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Greetings everyone, you’re listening to the Liam Photography Podcast, I’m your host Liam Douglas and this is Episode 430 for Thursday November 28th, 2024. First of all I want to give a shout out to my late father, Floyd Douglas who would have been 76 years old today. Yes on this day in 1948 my dad was born on Thanksgiving Day and his birthday fell on Thanksgiving every so often including today. I also want to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all of my listeners, and those of you who celebrate this holiday, please enjoy the big meal and time with family and friends.
Display company ViewSonic unveiled the winners of its fifth annual ColorPro Awards, a global competition celebrating the visual arts, including spectacular photography. Photographers and other artists from over 100 countries entered nearly 10,500 artworks into the contest, themed around “Momentum.”
Chilean photographer Benjamin Yavar won first place for photography in the ColorPro Awards with the incredible image seen above, Wormhole. The spectacular image “beautifully captures the essence of ‘momentum’ through the dynamic interaction between the diver and the school of fish,” ViewSonic explains. The diver looks like they are swimming into a wormhole comprising thousands of small, silvery fish.
“The 5th ColorPro Awards celebrates the essence of creativity — evolution, energy, and transformation,” says Oscar Lin, General Manager of the Monitor Business Unit at ViewSonic.
“Each submission masterfully captures the theme of ‘Momentum,’ bringing stories of dynamism and discovery to life through visual art. With submissions growing fivefold since our inaugural ColorPro Awards, we are honored to showcase the diverse talents of our global community and share their remarkable perspectives with the world,” Lin continues.
Those looking to enjoy even more spectacular underwater photography have plenty of choices. The Ocean Photographer of the Year was named just two months ago, while the Underwater Awards Australasia 2024 winners were announced just a couple of weeks later.
Alongside Yavar’s incredible top prize in this year’s ColorPro Awards, judges also named second and third-place photographers.
Turkish photographer Hüseyin Karahan’s image, Swimming Race, dazzled judges with frenetic swimmers donning vibrant red swimming caps.
Third place went to Indian photographer Mahdndra Bakle for Riders of the Volcano. This image, captured at Mount Bromo in Indonesia, shows a member of the Tenngerese people, known as “The Horsemen of Bromo,” riding a bucking horse in a wonderfully backlit mountain scene.
Alongside winners in photography, the ViewSonic ColorPro Awards also celebrate videography and digital art. The winners of these categories are featured on ViewSonic’s dedicated ColorPro Awards website.
Eastman Kodak has temporarily ceased all film production at its Rochester, New York factory as the company seeks to modernize the facility.
During a Q3 2024 quarterly earnings call on November 13, Eastman Kodak’s CEO Jim Continenza revealed that the move is so that the company is better equipped to deal with the increased demand for film.
“We’re doing a shutdown in November, total shutdown,” Continenza said on the call. “We’ve continued to invest in our manufacturing process, while we need to shut down completely to bring light into the dark, right? Film is made in the dark.”
Kosmo Foto reports that Kodak increased production in recent months so the shutdown doesn’t affect stock.
“In November, we will be modernizing the plant, putting more investment within that, which has also caused us to use more cash in the quarter to build up inventories while we do this,” Continenza continues.
“But as we continue to see our commitment and our customer commitment to film, still in motion picture, we are going to continue to invest in that space and continue with that growth.”
Last year, Continenza said that Eastman Kodak will continue to manufacture film as long as there is demand for it. Fortunately, there is plenty of it: Kodak put a call out to hire film technicians in 2022 after declaring, “We cannot keep up with demand.”
Continenza mentioned the company’s “massive, large apprentice program” in the earnings call last week.
“I was just up in Rochester, and we have a massive, large apprentice program, four years of training and learning and dedication,” Continenza said.
“And watching them graduate and come into our workforce full time and highly skilled, I’m so proud of them that made it through because it’s a hard thing to do, right, as we continue to increase jobs.”
Kosmo Foto notes that after years of decline caused by digital photography, demand for film doubled between 2015 and 2019. Younger shooters, in particular, are falling in love with the archaic analog process.
2024 has been an exciting year for film photography enthusiasts, and the thrill is not over. Lomography, well known for its analog cameras, unveiled the Lomourette Half Frame camera today. The 35mm camera can capture 72 images on a single roll of film.
Half-frame cameras have experienced a resurgence in recent years as enthusiasm for analog photography has ballooned, increasing the cost of film as a result. A half-frame camera is a compelling choice for photographers because it captures two images per single frame of 35mm film — two vertical 18 by 24-millimeter photos on a traditional 36 by 24-millimeter frame. Basically, photographers get a two-for-one deal on their roll of film.
Ricoh Imaging employed this approach with its brand-new Pentax 17 camera earlier this year, joining other recent new cameras like the Kodak Ektar H35 and H35N. The new Lomography Lomourette is more like Kodak’s offerings than the Pentax 17, opting for cheaper materials, a cuter style, and a more accessible price point.
The Lomourette’s price is one of its biggest selling points, actually, as the new film camera costs just $69, a relative steal for a brand-new film camera. However, this aggressive price point comes with some apparent compromises in terms of materials. The camera is plastic and includes a built-in 24mm f/8 lens, which can be stopped down to one additional aperture, f/11.
The camera, powered by a single AA battery, relies upon zone focus, does not include autofocus, and does not support ISO adjustment. The camera has two shutter speeds, 1/60s and “bulb,” enabling more manual exposure control. The Lomourette also works with Lomography’s Diana F+ flash, which is included with the camera and ships with colored gels.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times… With the Lomourette, each half frame captures a fragment of existence. Beginners and advanced photographers can use it to craft intriguing narratives through their diptych frames,” Lomography explains. “When shooting half-frame, a roll of film lasts ages! Photographers never need to stop shooting, using multiple exposures and long exposures to their heart’s content – there’s no limit to the Lomourette love affair.”
The target audience is clearly those who want to get their feet wet with film photography but don’t necessarily care to have complete control over the camera or break the bank by buying a lot of film. This is an affordable, accessible entry point to analog photography, much like many of Lomography’s other offerings.
And the Lomography Lomourette can be fairly described as accessible. The $69 camera comes in three variants, a standard one that is black and light blue, a “Picnic Edition” that is mint green and tan, and a Water Lilies Edition that is blue with lily graphics. Each comes with a color-matched flash and gel filters.
An influencer is suing another influencer for copying her “aesthetic” in photos and videos on social media — in a case that may upend how copyright protections work in the content creation industry.
Texas-based influencer Sydney Nicole Gifford filed a first-of-its-kind copyright lawsuit against fellow content creator Alyssa Sheil accusing her of stealing her “neutral, beige, and cream aesthetic.
In the lawsuit filed in April, Gifford — who has over 790,000 followers across Instagram and TikTok — claimed “at least” 30 photo posts across Sheil’s platforms featured “identical styling, tone, camera angle and/or text” to her images.
Gifford also claimed that Sheil — who has 380,000 social media followers — posted “nearly identical videos” to her content.
In her lawsuit, Gifford provided multiple examples of Sheil’s posts that she argues are similar to her own and shared screenshots of the supposedly incriminating photos and videos.
One example shows Sheil wearing an identical outfit and roughly the same background color that Gifford used in one of her videos. Gifford argues that this is copyright infringement.
Another exhibit included a photo of Sheil “going to the very same institution” as Gifford did. Gifford claims that Sheil used nearly identical footage of the doormat at the store’s entrance branded “The Tox” as she did.
In her lawsuit, Gifford claims that she met Sheil in Austin in December 2022 “with the intent of supporting one another’s business,”
But following a joint photoshoot in January 2023, Sheil blocked Gifford online and it was then that the influencer began to copy her content.
According to court documents, Sheil began to publish posts that featured the same or similar Amazon products Gifford promoted and use styling and captions that also appeared to replicate her.
In August, Sheil asked the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas to dismiss Gifford’s lawsuit.
Sheil claimed that her photos embraced the “clean girl” aesthetic, a style characterized by a polished, minimalist look with an emphasis on neutral colors, and cited celebrities such as Hailey Bieber as an influence.
“Unsurprisingly, Gifford’s complaint conspicuously avoids the phrase ‘clean girl’ aesthetic,” Sheil’s lawyers argue in court documents.
“Anyone who googled that phrase or spent a few hours on TikTok or Instagram would quickly realize that it destroys Gifford’s case; her ‘look’ is not original.
“For that matter, on that front, neither is Sheil’s.”
However, earlier this month, a Texas judge ruled that the copyright lawsuit should move forward — with Gifford sufficiently proving that Sheil misappropriated her likeness and violated copyright law by intentionally creating content “virtually indistinguishable” from her own.
In her lawsuit, Gifford is asking for $30,000 to $150,000 in damages for “mental anguish” and loss of income. She argues that the recurring patterns and Sheil’s strikingly similar content have ultimately impacted her earnings. Gifford is also seeking a preliminary injunction that would force Sheil to take down the alleged replicated videos.
Gifford’s case could set a legal precedent for how copyright protections work in the content creation industry. The case could lead to a deluge of similar suits from influencers.
According to a report in Business Insider, while many influencers have complained that other creators are stealing their ideas for content or uploading photos and videos in a similar style to their own, this appears to be the first time an individual has taken legal action.
Lawyer Taylor Tieman, who represents several influencers in the U.S., believes that Gifford’s lawsuit may be a hard case to argue because creators often draw inspiration from each other.
However, the case could spark a fire in the creator community regardless of whether Gifford wins or loses. On the other hand, if Gifford wins the case, Tieman tells Business Insider that it’ll “be nuts” because it will give more creators the confidence and ability to sue others in the industry.
Tamron announced that its 11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD will be available for Canon RF mount in December. Tamron initially said this lens was coming to RF mount back in April.
Its first RF-mount lens, the 11-20mm f/2.8, is already available for Sony E-mount and Fujifilm X-mount but will be making its debut on Canon RF-mount on December 12. Like with Sigma, Canon has only issued an official license to Tamron to bring over APS-C lenses to its mirrorless platform. While probably frustrating for Canon full-frame photographers, it’s a boon for users of the smaller sensor since Canon’s first-party APS-C lens offerings have been pretty poor and limited.
As a recap, Tamron characterizes the 11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD as a fast-aperture zoom lens covering a focal length range from ultra-wide-angle 11mm to 20mm that pairs well with a fast f/2.8 aperture through that range. It’s a small and lightweight lens, too, despite the fast aperture and Tamron says it is designed to feel well-balanced when attached to an APS-C mirrorless camera body.
It features a construction of 12 elements arranged into 10 groups, including two GM (Glass Molded Aspherical) lens elements that Tamron says maintain high resolution across the entire image area as well as one XLD (eXtra Low Dispersion) and two LD (Low Dispersion) lens elements that are designed to suppress aberrations.
It uses Tamron’s RXD (Rapid-eXtra-silent stepping Drive) stepping motor unit to drive the autofocus and Tamron says it’s “remarkably quiet” and also fast and smooth enough to make the lens suitable for both photo and video applications.
One notable difference between this RF-mount version and the Sony and Fujifilm versions is that Tamron added a Manual Focus/Autofocus selector switch to the outside of the lens body. The previous design required toggling this from the menu, but Canon’s version offers this physical, tactile switch instead — what is likely seen to be a major upgrade. It also maintains the connection port that allows the lens to be updated using the company’s Lens Utility software.
As mentioned, the Tamron 11-20mm f/2.8 Di III-A RXD will be available on December 12 but, unexpectedly, it will retail for less than the Sony and Fujifilm versions: $659 versus $699.
Wildlife Photographer Of the Year
Animal lovers are being asked to vote for their favorite picture for this year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award.
The amazing set of 25 photos includes a determined honey badger with a face full of spikey quills from a porcupine, a beluga whale exfoliating its skin, and a scientist dressed as a whooping crane in Louisiana.
Wildlife Photographer of the Year is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum, London. To vote for your favorite photo, head to the museum’s website where you can cast your vote. A selection of the images are below.
Vote for your favorite photo here.
An extraordinary collection of 50 photographs, owned by Henri Cartier-Bresson’s brother-in-law, went to auction this week.
Eric Franck, a renowned figure and collector in fine art photography, dedicated decades to celebrating the work of some of the most iconic photographers of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Through his personal connections, such as his sister Magnum photographer Martine Franck and her husband Henri Cartier-Bresson, Franck had unique access to some of the most significant photography.
On Monday, American auction house Heritage Auctions invited collectors to explore rare works from Franck’s unparalleled collection in the Photographs from the Collection of Eric Franck auction.
“For many decades, Eric Franck, brother of celebrated Magnum photographer Martine Franck, has been at the forefront of the fine art photographic community,” Laura Paterson, Heritage’s Consignment Director of Photographs, says in a press release.
“As a highly respected photography dealer, collector, and philanthropist, Franck’s connoisseurship and curatorial sensibility have helped shape our understanding of some of the most celebrated photographers of the 20th and 21st centuries.”
The collection of 50 images taken by acclaimed photographers Franck admires includes several works by his brother-in-law Cartier-Bresson, as well as Josef Koudelka, Chris Killip, and Graham Smith.
“The images share a common theme of ordinary people making the best of life in unfavorable circumstances, whether in the Soviet bloc, Margaret’s Thatcher’s Britain, or the segregated American South,” Paterson adds.
The sale includes Cartier-Bresson’s Barcelona (1933) and New Orleans, Louisiana (1947) which shows a young girl on a determined walk between houses in one of the city’s historic wards in the American South.
The auction also includes a series of images by street photographer Josef Koudelka. These include a playful portrait of three Roma boys clowning for the camera in the Czech Republic (then Czechoslovakia), a picture of an old Roma couple in an interior, and the Koudelka’s arresting photo titled Jarabina, Czechoslovakia (1963).
“Here, an anxious young man, who is suspected of murder, is shown standing alone wearing handcuffs against a backdrop of police and bystanders,” Nigel Russell, Heritage’s Director of Photographs says of Jarabina, Czechoslovakia.
“These powerful studies not only document the transitory lifestyle and culture of the Roma but also show the persecution they experience at the hands of the authorities and the indigenous population.”
Police Search for Missing Photographer
A police search is underway for photographer Hannah Kobayashi who vanished on her way to New York City where she had a photo job planned.
30-year-old photographer Hannah Kobayashi, who lives in Maui, Hawaii, has been missing for over two weeks.
On November 8, Kobayashi flew from Maui to Los Angeles and vanished shortly after landing.
Kobayashi was supposed to get on a connecting flight to New York for a trip where she planned to visit her aunt and do a photography job, according to an itinerary she posted online.
Surveillance footage shows Kobayashi getting off the flight at the Los Angeles airport. The photographer then had 42 minutes to make her flight to New York but it appears she missed her connection.
Kobayashi’s family initially thought she would catch another flight but she told them she had begun to explore Los Angeles.
Surveillance footage showed Kobayashi at the Grove shopping center in the Fairfax District, about 12 miles north of LAX, on November 9 and 10. There is also CCTV videos showing the photographer returning to LAX but not getting on a flight on November 11 before she was seen near a downtown metro station.
On November 10, the photographer’s family says they started receiving “strange and cryptic” text messages from her phone. The messages referenced her being “intercepted” as she got on a train and being scared someone was trying to steal her identity.
However, since November 11, Kobayashi’s family says her phone has been off.
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) launched an investigation into Kobayashi’s disappearance with assistance from the FBI.
The photographer’s father Ryan Kobayashi flew out to Los Angeles to find his daughter. However, tragically, he was found dead near LAX in the early hours of Sunday.
He died in an apparent suicide and was found in a parking lot near the airport, according to the LAPD.
In a statement to AP News, the family asked for privacy as it grieves Ryan’s death. They urge the public to “maintain focus on the search for her. Hannah is still actively missing and is believed to be in imminent danger. It is crucial for everyone to remain vigilant in their efforts to locate Hannah.”
Kobayashi is 5 feet 10 inches tall and about 140 pounds. She has brown hair and brown eyes and is fair-skinned with freckles.
Anyone who has seen or has any information regarding the whereabouts of Hannah Kobayashi should contact the LAPD at 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (877-527-3247)
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