Crappy Pics or good pics?

For selling I prefer my crappy pics.

because I believe sometimes pictures are actually better looking than the animals.

But when I have crappy pics...(or pics taken to the best of my ability or lack there of) ....it takes longer to sell an animal.

But when someone actually buys that animal....
Boy are they ever surprised.

what do you guys think?

Well, the obvious answer to this is "accurate pics". Be as close as possible to what the animal really looks like. But even there this poses a problem. There is no way to control how the viewer may have their color balance set on their monitor when they are viewing your photos. Video cards and monitors will all have their own tolerances about color balance. Not much you can do about it, but at least you can do the best you can from your end.

There are some relatively inexpensive digital cameras out there that give outstanding results. If it sells even one animal you are trying to sell, it will go a long way towards paying for itself.

BTW, I figured out that from what I saved from processing 35mm slides and prints just last year alone paid for my Fuji S1 Pro camera body. And that was NOT a cheap camera! Matter of fact, I am seriously considering selling off my Nikon N90S, since I doubt I will ever use it again.

There is also the question of perception in addition to how the monitor is set. I took this picture earlier this year, and I printed it on my Printer. I think it is a pretty fair representation of one of my NORMAL ball pythons. But every time I show this picture to someone they exclaim "Wow, is this snake really blue?!?"

I don't see BLUE! I see brown/black/beige/gold...........no BLUE

Ritchie, you can't win. Remember, no matter what you do the picture is only as good as the monitor it's viewed on.

Not to mention men and women see color different and on top of that no two people seem to see it the same. Main thing I like to do is prove a base color in the background, something we all know so you have a control in the picture. Not always easy but something to that to do with the snakes you're selling.

Cheryl, My photography teache would tell you to lower the cyan in that picture. the grass looks a little blue tinted, which is probably why the snake looks bluish. I think the natural irridescence of the snake combined with the slightly off coloration makes the photot looks purplish. I am a digital photography nut, so I have been trained to be really picky about colors, and the color is a tad blue tinted, at least on my monitor.

while it is nice to be surprised, it's preferable to see what the animal actually looks like, or find some specific marking so I know that i can compare the pic and the snake and make sure it's the same animal. I have had so many problems with colors that while it is great to try your best for the closest and most accurate pic in natural lighting, having the animal in a different light can change its appearance dramatically by taking it inside or outside. I personally do not like buying or considering buying anything from someone with one crappy tiny picture. If they have a couple halfway decent images, or are willing to take updated photos, that is pretty reasonable. But I have been suspicious of grainy small discolored photos.