View Camera Magazine - What would you like to see?

[sal_santamaura]

Steve, I've got every issue from the first, and still subscribe. To

answer your questions: I have no interest in your providing the

image upload service. It is available elsewhere, seems to bring out

the worst in people and has the potential to tie you up resolving

problems as an administrator. If you implement that capability

anyway, do limit it to subscribers. Second, I suggest you don't

publish articles on the Web site. There's no point in buying your

publication if you give it away.

 

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You are planning an article index in the Jan/Feb issue. If it's like

those previously published, improving it is where I'd like to see you

expend the effort you'd otherwise allocate to image upload/on-line

publishing activities. All your previous indexes have been less than

easy to use. They frequently don't place things in categories one

would expect, and leave out many items, resulting (for me anyway) in

time consuming manual searches. All this may be too late for the next

issue, but please work on it before you publish another index after

that.

 

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Thanks again for listening.

[jennifer_waak]

As a relative newcomer to large-format photography and hence the

magazine I'm looking forward to the article index; however, you

already provide that on your web site so it would be nice to have a

brief summary (in the magazine or web site) so I could decide if I

would like to order it.

 

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I would also like to see information about some of the older cameras,

as someone suggested. I read about a lot of cameras that I don't know

much about and it can be almost impossible to find any information

about them.

 

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Lastly, I'd love some "beginner's" articles. I read about all sorts

of techniques that are easier to accomplish in LF than roll film, but

find it hard to learn how or why to use a technique (such as flashing

paper or film).

 

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As for the online archive, I agree that you should not give something

away for nothing, but having an archive online for subscribers would

be great. I don't know how many people order old articles, so you may

have to consider the # of subscribers you'd convert by adding the

searching vs. the $$$ you get from people purchasing old articles.

 

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Thanks for asking! and as for the digital issue, while it's not

something I can seriously consider I did find the issue interesting

to see where digital is taking the industry and how far it has come.

Personally, I'm not interested enough in digital to buy digital mags,

so having that show up in my mailbox was perfect.

[saulius_eidukas]

Steve,

As a long time subscriber whose indulgence in LF photography is

strictly on a personal level, not commercial, what I like most about

your magazine is when you share information on a broad range of

topics. When your primary focus for an issue is on one subject, like

digital in the last publication, you risk having many disgruntled

readers who feel they get nothing out of it because it's not

necessarily something they are intersted in. I am interested in

digital output possibilities as long as they are within the financial

grasp of a financially challenged photographer. Please do keep a

focus also in B&W traditional processes, glad to hear you may be

doing something with contact printing soon, love seeing portfolios

with interviews whith the photographer which not only discuss the

technical aspects of the images but what motivated the individual as

well. Although John Paul Caponigra's articles may not be everyones'

cup of tea, I do enjoy his interviews and hope to see more. And

lastly, please continue to broach the topic of landscape

photography. Although it is a well trodden subject I still find it

most stimulating and facinating when done well. For the landscape is

where we play out the drama of our daily lives, and it has shaped us

in countless ways over the centuries. Today we are changing and

influencing it more then ever and who knows where that shall lead.

Thanks for the hearing me out.

[jorge_gasteazoro3]

I think your magazine would do better if you provide the articles to

subscribers, as a LF phtographer I want you to do well and I would

certainly subscribe (now that I know you do take subcriptions from

Mexico) if you would provide an expanded web site with past articles

and photo uploading capabilities for subscribers. Since an expanded

web site will cost you more, I think it is only fair you get

somehting out of it.

 

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I beleive your photo uploading is a good idea, this way you are more

aware of what NEW or UNKnown people are doing plus it will allow

other LF photographers to see what other people are doing specifcally

in our area. I think in a sense you would be uniting LF photographers

more thus making your magazine more valuable to us.

[sal_santamaura]

Hey, here's an idea. See the thread:

 

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http://hv.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=007HYj

 

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currently active. How about hosting this forum (software and data) on

your View Camera Web site? Pefect synergy!

[james___]

One question Steve. Do you ever look at and track how many subscribers

are longtime subscribers vs newer subscribers, vs subscribers who take

your magazine for a year or two, stop for a year or two and resume for

a year or two? Statistical marketing analysis? That would tell you

a lot about what your audience wants to see. James

[rick_zollo]

steve

i would love to see an aricle by you about the process of large

format portrature-the 2 examples of your 5x7 work that i've seen in

the mag are slammin-would love to see more

[ellis_vener_photography]

her isa better idea: tying this Q&A forum and View Camera's site

to photo.net. Instantly a huge amount of exposure (check the

photo.net stats) for "View Camera' and "Photo Arts".