Issue No. 3—One month in, 50 countries deep!

The Tog Times is one month old.

In that time, 40 articles have gone live. The site has been visited by photographers in more than 50 countries — from the United States and United Kingdom down through Madagascar, Trinidad and Tobago, and Equatorial Guinea. Traffic is up 243% month-over-month. Pageviews up 117%. Unique visitors up 286%.

You did this. Every share, every screenshot sent to a group chat, every “have you seen this” — that’s the entire growth engine. There is no ad budget. There is no SEO play. There is one writer, one publication, and a few thousand photographers who decided this was worth passing along.

Thank you!

BTW, A NOTE ON AI USE ON THE TOG TIMES:
In light of the AI that’s now more prevalent than ever, you don’t have to worry about reading AI generated stories. Every article is written by me, personally. I use AI, namely Gemini, to edit and format and fact check any gear or other info that requires it. I also use Gemini for image generation (so I won’t run into copyright issues—though I use Envato for some direct images.) I use Claude to help me build the site, draft the newsletter, and some of the static areas of the website; but for the articles the voice is mine. The wit, the humor, the cringe — all human.

The bride-to-be “Lana” had her name backwards on the photos and it caused quite a stir in the community.

She stated she could not miss the engagement session of the “model-like” couple, 1. because she’s a pro and she can’t be a “no-show, no call” and 2. she didn’t want to miss the chance of having such a beautiful looking couple in her portfolio.

Cupertino announces that everyone can be a “pro” photographer with their newest phone, that comes with 40 hours of training by professional photographers and followed by crew of lighting professionals wherever they go as an add-on

Editor’s Note: We’re considering making this a printed giveaway wall art aka HEY YOU INFO for your office/studio

The photo broke the internet. It has gained over 1 million views on Memes For Togs in about 2 days! The sexual innuendo captured by the photographer, Monteview, of the stained glass was totally overlooked by Monsignor Freud of the church.

Photographer Finch totally passed out when he the EMT, weekend warrior photographer, only uses 3 cards and reformats them every weekend.

📰 The Weekend Review launches soon. Every Sunday evening, the five new articles published that week, delivered in one tidy issue. The bimonthly publication you’re reading now stays on the 1st and the 15th. Sundays become the weekly recap.

📱 An app-like experience is in development. The plan: install The Tog Times to your phone’s Home Screen and read it like an app — no App Store, no download, just a tap. More on this in the next issue.

The Tog Times grows the way satire publications have always grown: one reader telling another. If this newsletter has earned a place in your inbox, here are three things that genuinely move the needle:

📬 Forward this email to one photographer who would appreciate it.

📱 Share an article on your stories — tag @thetogtimes and we’ll see it.

🪪 Get The Press Pass — $4.99/month, supports the work, includes The Dark Room.

Remember, you’re not pushing stories written by a bot. Every article is from a human. So thank you for the support that you can give and have given.

For companies who may want to advertise, you can do so by emailing [email protected] re: advertising .. or click here for more info

Thanking God that the recovery from surgery has gone well. Wounds are healing, the doctor cleared the latest check-in, and the writing has not missed a beat (aside from the one week I was in the hospital). Grateful for the well-wishes that came in over the last few weeks — they were felt.

Let’s gooo!

Lemuel
Publisher, The Tog Times