© Michael Shay
Forty years is a long time in anyone’s book but it’s way too short a life for such a seminal publication as Photo District News. When I was shooting in San Francisco in the late 80’s PDN was my go-to source for seeing what all those cool New York shooters were doing and what the young up and coming photographers, like I fancied myself to be then, were producing.
It’s sad to see it go because at one time PDN was showcasing the best and the brightest in its community, a community it helped in part to create. A lot of general interest magazines have fallen victim to changing consumer habits, such as Life Magazine which immediately comes to mind. We thought that specialty groups like ours would keep supporting their publications because disseminating their special brand of knowledge was a kind of inherent self-interest
By the 21st century, digital media and expression started taking over the world. There were new ways to see things, hear things, and most importantly find community. By 2017 even the most venerable amateur magazine, Popular Photography, quit publishing after 80 years. The writing was on the wall, pun intended, and now Photo District News has followed suit.
After watching it grow thinner and thinner over the years, the news of its demise is like seeing a favorite uncle fade away into old age. At this moment though it is even more important that as photographers face these challenging times where there is a camera in every pocket, they attach themselves to new communities to learn from and share knowledge with as members. As more and more information becomes available it will be these communities that will help photographers separate the noise from the buzz. ASMP would like to thank Photo District News for the job it did for our community and we promise to be one of those communities that will bring you news, technical skills and business knowledge that can help you and your business grow.
Michael Shay
ASMP National Board Vice-Chair