Editorial
Even if your work has not been selected for this specific issue, it may yet prove important to have sent us your portfolio. We have seen it and may feel it merits inclusion in our lively and much drawn upon archive. In all issues of Foam Magazine we devote a good deal of space to the work of young photographers, so it is more than possible that we will make use of material originally submitted for a Talent issue. If it is not something for the magazine, we may decide it can be shown and shared on one of our other platforms, because this year again, both the shortlist and the longlist contained a great deal of excellent work that it would be a pity to leave unseen. The message is clear: Foam Magazine always keeps an eye on real photographic talent, so real photographic talent should always keep an eye on Foam Magazine. •
by Marloes Krijnen Editor-in-chief
Regular readers of Foam Magazine will know that the autumn issue is traditionally devoted to the work of young, talented photographers. That has been the case ever since our twelfth issue, making this the fifth time we have highlighted young talent.
editorial
Every year the process is both gripping and inspiring. The excitement is created to a large extent by the way we arrive at the final selection of portfolios to appear in the magazine. The process begins with an open and widely publicized Talent Call. Each spring the editors of Foam Magazine and our website team put out a call to young photographers to send in their work. Then we wait. Have any responses come in yet and if so how many? What is our initial impression of the quality? Does it come up to the overall standard we are hoping to achieve? And are we receiving enough portfolios to allow us to make a legitimate selection? It is always a thrill, partly because experience has taught us that most people send in their portfolios at the very last moment. Once the submission period is over we are faced with a job we can never take lightly: looking at and assessing all the work submitted. To make a proper judgement it is essential for us to have sufficient time and stamina, as well as strength of will and generosity of heart. Still, it is hardly an onerous task. Every year the editors are exceptionally pleased that so many people have taken the trouble to send in their work, allowing us to gain a reasonably accurate impression of what young photographers are up to worldwide. This annual update is extremely valuable to us. As a whole the portfolios we receive can be described as good, but of course it is the truly outstanding work that matters most. In making our final decision as to which portfolios to publish, we need to bear in mind that the editors’ primary task is to put together the best magazine possible. Sometimes editorial concerns will resolve a difficult choice. Have we achieved a good balance between the portfolios? Have we avoided repetition, is there sufficient variety, have we avoided placing too much emphasis on photographers from Europe and the United States? 5