British Journal of Photography comes to the iPad
British Journal of Photography, the world’s longest-running photography magazine, is now available on the iPad as a quarterly app. More than just a page-turner or a PDF version of the magazine, the BJP app offers a tailor-made experience for the digital environment, making full use of the iPad’s user-intuitive navigational tools and spectacular display.
“Once we found out about the iPad, we knew we had to be part of it,” says Simon Bainbridge, BJP’s editor. “It’s a chance to bring the pages of our magazine to life on a digital screen for the first time.”
BJP’s designers have transformed the magazine’s acclaimed mix of stunning imagery, stylish design and thought-provoking journalism, making the most of the iPad’s unique interactive environment. “It was important for us to create the app in-house, to our own bespoke specifications, so we could bring the elegance of our design and our stunning imagery to life on a digital screen,” says Bainbridge.
Rich in enhanced content, the BJP app includes exclusive multimedia features and extended versions of sections popular in the print edition. Exploiting the iPad’s design for photo viewing, its striking photographs give way to full-screen portfolios, allowing users to engage with the photography in a new way. Up-to-the-minute live news from BJP-Online is also accessible at the click of a button.
“What makes BJP different than other photography magazines on the iPad is the quality of work we’ve put into it,” says Mick Moore, BJP’s art editor. “As you go through the app, you’ll find increased levels of interactivity. The photographers we showcase are really represented in this app with extra imagery, as well as footage and interactive links to learn more about their work.”
The iPad came at the perfect time for BJP, just as the convergence between still and motion images is hitting the photography industry. “For the first time, photographers are really experimenting with film, using the latest generation of digital SLR cameras,” says Bainbridge. “What that means is that, instead of just talking about the films that photographers are making in print, we can actually show what they are doing on a digital screen.”
He adds, “In the first edition of the app, we really focused on this convergence. We have interviews with photographers about the first films they’ve made, and we’ve spoken with Anton Corbijn, and the great Wim Wenders. We also have reviews of the latest HDSLR kit and software, and many more features, projects and interviews – some exclusive to the iPad app.”
Moore’s team has also designed a dedicated sharing feature, so users can share BJP’s content with their friends and colleagues. “We spent a lot of time developing this feature because we think there’s so much exciting content in the app that you’ll want to share,” says Moore. “With one tap, you’ll be able to share our articles, or the app itself, via Facebook, email or Twitter.”
Group publishing director Marc Hartog adds: "We are delighted to have the support of advertisers including Hasselblad, Nikon, Samsung, Absolut, LensPimp and AJ's, who have shown their faith in us as one of the world's first magazines to create a truly bespoke app for the iPad, and their recognition that tablets represent a new frontier in publishing."
He continues: "This is the first tablet edition Incisive Media has produced and represents a significant investment and commitment to the evolving technology. We have selected Mag+ as our publishing platform of choice, and have created what we believe will set a new benchmark for a content rich and interactive experience on the iPad with the first BJP app."
The British Journal of Photography app is the culmination of six months’ extensive research and development. It is available, at no cost, exclusively through iTunes.
Download the free app from iTunes now.
Comments
Definitely not what was promised.
The publicity leading up to this app has always stated it would be a free quarterly release rather than paid content. If i had to pay i'd rather pay full price for a digital edition of the monthly mag. Not happy at all.
Why oh why oh why does this app need a wifi connection to do anything? I travel a lot and I don't get wifi as often as I want. 3G is fine. Why can't this app use 3g? Makes it useless to me.
A spectacular piece of work! The iPad is a glorious platform for showcasing your content. It does take a while to come to grips with the UI. But with practice, it works well. Like Anthony, I'd love a digital version of the monthly magazine. If you could price it sensibly for North American readers, I might buy that AND a quarterly supplement.
I've been searching without luck for instructions on how your print subscribers get their free access to the app and I've concluded that... We don't.
Please enlighten me if I'm wrong but I struggle to see how you have the cheek to expect us to pay twice for what is essentially the same editorial content with a few more images? This app may be the best thing since sliced bread but if this is how you're trying to fleece your readership you're more likely to lose subscribers than gain them.
Anthony, Jason,
Thanks for your comment. I just wanted to clarify that the application is free to use - for subscribers and non-subscribers alike. Once you download the app, you have the opportunity to download the first issue (more than 350 pages of content) for free from the "Issues" tab at the top of the app.
Please, let us know if you have any problem accessing the first issue.
Cheers,
Olivier Laurent
News and Online Editor
British Journal of Photography
Go to Issues in the menu and tap 'Back'.
Here you will find the free 1st issue.
It's downloading now 400 MB!
Must be great.
The app seems very slow on my 64gb iPad 1. It stalls every now and then.
Also it is not free. I had to pay 99p for it.
A direct question then since the first version of this was ignored:
"Will existing subscribers have to pay for Issue 2 onwards?"
If yes, forget it, I'm deleting the app.
Narks and wingers they are. Long gone are the days when content was free. Get used to it, everyone.
Would you walk into a shop and pick up a newspaper or magazine to read and not expect to pay for it? No...of course not.
Its just that the Y generation never lived when there was no technology, free or not. They just don't know how to function and interact except on the web.
I still write letters and post them off. And I always get a reply as the recipient thinks that I have gone to enormous trouble.
So expect excellence and be prepared to pay for it.
John: The first issue IS free. What you had to pay for are video spin-off - mini documentaries filmed with Anton Corbijn and Anders Petersen. If, in the store, you click on "Back" you will be able to download Issue 1 for free (which includes more than 350 pages of content).
Paul Parkinson: Our goal is to make the app free for all our print subscribers. We will have more details available when Apple launches its Newsstands facility, which should enable us to integrate our database of subscribers with Apple's iTunes. This is expected to come in October. Of course, we can't anticipate how this will work, so our plan for issue 2 is to make it free too...
Hey @Stephen - my point (f you read it) is that I am a paid subscriber already. I PAY for the paper version of the magazine to be delivered to my house every month.
My question is WHY should I PAY AGAIN for the SAME CONTENT? Still no answer from BJP
Paul, I've answered your question (see above) - as I said, we value our subscribers and realise that it would be unfair for them to pay twice for similar content (although, from issue two, the app will have a lot more exclusive content or will feature articles that have yet to appear in print). We will have a definite answer on what will happen for our subscribers once Apple launches Newsstands. But rest assured that our subscribers won't be left out...
Olivier Laurent
News and Online Editor
British Journal of Photography
All this fuss could have been avoided if you had made the obvious move of going online with the publication via Issu or similar e-publishing platform. You could have been online for the last 2 years or more and very easily, and have charged for it. I would pay (less) to read an online edition but would never pay to buy the print edition. Also anything designed specifically for ipad does not translate well to other sizes as you will find out. Great magazine, shame about the publishing strategy.
Gerald, I appreciate your comment but fundamentally disagree with it. We made the deliberate choice of not going the e-publishing way (i.e. offering a digital, PDF-like version of the magazine). In fact, for the past couple of years we've had that technology available to us in-house (BJP is part of the large publishing house Incisive Media) and declined the offer to bring BJP this way for three reasons:
1/ I have yet to find one photography publication that has been successful financially using an e-publishing solution.
2/ Our readers like to hold BJP in their hands and read it at their pace wherever they are.
3/ PDF-like publication are a pain to load, navigate and read from a computer screen.
I believe that too many publishers (and the following remark applies to TV broadcasters, newspapers, magazines, radio, etc.) have looked at the web as the continuation of their original medium (i.e. "I'm a newspaper, so I will put my newspaper online") instead of looking at it as a medium in its own right - a different medium with its own rules and possibilities. In short, we did not GET the web and are just now starting to understand it.
With the iPad, we have the possibility of changing this. The reason why we chose to develop a BJP app for the iPad is because of the quality of its screen (images look a lot better on the iPad than on a conventional computer screen) but also because of the functionalities of the iPad. It allows us to bring our great content the way we want it to look - and let our readers interact with that content using the tools the iPad bring.
Also, with all due respect to non-iPad tablet users, but none of the other "tablets" that have been released over the past year have succeeded in matching Apple's ease of use and accessibility. We made the conscious choice to develop the app just for the iPad.
Now, if another tablet succeeds where no other has so far (maybe the upcoming Amazon tablet for example), we've made the choice of using the Mag+ platform to develop the BJP app. This means that we can very easily (a matter of days, not weeks) repurpose the app for another tablet without major tweaks needed.
Best,
Olivier Laurent
News and Online Editor
British Journal of Photography
Hi Olivier
What you're saying is that yes, we will have to pay again. We might get a bit more than non-subscribers but even so, pay twice for essentially the same content? You're having a laugh...
I read your position as "Suck It Up Subscribers" which has annoyed the pants off me and I will be considering my subscription position negatively given this is, truly, the case.
Paul, I don't know how to say it any differently than what I've said before: our goal is to make the app free for our subscribers!
Olivier Laurent
News and Online Editor
British Journal of Photography
This app looks great but every time I try to view a video the app crashes. When I restart it the app crashes right away when on the page containing the video.
Might be good eventually.
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British Journal of Photography is the world’s longest running photography magazine, established in 1854, and online since 1997. A high-quality monthly printed edition is available as a subscription or from selected newsagents in the UK and around the world.
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