Featured on the cover of Australian Photography magazine (Sep, 2011)

[Xenedis]

A few weeks ago I received some very pleasing news from the editor of Australian Photography magazine.

One of my seascape images, Long Reef Longing, was chosen to feature as the cover image for the September, 2011 edition of the magazine.

Here's a photo of the front cover of the September edition of Australian Photography:




It was naturally quite rewarding to receive the magazine this afternoon and see my image on the front cover.

Has anyone else had an image featured on the front cover of Australian Photography? I have every edition dating back to November of 2005, so if you've had an image featured on the cover, I'd be keen to hear and see it again.

[hawko02]

Wow. Congratulations. That is wonderful and I am sure well deserved.

[Tjfrnds]

Congratulations! Fantastic work

[MiniFighter]

Well done, i see that issue receiving a frame along with a spot on the wall

Great work, Congrats!

[Xenedis]

Thanks gang. Receiving the magazine was a nice way to finish the week.

[Art Vandelay]

Congratulations, will go pick up a copy.

[mongo]

It is not surprising recognition - well done.

[Cyclorama]

I hope you have been paid well for giving that photo!

[crazymorton]

can we get the back story please?
how'd you come you have this awesome photo chosen?

[enVision]

Congratulations mate! Very well deserved and a stunning image. You must be proud!

[ricktas]

Congrats again, as already done in Dylan's thread. Well deserved cause it's a brilliant landscape shot.

[Xenedis]

Thanks everyone for the comments.

Rick:

Glad you like the image; it remains one of my all-time favourite images, and when looking at it on the cover of a glossy magazine, it makes for very pleasing viewing to see one's image that way.

MiniFighter:

Oh yes, I'll be framing a copy of the cover for posterity. Family members also want to see it, so we'll be buying a bunch of copies and sending them around the place.

[Xenedis]

can we get the back story please?
how'd you come you have this awesome photo chosen?

As you may be aware, Dylan (dtoh) has had a few of his images featured on the cover of the magazine.

A few months ago, I felt inspired and motivated to submit some of my images to the editor of the magazine for consideration. I figured I had images of a standard required for magazine covers, and I also figured that someone's images had to feature on the covers, so why not mine?

I chose three of my images which in terms of orientation, composition, technical quality and 'cleanliness', I thought would be suitable for magazine covers. In June I sent them to Robert Keeley (editor) for his consideration.

A month later (he's insanely busy and correspondence from magazine editors dealing with reams of stuff isn't something that happens quickly) he replied, told me that he'd looked at some of my images and that they could be suitable for magazine covers. He needed to talk to me urgently, so I rang him. He conveyed to me a lot of information on how the process of image selection works, what the editor and art director needs in an image, and even how to shoot images for magazine covers.

Now, I didn't go out and shoot my images with the intention of having them published on a magazine cover, but I already knew that compositionally they had to meet certain criteria. For instance, they need to be in vertical format, and there needs to be space to accommodate the masthead and to allow for subheading text down the sides. There's more to it than that, but I chose my images based on visual appeal, the composition, and clean, uncluttered subject matter.

These were the images I submitted (click them to view them larger):








Throughout our discussions, he also viewed more images on my site. He was particularly keen on this one:



He thought that image, and my Long Reef image (which was eventually selected) were the strongest for a magazine cover.

I also submitted this image for consideration, as at the time I had only recently shot it and thought it might work:



During a long phone conversation, he looked through quite a few of my images and asked about quite a few that grabbed his attention. Unfortunately some were in landscape format, which counted them out; but he was also looking at the subject matter and composition, knowing what makes a cover image. In a lot of cases, there was a potential cover image if only it had been in vertical format, or if there was a slight change to the composition.

Now, bear in mind, this guy is incredibly busy. He just doesn't have time to sit on the phone with someone for over an hour, browsing through some photographer's Web site. It's a mad rush to select a cover image and he has very specific requirements. He deals with a lot of matters, and for him to have invested so much time in me, trying to get me over the line, was an enormous privilege.

He rang me later the same day to advise me that his art director was interested in my Long Reef image. I was told that when the AD asks for a high-res version, it means an image has been shortlisted for publication. It's not just the editor or AD who decide upon a cover image; a committee, on which they sit, reviews the images and decides upon what gets published. There are several other people who need to sign off.

That afternoon I sent the image in the required format, to the AD. I was told that my image was in the top two or three under consideration for publication.

At that point after numerous emails and phone conversations, it was a matter of waiting.

Eight days later, Robert told me my image had been chosen for the September cover of the magazine.

What a wonderful way to end a Monday!

Apart from the personal honour of having my image featured on the cover of a magazine such as this, the entire journey was very enlightening, and I learned a lot about not only what it takes to get on the cover of the magazine, but how the process works, and the kinds of constraints and timeframes under which the editor -- and the magazine itself -- works.

The long and the short of it is that not only do you have to have the right stuff as far as images (and shooting covers is quite different to just shooting dramatic images), but you need to give the editor/AD precisely what is required, in the format required, very quickly. These people have a lot of stuff through which to wade, and you've got to stand out and give them exactly what they need so they can push out the material quickly. The easier you make it for the editor, the more likely you'll get to where you want to go.

I'm sure Dylan and Marianne can attest to this, as they've been through it before.

So, all in all, it was a very interesting journey.

[NikonNellie]

Congratulations John! It's always been one of my favourite images in your portfolio. I hope you will still join us on our meets so that we can continue to learn from your expert advice.

[Xenedis]

Congratulations John! It's always been one of my favourite images in your portfolio. I hope you will still join us on our meets so that we can continue to learn from your expert advice.

Thanks Narelle.

I do plan to attend more meets in the future, for if nothing else, it's fun to simply socialise. The only thing more fun about these meets than the image making process is the breakfast, lunch or dinner afterwards.

At the moment, despite my latest news, photography has taken a back seat to matters of a higher priority, but I'll be back shooting and BSing again in a little while.

[Chris Michel]

gorgeous and congrats

[Lance B]

A hearty and well deserved congratulations!

[William]

Well done and congrats also John, Never made the cover , But had a few printed in this Mag http://www.avhub.com.au/index.php/Magazine/Camera/

[Milbs1]

Congratulations John, looks great

[CherylB]

Congrats John! Well deserved win with the Long Reef image, and I'm sure we'll be seeing more of yours on the front of Australian Photography. Between you and Dylan, you might have started a revolution of APers taking over all cover shots!