This issue marks the start of our 19th year of publishing PhotoMedia. All things considered, it’s something of a miracle that we’ve managed to persevere all these years.
Throughout that time the photography industry has changed dramatically, with an almost complete transition from a traditional to a digital workflow. In the world at large, terrorism, wars, natural disasters and economic struggles – including, most recently, rapidly escalating gas prices — challenge the survival of all businesses.
Especially over the last five years or so, it seems that most people are busier and working harder than ever before just to maintain their lifestyles, while the cost of living spirals upward. Time is at a premium, and it seems as though there’s never enough of it to respond to all of the obligatory voice mails and e-mails before we can get on with being truly productive each day. Electronic communications and the Internet have empowered us, but they also threaten to bury us in information.
Nonetheless, we’re still here, continuing our mission to keep you informed of the latest news in photography. This issue continues our biennial tradition, always a popular one, of featuring photography with a nature and wildlife theme.
Our cover story on Frans Lanting will acquaint you with one of the most inspiring nature and wildlife photographers working today. His dedication to the subject and his craft is clearly visible in his photos. The dozen we present here were selected from more than 5,000 images to give you a taste of this master’s creativity. Our many thanks to Frans and his staff for all their cooperation in making this story possible.
Our feature on organizations that use photography as a primary method of educating the public about conservation issues casts a spotlight on their noteworthy efforts.
Our gallery of winners in Art Wolfe’s recent Environmental Photography Invitational photo contest provides a sampling of the impressive entries in the competition.
In this issue we also honor PhotoMedia’s 2006 Photography Person of the Year, Jeff Sedlik. Jeff embodies the spirit of the award with his dedication to improving working conditions for all photographers through advocacy of photo licensing and other business concerns, while operating a successful photography business of his own at the same time. His recent service as president of the Advertising Photographers of America, along with his many years of teaching photography at the college level, also demonstrates his commitment to the industry and why he’s such a worthy recipient of our award.
And on the technical front, our story on RSS web site technology will give you insight into using the Internet to promote your business globally through syndication of the content on your web site – a technology that will be adopted henceforth on the PhotoMedia web site.
Finally, I am proud to report that PhotoMedia recently received a 2006 Maggie Award nomination for Best Tabloid/Trade. Though we didn’t win the award this year, it marks the seventh consecutive year we’ve been nominated for at least one Maggie Award, with 12 nominations and three wins overall.
As always, please let our advertisers know that you noticed their ads in PhotoMedia. Their support is critical to our continuity and ability to bring you in-depth coverage of the world of photography for free. In this struggling economy, our advertisers need to know, more than ever, that their advertising dollars are being well spent. We welcome your opinions on our coverage and encourage you to share PhotoMedia with others who love photography.
Sincerely,
Gary Halpern, Publisher
