Chris Bickfrod: Paris

Chris Bickfrod made his first appearance on this blog through his work published by The New York Times on Venice's Carnevale. Funding his expenses by working as a wedding photographer mostly in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, he devotes his summers and early winters to traveling to Europe and working on his street photography. He started work on books of Dubrovnik, Venice, and Paris.

In an infrequent departure from my geographical focus, I chose to feature Chris' work on Paris, which is a lovely collection of this city's scenes...combining street photography with its traditional landmarks.

Canon 5D Mark II Microphones

Kevin Reylek at B&H wrote an article on Recording Great-Sounding Audio with the Canon EOS 5D MkII, and listing 6 different options for affixing a microphone to the camera. These options vary in terms of price and quality...and practicality.

During my photo expedition in South India, I will test my own option, which is just plugging a Sony ECM-DS30P into the camera's audio in port. This is probably the cheapest, and I'll report back on this blog as to whether it's an improvement over the camera's built-in mic.

Also see this post on my ATR 6250 microphone.

I love you (in many language)

>> English - I love you
>> Afrikaans - Ek het jou lief
>> Albanian - Te dua
>> Arabic - Ana behibak (to male)
>> Arabic - Ana behibek (to female)
>> Armenian - Yes kez sirumen
>> Bambara - M'bi fe
>> Belarusian - Ya tabe kahayu
>> Bengali - Ami tomake bhalo bashi
>> Bisaya - Nahigugma ako kanimo
>> Bulgarian - Obicham te
>> Cambodian - Soro lahn nhee ah
>> Cantonese Chinese - Ngo oiy ney a
>> Catalan - T'estimo
>> Cheyenne - Ne mohotatse
>> Chichewa - Ndimakukonda
>> Corsican - Ti tengu caru (to male)
>> Creol - Mi aime jou
>> Croatian - Volim te
>> Czech - Miluji te
>> Danish - Jeg Elsker Dig
>> Dutch - Ik hou van jou
>> Esperanto - Mi amas vin
>> Estonian - Ma armastan sind
>> Ethiopian - Afgreki'
>> Faroese - Eg elski teg
>> Farsi - Doset daram
>> Filipino - Mahal kita
>> Finnish - Min rakastan sinua
>> French - Je t'aime, Je t'adore
>> Gaelic - Ta gra agam ort
>> Georgian - Mikvarhar
>> German - Ich liebe dich
>> Greek - S'agapo
>> Gujarati - Hoo thunay prem karoo choo
>> Hiligaynon - Palangga ko ikaw
>> Hawaiian - Aloha wau ia oi
>> Hebrew - Ani ohev otah (to female)
>> Hebrew - Ani ohev et otha (to male)
>> Hiligaynon - Guina higugma ko ikaw
>> Hindi - Hum Tumhe Pyar Karte hae
>> Hmong - Kuv hlub koj
>> Hopi - Nu' umi unangwa'ta
>> Hungarian - Szeretlek
>> Icelandic - Eg elska tig
>> Ilonggo - Palangga ko ikaw
>> Indonesian - Saya cinta padamu
>> Inuit - Negligevapse
>> Irish - Taim i' ngra leat
>> Italian - Ti amo
>> Japanese - Aishiteru
>> Javanese - Aku Trisno Karo Kowe
>> Kannada - Naanu ninna preetisuttene
>> Kapampangan - Kaluguran daka
>> Kiswahili - Nakupenda
>> Korean - Sarang Heyo
>> Latin - Te amo
>> Latvian - Es tevi miilu
>> Lebanese - Bahibak
>> Lithuanian - Tave myliu
>> Malay - Saya cintakan mu / Aku cinta padamu
>> Malayalam - Njan Ninne Premikunnu
>> Mandarin Chinese - Wo ai ni
>> Mohawk - Kanbhik
>> Moroccan - Ana moajaba bik
>> Nahuatl - Ni mits neki
>> Navaho - Ayor anosh'ni
>> Norwegian - Jeg Elsker Deg
>> Pangasinan - Inaru Taka
>> Papiamento - Mi ta stimabo
>> Persian - Doo-set daaram
>> Pig Latin - Iay ovlay ouyay
>> Polish - Kocham Ciebie
>> Portuguese - Eu te amo
>> Romanian - Te ubesk
>> Russian - Ya tebya liubliu
>> Scot Gaelic - Tha gra\dh agam ort
>> Serbian - Volim te
>> Setswana - Ke a go rata
>> Sign Language - ,/,,/ (represents position of fingers when signing 'I Love You')
>> Sindhi - Maa tokhe pyar kendo ahyan
>> Sioux - Techihhila
>> Slovak - Lu`bim ta
>> Slovenian - Ljubim te
>> Spanish - Te quiero / Te amo
>> Swahili - Ninapenda wewe
>> Swedish - Jag lskar dig
>> Swiss-German - Ich lieb Di
>> Tagalog - Mahal kita
>> Taiwanese - Wa ga ei li
>> Tahitian - Ua Here Vau Ia Oe
>> Tamil - Nan unnai kathalikaraen
>> Telugu - Nenu ninnu premistunnanu
>> Thai - Chan rak khun (to male)
>> Thai - Phom rak khun (to female)
>> Turkish - Seni Seviyorum
>> Ukrainian - Ya tebe kahayu
>> Urdu - mai aap say pyaar karta hoon
>> Vietnamese - Anh yeu em (to female)
>> Vietnamese - Em yeu anh (to male)
>> Welsh - 'Rwy'n dy garu di
>> Yiddish - Ikh hob dikh lib
>> Yoruba - Mo ni fe e
>> Zulu - Ndiyathanda

sorry, if your coutry is not listed here. write it down in the comment, then i will immediately update it

Around the World with TPN

Members of Travel Photographers Network (TPN) have collaborated to create a photo-book of juried travel images called "Around the World with TPN". The images in the book were selected by 6 judges (including Kah Kit Yoong, and David duChemin) and the books layout was created by professional graphic designed and photographer Sarah Clarehart.

Some of the 50 photographers with work presented in the book include Marsel van Oosten, Matt Brandon, Kah Kit Yoong, Chris Wilson, Paul Prince, Troy Feener and Nick Hall.

Proceeds from the book are going towards an overhaul of the TPN site which is owned and operated by Jim White out of London. This is a worthy effort to enhance the work of dedicated and quality travel photographers, many of whom have been featured on The Travel Photographer blog.

Alessandra Meniconzi: Hidden China

I now have Alessandra Meniconzi's new book Hidden China, which I've enthusiastically perused all last week. As I previously posted, this book explores some of the most remote regions of China and brings to life a world far removed from the great metropolises, a world nearly forgotten, where the people continue to live their traditional lifestyles largely undisturbed.

If you are interested in minority ethnic and traditional cultures of Asia, this book ought to be on your bookshelves. It's available at all major bookstores, and on the on-line book retailers as well. You'll be glad you did.

Alessandra Meniconzi is a Swiss photographer fascinated by the lives and traditions of indigenous people in remote regions of the world. After many years of working in Asia, she traveled in Iceland and became interested in the Arctic. She is the sole photographer for the books Hidden China (2008), Mystic Iceland (2007), and The Silk Road (2004), and she is currently working on the new book about Tibet, Arctic and Himalaya.

On Lonely Planet and the BBC

Another interesting argument against the merger of Lonely Planet and the BBC, with some even more interesting comments on the issue.

I've blogged quite recently about the new Lonely Planet travel magazine which I think is an unfair competitor to Wanderlust (an excellent independent travel magazine which I write for quite a bit).

Why is this unfair? Because LP is now majority-owned by the BBC.

Following on from the new LP Travel magazine (which is written almost 100% by BBC writers and presenters) here's another example of how that playing field just isn't level anymore. Any brand would kill for a tie-up with the BBC on the BBC's homepage. The value in brand terms is huge. And this will translate to more hits for the LP website, more ad revenue and more book sales for LP.

You can't blame LP for wanting to make the most of the fact that its now owned by the BBC (or to be more accurate the commerical arm of the Beeb - BBC Worldwide) and with the clout of one of the world's most influential and wealthy media brands behind it the future for LP looks rosy.

I hadn't thought too much when the deal was announced about the impact on the LP brand of being owned by the BBC, but selling out to a big corporation says heaps about a brand and its future. I can see that Tony Wheeler (LP's founder) quite possibly felt that selling to a cultural corporation like the BBC rather than to a full-on multi-national commercial publisher was a good compromise... and smart too - moving the brand on from being a traditional paper and print publisher to a forward looking media organisation.

But I think it's all wrong. He'd have been better off selling to a fully commercial publisher (or media organisation) rather than one that's subsidised by the UK taxpayer. (Non UK readers - every tax payer in the UK pays an annual TV licence that costs around £130). Whilst some would argue that BBC Worldwide is a separate entity, the reality is that you can't work out where the taxpayer funded elements of the BBC start and where the commerically funded ones take over. And the benefits of association with the BBC brand are - whilst difficult to measure - most probably huge

I'm worried that LP is going to turn into some awful travel publishing megabrand that's everywhere. (take Jamie bleedin Oliver - lovely guy but do we REALLY need a Jamie magazine? For heaven's sake!) Watch this space for LP branded TV shows, LP branded clothes and gear, LP branded areas in tour operators and a plethora or LP branded websites, blog hosting services ane more... not to mention LP guide content being sold to third party tour operators, airlines and so on to use as destination content on their websites

Jeremy Head's Travel Blather

POV: Mentorships

Photo ©Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
A recent spate of photography mentorships and scholarships have appeared on my radar screen...and for obvious reasons, some more than others.

For instance, the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops recently announced that it offers the opportunity "of working with a mentor to expand your photographic knowledge and skills, and to refine your photographic personality.". The mentors are from a group of photography "titans" such as Nevada Weir, Sam Abell, Mary Virginia Swanson and others.

The cost for the long-distance (ie telephone/online) mentorship is $4,500 for a 12-month (17 sessions) Photography Mentorship, $2,200 for a 6-month Photography Mentorship (8 sessions) and $375 for a single session of 60 minutes.

Regular readers of The Travel Photographer blog will recognize what I'm thinking of whilst writing this post....so I'll leave it unsaid (or unwritten).

But hallelujah! Not everything requires a Wall Street bonus in the world of photographic scholarships and mentorships!

We have the stellar example of David Alan Harvey's generosity as just announced on the Magnum blog, and which describes a $10,000 grant which comes under the non-profit umbrella of the Magnum Cultural Foundation.

We also have the brilliant example of the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop, whose faculty of 20 or so photojournalists/photographers are not paid for tutoring the 100+ students expected to attend the workshop in north India.

Yes, there are some bright spots after all.

cool japanese boarding house

this is the building proccess :


and here's the result :






really cool and simple huh ??!!
Yeah, just like a bird's house

Obama Caught up Speaking Indonesian

Yes, the 44th and the current president of the united states Barack Hussein Obama speak in bahasa Indonesia language while he attend to the United States s.department. He said that he want to visit his old neighbour on Jakarta.

after his greeting, he chat with the united states diplomat. and then, Charles Silver the ex-United States counselor on Jakarta accosting president Obama in bahasa Indonesia language "Selamat siang, Bapak."

and then President Obama said "Terima kasih. Apa kabar ?".
Silver : "Baik-baik."

and Silver told that he went to Indonesia many times. and then President Obama told if he visit Indonesia, he want to visit his old neighborhoods at Bilangan Menteng, Jakarta Pusat.

and here is the video...

Jean Michel Clajot: Sacrification

Jean-Michel Clajot is a Belgian photographer, who began his career with a trip to Somalia. He worked for various newspapers, most recently with News Press Agencies in Brussels. Concentrating on Africa, he signed up with Cosmos Photo Agency in Paris for the worldwide distribution of his work, and with Aurora Photos for North American sales.

He has been working for the past three years on " Scarification " in Benin West-Africa. His ensuing book will be published in September 2008 and will be available in English and French.

A previous post on Jean Michel Clajot was featured here.

WoW !!! 10 richest celebrity with their mansion

10. Will Smith

9. Brad Pitt





8. J.K. Rowling



7. Jay Z




6. Johnny Depp


5. David Beckham



4. Beyonce Knowles

(same as Jay Z.)

3. Angelina Jolie

(same as Brad Pitt)

2. Tiger Woods





1. Oprah Winfrey




Now save your money and build a house like their houses

One Shot: Aloha Diao Lavina: Bali

Photo ©Aloha Diao Lavina-All Rights Reserved
Aloha Diao Lavina's photographs have been featured in Estamos! a lifestyle magazine in Ecuador, in an illustrated poetry book in the US, and various online magazines including Utata Tribal Photography. She won second place in the Betterphoto contest, and is a fellow of the Bangkok Photographic Society, and a featured photographer of Fotegrafik, an image bank in Singapore.

Aloha, apart from being a multi-faceted photographer, is also a doctoral student researching the interaction of culture and creativity in children.

From her many excellent galleries, I chose the above photograph for the One Shot feature, and it's from her Eye on Bali. Her travel galleries include Myanmar, Rajasthan, Thailand, Vietnam and Laos.

Aurora Novus

Aurora Photos has launched a new company, Aurora Novus, to cater to the needs of clients' demand for video, motion picture and interactive content, and for storytelling.

The new company seeks to offer a "one-stop visual solution" to such clients. It's not a new approach, with Media Storm being a well-known industry leader in this particular field.

Another reason to check out Aurora Novus' website is to watch Ivan Kashinsky's photographs of the lives of Bolivia's women wrestlers. The story is based on the September 2008 National Geographic story.

Here are more of Ivan's photographs of Las Cholitas.

NY Times: Venice's Carnevale

Photo ©Chris Bickford-All Rights Reserved
The Venice Carnevale is starting in earnest this weekend, and the New York Times has published a slideshow to remind us of the event. It has been celebrated on and off throughout the ages, in different ways and intensity.

The word carnevale comes from the Latin for "goodbye, meat!". As Lent (which begins on Ash Wednesday) obliged people to fast, all meat, butter and eggs had to be consumed during the period up to Ash Wednesday . This religious formality became the excuse for a party that echoed pagan festivities. The eighteenth century was the heyday of Carnival, and Venice's decline in power was accompanied by a conspicuous consumption of pleasure.