Photography Magazines

[Mike Farley]

It looks as though photography magazines are becoming endangered. Photo Technique stopped publishing a while back and the final issue of What Digital Camera came out last November. Now Digital Photo has folded and been subsumed into its sister periodical, Practical Photography. Rumour has it that even Amateur Photographer's circulation, which was once well into six figures, is falling rapidly. According to my source, journalists are not necessarily finding themselves out of a job, but instead are involved in creating online content. That includes work undertaken for third parties such as the larger camera dealers. It's a changing world.

[Iggy]

Ten years ago there used to be at least a dozen UK & US tropical fish magazines when I wrote for 6 or 7 of them. Today there are just 2 major ones as advertising and circulation dropped off. Additionally magazines have to pay for shelf space in WH Smiths and other places. Also almost everything is available on line which does not help their cause.
Iggy

[Mike Farley]

Ten years ago there used to be at least a dozen UK & US tropical fish magazines when I wrote for 6 or 7 of them. Today there are just 2 major ones as advertising and circulation dropped off. Additionally magazines have to pay for shelf space in WH Smiths and other places. Also almost everything is available on line which does not help their cause.

There might be fewer magazines on the shelves, but there is undoubtedly more material online than was ever available in printed form. Many of Amateur Photographer's articles end up on its website after a short delay. In the case of camera reviews, often that occurs before they appear in the magazine. Presumably this is due to the need to generate traffic in competition with others publishing their reviews in a similar timeframe. It seems to be part of a strategy of migrating to a model which raises revenue via the website in preference to more traditional means.

I had not realised that WH Smith and others charge for shelf space.