While you are trying to hone your photography skills is good to have a good set of books to help you try out new things, but I have found magazines to be a good resource as well. If you go to your local bookstore there are tons of them and can be a little overwhelming. Here is a small review of photography magazines mostly focus for digital and that are manufacturer independent (probably because nobody focuses on Olympus ;) )
Unfortunately I haven't found a magazine from the US that really meets my needs, I think that the UK based ones are much professional, offer better reviews and provide lots of trips and tricks. On top of that, almost every UK magazine comes with a CD which includes videos, sample images from the magazine articles to which you can apply the lessons learned. Very Cool....
So here are the magazines I have read at least twice and I have highlighted the ones I get on a regular basis
- Digital Photo Pro
- Digital Photo
- What Digital Camera
- Outdoor Photography
- Outdoor Photographer
- American Photo
- ShutterBug
- Photography Monthly
- Digital Camera World
- Digital SLR User
- Digital SLR Photography
- Practical Photography
- Digital Photographer
- Popular Photography
I buy Photography magazines almost every time I go to Borders or B&N. I look for magazines that provide tips and recommendations for different shooting scenarios (outdoor, concerts, studio, action...) as well as to practical tips on how to improve your workflow specially Lightroom and Adobe Elements. All up, UK's magazines are much better in that respect. When I find a good tip I put one of those color stickers on the page and move it to my "photo notes" book.. ( I will write about that some day soon) ("Yes sadly I am that much of a geek)
Here are my 2 cents before you go on and subscribe to any of them:
Digital Photo Pro: (6 out of 10)
I actually own a subscription to this one, is OK if you are looking to get inspired from other people's portfolios. The articles are good a little bit too technical some times. The quality of the pictures and magazine itself is great, but looking at my box of magazines I dont have a single "sticker" on any of them, meaning I havent gotten something practical to remember when I go out shooting that I would like to put on my nerd book
Digital Photo (UK, 8 out of 10)
This one is actually quite good, I dont buy it very often, I would say that they spend 50% on product reviews, 50% on articles. I think they make up for it, with this amazing website to find a lot of answers. Out of 4 numbers that I own I have taken quite a few tips around travel photography, good ideas to try on the studio, etc.
What Digital Camera (UK 3 out of 10)
If you are unsure what camera to buy, get 3 or 4 numbers from the magazine read it, and then never buy it again. This magazine offers great unbias reviews but no more.
Outdoor Photography (UK, 5 out of 10)
I am not that into outdoor photography thats why I dont rate it very high, the quality of the magazine itself is average (compared to the rest of the ones from the UK)Their articles are OK
American Photo (US, 8 out of 10)
Now, this is a very good American Photo Magazine, great articles, and the stories and showcased portfolios are very good. They provide good tips but the size and quality of the print is not that exciting. If you want to subscribe to something from the US this is very good
Shutterbug (US, 7 out of 10)
Shutterbug is good, I dont find the quality of the pictures amazing, but the articles are good. The content is heavy on product reviews as well as some techniques. I am a subscriber and their subscription department provides good service. After 7 months I dont have that many practical tips taken from it, but it makes for excellent bathroom reading or while you are waiting for your wife outside of Banana Republic, I would subscribe.
Photography Monthly (UK, 5 out of 10)
OK magazine, I think they are always behind the curve. While a magazine like Digital SLR have an article on HDR, the following month Photography monthly might have something similar. I have read it twice and I am not impressed, maybe because the content is always 2 steps behind
Digital Camera World (UK, 8 out of 10)
This one, I make a point to buy it every month from Borders. The articles are very good and they have a very good mix of product reviews (25%), then take on a specific subject like travel photography (50%) with information to take to the field and the rest of the magazine is dedicated on how you can improve it on the digital dark room, they spend most of their time on Elements 6.0 or Photoshop. I have taken lots of tips from this publications such as landscape, sailing, concerts, etc. They have a very cool section when they pair a reader with a pro-photographer on a specific topic. They both go on assignment, share equipment and tips. I find this very useful.
Digital SLR User (UK, 7 out of 10)
Very similar to Digital Camera World, but for some reason I have managed to get less tips that from other magazines. They just recently changed their frontpage layout making it more attractive. Overall magazine quality is very good, and the articles are interesting. I think that if you buy Digital Camera World, you might not need this one. On a good note, the pictures and the quality of the print is fantastic
Digital SLR Photography (UK 8 out of 10)
This one I make a point to buy every month as well. I have managed to pick up lots of articles and tips that I transfer to my "geek-book".The quality of the print is fantastic. They spent a good chunk of pages on showcasing amateur photographers (that judging by their pics they ought to be professionals). Very good un-bias reviews every month. You should get this one if you can.
Practical Photography (UK, 9 out of 10)
Looking at my magazine box I can tell you, this one has by far the most geek labels that I have transferred to my note book. The quality is at par with the best of them, for my taste they spend the right amount of pages doing reviews (less than 25%) and the rest is devoted to very good articles, tips. Only downside to this one is that they dont talk much about the digital darkroom and not a lot on elements which is what I use. Otherwise great articles that can be applicable to your every day photography situations.
Digital Photographer (UK, 10 out of 10)
To me, this is the best magazine out there, I manage to pick up 4 or 5 tips for every issue. From book reviews, to ideas for the studio as well as to ideas and tips on how to use Elements to enhance what you did on the field. On my end, I believe this is a most specially if you are getting started, like I am ( I have been shooting 1 year). Best of all, every 6 mos or so, they publish a book, with close to 200 pages dedicated to a single subject. I have only seen one dedicated to Travel and Macro Photography. These books are very useful and almost every single page contains good tips on the subject matter.
Popular Photography (US, 8 out 10)
I own a subscription to this one and is a very good well written magazine. I have managed to pick up quite a few good tips. It has the right mix of the reviews, articles. Not so much on workflow, but still the articles are very interesting. Only downside is that is not as well constructed in terms of cover and paper quality as the ones for the UK and therefore the quality of the prints suffers. But overall I would keep my subscription
Hope this helps you make a decision on what to spend your precious hobby money....
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