  Recent $HERA$ data on the photoproduction of vector mesons are analysed
within a "soft", dipole pomeron model. We argued that the data on
$\sigma^{\gamma\rightarrow J/\psi}_{el}$ is consistent with a soft pomeron, the
apparent rapid increase resulting from the non-asymptotic effects due to the
delayed asymptotics of $\sigma_{el}$ with respect to $\sigma_{tot}$.
