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Tips and Tricks to Identify a Genuine Autographed Photo

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Autographed photos make great gifts since these photos are considered precious by collectors. Buying an autographed photo or signed memorabilia can be very hard especially if you are buying a signed collectible for the first time. This article will elaborate on some tips and tricks to help you determine which photo is genuine and which is not.

Pre Print and Duo Print

Pre print photos are basically photos that have been signed by a celebrity and then copied through a machine. These autographed photos have no significant resale value since they are not considered as genuine signed memorabilia items. The best way to distinguish these photos from the real ones is to hold the photo up to a light. Pre print photos are blurry and original photos are not. Duo print photos are basically photos that have a separate signature printed on top so that they look original but these photos are also considered fake. Duo print photos have no significant resale value and genuine collectors don’t buy these photos. Dup print photos can be identified in the same way as pre print photos.

Proxy of Secretary Signature

Some celebrities ask proxies or their secretaries to sign their photos for them. These photos are also considered as fakes since they are not signed by the celebrity. The best way to identify fake autograph photos is to check the signature with a real one. Real signatures of a celebrity can be found on the internet since many websites put up the real signatures to distinguish them from fake signatures. At times proxy signatures are very close to the real signature so you may need to use a magnifying glass to know the difference.

Rubber Stamp Signature

An autograph photo that has a rubber stamp signature is very easy to identify. The rubber stamp signature is usually very messy and at times the signature can be faded. Although rubber stamp photographs are easy to identify the truth is that there are many such fake photos being sold in shops.

Forgery

A forged autographed photo may or may not be easy to detect since some people who forge signatures are very good at what they do. Forged signature photos are sold on websites by unscrupulous people who want to make quick money. The best way to identify this fraud is to compare the signature in the photo with the real signature that can be found on the internet.

Protecting Your Interests

In order to protect your own interests you should check the signature thoroughly before paying for it. If you have been sold a fake photo then you should complain to the concerned authorities. If you know that you have a fake photo then you should not sell the photo since the consequences of selling fake items can be serious. You should also buy expensive autographed collectibles only from genuine websites that are known to sell the real thing. If you are offered an autographed collectible from a person upfront that you do not know then you should think twice before buying that item.

Tips to Buy a Genuine Autographed Photo

Autographed photos have a lot of value in the market since genuine collectibles are hard to find. While buying autographed photos and other signed memorabilia there are a few things that should be kept in mind since there are many sellers who do not provide genuine collectibles. This article will elaborate on some tips to help you buy genuine autographed collectibles to complete your collection.

Find Out the Real Value

The price of the autographed collectible will depend on the importance of the celebrity at that particular time. The price of autographed photo also depends if the celebrity is living or not. As a general rule signed memorabilia that have been autographed by celebrities that are currently in vogue cost more than collectibles that are signed by people who were in vogue a few years ago. Autographed collectibles that have been signed by popular people who are no longer living cost more since there are limited pieces of these autographed collectibles. The type of memorabilia will also determine the price of the object. Sports memorabilia often cost more than other autographed items since sports stars are more popular.

Look at the Image

Before buying any kind of signed collectible that has a high value you should first examine the collectible carefully. If you are buying the collectible online then you should examine the image carefully before buying. If the collectible is very expensive then you may want to ask the seller for a high resolution picture so that you can download the picture, maximise it and check if its original or not. Most sellers who sell collectibles with a high value usually upload high resolution images on their website.

Find a Reputed Seller

There are many online and retail stores that sell autographed photos but all of the sellers in the market do not sell genuine items. Before you decide to buy signed collectibles you should search for a seller that you can trust. The best way to find reputable sellers is to look for recommendations. Reviews on the internet and in related magazines will also give you an estimate if a particular seller is good or not.

Compare Prices

If you are shopping from an auction site that sells signed memorabilia then you should compare prices with other sellers to make sure you get the best deal. The same rule applies while buying sports memorabilia or other collectibles from retail stores. If the collectible you want is available only with 1 seller then you may want to skip this step and instead ensure that the seller has genuine products.

Don’t Waste Time

Autographed photo that have been collected by sellers usually sell fast so you should not spend too much time thinking if you want the product or not. If you are sure that the seller is reputed and he has a good reputation of selling genuine products then you should consider buying the collectible before anyone else gets their hands on i

How to Tell If Your Autographed Celebrity Photo is a Fake.

There are many different ways to tell if your autographed celebrity picture has been legitimately signed by the celebrity, or if it has been forged. Making sure that your copy of an autograph is authentic may be one of the hardest parts of making sure that it is legitimate. However, there are a few methods that will make it easier to tell the difference between a fake autographed photo and a genuine autographed photo.

One method used in faking celebrity autographs is known as: autopen signatures. While it is the celebrity’s signature, the celebrity has had little or in most cases no contact with the picture at all. An autopen is a machine that takes the celebrity’s hand-written signature and inputs it into a template which is saved onto a computer. Any time an autographed photograph is needed of the celebrity, it is simply placed underneath the mechanical arm that then “autographs” the template onto the photo.

Auto-pen signatures for the most part appear to be 100% genuine. However, there are a few signs that you can look for to determine if an autopen method was used.

If the signature appears to be shaky, it may actually be an indication that an auto-pen has was used, as the “shakiness” is an indication of vibrations being sent through the machine. A light color signature is another way to tell if the autograph has been faked. If the autograph seems to be light or seems to have equal pressure distributed throughout the entire autograph then it is most likely a fake.

Stamped or printed signatures are another method that many forgers use alongside an autopen signature. These types of signatures generally have the same characteristics as the auto-pen, as they appear to have a drawn on look. Another sign in determining if this method was used is to hold the signature to a light. If the signature glows a shaded purple color then you can almost be certain that the signature was stamped.

Another common way that celebrity autographs have been known to be faked is by use of secretary signatures. These are the hardest to detect because they are usually signed by the celebrity’s secretary who has learned to mimic the autograph with great accuracy. One of the best ways to see if this is a forgery is to compare it to other signatures that are owned or that may have been seen.

The best way to compare signatures is to look at them upside down as the mind is not paying attention to what it says, but more as to what it really looks like. Viewing the photo upside down will help point out the more slight differences between the two. Do not automatically assume that when writing a letter to a celebrity that they are going to be the person answering back; usually in these cases the autograph sent is a secretary signature and is not that of the celebrity at all.

The only definite way to know that your copy of a celebrity autograph is legitimate is to be present when the photograph is being signed.

To buy genuine and rare autographed photos or other collectibles like sports memorabilia visit this website at Genuinememorabilia.co.uk and you will surely not be disappointed with the collection they have.

Now that you have taken the time to read this post, why not take the time and read my many other posts, am sure you will find what you need.

Written by admin

January 18th, 2011 at 1:29 am

Posted in Uncategorized

7 Responses to 'Tips and Tricks to Identify a Genuine Autographed Photo'

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