As in Bob Dylan song, "The times they are a-changin' ". Magazines, books...all going to e-reading devices. What will be the impact on photography?

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Hi Pentaxian friends.

Simulation, but soon to be reality.

Simulation, but soon to be reality.

For several years now, we have been told that printed books and magazines were rapidly disappearing. It’s  noticeable when glancing through the magazines section and the aisles of any bookstore. As it turns out, it wasn't as rapid as predicted, but alas, I think we are at the periphery of changes, and for real this time. For the times they are a-changin'

Most magazines and many books have been available in e-format for a while, but the reading devices have been limited to PC and laptop computers. Portability has been the major obstacle to the e-format publishing. Even the small notebook computers are too big for continuous and easy transport and the screens of cell phones, such as the Apple iPhone, are too small for easy reading. The first generation of portable reading devices such as the Amazon’s Kindle, the Sony e-reader and the Barnes & Nobles’ Nook were too limited, but finally, I believe we have come to the age of e-reading for the masses. For the times they are a-changin'

The iPad and the newest Amazon’s Kindle have made e-reading and publishing available at a reasonable price (especially the Kindle) and easily transportable. I prefer the new Kindle with Wi-Fi and 3G capabilities. The screen is easy to read, even in bright sunlight, and at $189.00, it’s a bargain. Note that it can hold around 3,500 books and the battery life can last up to one Month. Purchasing e-books is almost instant and the prices seldom exceed $9.95. There are thousand of free books available as well. Major newspaper are available on a monthly subscription and blogsites are also available and published on the Kindle. (I will have this blogsite published on Amazon Kindle in a few days if not tonight.) For the times they are a-changin'

My first two Pentax books, for the K10D and the K100D were sold and published as paperback books, but the subsequent books, the K20D, K-7 and K-x, were published in e-format (PDF) and I sold thousands. It was easier for me to produce and much cheaper for the buyers. They were also delivered instantly…well almost. For the times they are a-changin'

Well…”The times they are a changin’” indeed and my next books for the upcoming Pentax DSLRs and EVIL cameras will be published and available on Amazon Kindle. With the Kindle, the format that Amazon uses, it is also readable on any PC, Laptop, Cell Phone and other devices such as the iPad.  Music can be loaded through an SDHC card and the Kindle also reads PDF files. Granted that the images are in shades of grey, versus the iPad’s entire color screen, I’m ascertaining that the future kindle devices will slowly migrate to color as well. For the times they are a-changin'

So there you have it, my humble opinion in writing. Time will tell if I was right, but if I’m not this time around, I will be in the very near future. For the times they are a-changin'

Any of you readers have a Kindle or an e-reader device? Any readers loading Photography books on their devices? My Kindle is on order, but will not be shipped before early September. That’s a long time to wait, but a sign that they are selling well. For the times they are a-changin'

Thank you for a-readin'

Yvon Bourque