Lenswork - Ouch!

[Macwax]

I renewed my subscription to Lenswork Extended last week because I don't want to miss an opportunity to see every issue of this fine art publication. If you want to see what the fuss is all about and don't live near a Barnes and Noble, spend a few hours on the Lenswork website. It's excellent. I bought an issue of Lenswork last year, spent several hours on the website and couldn't walk away without subscribing. It just made sense. I used to buy B and W, but find that the Lenswork images, thoughtful intellectual discussion and informative video interviews and darkroom tours irresistible. B and W seems to be about selling. Lenswork is truly focused on the art of photography. Digital or analog, it just doesn't matter. If you are drawn to black and white images as I am, you won't be disappointed.

I choose to make gelatin silver prints, (God I'm so old I even remember they used to be called black and white prints,) and quickly fade out when I even read a description of how someone manipulates software to mimic the photographic process. Nevertheless, Brooks has convinced me that Lenswork is primarily about the image, not the process. The majority of what I read on the internet is equipment driven. Not so Lenswork. Dare I say it's refreshing.

For those who haven't taken the plunge (Six dollars and 50 cents per issue), Lenswork Extended offers incredible porfolios which are typically a good deal larger than those published in the hard copy. Would any of you be interested in a video tour of Edward Weston's darkroom. I was. Video and audio interviews......got em.

As far as I'm concerned, Lenswork magazine is beautiful and Lenswork Extended is the future of fine arts publication. Plus, my wife hasn't figured it all out and I haven't been chided for bringing yet another magazine into the house.

Keep up the good work Brooks.

John MacKechnie

[lenswork]

Well, let me try again.

One of the most fundamental strategies of marketing is to have a variety of products that appeal to all levels in the economy. Hence, you can purchase a Toyota Corolla or a Lexus -- both from the same company. When I was growing up, there were 99-cent 45 RPM records and full price LPs; now there are 89-cent downloads and collectible boxed sets of CDs. McDonalds has the 99-cent burger, the $3.99 deluxe version, and the $6.99 full meal deal. There are economy airlines seats as well as First Class ones; $10 Sony headphones and $299 noise-canceling models; paperback books and hardcovers; basic cable TV and deluxe packages; etc. This pattern of choice and variety exists for a reason. Quite simply, it works. It allows the consumers in the free market to choose where they want to participate in the sellers range of goods. It creates customers who most often begin a relationship with a seller at the low end of the product line; they then can move up to the better goods as their means and interest progress. It allows a place for everyone to participate with a seller regardless of their financial abilities. It's traditionally called the "good, better, best" theory in business.

I believe in this philosophy. I employ it in my artwork and in my publishing endeavors.

In my artwork, I offer a small assortment of $20 prints that are unmounted, small in size, and come in a plastic sleeve with a cardboard backer. I consider these my "entry level" products for people who just want to see a sample of what I produce or who have interest in only making a $20 investment in my work. For those who are more committed and interested, I am currently offering folios of work that are $145; the full set of the Made of Steel folios are $625. Good, better, best. If I were offering 20x30 Cibachrome prints, matted and framed, you can bet I'd be charging a lot more for them -- maybe even the $1,500 to $5,000 that my friend Chris Burkett does. (Come to think of it, I wouldn't because mine wouldn't be nearly as spectacular as his are, but I digress . . .) If I had $5,000 prints, I would definitely also be thinking about something for the entry-level buyer. (Think Michael Kenna books and calendars.) I think this is a smart strategy.

More than that, I think it is a responsible one. Quite frankly, I believe all of us as photographers have a responsibility to develop the market for photography as a whole -- and that means bringing in entry-level buyers as well as selling to the established, well-funded collector. If you don't like my solution (the $20 unmatted print) think up one that does fit your needs. Morrie Camhi used to have what he called his "Popular Edition Prints" that were slightly smaller, not printed with quite as much fuss about the dodging and burning, and sold for $90, airdried, unflattened, signed only on the back. Ansel Adams had (still does) his "Special Editions" collection of selected images that are printed by Alan Ross and sold in Yosemite for a couple hundred bucks. When I interviewed Alan a few issues ago, he told me that they've sold over 84,000 prints. Seems to me like the strategy works.

So, rather than toss stones in my direction, why not think about this and see if you can adapt the idea so it makes sense for you and your photographic life? We are all creative individuals here. Use some of that creativity to develop a well rounded marketing strategy that appeals to people at all levels instead of just hoping to cherry-pick the upper-crust customers and let the entry-level folks suffer without. Think outside the box.

As to our publishing business, the same strategy applies -- and I'm not disclosing any business secrets here. We have free PDF overviews of every issue, sample articles, and podcasts that can be downloaded for free from our website. For some folks, that is the extent of their involvement with us -- and that's just fine. As their interest grows over time, they might become interested in what we have for sale. We have magazine subscriptions. We have Extended subscriptions. We have combo subscriptions. We have complete sets of Extended back issues (we call them the "whole enchilada" ), single books and packaged sets, 1-year, 2-year, 3-year subscriptions, etc. Our job is to give you choice. Were we to only give you a single, expensive product that only the most wealthy of you could afford, we'd fail. Badly.

My observation is that most photographers want to win the "gallery lottery." They hope to sell their photographs for a ton of money and become rich and famous doing so. It's a nice fantasy, but one that is so rare as to be virtually unrealizable. Better, in my opinion, to earn your success the tried and true way -- one step at a time, one customer at a time, one print at a time, over a long period of time, building success with lots and lots of little successes instead of relying on the one, big, splashy success.

Hope this helps.
Brooks

[lenswork]

Originally Posted by Macwax

As far as I'm concerned, Lenswork magazine is beautiful and Lenswork Extended is the future of fine arts publication. Plus, my wife hasn't figured it all out and I haven't been chided for bringing yet another magazine into the house.

Keep up the good work Brooks.

John MacKechnie

Golly, thanks. I wish there was an emoticon for "blushing profusely."
Brooks

[DAM1970]

I've been a subscriber for about 2 ft of bookshelf space, can't remember the year exactly and too lazy to run upstairs and check right now. I think at the subscription price, it's a great deal, doubt I'd pay $13 at newsstand, but then again I'm cheap. Some portfolios might not be my cup of tea, but we all have different tastes and still - they're in black and white and I've been exposed to lots of artists I wouldn't have been otherwise. The interviews with the artists are cool and Bill Jay is usually a hoot.

I trust Brooks' opinion that quality work can be done with the right negative scanners, printers, and ink and someday when I have the money I'll likely look into what's out there. I have been meaning to subscribe to Lenswork Extended for a while now, and likely will soon, especially based on the recommendation I saw here.

Keep up the fine work, Brooks. Can't please all the people all the time but you are putting out a great publication and it is something lots of us look forward to getting in the mail.

-Derek M.

[copake_ham]

More and more this thread seems to be turning into a "directed advertisement"

Now we have "single posters" singing praises.

Starting to smell like something funny is cooking here...

[matt miller]

In a world full of magazines with tech-how-to's and digicam ads, Lenswork is a breath of fresh air. It's never about equipment, or how'd ja do it. It's the best photograph mag out there for my money.

[Shawn Rahman]

Originally Posted by symmar_man

Well, Mr. Jensen, as I expected, you have ignored my point totally and turned your point of view into a crying environmental issue in order to position yourself in the roll of a hero by offering subscriptions to save the environment. Shame you are not running for public office, you would make a great politician.

I reiterate, your stand on selling your prints for cheap is to get art out to the public. Why do you not do the same with your magazine? Just because you do not make a living from your print sales, does not mean that others do not. You cheapen the market for everyone else, and make photography look cheap, yet you raise the price of your magazine so you can make a profit. That is my point. You cannot be at both extremes at the same time. Why does your business philosophy differ so much? It is hard to be on both sides of the fence at the same time, at least comfortably.

One other note, I see you haven’t updated your audio blog since Sep 05, 2007. . . I miss the entertainment immensely. And I do appreciate what you do. And I do think your magazine is a quality product. Just remember that quality has little worth without content. I have the greatest respect for you and your endeavors, I just don’t understand why you continuously contradict yourself?

B. Dalton

Dear B. Dalton:

There is a VAST difference between those no name "artists" who are inexplicably peddling their "limited edition" mediocre inkjet prints for hundreds and even thousands a print and publishing a magazine.

As far as Brooks cheapening the market for other "fine art" photographers who are lucky to sell one or two prints at ridiculous prices, this is absolute nonsense. It is the whole gallery owner, limited edition, artist snobbery, prints-as-a-commodity mentality that does this. This is not aimed at hard working photographers who rely on selling prints to support themselves, I can see selling great work at, say, up to $200-$300 a print. Beyond that, it seems to be to be aimed at very wealthy people who would be willing to spend a lot of money on something that is not worth that price. Unless,of course, your name is Sally Mann, Keith Carter, or Paul Caponigro.

As for Brooks having a double standard, I can't imagine you are suggesting that Brooks LOSE money publishing Lenswork. This is not being on both sides of the fence, as you say it is.

While I do not love Lenswork as much as I used to, and do not agree with the significant price increase, I would never expect a publisher to lose money on a business venture. Mediocre as it is these days sometimes, it is still miles ahead of any other regular photography publication. If Brooks hadn't set his own bar at $8.95 and then $9.95 per issue no one would be complaining about the $12.95.

But regardless of our rants about Lenswork, everyone who uses this site should support APUG (*edit). APUG is still the best bargain out there.

[Scott Peters]

I really enjoy/prefer the lenswork extended...is this less expensive to produce and perhaps something that can be kept down on the cost side of things?

The video's, interviews, extended galleries, bonus galleries, podcasts, etc. are very worthwhile and well done. I think you are way ahead of your time and competition with the lenswork extended...Keep up the good work.

[roteague]

Originally Posted by hkr

But regardless of our rants about Lenswork, everyone who uses this site should support it. APUG is still the best bargain out there.

I don't think so. Supporting Lenswork is a matter of personal preference. It is up to each individual to decide. For me, only buy selected issues, simply because I don't like the digital content.

[Shawn Rahman]

Originally Posted by roteague

I don't think so. Supporting Lenswork is a matter of personal preference. It is up to each individual to decide. For me, only buy selected issues, simply because I don't like the digital content.

Robert - a piece of clarification - I meant to support APUG; sorry for the confusion. I meant it as a dig to those who post rants on APUG without subscribing to it.