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jmghart62

jmghart62

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Has anyone any experience of picture.com? My son entered a photo and has received a letter telling him his picture has reached the semi-finals and will be included in a book ... which he can buy for $69.95 including his personal bio for an additional $25. Call me an old cynic, but it doesn't seem genuine, like it's some kind of scam. Of course, I could be completely wrong ... and I hope for my son's sake I am. He is a wannabe pro and this would be a real boost for his ego. Anyone any thoughts?
 
Have no experience of them but looking at the l-o-n-g- Prize list they must be holding a competition every day!

I advise caution. I have seen "competitions" similar to this before (not only for Photographs). Turned out that everyone was a "winner" and they were all invited to "buy the book it will be published in".

Investigate carefully - could be genuine but on the other hand it is a good way to sell a book that, probably, very few people would buy otherwise.....
 
You can buy a book for $69.95 which you could almost believe, but a personal bio for another $25 - where are they getting the information for the bio? If it's part of the book then they can't charge extra, or is it just a sheet of paper with information that you would have to tell them anyway?
 
the_stiffmeister said:
You can buy a book for $69.95 which you could almost believe, but a personal bio for another $25 - where are they getting the information for the bio? If it's part of the book then they can't charge extra, or is it just a sheet of paper with information that you would have to tell them anyway?
Click to expand...

The bio is information the photographer submits ... so my son would have his pic alongside a pic of himself and some personal info.

What you are both saying kind of reinforces the view in my own mind. Shame really, he was so excited to get the letter.
 
It's the bio that sounds not right. Basically you're paying someone $25 to copy and paste your information onto a sheet of paper with his picture. You should make enquiries about the name of the book though. When he entered the competition, was there an agreement that it could be used in such a way? Not sure how you stand on copyright when entering a competition, so perhaps someone else could help out on this.
 
It doesnt appear to be a "unique" book either! They seem to publish one every few months once they have persuaded enough "winners" to buy it. The only people likely to buy it are the "winners" themselves so the chances of a professional photography seeing a copy are very low.

It is really another slant on "vanity publishing".

Get your son to upload some of his work here - more professionals are likely to see them and he could get invaluable tips and advice.
 
Hi thought id put my tuppney worth in as well i hadan email saying exactly the same thing.Certainly seems a lot of winners in this book i only entered out of intrest and was surprised at the same tike .Will deffintly be looking into sourse to see if it is a scam if i find anything will post here to let you know.:|
 
I would be inclined to think it is scammy. The reason I say this is I have had a similar experiance which another site (for a couple of poems I wrote), and they wrote back back saying the very same thing. Needless to say I did not take them up on their offer.
 
It is a scam. i entered a poem into one of these competitions and received an identical letter.

I contacted them and asked who were the books distributors and the names of the outlets where it would be sold.

They were the distributors, "in an effort to reduce overheads", and the book was being offered via the internet.

I told them I already had a copy of the poem and £40 was a lot for a second copy.

On the other hand, if your son is quite young, seeing his work in print is a good way to boost his confidence. Telling him that the only reason his work won a prize is because he's being ripped off, could have a detrimental effect on his ego.

How much is encouraging his aspirations for greatness worth?
 
I to was sent the same thing after submitting a picture. Actually 3 pictures. I also purchased the book, which in time did arrive. But to my surprise was a totally different book than the one ordered. I have returned said book stating it was no good to me if it didn't have my work published in it, and am waiting to see if the origional one ordered ever arrives. I did not pay for a bio ,just the book.
The photography book that was sent i must say was a beautiful item. Well made and nicely illustrated.
 
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