Why Zazzle for a Photo Gallery?

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Before, I told you about Photofront. Photofront is a free gallery that can be upgraded for ten dollars to add some additional features for life.

Well, there is another gallery site that is also free and if used right can generate income.

I first used Zazzle to make some personal purchases: stamps, bumper stickers, magnets, hats and a tee shirt. I was very happy with all of the products, except for the tee shirt.

This was the first tee shirt I made, and the problem was really mine. I should have understood the limitations of the silk screen printing. Plain pictures do not translate well on shirts - you have to make some design considerations that I will get into with another post.

Now, back to the Gallery(The picture above is in my gallery):

The advantages of having a Zazzle Fine photography gallery are:

Its free.

It can beautifully display your fine art photography.

You can design your own gallery, or use their themes.

There is a shopping cart attached, and people can add frames, mats, and choose different types of framing. And the quality of the different printing medias is excellent.
And best of all, you set the price of your commission.

Now, you can set your commission from 10 percent and up. On most of my products other than prints, I use the 10 percent markup (and consider this as personal promotion).

I honestly think, though, for your prints you should get a decent return. I set my commission for fine art prints from 70 percent to 90 percent. I recommend that you do the same.

If you value your art as much as I do, make the statement that your art is worth the price. Not only will you be more satisfied when you get a better commission, your customer will value your art more.

Nikon's most Overlooked Lens: Nikon 55-200vr

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If you are like me, a photographer on a budget, buying expensive lenses are what dreams are made of.

My first lens when I bought my Nikon D80 was the 55-200vr. The picture on the left was taken with it.

This is the cheapest vr lens that Nikon has to offer, and perhaps the least purchased. Many opt for the 18-200vr that costs about 3x more.

Before I purchased this lens, I did some heavy thinking. And these were my thoughts:

The reviews are OK, but not spectacular, and try to point you to the 18-200vr. This is likely to be an entry level lens. Some of the reviews said the focus was too soft. Then I looked at images this lens takes, and was wowed.

Then I started to think counter-intuitively: This lens may not have the lens range that the 18-200vr has, but that also means there will be less compromise in lens quality, concentrating on a shorter range.

Now, after a year of using this lens, it is a favorite. The bokeh (the unfocused background) is superb. In fact, I think it produces the best bokeh of any lens that I have, a stunning bokeh as exhibited in the picture above. I have not seen this in images that the 18-200 produces, and it makes for some very impressive photographs.

If you are the fence about this lens like I was, I can tell you Nikon does not disappoint with this wonderful lens. I love the bokeh, and the colors are so vibrant, and the printed pictures are awesome.



By the way, if you buy this lens through one of the ads on this page, you are helping support this blog and my photography.