SHOP FAQ | Rogan Coles Photo Shop

We’ve put together the FAQ to help you with some “frequently asked questions” about our online store, the products we sell as well as payments, shipping and related matters. If you cannot find suitable or satisfactory answers to your questions here, please do not hesitate contacting us. Please use our CONTACT US form. We are here to help.

ARGENT PHOTOS:

What’s with this ARGENT PHOTOS thing? ARGENT PHOTOS is the de facto trading entity of Rogan Coles. WHEN MAKING PURCHASES OR MAKING DONATIONS, THIS NAME – ARGENT PHOTOS – WILL APPEAR ON YOUR PAYPAL PAYMENT BANK OR CREDIT CARD STATEMENTS, YOUR INVOICES AND/OR RECIEPTS. There is nothing more to it. It’s just with PayPal that I cannot have separate PayPal accounts for each online web store and paying into one bank account – hence, the ARGENT PHOTOS trading entity.

Under the brand name ARGENT PHOTOS, we maintain 4 websites – namely:

The Rogan Coles Photo Archive,
This website, the Rogan Coles Photo Shop,
The Rogan Coles Workshops website and,
The Lost Years Project website.

Of these websites, 2 have online web stores, namely:

This website, the Rogan Coles Photo Shop and
The Lost Years Project website.

Of these websites, 2 accept donations via PayPal Donate:

I hope that this clarifies any confusion that may have arisen when having business dealings with any of the websites mentioned above.

PRINT SIZES:

Through our online store we offer a number of print size options. Nearly all the prints on offer are made from digital images with a 2:3 aspect ratio. I rarely, if ever, crop any of my images.

Popular sizes include:

12 x 18 inches [approx. 30 x 46 cm]
16 x 24 inches [approx. 41 x 61 cm]
20 x 30 inches [approx. 51 x 76 cm]
24 x 36 inches [approx. 61 x 92 cm]
30 x 45 inches [approx. 76 x 114 cm]
40 x 60 inches [approx. 102 x 152 cm]

Other prints sizes and their prices are available on request.

If you are perhaps looking other print sizes, as a suggestion, select a multiple, for example ’10’. This will yield a print size of 20 x 30 inches ([10*2] x {10*3])

All prints have a white 1 cm wide white border.

We use inches as a measure for our prints as a kind of print size convention thing. Metric sizes are provided in parenthesis.

PRINTING:

At present, all our printing is done in Hong Kong.
Currently, all prints are printed using the Lambda C process.
The type of print finish we offer are either glossy or matt. As a general rule, we do not offer canvas and metal based prints. This maybe a future consideration but, for now, maybe considered as a one off request.
Unless requested, all prints are delivered as printed. We do not mount prints on foam board backing, nor do we supply print matts and, we do not do framing.
The image as viewed on our product page is just that, it is for “reference” purpose ONLY. The print you receive will be close but, in fact, far better than the accompanying reference image. We reserve the right to both modify and update these images on an “as and when” basis. Please bear in mind that, with digital photography, the technology is changing all the time. While the image will always be the image, the software applications used to prep and finish these images is changing constantly and, usually, for the better. Thus, It makes sense for us to continually seek better ways to update and improve on our images, this to bring out the richness and detail of that image.

PACKAGING:

At present we offer two options for packaging and shipping our prints:
1. Rolled and posted in a mailing tube. While this method maybe more robust, special care maybe required to “flatten” the print. In the hands of a competent framer, this should be no issue.
2. The prints maybe shipped flat – as in bagged in a cellophane wrapper and then sandwiched between two sheets of ploy-board and then securely wrapped. This method may be best for shipping with international couriers who offer a door-to-door service and can warrant a successful delivery.
DIMENSIONS: – The dimension and weights referred to on our product pages and, subsequently, on your print order and invoice refer to the packaging dimensions and weight.

DELIVERY:

At present, all print orders are shipped out of Hong Kong.
For print orders originating in Hong Kong, orders will be delivered door-to-door by hand courier.
For all international print orders, prints will be delivered door-to-door by either Hong Kong Post or via a number of international courier services, this depending on the location and the availability of business operations in those locations.
TAXES – From Hong Kong we don’t charge or pay taxes on shipping. However, on receipt of your purchase you may be asked to pay additional charges for some reason or other. On our shipping declaration we have indicated a nominal value of the package – basically this is a cost based on the material value of the product and not its intrinsic value as a work of art.
DECLARED VALUE – The “Declared Value” that is shown on shipping docket is, in no way, a reflection of the value of your purchase. The value “declared” is the value of the packaging and material goods based on what it would cost to replace those items. If you feel that we ought to be “insuring” your purchase prior to delivery, this can be arranged and on a “case by case” basis. Any costs incurred will usually be borne by you, this as the buyer.
BEST EFFORT – Every effort will be made to have your purchase delivered to you in person. In whatever event that takes place where this cannot be affected, we – us the seller and any agent used to make this delivery – cannot be held responsible for what happens to your purchase once it has been handed over and is inside your threshold of responsibility.
INDEMNITY – If a third party walks off with your purchase or, decides to trash it or, your favourite pet decides to tear the package to pieces – all of this is beyond our control. We also actively discourage you from assigning the receipt or collection of goods to a third party – especially to someone under the age of consent – UNLESS this is done in writing and prior to the receipt of your purchase – this for your own protection as well as ours. If an agent we use to make the delivery of your purchase errs and it can be proven that this was a dereliction of duty, this is usually a matter we will take up with the agent – once you have effectively proven that this was indeed a dereliction of duty on the part of the agent. Please remember, all deliveries are documented and can be tracked and traced to the point of delivery.

PAYMENTS:

We offer several methods to help you with your payments:

PAYPAL – we use PayPal’s payment gateway.
STRIPE – As an alternative we have install Stripe’s payment gateway. Some users, especially those paying by credit card may find Stripe’s service a little easier and thus, more convenient to use.
BACS – This is a direct debit bank-to-bank service. For some customers, this service may be a lot easier and more convenient to use. While there may be various bank charges involved, there are no third party services involved in any direct debit transactions.
COD – In some countries around the world, a “cash on deliver” service may be preferred. This is where the customer pays the courier service cash on receipt of prints purchased from our site.

CHEQUES [CHECKS – US spelling] – We DO NOT accept cheque payments at this time. This method of payment is both too costly and inconvenient – for both you, the customer, and ourselves.
PRICING – At present, all our prices are stated in US Dollars. At some point in the future we may install a currency conversion plugin that will display prices in the currency of your region this based on your billing address or, perhaps, your IP address.

REFUNDS:

Several conditions apply:

We do not offer refunds. It is assumed that you have made the right decision at the time you decided to make your purchase.
Each print is purpose printed based specifically on your order. A print, like photography, is not a like piece of clothing – that, if the size is wrong, that item of clothing can usually be exchanged. Our products are tailor-made. By the same token, it is not very often you can go back to tailor or dressmaker to tell them you don’t like the garment you had them make for you?
In purchasing one of our works of art, we assume you made an effective assessment of your purchase beforehand – that you measured up the space where you’re likely to be hanging the print, checked out sources of lighting, ambiance and the like, etc.?
We also assumed that you, alone, have made decisions about matting and framing your print in the process of making you decision to buy?

CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY:

Each print is supplied with a CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY. We offer this CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY in lieu of numbering our prints, this as part of an editioning of sorts. Our rational is explained as follows. Not only does this certificate state that I am the creator of the work you have purchased, it also contains other pertinent information regarding your purchase. We have included certain metadata [data about data] regarding the image itself, the file number of original digital file, the date the image was taken, the camera and other particulars as well as some of the image processing information. For example, we use PhaseOne’s Capture One to convert our Camera RAW files to working TIFF files. Almost each year PhaseOne offers an update. These updates as such, effect on the final rendition of the finished image. Much the same can be said about Adobe’s Photoshop and other tools we may use to finish our Masterfile images. We feel that it is important to have this information listed as this makes your print unique. For instance, the Masterfile used to create the print you purchase, may have been created using, say, Capture One 9. A while later I may update that Masterfile using a later version of Capture One. While there are not likely to be significant differences between one print or the other, there might be subtle difference that may be discernible to a serious collector.

PRINT NUMBERING:

We do not number our prints. Instead we offer a CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY that is specific to that print and a document that reflects some pertinent information specific to that print. The only reason I would see us needing to number our prints is, if we were to offer sets of limited editions of our prints for sale through a gallery. In this instance, we may, for example, supply a gallery with 10 prints of a particular digital file. Those prints would be numbered and this for good reason. It is likely that those 10 prints would have been printed at the same printing house, using the same process and the same papers. But, outside of this of this workflow, we would be supplying prints on a one off basis. In the process, I may quite likely change printing partners, I may look for better paper stock or using new inks or new technologies. This information would be reflected on that print’s accompanying CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY.

WATERMARKS:

They don’t exist – least-wise on the print you buy. The watermark you see on each reference image in our store is just there as part of the image display. This watermark will never appear on any print that we sell – just to reassure you.

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Last modified: 2020/1/18