Publishing your photos - what's your opinion?

[WWIIBuff]

I've been fortunate to add a several outstanding photos to my collection over the last few years, and the best ones are usually the high dollar ones. Quite often after posting them, I get approached by fellow collectors asking if I will allow them to publish my pictures in the book they are working on.

Now I know I'm not the only one who receives these requests, and at this moment I'm not going to say if I'm for or against the idea, but I am curious how most of you feel about this?

Do you think it is a good or bad idea? I don't mean whether or not we should help out our fellow collectors, but rather to publish or not to publish, that is the question? Does publishing take away some of the "magic" associated with owning a rare photo or does it make the ownership feel even better? And what about the investment aspect of it, does it help or hurt the value of a picture in your collection to have it published?

I'm just curious how you all feel, especially the long time collectors?

[necker]

When you get the full credit (name placed by the picture in the book) I have no problems with it.
I have a very small collection of photo's (let's say some 150) and have some remarkeble pictures of a polizei battaljon in Holland. There is a student who wants to publish them in his book he is working on now. I have no problems with that as long as my name comes in the book.
And why not share the pictures with fellow collectors? IMO the "magic" is not lost by publishing, you still have the original one's and that wat it is all about

Regards,
Erich

[Akira Takiguchi]

I collect photos eventually to publish them, some by myself, most by other book- or website- authors.

I love my photos, therefore I would like my best photos in the best publication (online or offline) possible. I feel happy when I can answer serious and particular queries. Even though my private time is limited due to my work, I can't stop checking my archive when I see good questions.

Regarding the "magic": I don't buy my photos for investment, so nothing from that point of view. But I would feel that "magic" fades if I publish my photos in a wrong place. Therefore, I am pretty selective.

Please do not send me vague requests. There are tons of photos out there.

[Dick Pumphrey]

I have no problem sharing my photos and have done so over the years with both Roger Bender and Jack Angolia. I do like to receive credit for them and they have been very careful to do this. It is fun to see your hard earned material in print and a pleasure to share with other collectors.
Regards,
Dick

[rumohr]

I have no problem sharing my photos and have done so over the years with both Roger Bender and Jack Angolia. I do like to receive credit for them and they have been very careful to do this. It is fun to see your hard earned material in print and a pleasure to share with other collectors.
Regards,
Dick

I agree!
I helped Beawer with many photos and i really hope they will be at use.
I still have the originals but i find it nice to share them!
Some collectors are sitting on good photos like hens on eggs-thats make me mad and sad!
As collectors we have to help each others!
Sincerely Erik

[Frank Heukemes]

I was very thankful to receive "photograph help" from Akira Takiguchi, Robert Noss, Bill Petz, Jacques, Daniel L******246;wenhamn, Angel Farr******233;, Gordon Williamson and a couple others for my first publication on the General Assault Badge. Of course, credit with full name next to the picture was given.

I will be just as happy for any help I get for the second book on the Panzer Assault Badge, which is currently in the works.

If I was a photograph collector, I would also enjoy to see my pictures in publications. If you share them on the internet, you might also share them as part of a book, which is the better way, I think.

Again, thank you to all who helped out!

[Michael Miller]

Quite simple, really- only give permission for use if you know something of the person making the request. If you can establish that their reputation is decent, and if you are able to further establish that they will make good on their promise to provide same-page acknowledgement to the contributor of the contribution, then you may wish to offer permission.

Regards,
~ Mike Miller
(Grateful recipient of any photos you may choose to contribute to my projects)

[Simon O.]

What exactly do you 'lose' by showing others photos or allowing copies to be published? Of course it's common courtesy for an author to credit the owner of the image, even if that owner isn't the person who originally took the picture.

'Magic'? sorry i don't understand. If there's any 'magic' then it's the pleasure of sharing something which may have been hidden for 60 years with others.


investment? I am very, very scornful of that type of collector to put it mildly. Same goes for the dealers who butcher albums for profit.

[WWIIBuff]

Publishing Photos

Interesting responses, thanks for all your input. I did not state it before but I will say now that I have always been willing to share my pictures with the collector community. But when I do share them, I have learned the hard way to make sure they have a watermark over them.

As far as publishing them goes, I am always willing to help out in that manner as well, and like Akira said, it makes me feel good to do so. However, I am just very cautious when I do share them. Like Akira and Michael suggested, I am selective about who I send scans to. I need to make sure the request is for a legitimate publication and a good venture. Like Erich and Dick mentioned, getting credit for ownership of the picture is also a must.

Simon the word "magic" was just my attempt to describe the feeling you get when you own any rare item. You may call it something else, but you definately have it. If you didn't you wouldn't be here I suspect. I will say that in my case, that magic is intensified when I can show or share something in my collection.

Whether you are willing to admit it or not, I believe we are all "investing" in our collection. Anything you put time, effort, and money into is an investment. That is unless you are just used to wasting time and throwing money away on worthless things. I love this hobby and I have a passion for the history behind the items in my collection, but I am also smart enough to pass on certain things. Before I spend $250 on a picture or $10,000 on a tunic, I make a decision based on not only emotion, but also investment value. No matter how much I like something, there are times when I know something is over priced and I consider them not to be a good way to spend my money.

Like Simon, I do not have any respect for people who buy only for monetary reasons, but I don't have contempt for them either. It is just a pitty that they don't get what this hobby is really about.

Simon as far as photo album butchers go, I think they are an unfortunate bit of reality. But I admit, as much as I may dislike the photoalbum butchers, I buy from them all the time. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't own many of my pictures.

[Simon O.]

I understand what you're saying John. I know there are all sorts of collectors with all sorts of reasons for collecting.

I'm perhaps in a minority but for me history, more importantly the preservation of history overides everything. I utterly refuse to accept the 'unfortunate bit of reality' argument as far as destroying albums go. It's motivated solely by profit with no concern for the preservation of history. It's like taking a tunic then cutting out all the insignia to sell individually.


We all pass on overpriced items, I simply don't like the thought of someone profitting more than they should. As far as my own photo collection goes, when the time comes, any of historical interest to the local museum will be donated to them. They show part of the local history of this place and as such they belong here.
There are more important things in life than money.


I'm not comfortable with the term 'rare' either. Apart from PK or unit\ships photographers every photo is unique. Depending on what each one shows then they're more or less significant historically. I'm probably misinterpreting your meaning though.

[J.von Canon]

Quite simple, really- only give permission for use if you know something of the person making the request. If you can establish that their reputation is decent, and if you are able to further establish that they will make good on their promise to provide same-page acknowledgement to the contributor of the contribution, then you may wish to offer permission.

Regards,
~ Mike Miller
(Grateful recipient of any photos you may choose to contribute to my projects)

I think pictures should be shared,with courtesy captions for the contributors.After all,all of us are only temporary "holders" and owners of any of these items.
I'm not sure how you could know the reputation of a person before submission though.
One well known Civil War wheeler-dealer,owner of multitudes of Civil War stuff is/has been in prison for some of his conduct.He's mentioned in a number of Civil War credits in books too...
What gets to me,personally,is someone who plagerizes and copies almost verbatim another person's research & words(it happened to me with a guy who opened a Civil War website and practically copied,verbatim,my words,with no attribute whatsoever.)

[Akira Takiguchi]

Some researchers don't understand how difficult it is to acquire certain pictures as a useful resource. I buy overpriced items and/or pay 100% premium when I believe it is necessary (to prevent a group from being split, most recently Schulz-Merkel photos). I don't mind if the seller makes more money, though I do hope that he will again come to me on next occasion.

Also I am strongly against the idea that textual research result is superior to collection, or vice versa. They are both wheels of research.

Researchers often withhold certain information until they publish it as a book. The same happens with photo collectors. No difference here. We just look for a few good buddy to make our collection combined with research into a valuable piece of information, rather than releasing it as a small piece of jpeg data which will soon be forgotten in the vast digital ocean.

[Simon O.]

I recognise the difference between those who collect and research as a hobby and those who do it for a living. Understandable and reasonable that information is withheld until publication....but at least it is published eventually. And i'll take a good book over some jpegs any day.

Research through film and photographs is also just as important as archival research. Especially for the other areas of this hobby as we've just seen with the balkenkreuz flag thread.


Perhaps calling us 'photograph collectors' is inaccurate? Isn't what we're really collecting, information?


*edited for a stupid typo

[Maikäfer]

The same happens with photo collectors. No difference here. We just look for a few good buddy to make our collection combined with research into a valuable piece of information, rather than releasing it as a small piece of jpeg data which will soon be forgotten in the vast digital ocean.

Couldn't agree more with Akira. Photo and text research are two sides of the same coin and it is important that photographic material provides a good window on persons and material of 60 years ago. Textual references only can provide the totally wrong idea or imagination.

Simply showing all those expensive and researched photos over the net is not enough; they need to appear in the right books so that the combined effort creates a scientific work of high value.

[IMPERIAL QUEST]

I have gladly forwarded photos of objects in my collection for publication to someone here that I trust. They assured me that I would receive full credit in the publication-I look at it as an honor. However, I have also been approached by another person asking for permission to publish some private photos of Adolf Hitler taken in the vicinity of the Eagles Nest. I politely declined for personal reasons.