Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2008/04/09

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Subject: [Leica] In defence of the newspapers
From: kididdoc at cox.net (Steve Barbour)
Date: Wed Apr 9 22:03:56 2008
References: <20080409203333.2B88ABA1@resin15.mta.everyone.net> <46182EEF-D51F-4286-BB90-9BDF0C2FA07C@nathanfoto.com>

On Apr 9, 2008, at 9:57 PM, Nathan Wajsman wrote:
> Before we all jump on the newspapers for cutting back on their photo  
> staff and using free images from readers, consider the double of  
> triple whammy they have been hit with:
>
> 1) Loss of readership, as older readers die off and the younger  
> people get their news from the web or TV or wherever, but certainly  
> not from the newspaper.
>
> 2) Loss of advertising revenue, as the classified business that used  
> to be the bread and butter of many local papers has migrated to the  
> web.
>
> 3) The rise of free newspapers--maybe not everywhere, but certainly  
> in the last few places I have lived they have been around for  
> several years. In the Netherlands there are 3 or 4 at any given  
> time. Even Alicante, with its 400,000 people, has its own edition of  
> "20 Minutes" and "Metro". These papers are not NYT or The Guardian,  
> but they are good enough for many people who only want a quick read  
> in a convenient size when sitting on the train to work.
>
> So, with those economic forces hitting them, it is perfectly  
> understandable that newspapers have to cut costs where they can.

I am rather surprised that you are defending papers as noted Nathan...

necessary !?  just to stay alive... garbage in/garbage out....

if the readers can supply the photos, maybe they can also supply the  
news and editorial content,


Steve




> It is a matter of survival for them too. At the same time, we should  
> not forget that traditional broadsheet newspapers were never the  
> bastions of great photography in the vein of Life magazine etc. They  
> were printed on cheap paper, your hands got black from reading them,  
> and the reproduction quality of the images was pretty bad. Let's  
> face it, in a daily newspaper photography is secondary to the words.
>
> I know photographers who do advertising and other commercial  
> photography, and they are doing OK.
>
> Having said all of the above, I sympathize with the professional  
> photographers losing their livelihoods, and as an amateur who takes  
> pretty decent pictures, I would not dream of giving them away for  
> free, except to friends and family.
>
> Nathan
>
>
>
> On 10-apr-2008, at 5:33, Alastair Firkin wrote:
>
>> Ted, this is the true situation indeed. It will turn, when people  
>> begin to want better results, but the "gear" is allowing many  
>> people to make recognizable images in even bad situations. In our  
>> local paper there are now 3 weekly articles on photography every  
>> week: this in tne TV guide section. Photography has NEVER been so  
>> popular.
>>
>> --- tedgrant@shaw.ca wrote:Unfortunately I'm wasting my breath and  
>> typing time because nothing will
>> change.
>>
>> What does have to change is professional photographers no matter  
>> who, have
>> to move with the times and go with the flow in finding another  
>> discipline of
>> photography where they can earn a decent living. WHY? Because  
>> whining about
>> all the free stuff isn't going to change as long as you have the  
>> hordes and
>> hordes of digi-shooters who claim to be photographers when they  
>> wouldn't
>> know a good photograph from a dung heap!
>>
>> But they sure as hell know how to make digi operated electronic   
>> exposures
>> of nothing!
>>
>> ted
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Leica Users Group.
>> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Leica Users Group.
>> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>>
>
> Nathan Wajsman
> nathan@nathanfoto.com
> General photography:
> http://www.nathanfoto.com
> http://www.greatpix.eu
> http://www.frozenlight.eu
> Picture-A-Week: http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws
> Blog: http://www.fotocycle.dk/blog
> Book: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/128276
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information


Replies: Reply from imagist3 at mac.com (Lottermoser George) ([Leica] In defence of the newspapers)
Reply from nathan at nathanfoto.com (Nathan Wajsman) ([Leica] In defence of the newspapers)
Reply from ricc at mindspring.com (Ric Carter) ([Leica] In defence of the newspapers)
In reply to: Message from afirkin at afirkin.com (Alastair Firkin) ([Leica] WAS: Selling gear NOW: Free shooters. :-()
Message from nathan at nathanfoto.com (Nathan Wajsman) ([Leica] In defence of the newspapers)