Popular Photography magazine

<p>What is going on at <em>Popular Photography</em>?</p>

<p>I got my most recent issue (July 2010) in the mail the other day, but on looking at it I note that there is no ad that I saw on a quick breeze through for Adorama. Moreover, there <em>is</em> an ad for Broadway Photo (see its Resellerratings.com ratings at <a href="http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Broadway_Photo">link</a>), a firm not present in Pop Photo for some time. B&H and Beach Camera, among others, are still advertising in it.</p>

<p>Just curious what is behind this. I can guess, but does any one know anything? A Google search turned up nothing recent on the issue that I could find.</p>

<p>Judging by those reseller ratings maybe it will soon be renamed as '<em>Unpopular Photography</em>'?</p>

<p>With the Internet going strong, perhaps Adorama decided to save some coins and stop paying for ads in <em>Popular Photography</em>? Printed ad information is generally two months old when the magazine is printed and delivered: the Internet is current with prices on the Adorama web-site.</p>

<p>[...it would not be fair to comment on the winner of the reader's photos for the July issue: a out-of-focus close-up of a fish of some kind...]</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Maybe Adomara simply had had it with advertising next to... ehm... businesses of somewhat questionable ethics I guess are the words that come to mind... and decided to sit things out for a while?<br /><br />Then again, I haven't even looked through a Pop. Photo for eons so what do i know. Maybe they only have 100% honest retailers advertising these days...</p>

<p> I imagine that Adorama considered the cost vs benefit. Camera magazines do not sell very well any longer for one thing. For instance in my methods I would not try and look at an Adorama advertisement in a magazine with those tiny little letters describing the item or price. I would just go to the website and look up whatever I was interested in. I do not buy any camera magazines currently but I am planning on a trial with Lenswork to see how that goes. I imagine that Adorama spends their advertisment money where it would seem to do the best for them. However for me the more aggressive you advertise the less chance you have of selling me something. BHPhoto does not spam my computer and they never foul things up. I just buy from them and see no reason to switch. </p>

<p>I bought that issue also JDM. Lots of sidebar ads nowadays for stuff vs the use to be larger sections in the back. I buy one every six months or so for the hell of it can't say why. I think the most interesting piece, just about right toilet reading length, was on why I should maybe upgrade from PS CS 3 to CS 5 and why I was probably right to skip CS 4. .Also had a cute spread on what them wild and crazy guys from Ricoh came up with for their modular SLR . Got to hand it to Ricoh, nutty but clever.</p>

<p>PP just sent me a offer for a year subscription for $7.00. They did the same last year and I bought it. First time in over 20 years. I enjoyed some of the articles and pix. I think I am going to buy another year. I got to have something to read at the beach:)<br>

I don't pay much attention to the ads, except to note that there are too many of them. grrrrr....</p>

<p>Popular Photography has not been popular with me for years. It is way too basic, and not very cutting edge. I see Adorama's ads in other mags all the time (E.g. Shutterbug). While Shutterbug is of the same consumerish genre, at least they stray off into useful information and tests on a regular basis. My favorite (and more useful) magazines are higher end, like Digital Photo Pro and Black and White Photography (out of the UK)... in case any of the advertisers are watching. ;-)</p>

<p>I gave up on Popular Photography years ago when their format changed to 80% advertisements and 10% basic How-to articles. I thought they went out of business, but recently I picked up a copy in the Library. Their format still hasn't changed, I don't blame Adorama at all. </p>

<p>I was flabbergasted to see a full page ad from <strong>Really Right Stuff</strong> on page 38. Pleased, just surprised. Wondering if page ad rates have come down some.</p>

<p>They still publish that junk?</p>

<p>If it's a one-month break, it's probably there as part of a business plan for the ads. If they were gone for a full quarter, then it might be something. </p>

<p>If you were buying the ad, you wouldn't want to generate a metric that said you were absolutely reliant on a publisher's printing, would you? Same-same vice versa. </p>

<p>Just a guess. </p>

<p>The July issue will be the last of my three-year subscription. I picked up a copy mostly out of curiosity to see if it had gotten better over the years, and it included an offer for a three-year subscription for around $36.50. A bit over a dollar per issue, and with no postage surcharge for me in Canada. It was worth a dollar an issue, not much more though. To renew they want something like $18.00 per year plus our 13% tax and and extra $10.00 for postage to Canada. Thanks but no thanks!</p>

<p>Since Bonnier took over the magazine, I have noticed some changes. Nothing specific I can spell out, but it is an improvement. I did notice the ads at the back were fewer this month, did not notice that the Adorama ads were missing. I hardly ever checked out the ads anyway, and that could be the problem with others too. If I want a price on something I just go to the B&H site in a few seconds on my computer.<br>

<br />I do recall reading the mag many years ago, before the Internet, and looking for prices of new gear when it came out. All kinds of listings for the stuff, but they mostly said "Call for price". I know why they did that, prices changed/fluctuated faster than the magazines were issued. While most of the ads did provide toll free phone numbers, they mostly did not work for us in Canada.</p>

<p>Goodbye PopPhoto!</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I've been reading Pop Photo since the late 60's. It's not perfect. It can't be all things to all people. But I still like it and I look forward to it every month. I also get Shutterbug. It's also far from perfect.</p>

<p>I enjoyed <em>Modern Photography</em> in its heyday of the 1960s and 70s. Does anyone remember <em>Camera 35</em>? A kind of neat mag at the time. When my grandfather passed away I got several boxes of old photography mags from the 40s on. <em>U.S. Camera</em> was another one. I gave up <em>Pop Photo</em> years ago -- way too many adverts and rather worthless content.</p>

<p>The best thing about <em>Modern Photography</em> was Herbert Keppler. When he went to <em>Popular Photography</em>, it became <em>Modern</em> in all but name. The new management looks to be taking it down the road to oblivion.</p>

<p>On-line is definitely the way to buy something, but for browsing for something you didn't know that you needed ;), it's still hard to beat the printed page. It was always the ads that I liked best (except for Burt Keppler).</p>

<p>Frankly, I was hoping that somebody from Adorama (who are a sponsor here) would chime in. They've been advertising in this magazine and others way, way back. Without spurring any libel action in England, I was wondering if a new publishing policy about accepting ads from certain companies with poor ratings was in any way involved in the decision to cut off advertising in <em>PP</em>?</p>

<p>@ JDM von Weinberg</p>

<p>I'd love to be able to give you a response, but I have no idea how the advertising / marketing departments plan their campaigns.<br>

The marketing people will, I guess, have the answer and although I've left a message for them, I'm not expecting to get a reply today, (Sunday).</p>

<p><strong>Helen Oster<br />Adorama Camera Customer Service Ambassador</strong></p>

<p >http://helenoster.blogspot.com<br>

<a href="mailto:helen.oster@adoramacamera.com">helen.oster@adoramacamera.com</a></p>

 

<p>Thanks, Helen, I could ask no more.</p>

<p>I will understand if "no comment" is the best we can do, but I did wonder if it was an economic decision about where money was best spent or something else. As I've said, I really have always enjoyed poring over the print ads in search of some gadget, gizmo, or new lens I didn't know about.<br>

Loved that Avant Garde typeface too. :)</p><div></div>

<p>JDM, I also like to look through the ads to see what's new and to see if there's some doodad I can use. A good example is the Pro Optic 8mm Fisheye. I already have the Nikon FF FE or I would have bought this one. Now when someone asks about a FE, I'll tell them to look at the Pro Optic. Without the Pop Photo Magazine ad I probably wouldn't have known about it.</p>

<p>It's like getting books from Amazon online or going to Barnes & Noble and browsing. I went to B&N, for example, for the Lantern Guide to the D90. I got it, and I also got two other books.</p>

<p>Print ads no longer are the best way to reach the market.</p>

<p>From what I can see Adorama has become a sponsors on a few web places Like here and a couple of other Photography web sites;</p>

<p>I'm told that you should be seeing Adorama returning to the pages of Popular Photography very soon.</p>

<p>Helen Oster<br>

Adorama Camera Customer Service Ambassador<br>

<a href="mailto:helen.oster@adoramacamera.com">helen.oster@adoramacamera.com</a></p>

<p>I mentioned earlier that PP sent me an offer for a year subscription for $7.00. Is there another photo magazine that has a few good topics, photo gallery and monthly contest that offers a deal this good?</p>