A Bargain


What a bargain. And, seriously I need to get into the take a mediocre picture and charge a ridiculous amount line of business.

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78 Comments

  1. Can’t wait to see the people defending this one. Should be a hoot.

  2. Maybe this photographer (and I use the term loosely) didn’t get the memo that we are in a global recession…besides that…who the heck would pay that price for a picture of a tree?!?!?!

  3. Sell two of those “One of a kinds” and you’re set for the year. Brilliant maneuver.

  4. I really hope they be trollin’….

  5. Possible typo???? I sure hope so!

  6. Redsnapper

    To be fair, it’s not an awful photo, and at first I didn’t think it worthy of inclusion here….but the load of waffly bollocks written about it makes my crings, and the price tag is just LOL funny!!!

  7. I wonder if he’d take $17,500.

  8. When I think of Alaska, I think of a snow covered tree with no contrast or true black.

  9. not a typo, all of his mediocre prints are that price or higher.

  10. All his photos are priced that high..unreal.

  11. He has a photo of a DEAD duck for 40K!?!?!

    • Not just ANY dead duck. A dead duck off the road system from the last frontier. Truly one of the rarest and most sought after dead duck photographs in the world.

  12. Found his site and apparently he is a “renound Alaskan photographer”. Also, “photographs are taken off the road system of the last frontier they are considered some of the rarest and most prized pictures of Alaska in the world.”

    I wonder if he offers financing…..

  13. He does offer FREE shipping!

  14. It’s not that hard to figure out the shop name. If you look it up, he has no sales. Shocking. I can’t imagine why.

  15. 18 grand? Holy mother. I need to start selling my stuff.

  16. At least they’re not under-cutting the market! Maybe all fauxtogs can start pricing like this, then the pros can say, “better quality, better price, no-brainer to hire me.” Then the actual people with no brains buy the awful stuff at ridiculous prices… win-win in my book.

  17. Free shipping via USPS in a cheap black frame, no matting. WTH
    I wouldn’t trust the USPS with a 20×30 for $18.00
    For $18,00.00 I would it delivered and hung in my house.

  18. lol maybe they are all one of a kind’s at that price cause its so cold that it freezes up the camera & he has to charge that much to replace his camera after each shot!

  19. This CANNOT be for real. RIght???

  20. Anonymous

    On his website he says that he never crops or edits his photos. “Call me old fashion.” He’s a lunatic…

  21. This guy is delusional.

  22. Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!

    Hold on, let me take another look…

    Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

    Stop, you’re killing me!

  23. DIsgusted Photo Studio Owner

    I wonder just how many pieces of this crap actually sold for 18 grand?

    • It’s only a 1 print run! That’s one hell of a deal!

      Where’s my bank card damnit!

  24. Here’s my rub… short of a tree growing, there won’t be much change in the wilds of Alaska. No one is dying to move there… there isn’t a crush of existing population wanting out of the existing cities… so why?

    The picture is so-so at best. The white balance is way white and there is no sense of dark green of the tree at all. It’s a dreary bland dank sparse image. In fact, it is almost depressing in how desolate it is.

    But $18k? I about had a seizure when I saw that price tag. And how do we know he won’t reprint? Or, took several similar photos, each at $18k? Do I get my negative? Or is this digital and I don’t have the rights to the flash card?

    Either way, I ain’t buying.

  25. Anonymous

    Perfect. I’m, by no means, a photographer. I do take some really great candid shots of my cats. They look better than that. I’ll Instagram them and sell them for the bargain price of $15,000.

    • Christine

      I do the same thing. Would you like to do an exhibit with me. The only available location is my basement, but I could get my friends from facebook (all 17 of them!) to come and have a look at the work. I’d be great and I’m sure one of them would buy a photo. My mom’s pension gets paid next week. She’ll buy a photo or two. We’ll be rich!!!

  26. Anonymous

    Yawn. I see this guy as a misguided amateur. Nobody has paid him for this, unlike those other fauxtographers.

    This was good for a chuckle, but I don’t see it fitting in with the other stuff here.

  27. a few thoughts:
    1) He spelled piece wrong…I wouldn’t bring it up if he wasn’t trying to collect $18,000 on this listing or if he didn’t spell it that way on EVERY other picture he is trying to sell!

    2) For $18,000 you LITERALLY can own a piece of Alaska.

    3) Who is shopping for one of a kind photographs on etsy?

  28. I think it is supposed to be $1.80. His zero key must be sticking.

  29. That was easy to look up. I can’t do anything but laugh. My uncle takes better photos of flowers than that. He’s really undercharging, apparently.

    This guy just comes off as such a douche.

  30. Wsroadrunner

    The Swan Princess Tragedy is a must have for my livingroom. Where can I get the $20,000? BWAHAHAHAHAHA

    What a buffooon!

    • That one is MY very favorite too!!!!!! You’ll have to fight me for it

      • Wsroadrunner

        You can have it… I found some roadkill on my way to town today and took a picture. That should be about even with this shot.

        (Disclaimer: I did not really take a picture of roadkill, I am only kidding……. OrNot.)

  31. C’mon guys, 100% of his sales go to charity. Think of it this way, you get to donate $18,000 to one of the 4 charities he picks, you get a photo, and don’t even get a tax deduction.

    • Anonymous

      I looked on his website and it said that only 10% of the profit went to charity…

  32. I went to his website, shown on his etsy. Yeah, after reading his “meet the photographer” he deserves a listing on YANF. “I wanted to become more involved and take it one step further and go pro”

    • I don’t know about going pro, but it’s obvious he’s already gone crazy.

  33. Anonymous

    That Spruce isn’t doing it for me. Check out “Eskimo Eel Hunting”. Now that is Art. And at only 10K, a real steal!

  34. What I can’t believe is that he has 33 admirers. And where are the lifestyles of the Eskimos photos he says he sells?

    • I think that translates into “I have 33 family members whom I’ve begged to ‘admire’ me on this site.”

  35. and he misspelled “piece” as “peice” no biggy, i just didn’t want to rip his picture to shreds.

    I’m pretty sure ansel andams’ photos dont even fetch that much chedder… i gotta switch from portraits to landscapes lol

  36. If you get into the exif file you find that these have been shot on a KODAK EASYSHARE Z885 Zoom Digital Camera with an 8.1 Mb sensor in “landscape” mode. The dude must be high on crack and have severe delusional cabin fever.
    Love how he got his friend to write a recommendation saying how she ordered and got the print the next day …………….
    BC Bud must have made it up the the wilds of Alaska – happy smokin’ dude!!!

    • I found the exif file of the shot shown and it a Canon Rebel XS (1000D)
      At least its a DSLR, but the lower end of all
      auto WB
      auto Expo

  37. Wow…I don’t think even someone famous could get $18,000 for a picture. But just think, this guy just has to find one person with way too much money and a visual disorder, and he’s golden.

    • you didn’t see the Rhine River photo that sold for 4.5 million? Looks like this guy is trying to capitalize on that market…

  38. Derpface

    Does anyone else worry that he might have shot that swan with a shotgun, before he shot it with his compact?

    • Hate to rain on your parade, but Tundra Swan hunting is legal in Alaska.

      Especially for subsistence hunting – which based on his prices and sales is what he has to do to live.

      • Wsroadrunner

        All he has to do is sell one shot and he can have SPAM and Cheetos for a lifetime… LOL

  39. Anonymous

    I went to his website and there is a picture titled Sunshine in Heaven’s Clouds Serial Number 0412 … $15,000 for a picture of a sun through overcast. This is so ballsy.

  40. Anonymous

    For 18K I’ll sculpt real human waste into a crude stick figure and send it to you then you really will have a one of a kind piece of crap you can display

    • lmao

    • Redsnapper

      Hey, it’s a deal, it’s a steal – money on it’s way mate!

      I can’t wait to receive my shit…wait – do you sculpt it with my shit, or your shit? Or a famous persons shit? Can I choose the famous person?

      There could be a HUGE market for this…

      • why do i thing of that Mick Jagger quote – “I always said you can’t polish a turd, but Keith said “No, but you can varish one!””

  41. The feedback seems to be for honey, not pictures. There are no sales on the Etsy shop for photos…shocking!

  42. Hey, why not… there’s a sucker born every minute right? And they’ve got perfectly good money? Well what are we waiting for!

    I won’t tell if you won’t tell….

  43. Haha. The view count on his listing has gone up exponentially, I wonder if he has any idea why, probably thinks he’s hit the jackpot with this one, more like the crackpot!

  44. sharon g

    Oh, my! He seriously needs to learn the value of spell check, learn the difference between left and right, and maybe throw in a comma or twelve. Looking at the “How To Buy” section nearly made my eyes bleed.

  45. Anonymous

    Did you check out his website? I know this will come as a surprise to everyone…his photos are so good they don’t need to be edited. Aren’t you glad to know some people are just so damn good they can pick up their Canon Rebel XS or Kodak Easyshare camera, not edit their photos and charge $10,000+ for the results. Amazing.

  46. grateful grammarian

    You might want to clean up your own text before you start criticizing others.

    Hire me!

    They say Earth Girls are easy . . .

  47. Oh ROFLMAO!!! For $200 AUD you can Literally own a piece of Scottland! With deeds and call yourself a Lord and a Lady…. It might be only 1mtr sqr but at least it would be Worth something!!!! What a rediculous price for a blown out picture of a snow covered tree!!! Goodness gracious me….. Ive sold better prints for $80…. Waaaaay better! Dream on….

  48. He has a Facebook page too under “Alaska Fine Art Photography by yjImagery”. That guy is ballsy.

  49. Love this quote from his *interview*

    I carry a spare lens in my backpack that goes with me everywhere. It can be a challenge to keep in one piece, but if I carry it in a case I would miss out on so many good shots.

    Bahahahahaaa! Wow he’s so amazing he only needs two lenses!! Jeez I pack along all 4 of my lenses and a tc to boot in a Lowepro knapsack…and I use Photoshop…jeez I must be a real crappy photog 🙂

  50. lol! i was just over at etsy ogling this jackwagon’s photos, and thought “i have to tell yanap about this!!”

  51. I swear I have a pic that looks the pretty much the same. I took it as a ‘test’ shot after I bought a $700 lens. I kept the pic on my hard drive however I wouldn’t show it off as anything but a photo of “look how much snow we received” type shot. The thing that makes his true faux colors shine through, when he stated, “take it one step further and go pro…”. You don’t decide to go pro. You announce your candicacy for the C.P.P. program. AND PASS!!

  52. he also charges $30.000 for some bad macro of a flower… this guy is ill.

  53. How can we have gotten so far down here and not mentioned Peter Lik yet? Is this not EXACTLY what he does, only with slight better photos?

  54. A Copywriter and A photographer

    Honestly, this guy is about a year and $6000 of marketing from actually getting $18k for his photos.

    His website needs an overhaul, he needs to dump etsy and any other bargain-basement sales channels he has, and spend that six grand on a targeted direct mail campaign. Of course, his writing skills aren’t up to snuff, so he’ll have to drop some cash on that.

    As he stands right now, he’s a mediocre hobbyist with delusions of grandeur, but at least he’s doing something to go where he wants to be. I look at the response to him and see a bucket of crabs, always pulling down anyone trying to escape.

    How many of you would double your prices and go after more upscale clientele?

    How many of you would decide to turn your prints into luxury goods? Or even investment vehicles?

    Not very damned many, I’d say.

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