The answer is yes! Marketing departments, agencies, editors, art buyers, art directors and designers can all benefit from working directly with the artist.

The traditional route for an image buyer to find an image has been to go to a stock library or commission a photographer.

My top tip is to source and buy images direct from the artist. You will be able to negotiate a better deal than with a stock library and the artist will also be better off because they will not be giving up 50, 60 or even 80% of the selling price as commission to the stock library. The artist can afford to sell their work more cheaply than a stock library and still end up with more money in their pocket.

By dealing directly with the artist image buyers can licence an image under favourable terms, ensure competitors will not have the same image and perhaps even negotiate exclusivity. You will have direct access to authentic and original work.

There really are no barriers anymore for art buyers wanting to deal directly with artists.

How image buyers can gain the advantage:

• Buy direct from the artist to save on budgets and reward the creators more fairly for their work
• Use social media sites like Flickr to easily find the images you’re looking for from a vast, global pool of creative artists 
• Online ecommerce and file transfer sites make transactions easy and secure, worldwide
• Build a your own library of contacts and artists that you can rely on when working to tight deadlines
• And last but not least: the pleasure of dealing with the artist directly, the creator.

So my plea to art buyers is: please consider buying direct from the artist.

If anyone reading this has any other tips for artists or art buyers I’d love to hear them. Feel free to join in the conversation.

Till soon,

Paul

www.indigo2photography.co.uk (we’re always happy to talk to art buyers looking for something specific)