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Autograph Common Sense

Let's take some time to talk about autographs, sounds silly right? In the last few weeks a number of new & old collectors have popped in here on this site and elsewhere with items they want to know about...Is this real? What's the value? and so on.

Many of us collect different things, some only collect sports, some mostly music, astronauts or presidents, whatever you collect this topic will fit into any category, for my purposes, seeing as I collect celebrity autographs, these are the examples I will use.

There are so many things that should be looked at when you are deciding what you should collect and where the actual value can possibly end up.

Lets start with the item. Is it a photograph? Maybe a poster and is it original or a cheap copy? What size is it? Was it produced in a photo lab or printed out on your computer? All of this matters.

Maybe it's a size that the signer rarely autographs. As we saw recently with an oversized Armstrong photo selling for 10 times the normal price.

A photograph should be a good size to display with a strong autograph that you can see clearly ...even from across the room. If the celebrity signed in a dark area with a dark pen (as many do).....the value will be different..... far different.

Avoid magazine pages or flimsy paperstock lithographs, they will not last for the long term, and computer printed images will fade and look horrible in time, that is if the sharpie doesn't bleed into the image. Good lab produced photos have a lifespan of 100 years or more. Paper stock magazine pages will crumble to dust over time....think about old newspapers.

While we are on the subject of images.....is that image from the celebrity's most famous role? The one character which he or she is know for worldwide? This is also of huge importance but it is also a double edged sword on occasion. Certain celebrities are so well known for a specific role that nearly everything signed by them in their career is images of that role. Sean Connery will always be James Bond, and for 50+ years he has been singing James Bond images, posters and memorabilia. He has certainly signed far fewer pieces from Highlander or Indiana Jones, both of those franchises will always have a place in collections and will have collectors who want them.

Other examples of this would be Joe D on a Mr. Coffee ad photo or a shot swinging a bat in uniform, Armstrong in his NASA jumpsuit or a business suit. Roger Maris in pinstripes or in a Cards jersey. Which do you think will be more valuable to the average fan? Sure a shot of Joe D holding a Mr. Coffee coffee pot would be a fun piece for someone who owns a dozen Yankees shots of Joe, but what would the "normal" fan prefer?

There are rare celebrities whose career has given them multiple characters with far reaching long term recognition. Al Pacino will always be Michael Corleone and Tony Montana. Harrison Ford has both Han Solo and Indiana Jones. Other celebs aren't that lucky, but if they are recognized forever as one character ....that is nothing to sneeze at, and it is probably a good bet that if you want to add that person to your collection, it is probably wise to be sure you get the right item signed. Marlon Brando on a Godfather photo would likely sell for 20 times what a standard Brando image would bring. Heath Ledger photos as the Joker ( I only know of about a dozen) will sell for far more than any other Ledger graph.....no offense to the Brokeback fans.

Be smart about what you add to your collection and if you are in a position where you have to be buying a piece.....save up and holdout for the right piece

Posters, props and costumes are all options for signing, but again.....quality always matters, both in the item signed and the autograph ......choose wisely.

Of course sometimes you have no choice but to compromise, especially when you are in search of a celebrity that is no longer with us, just take your time and be patient, don't jump into anything without doing your homework.

I am sure there are dozens of other factors.....these were just the few that popped into my head in the last day or so. Please add to the list.

10 members like this

Comment by Pete Bendu on November 11, 2016 at 10:33am: You don't want a boat. Family and friends for generation have had them and they all say the same thing.....it's just a hole in the water to throw money into.

Comment by Paul on November 11, 2016 at 1:16pm: Some great advice from, Pete. I had no idea about magazine pages , I own one that is signed, but I always see them for sale, Donald trump on magazine covers or Hot women signed cover, the photos are the better option.We can hope our investments stay solid but who knows.

Comment by Julie Schirmer on November 16, 2016 at 2:13pm: My Prince autographs have some of these weaknesses...but I feel the rarity of his signature supercedes them?

Comment by Paul on November 16, 2016 at 3:45pm: How do you know if the photo's are from a printer or a lab? Id think most ip guys would use home printers.

Comment by Pete Bendu on November 16, 2016 at 4:36pm: Most good inperson graphers will never use a home printer, many make sure to state their items are lab printed right in their descriptions, on ebay, and on their websites.

One silly and simple way to tell the difference is the size lab photos are 8x10, home printer photo paper is 8.5x11. If the seller happens to cut the home printer piece down to 8x10, then it gets tricky.

Lab printed photos tend to have photographic paper watermarks on the reverse, Kodak etc.

Home Printer paper will also have watermarks on back, but they tend to tell you right there in the marks that it is Printer paper.

Comment by Eric Keith Longo on November 16, 2016 at 4:39pm: Another quick tell for pc prints can be the margins.

Paul - this is a very useful site that will address your question:

http://www.cycleback.com/photoguide/index.html

Comment by Pete Bendu on November 16, 2016 at 4:41pm: Julie, your Prince items would fall into the section of my blog where I said "Of course sometimes you have no choice but to compromise, especially when you are in search of a celebrity that is no longer with us."

Price was a compromise when he was alive, and he is more so now that he is gone. The rarity level of some signers will always trump certain "rules."

No one here would throw away their inscribed dirty napkin signed by JD Salinger.

Comment by Paul on November 16, 2016 at 4:58pm: Here's a racc post, what do you think of these?

Comment by Pete Bendu on November 16, 2016 at 5:12pm: I think anyone using blanks for anything other than a white surface to get a signature on is looking to take your money, or doesn't care that the autographed item will be worthless in a very short time.

Comment by Julie Schirmer on November 16, 2016 at 5:14pm: Agree and lol Pete...I know I wouldn't!

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