Press Photo and Wire Photo Questions - Newbie

[thecatspajamas]

Originally Posted by billyb

Obc,
I have seen in my cousin's collection of press photos, two sets of doubles that he obtained. Both came out of same newspaper collection. I don't recall if one of the pairs had crop marks and one did not, that would make sense. I do remember one had clipping on back and one did not.
The second pair I just don't recall if their were any differences.

I'm sure it varies depending on the source, but I suspect that is the case with many photos, particularly those produced for in-house use rather than to fulfill orders or subscribers' needs. That way, if you screw one print up when prepping the publication, you would have a back-up on hand rather than having to scramble to find a replacement before press-time. And if you didn't wind up using the duplicate print, why not file it away with the other?

As far as the exact number of prints of any given photo that are in existence, I don't think there is any way to know for sure. For a given news service photo, you would have to know how many subscribers there were for that service at the time (which I have never seen any hard, or even soft, numbers for, has anyone else?), but even that would only give you a starting point and would not account for the numbers that were lost, destroyed in the process of creating the publication, or simply thrown out when the archives became too crowded or the publication folded.

[billyb]

The one pair I was referring to was of when Ruth gave his daughter a blood transfusion. I have seen that photo before, or one like it. I am sure there were many photographers in the hospital taking pictures, and although same incident, the photos will be slightly different.

[obcbeatle]

Thanks for all this helpful information. Even though I'm new to vintage photo collecting ... I believe I'm beginning to understand better what to look for in old photographs ... beyond what I already like due to subject matter (Giants & Braves players). And most of what I know so far is due to the help of members like you on this board who are willing to share your experiences. Thank you all.

PS: Thanks to Lance I will have a copy of A Portrait of Baseball Photography by Fogel/Oser/Yee soon, and I really look forward to reading this book!

[obcbeatle]

Had another quick question about vintage photo collecting. What are like the top two or three auction houses that I should be aware of as far as those that often sell original sports photographs? For instance ... not too many years ago I used to get a Maestro (I think) catalog once or twice a year ... then it stopped coming (not sure why). I think there used to be some nice original photo's in those catalogs. So a few weeks ago I got on their website to order a catalog. Hopefully it will come soon. But are there any other big or small auction houses/catalogs I should be aware of ... that often auction original photographs? Thanks in advance!

[Lordstan]

Jerry,
The collecting of vintage photography has really shot up over the past couple of years. With the release of more and more newspaper archives, it seems thousands of new pics have come onto the market.

If I had to pick, I think Legendary and Heritage seem to be the most high end as far as the prices. Not to sell anyone short, but most of the top auction houses are listing multiple photos with each auction.

Just keep searching....

Best,
Mark

[thecatspajamas]

+1 to everything Mark said.

Most all of the sports auction houses will have at least a couple of lots of vintage news photos and maybe a handful of cabinet photos in their auctions these days, though the way they deal with them can vary widely. On the news photos, you usually see more of the "group of hall of famers and stars" variety, with maybe a shot of the fronts of all of them (if the lot isn't too large, and you're lucky), but rarely are the backs shown, making it difficult to glean any kind of meaningful research from looking at the lots.

Occasionally they might have a particular emphasis on photos for 1 catalog, which (lately) means that John Rogers has chosen that particular auction house this month. I know he's done several rounds through Legendary, at least one big run through Mears, and probably some others that I'm forgetting. Seems like it winds up being feast or famine when it comes to photos.