Industry Research

PSA March 17, 2026

PSA Photograph Type Classification

Direct excerpt from PSA/DNA, the leading photograph authentication service. Each photograph is examined to determine if it was made from the original negative, a duplicate negative or a wire transmission. The stampings on the reverse of the photograph are identified in order to date the photograph to the approximate era of production. As a final step of analysis, each genuine photograph is given a classification from Type 1 to Type 4 based on its characteristics.

Intelligent Collector July 9, 2023

Collector’s Guide to Vintage Sports Photos | Intelligent Collector

During the past several years, the market for vintage sports photographs has changed dramatically as more collectors have been exposed to this intriguing genre. Vintage photos offer a combination of scarcity and aesthetic beauty and, most important, capture a singular moment better than any other collectible type. A photo doesn’t represent a mere era, year, day or game. It captures a fraction of a second, frozen in time.

PSA Jul 24, 2018

The Photos Behind the Cards | PSA

Say the names Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, Jim Brown, and Joe Namath to any serious fans of American sports history, and they will immediately offer up a story of a specific game or moment. Say those same names to serious sports-card collectors, and within milliseconds the image of those players' most-valued cards will materialize in their brain so vividly they could describe it in detail without even seeing it.

Collectibles on SI March 17, 2026

Inside the Growing Popularity of Type I Photos | Collectibles on SI

The popularity of vintage photography is nothing new. But the astronomical prices being paid for these prints is absolutely new. And it has a lot to do with PSA helping define the category in 2007. Collectors always appreciated classic black-and-white pictures showcasing their heroes, but weren’t quite sure about the specifics behind each photo.

Intelligent Collector May 1, 2024

Inside the Wide World of Type 1 Photographs | Intelligent Collector

In each genre of collecting, there exist elusive treasures of ultimate value, items that, in practical terms, are unfindable, known only in a few surviving examples, or scarce in the original state of the issue. Type 1 photographs – which represent high watermarks of cultural life, pivotal historical events, defining achievements in sports and entertainment, and celebrity images that transcend the moment – have become among the most coveted collectibles in recent years.

The Athletic April 7, 2023

Inside the High-Priced World of Vintage Sports Photography Collecting | The Athletic

When Henry Yee arrived as a young boy in early 1970s New York City, he did what so many kids in the Big Apple do: He became a Yankees fan. But his interests extended beyond the Bronx Bombers. Yee became enamored with old photos of New York, images of skyscrapers rising into a skyline built over a century, and life in America’s largest city as it evolved across the decades. He also loved vintage photos of iconic Yankees ballplayers — particularly Babe Ruth. By the 1980s, he was taking photography courses and began buying old photos of New York and of its ballplayers.