Silvershotz Current Issue

[digidom]

A couple of posters have made mention of Silvershotz purchases.

If someone has the current issue (Vol 4 Ed 3) would they kindly give me a candid 'photographer's eye' review of how my work looks in print.

I still haven't seen a copy and it is a little frustrating.

Kindest.

[Captain_joe6]

I don't know much about your work particularly, but I would say in general that Silvershotz is one of, if not the very best printed photographic magazines that I've ever encountered. The paper is wonderful and the images themselves are reproduced beautifully and very crisply, both color and monochrome.

Now, if only their distribution would go up. Of all the specialty book and magazine shops in Portland, I've only found a current stock at one single Borders.

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

I don't know much about your work particularly, but I would say in general that Silvershotz is one of, if not the very best printed photographic magazines that I've ever encountered. The paper is wonderful and the images themselves are reproduced beautifully and very crisply, both color and monochrome.

Now, if only their distribution would go up. Of all the specialty book and magazine shops in Portland, I've only found a current stock at one single Borders.

I *really* need to get my hands on a copy of that magazine. Did they used to be called something else?

[digidom]

I *really* need to get my hands on a copy of that magazine. Did they used to be called something else?

I spoke with the editor a few weeks ago who told me that the magazine used to be called Black and White (based in UK) but because several publications had similar titles he changed it recently to Silvershotz.

And on the subject of repro quality get hold of a copy of Phot'Art (http://www.phot-art.com/index.php?lang=-en&PHPSESSID=f1f3d6cb34b9f9761ce5643116f20b4b) if you can (a French magazine) who use spot and matt varnishes for that extra 'je ne sais quoi'. Their quality is so good that I have forgiven them for printing my name as 'Dominique'!

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

Just picked up a copy and skimmed through it briefly on the subway and now more thoroughly when I got home. Their reproduction quality is.... well, not bad on some, great on others. I have to say, I'm very dissappointed with this magazine. I don't really like the layout of it and while the reproduction is superior to a lot of American magazines, nothing in this magazine really blows me away. I think the photographers chosen have excellent photography, but I can't get over how much I hate the paper they're using. They're published in England and they're not using HannoArt or EuroArt, which would be so cheap over there. The paper brightness also is pretty astonishing. Take your average magazine, Time, Newsweek, etc. They don't care about repro or paper... they use something in the 60s or 70s on 50# text (which is more thin than Cate Blanchet). I compared an 88, which is what we used to print on vs. their paper. Ours was brighter. We now use a 94. For contrast, LensWork probably uses something in 100s... I need sunglasses to look at how white their paper is. Silvershotz is using a nice weight for their paper, but it's matt or dull and not gloss, which reproduces photography better than anything... which why every single photography magazin uses gloss paper and not this paper. So they're probably using a different 88 or even an 86, which by most magazine's standard would be high, but for an art magazine is low. I compared their paper with LensWork AND CamerArts. Both had superior paper. I couldn't really tell much of a difference in repro vs. CamerArts, though several areas of CA was better than SS. LW blew Silvershotz out of the water repro wise. This magazine has the potential to be so much better than it is. I would really love to see a magazine that has the same mentality as LW does but publish color work as well as black and white.

On a side note, I picked up a copy of ViewCamera. I haven't read it in a while, which by reading this magazine, has been a mistake. I actually really liked this issue. Hats off to Steve Simmons and his team over there.

[digidom]

Hi David,

encouraging to read that publishing moguls have to use the subway on occasions :)

I am grateful to you for your appraisal of Silvershotz. As I still haven't received my copy I cannot comment with certainty but I am not sure that I agree with you when you say that glossy repro is better than the matt variety. A high quality matt paper/board of decent weight looks very classy IMHO.

However, I am no expert in the art of reprographics. When I have work published I am looking for a certain amount of fidelity (I like to provide guide prints with the files to give some idea of the 'weight' I am looking for), but beyond that the printed page can give an image a gravitas that it might not have when seen all on its lonesome. Aesthetics/design play a part in this alongside the more prosaic elements of dot gain, screen resolution and D-max and the like.

I trust all is well in your world - apart from the disappearance of the chauffeur!

Kindest,

[jetcode]

A couple of posters have made mention of Silvershotz purchases.

If someone has the current issue (Vol 4 Ed 3) would they kindly give me a candid 'photographer's eye' review of how my work looks in print.

I still haven't seen a copy and it is a little frustrating.

Kindest.

Hi Dominic,

I can gladly give you my opinion about the spread but note that I am not a high end photographer or expert on magazine publication.

First of all, congratulations on a nice series of images, in fact it was one of the draws in my purchase of the magazine. What an incredible unusual style, really interesting expressions, compositions, and tonal execution. Judging by the rest of the magazine I would say the quality of print is excellent though not quite that of Lenswork which continues to floor me with the quality they achieve. That said however I find the quality of print in Silvershotz quite good and in fact it appears that they strive for a different rendering of photographic art so who am I to say which is better.

PM me and I'll send you this copy and fetch another. It's a bit pricey but after what I just dropped on yet another LF rig and high end flatbed scanner what's a few dollars between photographers?

Nice work, take care,
Joe

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

Hi David,

encouraging to read that publishing moguls have to use the subway on occasions :)

At the prices I sell my ads for, the subway is a luxury. The first few years of the magazine business is a labor of love, not money. Ask any publisher, the name of the game is survival. 99% of all new magazines can't do it in their first year and 98% of those that did can't do it in their second.


I am grateful to you for your appraisal of Silvershotz. As I still haven't received my copy I cannot comment with certainty but I am not sure that I agree with you when you say that glossy repro is better than the matt variety. A high quality matt paper/board of decent weight looks very classy IMHO.

I just take a look at some of the magazines out there... ViewCamera has their own conference. The publisher is here to talk about his magazine to anyone who has a question or comment about it. LensWork has LensWork extended, the publisher has his own podcast, the publisher occasionally visits this and other forums to answer questions about his publication... there's marketing that goes along with the magazine from both of these publications and both of the publishers know who their clients are and are amongst them every day. Both publications realize their potential and are doing everything they can to take full advantage of that potential. I don't see that in Silvershotz... and that's dissappointing. A magazine with the name "silver"shotz and there's hardly any gelatin silver photography being exhibited in this last issue and the photography they do exhibit... not that the photographers aren't wonderful, because when I've checked out their websites I do see that they have a lot of talent, but the paper being used to reproduce the photography... just awful. It's unfortunate. They could get some of the best paper available to magazines at dirt cheap prices... and they don't take advantage of it. Believe me, I know how difficult it is to publish a magazine and manage costs, but if you're going to get into the game of publishing a photography magazine, you better reproduce it in the finest paper available to you at the best price you can afford. There's no excuse for it, especially people that DO know better.


I trust all is well in your world - apart from the disappearance of the chauffeur!

Yes. I'm sorry I received your submission so late. We should talk tomorrow about doing something with Benham Gallery like we did last year.

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

A couple of posters have made mention of Silvershotz purchases.

If someone has the current issue (Vol 4 Ed 3) would they kindly give me a candid 'photographer's eye' review of how my work looks in print.

I still haven't seen a copy and it is a little frustrating.

Kindest.

Oh wait... I just bought Volume 4 Edition 2. Your photography wasn't in here... i'm sorry, I didn't pay attention.

[jetcode]

For what it's worth I purchased SilverShotz over every other magazine on that newsrack and there was a LOT of them. Many of them used glossy paper but none of them offered exactly what SilverShotz did in this issue. I agree the paper is a bit flat but the images are really well expressed on the paper they selected.

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

For what it's worth I purchased SilverShotz over every other magazine on that newsrack and there was a LOT of them. Many of them used glossy paper but none of them offered exactly what SilverShotz did in this issue. I agree the paper is a bit flat but the images are really well expressed on the paper they selected.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I'm definitely not saying Silvershotz was terrible or anything negative like that. I just think they could do a lot better for either the same or even less than they're paying for paper right now... and well, the layout could use some work. Are they as good as some of the other magazines out there? No. Does that mean they shouldn't be bought? Absolutely not.

Obviously they're doing something right if they're around as long as they are and I definitely would encourage photographers to buy as many magazines from the bookstore as possible and to support photography magazine publishers. I'm not a subscriber to many magazines only because mailman tries to shove magazines into my small little mailbox thingy for my apartment building which winds up ripping and destroying many magazines... no matter how many times I've tried to complain, he still just doesn't care. But when the big boss cuts me a check, I usually wind up spending an entire Saturday reading photography magazines like LensWork, B&W and CamerArts. I've actually been in touch with Tim Anderon a few times and worked with him last year. Really REALLY nice guy.

[jetcode]

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I'm definitely not saying Silvershotz was terrible or anything negative like that. I just think they could do a lot better for either the same or even less than they're paying for paper right now... and well, the layout could use some work. Are they as good as some of the other magazines out there? No. Does that mean they shouldn't be bought? Absolutely not.

Obviously they're doing something right if they're around as long as they are and I definitely would encourage photographers to buy as many magazines from the bookstore as possible and to support photography magazine publishers. I'm not a subscriber to many magazines only because mailman tries to shove magazines into my small little mailbox thingy for my apartment building which winds up ripping and destroying many magazines... no matter how many times I've tried to complain, he still just doesn't care. But when the big boss cuts me a check, I usually wind up spending an entire Saturday reading photography magazines like LensWork, B&W and CamerArts. I've actually been in touch with Tim Anderon a few times and worked with him last year. Really REALLY nice guy.


To be truly honest I found the layout in SilverShotz excellent and the content interesting. If they had LensWorks imaging capability they would only increase my interest in that magazine. While I only briefly glanced through Focus I saw a lot of polish but not a lot that interests me. I'd rather have content then polish and both if possible. Now I most certainly did not buy Focus to have it around for more than a few minutes so I am not short changing your offering at all. I consider myself an ordinary consumer purusing through the mags. I didn't get Lenswork either but most likely will if Beth Moon has a portfolio in it. I can't find View Camera anywhere but in the past I found it to be a little flat and I did have a subscription at one time. That of course should not be taken as a judgement but where I was at at the time. I have no complaints about SilverShotz, it earned my $14.

Joe

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

To be truly honest I found the layout in SilverShotz excellent and the content interesting. If they had LensWorks imaging capability they would only increase my interest in that magazine. While I only briefly glanced through Focus I saw a lot of polish but not a lot that interests me. I'd rather have content then polish and both if possible. Now I most certainly did not buy Focus to have it around for more than a few minutes so I am not short changing your offering at all. I consider myself an ordinary consumer purusing through the mags. I didn't get Lenswork either but most likely will if Beth Moon has a portfolio in it. I can't find View Camera anywhere but in the past I found it to be a little flat and I did have a subscription at one time. That of course should not be taken as a judgement but where I was at at the time. I have no complaints about SilverShotz, it earned my $14.

Joe

I would not be offended if you didn't think Focus was for you. Just as I don't really like Silvershotz, there are those that don't like LW and I'm sure there are plenty of people who don't like Focus. It's all about personal taste. If everyone liked Focus, then maybe I could afford my own limo!!

There are so many great magazines on the shelves today I consider it a privilege just to be one of them. You have no idea how many people try to start magazines and don't even get accepted by a distributor.... they would kill to be where Focus, LensWork, B&W, ViewCamera, CamerArts and Silvertshotz each are. You would've told me 5 years ago that I would have a magazine on newsstands being able to interview the top photographers and curators around the world, I would've told you that you're nuts.

[jetcode]

personally I think starting or running a magazine is nuts ...

[David Spivak-Focus Magazine]

personally I think starting or running a magazine is nuts ...

You and me both. PLEASE no more competition!

[Ross Chambers]

Hi Dominic,

Before the Chinese whispers turn this conversation into something entirely different...

You may know already you scored the front cover. Your pics aren't quite my cup of tea, but they certainly demonstrate skills and style far beyond mine, so forgive my audacity.

I'm reminded from Silvershotz' reproductions of your portfolio of selenium toned Ilford Warm Tone FB Semi Matt prints, if that was your aim. They have detail in the blacks and glow in the highlights, pretty damn good to my eye, on your part and theirs.

It's a strange magazine, with Australian, UK and at one time -- or perhaps currently -- Fotospeed links.

They often pick up portfolios from photographers recently published in other B&W periodicals, which may or may not be a problem for subscribers.

Regards - Ross

[Turner Reich]

Sandy's article looks and reads great.