FotoFlot (probably pronounced "photofloat") is an innovative way to display one's photographs without glass, thereby eliminating reflections, and without frames. The sizes of FotoFlot displays range from 7.5"x10" to 15"x30", and these hang from the walls with a magnetic system which, according to the company, is a snap to use.
FotoFlot uses digital printing equipment designed for professional photofinishers to print the images on photo paper, then mounts/fuses them to a 1/8" thick acrylic, laser trimmed to the sizes chosen. It uses a silver halide photo processing, and it prints on matte finish paper.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Apple New Sub Notebook?
There's something in the air...the blogosphere is abuzz with Apple rumors. The rumor buzz is usual a few weeks before the MacWorld Conference & Expo (January 14-18, 2008) in San Francisco, and this year the rumor-mongers expect that Steve Jobs will announce a new $1500 sub-notebook MacBook Pro, which will be 50% thinner than the present laptops, and will employ flash memory instead of a hard drive, but no optical drive (which will be separate).Depending on its configuration, this new sub notebook (if it indeed materializes) may well be ideal for traveling photographers. Light, small and providing all the necessary software would be the answer to many problems now facing us. I'm holding my breath on that one.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Adobe Elements 6 For Mac
For those who don't need Adobe CS3 (or find it too expensive) for their Apple computers, the company has announced that Adobe Elements 6 is available for pre-order for an estimated street price of US$89.99. The software will later be available at retailers.
Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 for Macintosh will run on Leopard, (Mac OS X v 10.5), as well as previous versions of Mac OS X starting with 10.4.8.
Adobe Elements 6
Update: Here's an informative first look 'hands-on' of Photoshop Elements from NetGuido via Imaging Insider.
Neeraj Mahajan: Gypsy Souls
Neeraj Mahajan is a commercial and documentary photographer living in Delhi. Despite having graduated in hotel management from Australia, he chose to make a career out of documentary photography, and a few years later branched into advertising photography as well. His father, a street photographer himself, was an early mentor, followed by Pradeep Das Gupta who provided him professional guidance.
Neeraj has many documentary projects, either completed or work-in progress:"Sinners"is is a multi layered photo essay based on the concept of redemption and faith in the Hindu religion. "Rhythm Divine" is an essay of images of people, religious sects and holy places dissolving into each other, and "Gypsy Soul"is on the nomadic gypsies of India.
I've encountered Rebari and Raika gypsies during my photo travels in Rajasthan and Gujarat. They are nomadic herders of camel, sheep and goats...and not all of them welcome photographers with open arms. It is perhaps because of my misadventures with the Reabari that I chose Neeraj's Gypsy Soul photo essay to feature on TTP.
His website's navigation is somewhat quirky but explore his Travel & Documentary galleries and you'll be rewarded by his interesting black & white photographs which have the unmistakable 'feel' of a seasoned street photographer.
Neeraj Mahajan
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Digital Photo Pro: Shiho Fukada
I'm really pleased, but not surprised, that Shiho Fukada, TTP's Photographer of The Year, is the subject of an article entitled "A Different Kind of Briefcase" published in Digital Photo Pro magazine (below for link).
On the other hand, I was surprised to read Shiho's difficulty in selling her fascinating photo essay "Life In A Brothel"...a photographic project about the sex trade in Bangladesh, which can be seen on her website (below for link). According to the informative article: "Fukada describes the response from the American magazines to whom she has pitched the project: “Third-world brothels have been done to death. What else do you have?”
What else does she have? Well, she's got plenty...but that's hardly the point, is it magazine editors? The point is that she cares about that poignant story and she intends to share it with the world at large.
The article (written by Louis Lesko) also reaffirms what anyone who sees her photographs immediately knows: "Shiho Fukada is a storyteller first. Photography wasn’t the goal for her; it was the vehicle to realize her passion for telling stories. And that’s one of the reasons why her work stands out so significantly. She’s totally committed to the narrative."
Read the article in Digital Photo Pro here
Shiho Fukada's website
Benoît Marquet: Fishermen of Kashmir
Benoît Marquet is an independent photographer based in New Delhi, who specializes in news and documentary photographic assignments from South Asia.
He has worked in Kashmir, and his website showcases a photo essay (Kashmiri Fisherman) on the fishermen who ply their trade on Dal Lake. The life of a Kashmiri fisherman is no different from other fishermen all over the world. Waking up before dawn to fish and returning home just after sunrise, the Kashmiri fishermen have a difficult time making ends meet. It's probably a dying profession, with his children working in other occupations.
Srinagar is said to have been founded by the Buddhist Emperor Ashoka during the third century B.C. Dal Lake, the Jhelum River, and a looping canal that joins the two effectively make an island of Srinagar's busiest section.
Dal Lake is surrounded on three sides by mountains, and it is the home to houseboats and gondola-like shikaras. These provide transportation the lake and its floating gardens. It's estimated that there are 602 houseboats on Dal Lake, supporting a population of nearly 60,000 people. An interesting factoid about the houseboats: During the Raj, the ruler of Kashmir did not allow the British to build homes on Kashmiri territory, so to circumvent the law, they built houseboats.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
65th POYi
The 65th Pictures of the Year International competition is open, and invites entries to the world's oldest and one of the most prestigious photojournalism contest. The deadline for the entries is Friday, January 18.
I found the above photograph by Muhammed Muheisen (The Associated Press) of Muslim pilgrims praying at Jabal Al Rahma ("the mountain of forgiveness") holy mountain, outside Mecca, to be one of the most powerful in the 64th POYi. It was awarded Third Place in the Feature category, and it's proof that non-Western photographers are rapidly and deservedly making their mark in the photojournalism world.
65th POYi
Sandra Steele Kunz: Women of the World
Sandra ("Sandy") Steele Kunz is a photographer based in Central Oregon who has her camera lenses firmly trained on the world, but especially focused on India, Bhutan and Indochina. Her favorite photographic subjects are Buddhism and environmental portraits of women and children. Most of her photographs are spontaneous, and she generally avoids arranged photo shoots.
Sandy was one the first photographer to join my inaugural photo expedition to India, Nepal and Bhutan in October 2000, and she has been on every single one since then. So I know first hand that her passion for visually documenting Buddhist culture is exemplary, and that her empathy for women and children is exceptional. I have her extraordinary photograph of a woman holding a baby in Orissa (above), and it currently graces my office. It speaks volumes as to her skills.
I'm glad to see Sandy's newly-minted website.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
1 on 1: Gavin Gough
The Travel Photographer blog will occasionally post interviews with both travel and editorial working photographers. The first interview of 2008 is with Gavin Gough, a full-time freelance working photographer from Great Britain.TTP: When did you decide to become a photographer? Who or what influenced your decision?
GG: I've entertained ambitions of being a photographer since leaving school but followed a more mainstream career until a sabbatical in 2003. That year off gave me the opportunity to change track and became the launching point for my new career. Realizing just how quickly time is passing is a great motivator and once I had made the decision I knew that the remainder of my working life would be devoted to photography.
TTP: Do you have any formal training regarding photography?
GG: I attended a series of classes many years ago, some of which were taken with a really inspiring teacher who was the most observant person I have ever met. He was the first person to teach me that seeing things with a “photographer's eye” would reveal different viewpoints and perspectives. Other than those early classes, I am entirely self-taught.
TTP : if you had the choice, where is your favorite place to live and work as a photographer in the world and why?
GG: I am lucky enough to be able to work anywhere in the world but I especially enjoy working in the Indian sub-continent and South East Asia. Nepal feels like a home from home, and away from the beaten track, it is still very unspoiled and the local people are charm personified.
India is a photographer's dream but like a world apart. Impossible to sum up in a few sentences, it is a chaos of contradictions, and remains one of the most hospitable places I know.
Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos are a delight to visit. I once owned a rickshaw in Cambodia and thought I might use it to show tourists around Angkor if the photographic work didn't take off. I've been completely seduced by Vietnam and it is a place where I can easily imagine living.
My main base, however, remains in England as it really is one of the few places in the world where you can get a decent cup of tea. The Uruguayans are enthusiastic tea-drinkers too so I'm always happy to go back to Uruguay.
TTP: Describe your own favorite image, and describe how you went about creating it.
GG: I really struggled to find an answer to this question. Perhaps because I find it easier to talk enthusiastically about other people's photo's (I try to maintain the stereotype of a self-deprecating Englishman), although it's really just that my favorite photo is different on any given day.
So, for today at least, I have selected one of a Hindu religious teacher or “Swami” taken in Varanasi in northern India as a recent favorite. I was walking along the bank of the Ganges shortly after sunrise and turned a corner to be confronted by the sight of this man standing on his head, performing his ritual morning yoga routine. I obviously didn't want to interrupt him so discretely snapped a couple of frames before he turned himself, with great elegance, up the right way, at which point I asked if I could continue to take photographs.
He was a charming man and we talked for some time before he offered to show me the nearby ashram where he was staying. It was another example of how photography can open doors and help make friends.
I like this particular picture because it tends to make people do a quick double-take when they first see it. Although his face is obscured, I love the round spectacles lying on the ground, carefully placed there before he began his exercises.
This photo will form part of a panel that I'm exhibiting in London in February '08.
TTP: Describe a day in your professional life.
GG: On location I'll be up and out before sunrise, ready to catch the first light. I will often stay out all day, shooting details and interiors if the light becomes harsh and I will be back at a pre-chosen location at dusk and for an hour after sunset. I'll spend the evening uploading the day's photos to a laptop, making my first selections and beginning the process of cataloging.
I love waking up with the knowledge that if I want to pack a bag and go to Belgium, Bolivia or Bhutan then that's my call. I hesitate to paint too rosy a picture though as “Travel Photographer” is a title that many people assume brings with it equal measures of glamor and wealth, neither of which is true.
TTP: Tell your funniest, scariest, most bizarre, most touching story from a photoshoot!
GG: I've been mugged in Rio (who hasn't?), robbed in Florence (I still maintain that my best-ever pictures were lost that day), held by Maoist rebels in Nepal (they were very polite) and chased across Saharan sand dunes by shadowy masked men (I think they were probably only trying to sell me a night's accommodation), all of which sounds much scarier than it was in reality.
The downsides to my work are easily outweighed by the positive experiences though and they are too numerous to recount. Photography is a great ice-breaker and, if approached with the right attitude and with sensitivity, carrying a camera can offer ways to quickly break down barriers.
I am frequently touched by the generosity of strangers and the hospitality shown by those who often have much less than I do. Time and time again I have seen that it is often those who have least who offer most. Making friends via photography is a rare privilege and I have been fortunate to have made many friends during my short career so far.
TTP: What types of assignments are you most attracted to?
GG: Ones that pay the biggest daily rate! Seriously, the money is a big incentive. I have a mortgage to pay and new equipment to buy. I know that sounds mercenary but it's a real luxury to be able to pick and choose assignments based purely on your own whims. I am a working photographer after all.
Having said that, whatever the assignment, I will try to put some time aside to shoot just for myself. Of course, I love to arrive in places that are new to me most of all so would prefer to go to those places first but you should see how much I spend with Canon, Adobe and Apple every year! Believe me, I go where the money takes me!
TTP: How would you describe your photographic style?
GG: This follows on from the last question in that I'm usually showing the best of a location for the benefit of travel companies and stock libraries. So there are lots of blue skies and smiling faces in my commercial work as these wholesome, unspoiled views are the best sellers.
However, I've always been a great admirer of the more gritty, editorial style and although I am a million miles from being in the company of those well-known editorial shooters, It is clear that I am now tending towards a more editorial style in my personal work.
TTP: Who or what would you love to shoot that you haven't already?
GG: The winner of this year's Travel Photographer of the Year competition won an opportunity to photograph the Dalai Lama and I would gladly have swapped all of my other awards and successes for that chance.
TTP: Describe the photo gear, as well as (if digital) your computer hardware and software you use.
GG: I use Canon EOS 1Ds MKII bodies with a selection of Canon 'L' series lenses ranging from 16mm to 200mm. The Canon IS f/2.8 70-200mm is a gorgeous lens. I carry gear in either Lowepro or Crumpler backpacks although I'm still searching for the perfect camera bag.
I work with a MacBook Pro on location, backing up to LaCie All-Terrain external drives. I process RAW files with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop CS3 and I manage my photo library with iView MediaPro.
Monday, January 7, 2008
WPost: Praying for Benazir
The Washington Post has featured a short video by Travis Fox on the gatherings following Benazir Bhutto's assassination in December.
Her assassination hasn't only caused enormous havoc on internal Pakistani politics, but it also created considerable resentment between the dominant Punjabis and the remaining tribal and ethnic minorities. Many Sindhis (like Benazir) believe that she wasn't assassinated because she opposed extremism and advocated democracy, but that she was killed because she was a Sindhi.
According to the Washington Post: "Few believe the country is in imminent danger of fracturing again. But Bhutto's death has exacerbated ethnic tension in at least two ways: It has angered non-Punjabis because of her status as a member of a minority, and it has eliminated one of the few Pakistani politicians whose reputation transcended ethnicity."
As Gust Avrakotos (played by Philip Seymour Hoffman in the excellent movie Charlie Wilson's War) says: "We shall see".
TTP Recap of the Week
For your convenience, here's the past week's (December 31- January 6) most read posts on TTP:Update on Batteries
Revamped Photo-Expeditions Website
Heathrow's New Baggage Rules
Sunday, January 6, 2008
News: Heathrow's New Baggage Rule
According to the BBC, most UK airports are preparing to let passengers take more than one piece of hand luggage on flights from Monday, to coincide with extra security checks.Heathrow, which is an absolute disgrace in terms of passenger service, is one of the airports where two hand luggage pieces will now be permitted. It seems that new scanners have now been installed, and this will facilitate security checks. The other restrictions regarding liquids etc are still in effect.
For those of us who travel from New York to London and back, British Airways will allow two pieces of hand luggage per passenger, while Virgin Atlantic will allow one piece of cabin luggage per passengers in Economy and Premium Economy Class (plus laptop, handbag or similar); and two pieces of luggage per passenger traveling first class.
This will provide some relief to photographers who have lots of gear to carry on board. Of course, weight considerations for carry-on luggage are still in place, but at least one hurdle has been removed.
Streets Eats In Bangkok
To compensate for my irascible Sunday rant on Manhattan brunches, here's a slideshow from the New York Times on Street Eats in Bangkok. The photography is by Josef Polleross, and the accompanying article is written by by Joshua Kurlantzick who has experienced Bangkok street restaurants for a decade.
He writes on what most frequent travelers to Thailand know well; the best food in Thailand is served by street vendors and at small neighborhood restaurants. What I didn't realize however, is that it's because of historical reasons that Bangkok has some of the best street food in the world. It has long attracted migrants from all over Asia, so its street cuisine, both from street carts and in tiny eateries, blends many Asian and South Asian styles of cooking.
The article provides information as to the names and locations of these eateries, so the next time I'm in Bangkok, you'll find me there.
Sunday Rant V
Here's a non-photography related rant, and it's about Sunday brunch. Yes, brunch...the meal that is neither fish nor fowl...neither breakfast nor lunch and neither this nor that...the hideous meal that's supposed to combine breakfast and lunch. Living in an area of Manhattan that seemingly has more restaurants and cafes than people, I'm getting increasingly ticked off by this in-your-face scam which restaurants love to heave on its patrons every Sunday. Why do restaurants love brunches? Because it's a breakfast with the price tag of a decent lunch. You do the math: a couple of eggs, a bunch of left-over reheated spinach (if you order eggs Florentine), maybe a few dry rashers of bacon, and worst of all a glass of orange juice mixed with plonky champagne called Mimosa, or some other revolting variation. Moreover, anyone can cook a brunch. On Sunday, the higher-paid chefs can stay home, have a proper lunch, and leave the "understudies" to cook on brunch days.
The argument for the brunch scam is that people wake up late on Sundays, and take their time before having their first meals. I have no problem with that. These people can have a late breakfast wherever and whenever they want. What I have a problem with is that the majority of restaurants in the area do not offer lunch on Sundays...just brunch at lunch prices. In fact, I've sat down in restaurants on Sundays a few times and got haughty looks because I asked for a "lunch" menu...snotty up-and-down looks as if I had just walked in from the Gobi desert.
You want to know why they don't offer you a lunch menu and a brunch menu on Sundays? Because a three-year old would immediately realize that brunch is a scam...and would order from the lunch menu. The restaurant owners wouldn't like it and the chefs would hate it.
I admire whoever started this brunch scam...I really do. Charging lunch prices for a three-dollar breakfast and getting away with it is chutzpah with a capital C.
That's my rant and that's why I don't do brunches.
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