Newslines
April 2008
In Memoriam: Burt Glinn
Burt Glinn, an accomplished photojournalist and past president of ASMP, died on April 9. He will be missed.
Born in 1925, Glinn went into the Army in 1943. After the war, he attended Harvard University and joined the staff of the Harvard Crimson newspaper. He then did a brief stint as a staff assistant at Life magazine before becoming a freelance photographer in 1950. In 1951, he, Eve Arnold and Dennis Stock became the first Americans to join the Magnum photo agency.
He soon became known for his spectacular color essays on the South Seas, Japan, Russia, Mexico and California. His photography was published in books, including A Portrait of All the Russians and A Portrait of Japan. His magazine credits include Esquire, Geo, Travel & Leisure, Fortune, Life and Paris Match.
In 1959 he received the Mathew Brady Award for Magazine Photographer of the Year from the University of Missouri. He also earned a Best Book of Photographic Reporting from Abroad from the Overseas Press Club and a Best Print Ad of the Year from the Art Directors Club of New York.
Glinn was also an able leader. He was president of Magnum between 1972 and 1975, and was re-elected to the post in 1987. He was ASMP president in 1980-81, during the Society’s 35th Anniversary, and some of his thoughts were excerpted for the 60th Anniversary observance.
A portfolio of his images appeared in the Winter 2007 issue of the ASMP Bulletin, and a lengthy interview is posted in the Mentor Showcase of the ASMP website.
A tribute to Glinn’s photojournalism is on view at the Seattle Art Museum Gallery, April 3 - May 3, 2008.
In memoriam: Dith Pran, inspiration for The Killing Fields
Dith Pran, the Cambodian journalist whose story was the basis for the movie The Killing Fields, died of cancer on March 30. He was 65 years old.
In the early 1970s, Mr. Dith worked as a translator and assistant to Sydney Schanberg, a New York Times reporter in Phnom Penh. When Cambodia fell to Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge forces, Schanberg helped Dith's family to escape, but he was unable to save Dith. For the next four and a half years, Dith survived by pretending to be an uneducated peasant, until he was able to escape the country.
Dith moved to the U.S. and went to work for the Times as a photographer. Schanberg, whose reports from Phnom Penh had already earned him a Pulitzer, recounted Dith's ordeal in a magazine article, "The Death and Life of Dith Pran," which became a book and then was turned into the movie. The movie won three Oscars, including one for Haing S. Ngor, the actor who played the role of Dith Pran.
Dith became a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and he founded the Dith Pran Holocaust Awareness Project to educate people about the history of the Khmer Rouge. It is estimated that two million of Cambodia's seven million people perished during Pol Pot's regime.
ASMP member Peter B. Kaplan adds this personal reminiscence.
This is a photograph of Pran and me on his first bridge climb to the top of the Williamsburg Bridge.
When Pran first came to America, the NY Times took him to five photographers' studios to see who he wanted to assist in order to learn his photography trade. I was very fortunate to have Pran choose me and my staff to train under. I always love showing this image in some of my lectures because both Pran and I look so happy. Many years later, I heard from Fred Conrad that one time, the photo editor gave Pran an assignment that was to be up high, and he said, "You assisted Kaplan so you must love heights." Pran replied, "I was always scared when we climbed but I had to go where my boss took me."
One of my great memories of Pran was when he would be working at his desk, which was 7 or 8 feet from my desk. I had (and still have) a Sharp Talking Clock that would say the time every 30 minutes. One day he said, "How does that work?" I replied, "There is a little, little man inside," and we both smiled and then I tried to explain the truth. To this day, when my clock speaks I think of Pran and smile.
Judy Herrmann to receive 2008 Professional Photographer Leadership Award
The International Photographic Council (IPC), a non-governmental organization of the United Nations, has announced the recipients of its 10th annual IPC Professional Photographer Leadership Awards. The winners will be recognized at the IPC's "International Professional Photographers Month" luncheon at the United Nations in New York City on Thursday, May 8, at 11:30 a.m.
An IPC Special Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Rainer Schmidt, Executive Director of German Photoindustrie Verband. Mr. Hiro Sakai, President and CEO of Fujifilm USA, is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at the luncheon.
The honorees include Judy Herrmann, immediate past president of ASMP. Others to be recognized arere George Fulton, nominated by Advertising Photographers of America; Ann Monteith, nominated by Professional Photographers of America; George Davis, nominated by the Professional School Photographers Association International; and Marty LaVor, nominated by the White House News Photographers Association.
The awards are presented each May, International Professional Photographer's Month, by the International Photographic Council. Winners are selected by each of five professional photography organizations: Advertising Photographers of America (APA); American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP); Professional Photographers of America (PPA); Professional School Photographers Association International (PSPA); and White House News Photographers Association (WHNPA). Each organization decides which of its members receives the award, based on standards they use within the organization.
Second annual LOOK3 Festival slated for June
Last year Charlottesville, Virginia hosted the first annual LOOK3 Festival of the Photograph. It was a fantastic three days of "peace, love, and photography" that celebrated the careers of legendary photographers Sally Mann, Eugene Richards, and William Albert Allard with gallery shows and on-stage interviews. It transformed the historic downtown Charlottesville into a "living image" with world-class photography exhibitions, outdoor projections, master presentations, film screenings, and special events.
This coming June 12-14, the organizers will do it all over again with an all-new lineup of photographers, including three featured artists: Mary Ellen Mark, Joel-Peter Witkin, and James Nachtwey. Full details (including a slideshow from last year) can be found on the event website.
Also new in 2008 are the LOOK3 Workshops and Project Critique Sessions. Photographers of all skill levels will find invaluable instruction and experience by enrolling in classes taught by renowned photographers David Alan Harvey, William Albert Allard, Eugene Richards and Lynn Johnson. The shooting workshops will be intense 5-day courses (June 7-12) in which students will craft a body of work from start to finish during the week, learn to work under a deadline, edit and sequence their images, and develop and refine their skills as a shooter. In addition, participants will collaborate with other students, have access to Canon equipment, and be able to see their final product projected in the historic Paramount Theater on the last day. And the end of the workshops is just the beginning as all workshop students will have full admittance to LOOK3 events.
The Project Critique Sessions will be one-day classroom sessions led by professional photographer Maggie Steber and MaryAnne Golon, Director of Photography at Time magazine. Maggie and MaryAnne will help photographers with an existing project uncover the seed of the work, talk about approach and point of view, edit and sequence the work, and identify a strategy for moving it forward. With encouragement, insight, and renewed inspiration, attendees will walk away energized and confident about the future of their project.
To learn more about the LOOK3 Workshops and Project Critique Sessions, please visit www.festivalofthephotograph.org/2008/workshops.html
Magnum Workshop Toronto at CONTACT
The Magnum Workshop Toronto, held May 5th - 9th, 2008, is a five-day intensive, practice-oriented workshop that seeks to provide personal photographic growth in an intimate and intensive environment. Each of the 6 five-day workshops will be led by an accomplished Magnum Photographer, each with their distinctive style and approach to photography.
Students will select one of the following Magnum photographers as a workshop leader: Christopher Anderson, Chien-Chi Chang, Bruce Gilden, David Hurn, Alessandra Sanguinetti and Larry Towell. Participants will produce individual projects under the same constraints as a professional assignment, but with daily review and editing sessions within their groups. Focusing on story formation, visual literacy, and personal vision, these intimate, intensive masterclasses form the center of the Toronto Workshop. As part of the workshops, students will participate in an exhibition produced by HP, featuring work produced over the week.
For more info, visit agency.magnumphotos.com/about/torontoworkshop.aspx
The Stock Asylum donates archives to Stock Artists Alliance
The Stock Asylum announced that it is closing its doors and will be donating its archives of valuable stock industry reporting, analysis and resources to the Stock Artists Alliance.
SAA Executive Director Betsy Reid stated, "Ron Rovtar, the voice behind The Stock Asylum, has served as an invaluable resource to stock industry professionals over the past four years. We will no doubt miss Ron's intrepid reporting and keen analysis, urging photographers and distributors to think beyond the headlines and to challenge industry norms."
ASPP conference in Phoenix
The American Society of Picture Professionals will present its fifth annual education conference in Phoenix this month. The confab will take place at the Hilton Phoenix East/ Mesa hotel from Thursday through Sunday, April 24-27, 2008.
For conference information, times, sessions, and more, download the complete brochure from http://www.aspp.com/users/ASPPSite4390/docs/2008BrochureFinal.pdf. To register, visit http://www.aspp.com/pages/194/183/0/.
Summer documentary workshop: Coney Island
This summer, Kevin C. Downs will lead a 13-session workshop on Coney Island. The sessions take place each Saturday afternoon and evening from June 7 through September 6.
During this workshop, students will be documenting the changing conditions of light and weather, interacting with the environment and architecture of Coney Island. The natural elements and all of the remaining details tell the story of its historic beginnings as the people's playground to the present. We will be working in both daylight and nighttime photography. Students will be shooting the icons of the Cyclone, Deno's Wonder Wheel, Astroland and the Mermaid Parade, boardwalk denizens' and personalities, the beach, Nathan's, the tourists, etc, from the water to Mermaid Avenue, developing their powers of observation and their techniques.
Students will be asked to think of a specific documentary theme to focus on for the entire 13 sessions. Some examples could include: "The People of Coney Island", "Architecture of Coney Island", etc. The documentary theme can be anything that tells a story and documents the people, architecture or landscape of Coney Island. The theme you choose will need to be appproved by the instructor. Students will present their work every week, (only in-class participation will be allowed) where the instructor and students will review it for guidance and feedback. Students will gain insights into staying focused on the theme and how to improve upon the body of work. Although some technical support will be offered, this is neither a technical nor darkroom course. Students should have a working knowledge of their equipment and a willingness to engage in discussion. At the end of the 13 sessions, we will create a Flickr site and a book of the class's work.
All Sessions except June 21 (Mermaid Parade) and July 19 (Siren Festival) begin with a review at noon in the Coney Island Museum (1208 Surf Avenue). Come and document what is left of the real New York! The Real Brooklyn!
The cost for the summer is $250. To register, go to Coney Island.com and visit their Gift Shop and click on Sideshow School -- or just go to http://commerce.pair.com/alhadeff/coneystore/index.php?main_page=producpage=product_info&cPath=14&products_id=123.
April Jay Maisel Workshop announced
On April 14-18, Jay Maisel will once again offer a Jay Maisel Workshop to a few photographers from all across the country. We’d try to tell you what it’s going to be like, but not even Jay can do that; as he says, “It’s a free form living thing.” It includes going out into New York City for street photography, discussions and criticism of the images, meals taken together … talking and thinking about photography from early morning to late evening every day.
For more info and a registration form, visit this page.
Urban Green Project to highlight Apple Store panel in Chicago
The work of Lisa Wright and Brian Warling is gaining recognition. The Urban Green Project website was recently featured in an exhibit focusing on Green Architecture at the Lubeznik Center for the Arts in Michigan City, Indiana. And its blog was featured a couple of weeks ago in Time Out magazine.
Brian will be hosting a panel discussion at the Apple Store on Michigan Ave. in Chicago on Earth Day (April 22) focusing on the exciting trend toward the greening of our community, our buildings and the products we use. There is a shift toward sustainability going on in the country and it will be an exciting conversation at the Apple Store on Earth day. The panelists are hoping to announce another exciting green project on that day.
Flashes of Hope featured in People
People magazine will be featuring an article about Flashes of Hope — but not, as we were told earlier, in the first April issue. The article is being rescheduled and the new date has not yet been announced.
As you know, Flashes of Hope is dedicated to creating portraits of children facing life-threatening illness. Many of ASMP’s chapters and members have contributed to this worthy project. Said exec director Allison Clarke, “We would like to thank you for all of your support over the years. It has been a pleasure working with you.”
AIPAD photo show April 10-13
The AIPAD Photography Show New York will be presented by the Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD) from April 10 through 13, 2008. More than 75 of the world’s leading fine art photography galleries will present a wide range of museum-quality work by contemporary, modern and 19th century masters at the Park Avenue Armory at 67th Street and Park Avenue in New York City. The show will open with a Gala Preview on April 9 to benefit the John Szarkowski Fund, an endowment for photography acquisitions at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. For the full schedule, visit www.aipad.com/photoshow/.
PhotoShelter sets student contest
PhotoShelter has launched its first annual Elevation photo contest for its student members. It is open to all students currently enrolled in domestic and international colleges and universities. To submit images for consideration, a contestant must have 25 or more images submitted to the PhotoShelter Collection before April 16, 2008. All entrants who are accepted to Elevation 2008 will have the opportunity to sell their images through the PhotoShelter Collection, which is free to join. (PhotoShelter notes that photographers keep 70% of every transaction.) Details are at www.photoshelter.com/mkt/student.