Re: [Digital BW] In a Bind on Large Format B&W: advice?
2004-03-06 by lea
I think, and 20/20 hindsite is always a wonderful thing, that you have put yourself between a rock and a hard place by not determining a price before you sell something. I've made this same mistake in the past and it comes around to hit me in the back of the head...and I ALWAYS undersell myself. IF you knew, before securing the deal, how much you were selling the prints for you would be in better shape to know what kind of profit margin you will have to work with. As it is you'll likely underprice your work and yet work like a dog to give good quality images...then be sorry you didn't charge more (especially when the client says, "Is that all?" when receiving the bill). I've been where you are more times than I care to tell you. The lesson I've learned is to not agree to a sale without determining a price and letting the buyer know...before anything goes to a lab or a framer. I can only offer empathy...good luck with your decisions. Lea
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----- Original Message ----- From: "chipcarterdc" <chipcarterdc@...> To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Saturday, March 06, 2004 2:47 PM Subject: [Digital BW] In a Bind on Large Format B&W: advice? I've got a corporate client who, w/in the next 2 weeks, will be purchasing 4 large (at least 20x24) B&W prints from me for their office. I currently have an Epson 2200 + ImagePrint, so obviously my current equipment won't work. Here's my dilemma, given that I'm currently looking at purchasing a wide-format printer, but haven't done so yet. Do I (a) go ahead and get a 9600 (my top choice at the moment) plus ImagePrint and do the job myself or (b) send these prints out and continue the long painstaking process of deciding what to do in the long run for large format B&W independent of this current job? I haven't yet figured out what I'm going to charge these guys (any help there would be greatly appreciated). But if I send it out to West Coast Imaging, I guessing it will cost me around $100 (I had a 20x30 Piezo print done there a few months back and it was around $120), thereby significantly cutting into my profit margin if I charge anything like a reasonable price for the prints. (Another factor is that they also want me to frame the prints -- I guess I could jack up the total cost by "writing it off" to the framing cost....). Assuming it costs me about $10 each to make these prints myself on a 9600 (I just made that number up), I could make $90 profit on each print. Or, I could send it out to West Coast and make almost no profit unless I want to give the client a serious case of sticker shock. What would you do in this situation? I mean, I'm getting tired of throwing money down the drain by having someone else do my wide format work, but I don't want to be hasty on the purchase of a 9600 either.... (A final piece of the puzzle is that I have been thinking about having 2 printers, one dedicated to B&W probably running the UT7 system when it becomes available. But to do this job (right) myself on the 9600, I need ImagePrint; and if I buy ImagePrint (I got a quote from a dealer of $2000 for it for the 9600), I ain't buying a second printer for a LONG time). Please visit the Group Homepage to check the Files, and other resources as they are often being updated. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint If you wish to receive no emails or just a daily digest, or you wish to unsubscribe, please edit your Membership preferences by visiting this same page. Please follow these basic guidelines: - As threads develop, trim off excess portions of earlier messages to keep them short. - Good manners are required at all time. No personal attacks or flames. Hostile, aggressive or argumentative users may be removed from the membership without notice. - Keep your posts and threads related to the group topic of digital B&W printing. Users who persistently make off-topic posts may be removed from the membership. - By posting on this forum you agree to abide by the group rules and guidelines, and to abide by the actions and decisions of the group Owner and Moderators. See "Group Topic, Rules and Guidelines" in the Files section: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint/files/ BY PARTICIPATING IN AND/OR POSTING MESSAGES TO THE DIGITAL BW, THE PRINT YAHOO! GROUP YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT THE "OWNER" AND "MODERATORS" OF DIGITAL BW, THE PRINT YAHOO GROUP SHALL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, GOODWILL, USE, DATA OR OTHER INTANGIBLE LOSSES (EVEN IF THE "OWNER" AND "MODERATORS" OF DIGITAL BW, THE PRINT YAHOO GROUP HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES), RESULTING FROM: (i) THE USE OR THE INABILITY TO USE THE DIGITAL BW, THE PRINT YAHOO GROUP; (ii) UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF YOUR TRANSMISSIONS OR DATA; (iii) STATEMENTS OR CONDUCT OF ANY THIRD PARTY ON THE DIGITAL BW, THE PRINT YAHOO GROUP; OR (iv) ANY OTHER MATTER RELATING TO THE DIGITAL BW, THE PRINT YAHOO GROUP. Yahoo! Groups Links