popular photography subscription

[msvadi]

do you subscribe to pop photo? i'm thinking about getting one. it's cheap and nice reading (it's about photography! ;) ), but a large portion is just ads. i'm a little bit afraid that it's like paying for junk mail to be delivered to my mailbox ;) is there a way to get a free subscription? ;)

[Scottes]

do you subscribe to pop photo? i'm thinking about getting one. it's cheap and nice reading (it's about photography! ;) ), but a large portion is just ads. i'm a little bit afraid that it's like paying for junk mail to be delivered to my mailbox ;) is there a way to get a free subscription? ;)

I subscribed, and never will again. On a recent issue I counted something like 130 pages of mixed content & ads, followed by 57 pages purely of ads. I rarely spend more than 5 minutes with it, which is slightly longer than how long it takes me to flip through and read the "image fix" section. After 4 issues I think I've read a number of those 1/4-page mini-articles, plus maybe 4 or 5 articles, if that.

Now Digital Photo Pro, on the other hand, gets read. As does Photoshop User.

[G3]

I agree with Scott. I wouldn't waste my money on a subscription to Popular Photography. Every once in a while I see it on the newstand, and on the cover will be something that looks like an interesting article and I buy it and take it home. I fall for it every time and it almost NEVER fails to be some almost mindless, completely devoid of substance article about essentially nothing....or some ego self-stroking by some obscure photographer or other. The rest is full of tests on this piece of gear or that which mostly seem to vary in accolades for the product depending on the amount of compensation the manufacturer provided the magazine. Once in a while they DO have a decent article or a good thorough unbiased test....just enough to keep me falling for it. I almost feel like Charlie Brown trusting Lucy not to yank the football away this time when he goes to kick it.

In a recent issue there was an article about "How to shoot a Wedding if you have no earthly idea what you are doing" or some such thing. I thought it might be a good article to point folks in this forum to (since we get a fair number of those type questions). I bought the magazine and brought it home a read the article. Nothing. I mean NOTHING that would save your butt if you found yourself committed to something like that. It was a bunch of stuff from Wedding Photographers about "Take lots of pictures from different angles" and "Take pictures of everything at the reception". If I were someone faced with the task of having to shoot a wedding without knowing what I was doing or having the proper equipment and read that article hoping it would actually get me out of trouble (or help), I would have been even more panicked because now I spent some of the money on a magazine (that turned out to be worthless) that I should have been saving toward renting the equipment I need.

Then there was the article a couple of months ago about "Quit your job and become a Professional Photographer overnight and get rich". Of course, I knew that one was going to be a joke when I bought the magazine...I was just curious how they were going to justify that byline. I think reading that article would actually REDUCE your chances of success....

But, if you want to read a couple zillion pages of ads that ALL say "Call for latest price" on all of the good pieces of gear, it's a damned fine publication.

[Bruce Hamilton]

I subscribed, and never will again. On a recent issue I counted something like 130 pages of mixed content & ads, followed by 57 pages purely of ads.
I agree with Scott. I wouldn't waste my money on a subscription to Popular Photography.

I used to subscribe to PopPhoto back in the '80's, I see it hasn't changed. :lol:

[msvadi]

Thank you guys. That's what I was afraid of. May be I should subscribe to Digital Photo Pro instead. $2.50 per issue is not expensive either ;)

[Scottes]

The only problem with Digital Photo Pro is that it comes out every 2 months... I wish it came out every 2 weeks!

[Tom W]

Pop Photo is filled with a lot of garbage, though I do like their lens reviews. While I'd like more "meat" in the reviews, the charts are derived from standardized tests and are a good comparison tool.

I'd say that for less than a buck an issue US (subscription rate, not newsstand), its not a terrible waste of money. It may well be the cheapest B&H catalog one can buy. :)

[Tom W]

The only problem with Digital Photo Pro is that it comes out every 2 months... I wish it came out every 2 weeks!

I've only read that once - it was excellent. Every article was useful for me.

[G3]

Yes, Digital Photo Pro is an excellent magazine. That one would be well worth a subscription.

As Scottes mentioned, Photoshop User is another great magazine. The problem is that you can't just subscribe to the magazine. You have to join NAPP (Nation Association of Photoshop Professionals) at $99.00 per year and the magazine comes with your membership, and it only comes out 6 times a year. I am a member and to me it's well worth it, but to some folks it wouldn't be.

[Scottes]

As Scottes mentioned, Photoshop User is another great magazine. The problem is that you can't just subscribe to the magazine. You have to join NAPP (Nation Association of Photoshop Professionals) at $99.00 per year and the magazine comes with your membership, and it only comes out 6 times a year.

You dod get some benefits, like free shipping from B&H. Some of the benefits can make it worthwhile. I think they've got tutorials and such online for members.

I also think that a year of PS User is worth at least one good Photoshop book. That's $40 right there.

I pick it up at the local Barnes & Noble - maybe $6 an issue? I might as well subscribe. Actually, I *will* join NAPP.

[G3]

As Scottes mentioned, Photoshop User is another great magazine. The problem is that you can't just subscribe to the magazine. You have to join NAPP (Nation Association of Photoshop Professionals) at $99.00 per year and the magazine comes with your membership, and it only comes out 6 times a year.

You dod get some benefits, like free shipping from B&H. Some of the benefits can make it worthwhile. I think they've got tutorials and such online for members.

I also think that a year of PS User is worth at least one good Photoshop book. That's $40 right there.

I pick it up at the local Barnes & Noble - maybe $6 an issue? I might as well subscribe. Actually, I *will* join NAPP.

Yes, there are some benefits....the training you can get is outstanding, plus there are discounts on tutorials and books and as you mentioned, free shipping from B&H. And then there's the magazine. If you make a portion of your living using Photoshop, it's worth the money.

[pradeep1]

A good magazine that I enjoy is Lenswork. Expensive but worth it:

http://www.lenswork.com/