the magazine became full-sized and its name was
changed to Modern Photography, the name that
would grace the front of the magazine until publica-
tionceasedinJuly1989.
The competition betweenPopular Photographyand
Modern Photographywas as much about circulation
and ad space as it was about editorial coverage. Both
magazines had rival technical staffs and equipment
testing laboratories; if one magazine had an innovative
piece of equipment to test cameras or lenses, the other
was bound to try to get it. The rivalry extended into
the publishing of annual issues as well. Both magazines
tried to corner the market on annual specialty photo-
graphic magazines focused on specific equipment or
picture-taking techniques; Modern publishing their
Photo Buying Guide, Photo Information Almanac,
How to Photograph Nudes, and Rock Photo (guide
to photographing rock concerts), among others.
Thousands of readers turned to Modern each
month for the latest advice about improving their
picture-taking techniques or to view portfolios of
talented photographers, (one highlight from the
1970s was a 32-page essay and portfolio on Leni
Riefenstahl). Probably the most important aspect of
the magazine for its loyal readers was its equipment
testing (each month different equipment would be
tested in ‘‘Modern Tests’’) and technical features. It
was vital for the editorial staff ofModernto be con-
sidered the authority in camera and lens testing, and to
ensure that the magazine maintained a state-of-the-art
laboratory, and strove to make the technical results as
reader-accessible as possible.Modernalso employed
experts from the highly regarded Japan Camera Ins-
pection Institute (JCII) as editorial correspondents to
help make ‘‘Modern Tests’’ as technically accurate as
possible. Other popular departments were ‘‘Hard
Knocks,’’ in which editors would praise and/or pan
reader photos; The Camera Collector; Keppler’s SLR
Notebook, a monthly column by the editorial direc-
tor/publisher; and ‘‘Too Hot to Handle,’’ where the
staff would answer readers’ probing questions.
Reader satisfaction was crucial to the success of
Modern Photography. Equipment that passed
‘‘Modern Tests’’ would be given aModern Photo-
graphy ‘‘Seal of Approval’’ that guaranteed to
readers that the equipment purchased by the con-
sumer would perform as tested by the magazine, or
it would be repaired or replaced until it did.Mod-
ernalso had an extensive section of mail order
advertisers in the back of the magazine, and to
ensure customer satisfaction devoted a page in
each magazine to explaining the vagaries of mail
order practices.
The publishing imprint of Modern saw many
changes over the years. In 1963, 14 years after Photo-
graphic Publishing brought it to New York, the maga-
zine was sold to Billboard Publications, and four years
later it was sold again to ABC Leisure Magazines,
Inc., a division of ABC, which became ABC Consu-
mer Magazines. In 1986,Modern Photographywas
purchased by Diamondis Communications, Inc., a
subsidiary of Hachette Publications, Inc. After the
publication ofModern’s July 1989 issue, it merged
with its archrival of many years,Popular Photography.
At the time of the merge,Modern Photographyhad a
monthly circulation base of 500,000.
ThoughModern Photographyexists in name no
more, in many ways the currentPopular Photogra-
phy, with the publisher, editor-in-chief, and mana-
ging editor all hailing fromModern, is a successful
melding of the two giant American consumer
photographic publications of the twentieth century.
BobLazaroff
Seealso:Popular Photography; Riefenstahl, Leni;
Vernacular PhotographyMODERNA MUSEET
The Fotografiska Museet, now incorporated into the
Moderna Museet, began in 1964 when photography
enthusiasts founded theFotografiska Museets Va ̈nner
(Friends of the Photography Museum). Earlier, inter-
est in Swedish photography first appeared when the
National Museum introducedModern svensk foto-
konst(Modern Swedish Photography) in 1944 and
Svensk fotografi av idag-svartvitt(Swedish Photogra-
phy today—black and white) in 1954. Meanwhile,
Otte Skold, Director of the National Museum, suc-MODERNA MUSEET