Thread: Publish photo in skimag like Powder

Hi,

I'm sure that this Q has been put up before, but I can't seem to find the answer. How would you guys go about to get photos published?

Some of my problems;

1.Can't find an e-mail to Powdermag f.e.
2.Which magazines would YOU go for?
3.Would you send the same pics to different mags at the same time?

There probably many other problems that I haven't eeven thought about, give us a hand!?

Good luck... if you look at those magazines (Powder, Bike, etc) it seems like all their pictures come from the same 3-4 guys. It seems to be a political play to get in with those types of magazines.

Yes,
I figure as much, but still...

Powder contacts: http://www.powdermag.com/media-kit/contact/

Steve is right on them having a tight crew of contributors; maybe Gunder can enlighten?

Originally Posted by Dr. Scientist

Steve is right on them having a tight crew of contributors; maybe Gunder can enlighten?

Adam Barker (grizzle6) and Steve Lloyd (otter) are also TGR posters regularly published in Powder.

I would suggest contacting the photo editor of whatever mag you think your work matches, and get their submission guidelines. You may have already missed the boat a little, but at least you will know what time of year they expect their submissions, and their format and all that jazz. If you get a response, thank them for their time and follow all the directions they may give you. Be professional, and good luck!

Up until January I was the photo editor for Skiing Mag, so I'll throw in my 2 cents here. The absolute best way to get your images published is to team up with a writer, and pitch a specific story to the magazine.

I can't speak for other mags, but we always had a running PDF of our image submission guidelines that was available to anyone that asked for it. When it came time for general submissions (in the spring) I would start receiving images by the thousands from photographers all over the world - in 2011, I had 30,000+ images submitted to me for consideration in our print issues. In the end, that year I think I published about 200 photos. So the standards are obviously pretty tight.

I know it must seem like an old boys club, but in reality, when you're talking about tens of thousands of pictures, the cream rises to the top pretty quickly. And it tends to be from the same ~50 photographers; the guys that are hustling 24/7. That said, I looked at every single photo submitted to me - literally all 30k - regardless of who sent them in, so everyone had a fair shot. I also pulled some photos from guys that post here, and other random places, stock site searches, etc., so you just never know.

Again, though, pitching with a writer increases your chances ten fold. Very rarely was I looking for just a stand alone action image, which is what many unestablished photographers think will get them published. Nine times out of ten, I was looking for an image to go with a specific story: conceptual, specific athlete/location, etc. If you are trying to get your banger action shots published, you're going to have a tough time, because then you're competing with the best photogs on the planet.

However - you want to pitch a story about XYZ bit of compelling ski culture that I've never heard of, and you've teamed up with an equally talented writer to make it a complete package? Then hell yeah, I'm all ears, and if it's a story that fits the voice of the mag, I'd likely pass it on to the text editors and you could be on your way to getting published.

Anyway, happy to answer questions about all this if anyone is interested to know more.

^^^^ Excellent Perspective.