Sell Your Landscape Photos Online – An Interview With Australian Landscape Photographer Mark Gray
I came across a link to Mark’s website in this Photopreneur article. I checked out his website and liked not only his beautiful panoramic landscape photos (I grew up in Australia and I’m familiar with some of the places that he photographs) but his business model. He sells high quality framed photographic prints of his landscapes to an international audience and also sells his photos as stock. I wanted to ask Mark about his business. Here is the interview:
How would you describe your photographic vision? What kind of look/atmosphere/feel do you try and create in your photos?
I like to capture incredible moments in nature that I have been blessed to witness so that other people can enjoy them too. In particular the beautiful colours and lighting that can be witnessed early in the morning or late in the evening. God has created an amazing world that we live in and sometimes it’s easy to get wrapped up in life and forget to take a moment to stop and appreciate the beauty around us.
When did you start taking photos and why? What made you decide to become a landscape photographer?
I started taking landscape photos around 5 years ago and began selling my work 3 years ago. It was a combination of things that inspired me to shoot landscapes but essentially it was my love of spending time outdoors and a desire to show the world amazing things that I would witness in nature. The lifestyle of being a landscape photographer also appealed to me as I really enjoy travelling.
You’ve travelled a lot around Australia. What is your favourite place and why?
That’s a very difficult question to answer but at this point in time I would say Tasmania’s East Coast is right up there. A lot of people are surprised to find that Tasmania has some pristine beaches with white sand and aqua water. Places like the ‘Bay Of Fires’ and ‘Freycinet Peninsula’ are simply beautiful. One of my photograph’s ‘Picnic Rocks’ was taken near the northern tip of the Bay Of Fires.
What’s your favourite colour? How do you like to use it in your photography?
Purple is my favourite colour. As you can see on my website I have used it in my company logo. It is not often present in landscape scenes, however if you’re lucky during a really nice sunrise or sunset you can sometimes get some beautiful purple light and colours in the sky. One such photograph of mine that has very nice purple light during a sunrise is ‘Golden Dawn’.
How long have you been selling prints of your work? What lessons did you learn along the way as you built a viable business? What advice would you give a photographer who wants to sell their prints?
I have been selling prints of my work for 3 years now and have learnt many lessons along the way. The most important being that it is crucial to print on very high quality photographic paper and keep your prices high, even if it means less sales to begin with. Unfortunately, if you set yourself up at the beginning of your career as a cheap photographer that is how you will be branded for life.
You sell your work as stock photography. Have you tried selling your work through agencies? If so, how did that work out? What’s involved in selling stock photography from your own website?
Selling stock photos is easy money without a lot of work however there are a number of concerns in this area. I advise anyone that sells there work directly as stock images to write up a list of terms of use to cover you legally and decide whether your going to sell your images as Royalty-Free (unlimited use after one payment) or Rights Managed (payment required for every single use of your image).
I personally avoid stock agencies because they take a large cut from every sale and cheapen your image as a photographer. They are more suited to photographers that shoot quantity over quality.
How do you market your work? How important is your website to your marketing strategy?
I market my work as exclusive fine art photography of a very high standard. I use world class materials for my prints and framing so I feel that my finished pieces should be seen as desirable items rather than something everyone can afford.
My website has really helped me attain exposure and recognition on a global scale. Combined with my high quality website, being listed at #2 on Google for ‘landscape photography’ has helped me sell prints all over the world to people in Australia, England, Germany, Netherlands, USA, Dubai, Thailand, New Zealand and more.
Name three photographers you like and why.
His work was my original inspiration to shoot in panoramic format. Ken is noted as originally introducing panoramic photography to the Australian market many years ago. I was amazed by the lighting that is portrayed in his work and the way the panoramic view gives the viewer an impression that they are looking through a window into the scene itself.
I think Peter has a great eye for capturing textures and scenes in nature that are extremely artistic. All his photographs are full of intense colours that come alive under directional lighting in his galleries.
A less known photographer from Western Australia, Christian has a large collection of amazing photographs. His ability to compose unique colourful photographs at all times of the day is truly inspiring.
Where is your photography going? What future photographic project or projects are you excited about?
I plan to continue shooting Australia, mainly Queensland and Western Australia over the next 12 – 24 months. I will most likely then start shooting Internationally including New Zealand and the USA.
On the product front, I am going to be releasing a 2009 Australian calendar in the next 6 months and then a coffee table book focusing on beautiful little known scenes from around the state of Victoria. I will also be releasing some new posters of Australia’s best known icons including Ayers Rock, Sydney Harbour Bridge and The 12 Apostles.
Bonus Question: Your dream assignment. What is it?
I would say my dream assignment would be a 3 month trip around the USA with all expenses covered with all photos being mine to keep and sell through my online gallery.
Mark’s Online Gallery Can Be Viewed At: www.markgray.com.au
Telephone: +61 3 9874 3728
Email: info (at) markgray.com.au
Mark is available for International Landscape Commission Work (Photographic Assignments).
The first night I arrived at Uluru (Ayers Rock), God blessed me with an incredible sunset over the rock. The storm clouds turned pink in an amazing show of colour. Uluru is a magical place especially with conditions like these.
It was challenging to capture this photograph of Wallace’s Hut in Victoria’s high country. The road to the hut is closed during winter however this year they had some early snowfalls. A couple of hours before they closed the road I was able to drive in with just enough time to take this photograph. There was deep snow across the road so I was lucky to make there and back in my 2WD sedan. I like the way the snowgum trees frame the hut in the distance.
Taken on the last morning of my 2006 Tasmania trip, I almost missed this incredible sunrise. I camped overnight at Friendly Beaches and my airbed had unfortunately sustained a leak which meant I would wake up every half an hour on the cold ground. When my alarm went off at 5:30AM I couldn’t even lift my head off my pillow so I hit snooze. 15 minutes later the alarm went off again and I somehow raised enough energy to poke my head out of my tent. What I saw when I looked at the sky inspired me to jump to my feet and run down to the nearby beach with my camera equipment. I hastily setup and had little more than around 3 minutes to compose this photograph. Wow, it was an amazing sunrise!
All photos Copyright © Mark Gray. Please contact the photographer for permission to use in any way.