The are many things different in the way the Stephen Harper government now communicates with the press. Perhaps the most recent example is the policy of emailing reporters photographs of the PM doing things.

They started arriving in our in-boxes a few months ago.

First came pictures of the prime minister on the telephone, speaking, we were told, to different world leaders. Then came pictures of him meeting with ordinary Canadians.

Now we have been sent pictures of Harper during this week's visit to Kandahar.

There's a picture of Harper and the Chief of the Defence Staff, General Walt Natynczyk, sitting on the edge of the Dahla dam, the one Canada helped rebuild.

And then there is one of Harper handing out iced caps at the Tim Horton's at Kandahar airfield.

The question is, who will use these photos?

As they are taken by the PM's official photographers, most large media organizations will be wary of using them.

Could they be for smaller community papers and web sites, organizations that are desperate for content?

There has been a long-standing practice in Ottawa and other big capitals to hand out these official photos from time to time for backstage shots and events to which the press had no access.

But, as far as I can tell, no one emails them out to reporters day after day. Though the Obama White House now puts their official photos on Flickr every so often.

Some of my more paranoid colleagues are worried that this new practice might be designed to restrict our future access: if the PMO sends out its own photographic version of events, maybe they won't need us around so often.

Until now, the parliamentary press gallery has often covered a prime minister's travels and international meetings by means of pool reporters and photographers, designated journalists who share their material with others.

Chris Rands

It is a system that has worked well and ensures an objective view of our political leaders in international situations.

There were pool reporters and photographers along at the Dahla dam and Kandahar Tim Horton's, which again makes you wonder: who exactly are the PMO's photos for?

— Chris Rands