The Simple Photo Life

As we begin work on our annual "Editor's Choice" survey of new photo products (see the 2006 installment), I'd like to register a formal complaint. I have already tried a number of this year's contenders—I won't name names, yet—and while they mostly perform as advertised, it has been a pain in the neck to get some of them to do what they're supposed to do.

The mantra of digital photography in all its manifestations is "Simplify, simplify." (Thoreau would be horrified at the appropriation, but you can't retreat to the woods any more.) Most manufacturers have yet to implement what they preach, though. I admit to continuing difficulty on my part in adapting to the electronicizing of photography, having been schooled in its optical-mechanical-chemical days. But I'm no dummy, and yet I still struggle to make many new products work—not so much digital cameras as all of the peripheral electronic devices that support them. I'm sure I'm not alone in this experience, even among serious photographers.

I guess my point is that while digital photography is certainly easier and more transparent than it was in the beginning, or even a few years ago, it still has a long way to go in this regard. (Image quality, well that's another story.)

So we will carry on with our survey of new and (we hope) improved products, and let you know in our July/August issue which ones we're most impressed with. This year's Editor's Choice will have a major online component, by the way, so be sure to stay tuned to the American Photo section of popphoto.com (AmericanPhotoMag.com).

On a related note, one member of the American Photo forum recently commented that the magazine's equipment reviews are "worthless" because they're always favorable. In our defense, since we're not a how-to or technical magazine we simply don't have enough pages to devote to products we don't like. That's why we usually call such writeups Editor's Choice. We do pick nits in our reviews, but yes, the equipment we feature is stuff that we feel largely positive about. If you're looking for in-depth analysis even of photography's failed products, you should be reading our sister magazine (and Web companion) Popular Photography & Imaging. American Photo is meant to complement Pop, not copy it.

—Russell Hart