Martin P Wilson Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 I have just received an email from Archant (I used to be a subscriber to Professional Photographer as part of payment for an article but I didn't renew) which starts with: Sadly, we've taken the difficult decision to cease publication of Photography Monthly and Professional Photographer magazines. The rest was about the alternatives for subscribers. Its a pity but PP had seemed to be struggling for a year or two. So more print titles fall by the wayside but the UK market is probably over-served by newsstand photo magazines especially now so many people are using phones. It will be interestiong to see if any others follow suit - most seem to be similar and stuffed with listing adverts by the major dealers who must also be feeling the pinch if they are not selling pallet loads of compact cameras etc. Surely there is a limit to how many dslr dealers the country can support? Might it also mean that there will be fewer camera users seeking to earn pin money or the ego trip of publication? Might the stock photography market be splitting into two (or 3 with video) markets. Might high-end stills just be beginning to move back to a more niche offering albeit with a smaller market (at least while the smartphone look fad works its way out). One can hope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windmillskies Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 That's a shame, PP was still a decent magazine but I stopped even flicking through PM some years ago, lots of recycled articles and too many adverts. Martin www.windmillskies.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Yarvin Posted February 23, 2015 Share Posted February 23, 2015 I too, remember when it was great and I would buy it at Heathrow newsstands before flying back to the States. Of course, that doesn't mean that it's time for something else - perhaps something very different. I'll watch for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Endicott Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 I quite my subscription two or three years ago because I noticed they were sourcing images without paying for them (taking them from folks that were more interested in having their work published as opposed to being actually paid for it) and when they weren't paying for images, they were sourcing them from Veer for pennies. When I resigned my subscription I was very clear about why. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Quite a few PDF and online versions of photography publications. I get the monthly email when their new issues are ready.Also,excellent websites and forums.So anything they are publishing tech related is old news for print by the time it comes out. PDN-PIX (Photo District News) is another one that is getting thinner every month. I stopped subscribing years ago. At $65 a year,it really wasn't worth it. L Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nacke Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 Linda, If you are a member of the ASMP the Photo District News (PDN) costs $25.00 a year. While I don't think that PDN is anywhere as good as it was in the early 80's, when it was a tabloid on newsprint and was called " The New York Photo district News". I will always subscribe to PDN. The demise of Print magazines has been sad to me and also cost me a lot of money. I use to do an assignment for one major U.S. news magazine in the morning, then another assignment for the other U.S. news magazine in the afternoon and on a really good day I would turn around and do a third assignment (usually portraits) for the last major news magazine in the late afternoon. Sadly those days are over. Thank DOG for Alamy, the last Dino standing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Elliott Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 I used to write for Photography Monthly a couple of years ago. That was until the editor became a complete prat and started renegging on promises etc; finding ways to not do things. It's a shame that a mag has to go as there are people's job at risk. But as Martin said, the UK is very saturated with camera mags. At one point it was probably near the 30 mags a month mark. All the content gets recycled as they only have so much they can do aside from news. News is pointless really in a monthly mag given the powers of the internet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted February 24, 2015 Author Share Posted February 24, 2015 Most of the UK photomags are essentially multi-dealer catalogues now with some photo technique articles thrown in. As Jools says constantly recycled content- it is June so SUmmer Holidays, January: Shooting Snow etc. Buy them for one year and just reread them there will be little that is new. I get the sense that the numbers may be quietly declining. Jools was right there were around 30 but there seemed far fewer when I looked yesterday in a major newsagent. Shame but it has been happening since Caxton invented the printing press, or Gutenberg. Many of the newspapaers and magazines I grew up with had disappeared by the time I went to university in 1969. The pace of loss may have accelerated but it is not new. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russell Watkins Posted February 24, 2015 Share Posted February 24, 2015 At the end of 2014, another Archant title "Wild Travel" went belly up. I was a subscriber and was offered credit toward a subscription to a different Archant title. "Professional Photographer" was top of my (very) shortlist. Ho hum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin P Wilson Posted February 24, 2015 Author Share Posted February 24, 2015 At the end of 2014, another Archant title "Wild Travel" went belly up. I was a subscriber and was offered credit toward a subscription to a different Archant title. "Professional Photographer" was top of my (very) shortlist. Ho hum. Oops! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 Linda, If you are a member of the ASMP the Photo District News (PDN) costs $25.00 a year. While I don't think that PDN is anywhere as good as it was in the early 80's, when it was a tabloid on newsprint and was called " The New York Photo district News". I will always subscribe to PDN. The demise of Print magazines has been sad to me and also cost me a lot of money. I use to do an assignment for one major U.S. news magazine in the morning, then another assignment for the other U.S. news magazine in the afternoon and on a really good day I would turn around and do a third assignment (usually portraits) for the last major news magazine in the late afternoon. Sadly those days are over. Thank DOG for Alamy, the last Dino standing. I've not been a member of any photo organization in years. I started subscribing to PDN in the early 1980s when it was relevant.I just don't feel it is and I'm blasted with hundreds of press releases a week and I just have no time to read these things anymore.When I was getting issues even last year,much of what I read I had already seen in some form online months prior.PDN never did any write up on my company in the 80s when I had hundreds of photogs and two agencies. My agency I founded did really well too. Others wrote about us,radio/tv interviews,etc and we did not pay for subscriptions or pay for coverage.Even Variety,Hollywood Reporter,E-Digital Photo Magazine and many others. Again,when I put my entertainment photo agency for sale a few years ago they didn't post anything. So,for me,they aren't getting a dime of my money. As of this week I have a potential buyer and it sure wasn't from anything from PDN! I won't even bother to send them a press release if and when it does sell but give the item to writers in bigger media. L Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda Posted February 25, 2015 Share Posted February 25, 2015 If you are a photo mag junkie and don't mind reading a PDF version,sign up for SCRIBD.COM You can download any book or magazine there for $8.95 a month including old editions. They have a free trial too! Another publication I get the link for every month is Shutter So,as one vanishes,others pop up. L Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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