How to sign prints for selling

I prepare an exhibition and as I begin I wonder how I must sign my photographs. I will exhibit photographs on fabric and framed photographs. I wish to know how you sign your works for exhibition. Numerical signature before printing, handwritten signature with a pen ? Signature directly on the photograph or on the back only. Your opinion is welcome.

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Je prépare une exposition et comme je débute je me demande comment je dois signer mes photographies. J'expose des photos sur toile et des photos encadrées.

Je souhaite savoir comment vous signez vos oeuvres dans des expositions. Signature numérique avant tirage, signature manuscrite avec un stylo, sur la photo ou au dos uniquement. Votre avis est le bienvenue.

Hell Aurelien,

I've been signing my mats. I write the title on the left and sign on the right, directly under the photo. I think its also a good idea to sign on the back for identification purposes as well in case the mat and print are ever separated.

Frank

If I'm selling the print with no mat or frame, I leave a white border around it and sign (and or title) on the white portion below the print, title on the left, signature on the right. When matted and framed, I'll either do it that way if I prefer the effect, or will leave no white border and will title and sign the mat. I especially favor signing the mat if I believe very strongly that an image should be left with the mat I've chosen, because by signing the mat it encourages people not to separate them later.

Folks, I'm going to pass along a comment from my cousin who has been a professional watercolorist for many years and has shown her work in many major juried shows.
When I first started printing cards and prints from my photos and was signing the mat, Sheila not me that I should sign the work I created, not the mat.
Years ago when I took art classes, I signed the prints and artwork I created; not the mats.
But darned if I really know if there is a standard protocol.
Alain Briot recommends signing in pencil on the mat ...
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/columns/selling-questions.shtml
And here's yet another forum to confuse everyone further ...
http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00HCpe

Carol
http://hy-tec-training.com

Initials and last two digits of exposure date on mat lower right. Signature and print date/copyright notice on back of print. All in pencil.

I've been told by some gallery-types that signing photography on the print is sometimes frowned upon. I still do it. I believe it's the artist's prerogative to put their mark on their work, same as painters do.

Guy

Thaks for your answers. The debate continues but you give me a good idea of what I can do to sign my photographs.


Merci pour vos réponses. Le débat continue mais vous me donnez une bonne idée de ce que je peux faire pour signer mes photographies.

Last year when I first started selling prints seriously I looked into this and found that there simply is no standard when it comes to photography.

When I designed a 24 print exhibit last year using matte watercolor paper my friend who did the framing work (and who has done extensive framing work back east ) talked me into signing the watercolor prints just as a painter does. Of course, she is used to working with painters, not photographers.

I agree with her in that it just makes sense to sign the print, not the matte, particularly since papers today are so long-lived. However, I've been looking at other photography galleries and it seems that while there's no standard, most people do sign the mat, not the print. I also had one person say that it seems egotistical to sign the print. hmm..I don't want to appear like an egomaniac, yet it just seems like if you're going to sign something it should be your work, not a matte.

So for right now (could be subject to change) I'm signing matte watercolor prints in the lower right corner of the print, along with the year of exposure, and glossy photo papers I'm signing on the white border of the print. Still not sure I like it but for now I've been using a silver-colored pen that can be used for either light or dark-colored prints. For all prints on the back in the very top left corner I put a label on the back with my copyright name and address. The labels are the same as I put on my slide mounts. Randy

I, personally, sign the prints in the lower right just high enough to clear an overmatt. That way, my prints cannot be passed off as someone else's work. I've had this happen in the past. I attended an art show (back in the days of film and silver halide prints!) and was quite shocked to see my work in someone else's booth! An interior designer with whom I was working had taken many of my sample photos and applied his own signature to them and was selling them at arts and crafts fairs. The subsequent lawsuit was quite gratifying.

I am a picture framer with experience and know that many photo/art owners eventually re-mat their pictures. I do it every day. If you as the artist/photographer have signed on the mat only, your identification and thus your personal association with the photo are forever gone to the viewers of your art.

If you would like your name to remain associated with your photography, it will be necessary to sign on the photo. I believe it is best to have your signature at least 1/4 to 1/2 inch to the left or right side and at least 1/4 to 1/2 inch above the bottom. This leaves room for the mat to overlap the edges and not touch the signature.

As a newbie, I researched this topic to see if there was any sort of protocol to apply to my own work. As you can see from the responses, the most common is to write the title of the photo on the lower left of the mat and sign on the lower right of the mat, all in pencil. I noted some photographers also label the rear of the frame or mat and I do this as well, using a printed 1"x2 5/8" (size is an arbitrary choice I made (Avery 5105)) listing my name, the year the photo was taken and the photo title.

A question: I have experimented with using photoshop to apply my name directly to the photo, much as is done in the critique forums. On the print, I use a much smaller font and use a color sample off the actual photo for the font color, the idea being to minimize any potential distraction from the print itself. I find thi sworks nicely. One could easily scan an actual signature and apply that to a photo without much fuss. This seems (to me) to be more in keeping with properly signing one's work and makes the signature a permanent part of the print. Has anyone else tried this? Comments?

Yes, Jim, I've scanned both my signature and my initials and made them into brushes in Photoshop CS2. It's a snap to do and has several advantages. You can adjust the size as needed just like any other brush, and you can control the opacity to make it as subtle or bold as you like. I apply my signature as a separate layer (a copy of the background layer) as a last step. That way, if I need to go back to that image and print or whatever without the signature, it's easy to do.

Gail Diane Yovanovich