Why do magazines have shrink wrappers?

And I don't mean those on the top shelf!

Answer: Because if you skim the content on the newsagent's shelf, you'll find it's not what you were led to believe from the cover.

For the first time this month I bought Black and White Photography magazine. Quite prominently on the cover it stated "45 B&W digital papers for you to choose" - I thought how useful, a commentary that I'll be able to use as a reference.

There was a free supplement . "Printing for Digital Photographers" - "Features both Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom".

So what was the problem? Well, the Digital Paper article turned out to be a product listing, one product per line, with less information on the qualitative aspects of the papers list than you'll find on a retail website. And the supplement was frankly useless. It was a puff for a book, contained NO content for Lightroom users but one tutorial on Apple Aperture!

I find this more and more with magazines. Misleading information on the cover - and then the more secret the content, the more it is likely to disappoint.

The lanscaped route to Wales

It was not that the M4 motorway was blocked but I thought I'd take a more leisurly route to give me an opportunity to get in some shooting. So I've added some photos from along the A4 including Hungerford, Marlborough, the Kennet and Avon Canal, and Wiltshire landscapes including one of those chalk White Horses and the famous neolithic Silbury Hill.

Italian diversion

A long time since the last post but I've been to Italy for a holiday, did some stock photography and have posted the results:

Flew to Pisa:

Leaning Tower of Pisa, Duomo etc
The rest of the city

Train to Lucca

Duomo and other churches
Lucca - people and streets

Train to Florence

Cathedral, Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore. and other churches
Streets, people, views and Ponte Vecchio

Jilted on my date with Naomi

I was writing earlier in the week about heading to Terminal 5 to get some photos yesterday - sure enough I was there yesterday afternoon; what I did not mention (because I keep these things to myself) is that I was meeting up with Naomi Campbell to take a few pics and discuss how I could help further her career if I could take a few pics of her doing lifestyle chores around my house. You know, hoovering, ironing, dusting.....

Anyway, while I was there, handbags happened.

So I had to make do with taking pics of the terminal. Which I can't load to this post because Blogger is being temperamental. So I put them on Photoconnect.

Heathrow Terminal 5 stock photos

Sorry, no photos of Naomi.

Assignment sales update

While the internet advertising continues to pull in a few enquiries the major play I will be making is to make direct contact with second tier design agencies in London. Yesterday I took receipt of 500 postcards designed to attack the market for the photography of "Real people" in "Real locations". It's what I do best and generates photography for brochures, websites and annual reports.

I am convinced that companies and the better designers will soon realise that yet another brochure or website populated with sterile iStockPhoto images will be a disaster. High budget shoots with models are, well, high budget.

The best people to project a business in images are the company's own people.

Tomorrow I take delivery of 800 address labels for these second tier agencies.

Tomorrow, however, is also stock shooting day. Right now I'm looking at Heathrow Terminal 5 and some unglamorous West London industrial architecture. I am anticipating that Terminal 5 will be so chaotic that no one will notice me.....