Our Coming Print Offer

At long last, another in our intermittent series of print offers....

We're now virtually certain to do a five-day print offer in January.

I'm toying with the idea of calling it "The Valentines Day Offer" even though it will take place a month before V-day, because the photographers we're going to feature are a dedicated husband-and-wife team who are both accomplished photographers with multiple books under their belts. Paula Chamlee works mainly in 8x10", and her husband Michael A. Smith works in many formats but primarily 8x20". Both make exquisite black-and-white contact prints using gelatin silver chloride contact printing paper.

We will offer a choice of two of Michael's 8x20" contact prints and a choice of two of Paula's 8x10" contact prints. All four prints will most likely be classical landscapes in the best large format tradition. (You can see many examples of their work at their website.) Paula and Michael sell their prints for a minimum of $2,000 and $3,000 respectively—and they sell a lot, too, as we'll talk about in greater detail in due course (their prints are in more than 150 museum collections)—but our prices, for the short duration of our sale, will naturally be only a small fraction of that. Unlike our earlier sales, though, these prints will come archivally mounted and overmatted and, if you wish, framed. Also in a first for us, the four prints will be retired at the close of our sale...the images will never be printed again.

The date for the beginning of the sale hasn't been finalized yet. I'll announce it several times before we commence, so that everyone who wants to be can be ready. And of course anyone who wants to be alerted at the minute the sale starts can sign up for our twitter feed at @TheOnlinePhotog.

This is going to be a nice one. More soon.

Mike

Original contents copyright 2012 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site.

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Comments

[Miserere]

What!? You're on Twitter!?!?!?!? That's even more surprising than TOP offering $3,000 prints for a fraction of the price.

[Bear.]

Oooooh! Can I buy them now please?

[David Bostedo]

Yay!!

[Marek Fogiel]

This is interesting news.
I have a personal point here.
My life is crowded enough with computer spam. I make it a clear choice NOT to be a member of any "social network".
I dislike being disturbed by messages from people I might only remotely know, or from whatever type of organisation I do not subscribe to. I do not desire to be monitored by any commercial or marketing research center.
I have made T.O.P. one of my few "social places" of choice on the net.
It would be very nice, to be able to sign up (with a possibility to delist of course) on a T.O.P. list of "friends" or whatever you want to call it, so that I would receive e-mails with any important messages that the Edotor deems worth sending, including commercial offers.
This could be actually linked to your "publishing house" idea.
Best regards
Marek

[David Dyer-Bennet]

I know retiring prints, even entire negatives, has a long history, but it always strikes me as wrong. I see it as contrary to the spirit of photography, a concession to the limitations of wood block, intaglio, silk screen, and such printing technologies, plus giving in to the collectors.

[Bob Rosinsky]

Good choice for a print sale. Unfortunately, I've used up my art budget for the next couple of years. Mike, hold onto your Chamonix; place one of Michael's or Paula's prints on a wall opposite to the view camera. Focus the camera onto the one of their landscape photos. Put a nice black cloth over the ground glass of your Chamonix and gaze at the upside down and reversed projection. Presto! What a satisfying way to view a well-composed and technically flawless black and white photo taken the old-fashioned way.

[Dan]

Michael and Paula are two of the finest photographers around. Excellent work, excellent craftsmanship and the highest quality you will see. Both are top notch people as well.

[John MacKechnie]

Nothing like taking your first peek at a ground glass.

[Ryan]

If you're taking requests I like the Iceland abstracts

[Arg]

Pleeeease something other than twitter or facebook.... something personal.

[Roger Bradbury]

I've looked at their site, wondering the while how nice these photos would look like as a print, and just reread your post to find out that they are contact prints!

As ever, I can't afford the prints, but your print offer is part of what makes TOP unusual on the web; it promotes photography. Carry on, that man!