Any magazine which has this phrase,
"news, articles, information, and photos are enthusiastically encouraged,"
at the bottom of its masthead should be instantly targeted by any budding diving photojournalist.
MidWest Scuba Diving Magazine is a complimentary glossy that wouldn't be too hard to break into. Several months ago I sent a speculative e-mail to the editor and publisher, Captain Darrick Lorenzen, asking if he would welcome any freelance contributions, his reply of,
"We welcome all photographers to submit photos. If we like them, we publish them and give the photographer credit. Our criteria is very stringent isn't it? We don't pay for contributions. If we need high quality photo's for fillers we use something like Getty or Shutterstock. One problem we always have, even with professionals, is that the photos sent in are often low resolution, photographers submit photos that are not set on the largest format and super fine res. We would like you to submit a couple of your articles for publication. It can be something that has already been printed. Let's talk."
told me everything I needed to know - most budding photojournalists could get published in the magazine.
Reasons why I would go with this magazine:
Although it heralds itself as the, "primary source for information concerning Great Lakes shipwrecks," there are articles published within its pages on worldwide destinations.
Over the past year their magazine has increased in size by 30% - always a good sign. Any magazine that can afford to increase its size is a confident one.
In the words of the editor, "over the next 24 months, MSD is going to focus on developing a national
following among the diving community. MSD intends to expand our influence to include the major market areas of New York, Florida and California." They are currently distributed in 12 States - that's about 50% of the U.S. diving population.
If you have ever dreamed of a regular column this is the sort of magazine that could provide you with this kind of opportunity.
The whole of the magazine is published on-line - which means you have a worldwide readership.
Get published in this magazine a few times and you will have earned the title, 'freelance journalist.'
You can use articles in this magazine as evidence of your ability in your clip file.
It may not pay now, but once established you may be able to negotiate something - if you are good, the editor would not want to lose you. You might also find yourself on paid for assignments (you get to go diving for free) faster with this magazine than you would with the likes of Sport Diver (which could be never!).
Folks - it's time to get onboard, there's no better time to get in with an organisation that is going to be big than when it is small!
Keep writing...
Brendan
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