Why? Original negatives of that Alfa can still be used to recreate a new print. But it will not be exactly the same, the materials, technique, art, chemicals, will not be as they were seventy, fifty or even ten years ago. Think in terms of a Cameron Millar 250F Maserati--close but no cigar.
And like beachfront property and Ferrari 250GTOs, supply is limited.
What Dale offers may not be in all cases the only print made from a particular negative, but he has only one of what he has. In other words, if you see a photo for sale in his gallery or online store, there is only one copy available. You probably won’t get a second chance to own that print again, at least anytime soon. Secondly, buying vintage prints is a pretty good investment, particularly if you have a sharp eye and learn to spot great photography. Since Dale usually only has one print available, some, or perhaps all, of the images we have used here for groupings may no longer
be available when you click on the photo. But get on the site and shop around, Dale always has new items coming in.
But what to do with old photos? Don’t they just sit around gathering dust between the covers of a photo album? Not always. Dale suggested grouping, a good way to collect, and display them. We went to his online store and within a couple of minutes found the following photos available now that would be a nice grouping in terms of cars and drivers
We asked Raffi Minasian, a teacher and freelance designer who coincidentally owns a Giaur. Minasian spent several years in the art
production world licensing art for uses in home decorative
items and as framed artwork, plus he’s a convicted car nut.
"What I would do is to create a series or subscription collection themed as
year, race track, or car class - Great Race Cars of 1967
(pick boomer years for best sales). It makes a a great 'book
of the month' club type of gift for someone born in 1967.
Every month they get a photo of an interesting car from
that year and a bio page that goes with it. A nice folio
case would hold all twelve. could be monthly subscription
paid on credit card or with three payments for greater
ease.
In today's world, scenes with women drivers are becoming common. This outstanding photo could be the start of a collection of women race drivers.
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Dale also has a few idea on framing. With black and white photos, he suggests using a pewter or silver frame rather than black or colored. Wood frames give off hazmat as they decompose affecting the paper negatively (pardon the pun). Matting, of course, is almost essential and many of Dale’s photos come matted already.
Conversely, collecting rare color prints of the fifties and sixties is another way to group motor racing images. Since color was not widely used by the magazines in that era, very few photographers used colored film, even though it was available. Yet colored prints bring new life to old eras, and these prints can be found dating as far back as the 1930s.
