It may come as a surprise but providing a photo to sketch service requires no artistic ability at all, as the effect can be achieved by computer software. Many such dedicated programs are available but these are to be avoided as the resulting image often requires a lot of cleaning up and tweaking which defeats the purpose of using the program. Much better to download and use the free GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation program) software which, though it does involve a certain learning curve, is the only comprehensive graphics program that can compete with such as Adobe’s Photoshop and its derivatives.
Pencil or charcoal effect
This is not a one click operation, where one filter achieves the desired effect. Rather it is by using a sequence of filters and adjusting the results that a believable sketch can be created. Many tutorials are available online detailing various methods of doing this. Sketches can be created emulating a pencil or charcoal black and white effect or a sketch in full colour.
Little capital cost
The joy of this as a small business proposition is that there is little capital cost once a computer and printer are installed in the home or office.
In the first instance you should transform photographs of your own family into sketches and, selecting the best, frame them and place them at suitable points around your house. The best choices for these examples are babies, weddings and pets, but do ensure that you have a very plain background to the photograph to be converted. Use good quality cartridge paper to print on.
The hope is that visitors, friends and family, will see the pictures and be impressed. A little soft selling should persuade at least a few to have their families similarly immortalised as art. As these customers’ sketches are viewed by further people and you are referred to as the source, your customer base will grow. This is using the best advertising in the world, word-of-mouth, which is especially useful to the business start-up because it’s free. You might wish to promote a little harder by starting a small affiliate program for your first customers, offering them a return for any customers they refer.
This will not afford you a huge return in the short term and really should be regarded as learning the ropes. To derive the maximum benefit from providing a photo to sketch service you must access the worldwide web and offer your wares to a global audience. This will mean building a website with an e-commerce function or having one built for you. This is not as daunting as it sounds and there is plenty of free software out there to allow you to do this.
Colorising a black and white photograph
At this stage you might also consider purchasing a scanner to allow you to scan photographs into your computer to be converted. This might also allow you to increase the services you can offer to customers. An old black and white photograph could be colorised or a damaged photo could be repaired. Again, this would involve you in learning how to use the GIMP software’s abilities, so it is dependent on how much time you are willing to commit to this project.
Even as a basic photo-to-sketch service you should be offering the following:
Photo to Sketch (B&W) – Digital download
Photo to Sketch (colour) – Digital download
Photo to Sketch – Print
Photo to Sketch – Print and frame.
Your pricing would obviously have to reflect the costs you incur in providing the above services. For a digital download, where a customer has emailed you a picture and you return it as a graphic file, the only cost to you is your time. For a print, paper, ink and postage must be factored in, and for a framed picture you would have a mark-up on the price you paid for the frame.
Converting each photograph into a sketch should take no more than 15 minutes and your charges would obviously reflect whatever hourly rate you wished to charge. As a low-cost, small-business, start-up this requires no premises or outlay on stock and though it might not offer overwhelming riches is well worth considering.
Gurmeet Mattu - Gurmeet Mattu was born and lives in Glasgow, Scotland, but is of Indian (Sikh) descent. He trained as a journalist at the Polytechnic of ...
