[Peter Zack]

I would often visit this site. Some very good work posted there. Good articles too. I'm somewhat surprised that an Ezine can't generate enough $$ to keep going. I suspect it's the printed version that bears the responsibility for the demise I bet we'll see more of this with smaller magazines in the coming year.

JPG Magazine: Your World in Pictures

The email I got today:

Today is a particularly sad day for all of us at JPG and 8020 Media.

We've spent the last few months trying to make the business behind JPG sustain itself, and we've reached the end of the line. We all deeply believe in everything JPG represents, but we just weren't able to raise the money needed to keep JPG alive in these extraordinary economic times. We sought out buyers, spoke with numerous potential investors, and pitched several last-ditch creative efforts, all without success. As a result, jpgmag.com will shut down on Monday, January 5, 2009.

The one thing we've been the most proud of: your amazing talent. We feel honored and humbled to have been able to share jpgmag.com with such a dynamic, warm, and wonderful community of nearly 200,000 photographers. The photography on the website and in the magazine was adored by many, leaving no doubt that this community created work of the highest caliber. The kindness, generosity, and support shared among members made it a community in the truest sense of the word, and one that we have loved being a part of for these past two years.

We wish we could have found a way to leave the site running for the benefit of the amazing folks who have made JPG what it is, and we have spent sleepless nights trying to figure something out, all to no avail. Some things you may want to do before the site closes:

- Download the PDFs of back issues, outtakes, and photo challenge selections. We'll always have the memories! JPG Magazine: Downloads: Archives
- Make note of your favorite photographers. You may want to flip through your favorites list and jot down names and URLs of some of the people you'd like to stay in touch with. You may even want to cut and paste your contacts page into a personal record.
- Catch up with your fellow members. Our roots are in this humble flickr forum and we recommend going back to find fellow members, discuss the situation, or participate in another great photo community. Flickr: The Unofficial JPG Magazine Group
- Keep in touch. This has always been much more than just a job to each of us, and we'll miss you guys! We'll be checking the account jpgletters@gmail.com in our free time going forward. We can't promise to reply to every email (since we'll be busy tuning up our resumes) but we'd love to hear from you.
- Stay posted. Although the magazine is ceasing publication, we'll be updating you on what's happening with your subscription early next week.

We're soggy-eyed messes, but it is what it is. At that, JPGers, we bid you goodbye, and good luck in 2009 and the future.

Laura Brunow Miner
Editor in Chief

[roentarre]

I just got that email too. Really sad to see the end of this wonderful magazine.

The problem is that the camera or lens measurebation magazines get to survive while photography art gets to go bankrupt. No wonder Ricehigh deserves to have a place in history.

Now one less place to visit...

[jmc7104]

Go figure and I just joined and up-loaded a few photo's, jim

[flyer]

It' sad.

Unfortunately, about 60% of the income of printed mags is from advertisement,and art based mags of any kind can't attract that much advertising to sustain their operations. People are more interested in the like of Popular Photo (with their biased comments and articles) than real talent. Go figure.

[ftpaddict]

I was just starting to get some clicks on that site. It was fun to browse around and comment on people's artwork. I'm very sorry to see JPG go...

Are there any similar initiatives on the web?

[Shaloot!]

This is unfortunate, esp. since I just discovered this magazine/website. I am glad I did not get a subscription to pop photo or the like, since the articles are basically the same that just get recycled over and over. That makes sense, as it's used to lure the new buyer in, and I read those magazines every month when I first started out last year and wanted to research cameras and at least basic photo stuff. Funny though I picked a Pentax camera, even though they try to brainwash you into the others...
It is interesting to note they can't continue at least the online version... I'm sure there are costs associated in maintain such a website.. but still...
I am downloading the back issues though! The photos and ideas are wonderful!

[dazman]

Oh no! I just discovered this great site.

[ftpaddict]

A GLIMMER OF HOPE

With our most recent announcement that we will be closing 8020 and JPG, we received an enormous amount of support from the community. Thank you for that -- it means a lot to the team here and it shows that JPG is made up of wonderful people. Along with that support, we have also received some interest from qualified parties who may be interested in acquiring the company so that JPG could live on. We don't want to get your hopes up unnecessarily, but there is nothing we would want more then for JPG to continue in some form, and we are working on that now. Stay tuned and let's keep our collective fingers crossed.

If you or someone you know might be interested, you can reach us at contact@8020media.com.


Update on the website.

[Peter Zack]

ftpaddict, That's great. I wrote them this morning with a few ideas as well. Lets hope they can find a way to make it work. I'd be prepared to be a donating member (sort of like PBS in the USA) if it kept them alive.

If you haven't bought the magazine at the newstand, it's well worth the trouble. Well printed on very good paper and a pleasure to go through each month. Some creative and inspirted work there and it's all from the members.

That's what I liked the best. Fine to see work from pros but it's even better to see work from average shooters (who take above average shots) get published in a worldwide magazine.

There are so few publications out there that are not full of biased dribble and chok full of ads.

[Wombat]

I wasn't aware of this site and having just had a look at it I'm sad to have missed out. Really hope they can resurrect it. Peter, do you have any sense of what sort of timeline they're looking at for this new deal and whether they'll keep it staggering along for a while?

[Peter Zack]

According to the letter, they have scheduled to shut down on Jan 5'09.

So we'll just have to see what happens over the next couple of days.

[Eaglerapids]

I wasn't aware of this site:-(. I just joined up and I'm hoping for the best, it seems like a cool place.

[roentarre]

I have quite an extensive networks of friends there. We are all talking about migration to flickr instead. The art there are truely impressive and we are all panicking about where to continue our daily rituals of going through everyone's weird ideas.