Anyone collect signed photos anymore?

mrreality68 · #1 01-09-2023, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BillyCoxDodgers3B

All the same, tired poses used for 8X10s signed on the show circuit over the last 40 years gets to be a bit repetitive. Nobody likes that. It's fully understandable that people have soured on them. Walking up to a dealer's table to see a binder of 150 8X10s with heavy duplication of a few common HOF names and familiar poses is an exercise in boredom.

Conversely, find me an 8X10 of a HOF player who died over 60 years ago and it's an entirely different feeling altogether. It's pretty hard to tire of something rarely encountered. I'm not talking Ruth, who is common in this format vs. most players who have been deceased for so long. Those don't tend to excite me. Give me an 8X10 of Kid Nichols, Eddie Collins...anything that you don't see very often.

And here's a hint to dealers: Don't put 50 copies of the same signed pose into one binder. People aren't going to be tempted to buy something that appears as common as toilet paper unless you're having a $1 sale. Idea #2: Have you been lugging those 100 Lou Boudreau 8X10s to every show since 1989 with no takers? Do yourself a favor and start giving them away to each kid under 10 who walks by your table. Your small gesture might help bring the love back for this dying medium to the demographic that is most needed to carry it forward.

I agree that signed photos of more modern players(from the 80's on) seems to have cooled off. In part because autograph shows, autographs are events( store openings, car dealerships, etc) the autographs are so so common.
I agree that pre 1980 and from players passed away is still strong because of the rarity
Signed cards up until a few years ago was not as in demand as it is now and the prices are thru the roof

gonefishin · #2 01-09-2023, 01:01 PM

I collect a lot of autographs, and I enjoy collecting vintage photos. The new stuff (1980 - on) not so much. I recently acquired the attached George Brace photo of Red Ruffing - it's an example of what I really enjoy.

Chris-Counts · #3 01-09-2023, 09:50 PM

I always have an eye out for signed snapshots from the 1930s through the 1950s. Here are a few of my favorites.

Topnotchsy · #4 01-09-2023, 10:25 PM

I think I'm with most people in not caring for modern signed photos that are readily available, but love them for vintage etc.

I bought collections of signed photos from the 1931 and 1934 US Tours of Japan. Doesn't have Ruth of Gehrig, but here are a couple of examples.

GoCubsGo32 · #5 01-10-2023, 08:14 AM

I collect signed & non signed snapshots. The images are more personal and different each time. The repetitiveness of 8x10s at shows is fatiguing. Easy skip.

Even if...it's a player I want to get auto 8x10, the show prices are freaking ridiculous! An inscription is almost the same amount as the auto itself.

Another factor is storage space. 8x10s take up more storage space than a 4x6, 3x5 etc snapshot photos.

doug.goodman · #6 01-10-2023, 07:15 PM

I'm a bit surprised that nobody has mentioned that autographs have become virtually unreadable. It seems that each year it gets worse.

I'll bet that nobody stares at the average current autograph the way we all stared at all of the ones in this thread...

Actually, people do stare at newer autographs - in disbelief.

BillyCoxDodgers3B · #7 01-10-2023, 07:48 PM

Doug,

As I've written elsewhere, I was always a "completest" collector: I wanted an autograph of every man to ever play in the Majors. While a complete collection is an impossible undertaking, I made very strong headway.

By the 1990's, the new players' signatures were becoming truly disgusting. Not as bad as the garbage from today's kids, but horrid enough that I finally said "Enough!". Sometime during that decade, I made the decision to stop wanting the modern autographs altogether and set a target end date with all the year 2000 debuts. That year had a very defining "The End" feeling, so a perfect finishing point. Coincidentally, I also lost any and all interest in following baseball around the same time the autographs started getting too nasty to enjoy. The 1994 strike was the nail in the coffin there.

Seven · #8 01-10-2023, 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doug.goodman

I'm a bit surprised that nobody has mentioned that autographs have become virtually unreadable. It seems that each year it gets worse.

I'll bet that nobody stares at the average current autograph the way we all stared at all of the ones in this thread...

Actually, people do stare at newer autographs - in disbelief.

This is something I've talked about in past threads. The new signatures are quite frankly terrible. We are long gone from the days of the picture perfect penmanship of guys like Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Sandy Koufax, etc. I was at one point, interested in acquiring a Mike Trout signature, until I saw what it looked like. Absolutely terrible.

Back to the point at hand, I've collected some 8x10's, Mantle, Williams, and Aaron, mostly because of their prices. I think at this point I'd rather have them on baseballs though however.

As for their signature on cards? At this point, forget it. I wish I was around in the 60's and 70's when everything I wanted was available on the cheap!

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