Seven former Emap staff are gearing up to launch a new photography magazine, tipped to be a direct rival to their old title Practical Photography.
Market Link Publishing has ploughed in excess of £200,000 into the launch of Photography Monthly, due to go on sale on 17 May.
The magazine will have an initial print run of 80,000 and target enthusiasts who want to improve their skills.
Editor Dan Lezano left Emap in January after five years and was followed shortly after by technical editor Steve Handley, who worked for Emap for 14 years.
Lezano, Handley and the team have almost 60 years’ experience at Emap between them.
"We got a bit disillusioned with it all and it was a once-in-a-career opportunity not to be missed," Lezano said.
He told Press Gazette he spotted a gap in the market for enthusiasts, which coincided with plans by Market Link to launch a new title.
Photography Monthly will sit alongside Market Link’s existing titles Which Camera and Professional Photographer.
The magazine will also target students, whom Lezano claimed were not currently catered for by existing magazines.
Celebrity freelance photographer Andy Earl and glamour photographer Alan Strutt are among the contributors.
Lezano said he planned to hire more staff once the launch was up and running, particularly a feature writer and sub-editor.
Market Link is a subsidiary of Eastern Counties Newspaper Group.
By Ruth Addicott
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