Type 3) of him in a similar pose. (I say probably, because there are always flukes). Identifying a photo as a "Type 1" does not automatically make it valuable, nor does it being a Type 2, 3, or 4 mean that it's automatically worthless or undesirable. As 'drc' said above, "collectors shouldn't judge a photograph solely by the type...categories."

The photo's "Type" isn't something that directs you to a column in a price guide somewhere, because there are no price guides for photos. Such a thing would be impossible with all the variables that go into the desirability of each individual photo. It's merely a shorthand term for defining the one aspect of photography that is not subjective. Putting a time limit on the Type 1 classification just narrows the field down more than calling a photo "original" or even "1st generation." If you don't like the parameters given for the classification, just don't use the "Type" terminology. And please, if you don't know what the terminology means, or whether it truly applies to your specific photo, don't use it in describing something you're selling. That's where you can get into trouble, and where I see the most (apparently innocent) mistakes on eBay and elsewhere.