Archives: April, 2009
Features
Interview with freelance photographer and cultural journalist Sara Lesch
We are pleased to have with us, all the way from Sweden, photographer, Sara Lesch who describes herself as a photographer and a freelance cultural journalist. A native of Santiago Chile who studied at the International Center of Photography in NYC, and Gothenburg University in Sweden, Lesch served as co-editor of the cultural art magazine Presens and also worked with other cultural magazines like Glänta. Her photography has often dealt with investigations about heritage and the creation of the self. Sara Lesch is currently working as project leader for international youth work in the City of Molndal and lives in Gothenburg in the west of Sweden.
News
Framepool now representing footage from the National Film Board of Canada
Framepool, a stock footage licensing company based in Munich Germany, has announced that it has completed an agreement with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB), Canada’s public film producer and distributor. The NFB produces and distributes innovative, socially relevant documentary, animation, alternative drama and digital media productions. In total, the NFB has produced over 13,000 productions which have won over 5,000 awards so far including 12 Oscars. “Our collection represents premium motion content in terms of quality, creativity and uniqueness. One can see that Framepool is run by filmmakers who are as passionate when it comes to films as we are at the NFB. That’s why we have partnered with Framepool,” explains Johanne St-Arnauld, Director General, Distribution, at the NFB.
News
Corbis launches stock footage site
Corbis, a leading stock licensing company, has announced that it has launched a new motion site in order to license stock footage online. The site features tens of thousands of high definition(HD), rights managed (RM) and royalty free(RF) clips and also includes clips from Paramount Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., National Geographic, Sony Pictures Entertainment, HBO Archives and the Smithsonian Channel, via a recent partnership with Denver-based Thought Equity Motion. “The new Corbis Motion provides customers with a fast, convenient search and a smooth, simple purchasing and delivery experience,” said Doug Segers, Director, Corbis Motion. “We have outstanding HD, RM and RF collections that can serve all types of creative needs from film and television to new media.”
Features
Trends in Stock Licensing: Visual Search
In the midst of an economic downturn that’s clearly having a dramatic impact on our industry, I think it’s an interesting time to think about how a few emerging technologies, combined with the ongoing shift from print advertising to Web-based advertising, might affect stock licensing in the coming months:
News
Press Association photographers awarded prestigious photography awards
The Press Association (PA), the UK’s national news agency owned by PA Group Limited, has announced that PA photographers, Stefan Rousseau and David Cheskin have both triumphed in recent photography awards. Rousseau picked up the prize for Photographer of the Year at the prestigious British Press Awards, while Cheskin won Photographer of the Year at the First ScotRail Press Photography Awards.
News
Blend Images launches new website and brand identity
Blend Images, a photographer-owned producer and distributor of royalty-free (RF) and rights-managed (RM) content, has announced that it has launched an updated website, logo, and brand identity. The agency sought to emphasize its ethnically diverse collection of business and lifestyle imagery. The campaign and design were developed by New York agency Spil Creative, an integrated design firm with expertise in visual branding.
News
Canada Post selects Image from Alaska Stock to raise awareness about global warming
Alaska Stock Images, a specialty agency featuring photos from from Alaska and Antarctica, has announced that a polar bear image from its archive has been selected by Canada Post to be used as part of an international postal awareness campaign on the effects of global warming. The image of the lone polar bear swimming in melting sea ice in Bellot Strait near Resolute Bay was created by Alaska Stock photographer Amanda Byrd. “I am truly honored that my image of the polar bear has been chosen to be part of Canada Post’s commitment of global warming awareness, and I am excited that this stamp will be viewed in some 30 other countries,” remarked Amanda.
News
AudioMicro now representing Blastwave FX Sound Effects Library
AudioMicro.com, a micropayment licensing platform for audio clips and sound effects, has announced the addition of the Blastwave FX sound effects library, giving the site an additional 32,000 royalty free sound effects. “Blastwave FX pushes the envelope in sonic quality, selection, format, and delivery,” said Ric Viers, author of the “Sound Effects Bible”. “Our affiliation with AudioMicro gives independent media creators a slick and easy way to access our sound effects and production elements.”
News
Learning-Pictures.com launches niche stock photo company targeting educational market
A new stock photography company called the Education Stock Pictures Company based in Chicago, Illinois, has launched a new stock picture site located at Learning-Pictures.com. Yhe new site features content from multiple sources including Encyclopaedia Britannica, De Agostini Editore, Amana Images, Corbis, Scala Archives, the New York Public Library, Peter Arnold, Blend Images, Superstock, and others. “We are delighted that Learning Pictures is representing our picture content which we have developed and produced for our own publications and online educational services” said Michael Ross, Senior Vice President of Production at Encyclopaedia Britannica.
News
Reflex Stock hires new Account Manager in New York City office
Reflex Stock, a stock photography company based in Northern Ireland, has announced that it has hired Stephanie Levine as an Account Manager to work in the company’s recently opened New York City office. Stephanie comes to Reflex Stock with a decade of experience including her most recent experience as an Account Manager for Digital Railroad.
News
StockShop appoints Dorian Romer to lead expansion effort in New York City
Stockshop, a boutique rights-managed (RM) stock agency from Boston has announced that it is expanding its presence in New York city with the appointment of industry veteran Dorian Romer as Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing. Romer joins StockShop LLC after serving in a similar role for Veer. “Dorian is the ideal person for this position,” says Maggie Fellner Hunt, StockShop’s president and founder. “Her depth of experience and commitment to the industry are exactly what we need to help grow our business. It’s a very exciting time for StockShop and we are delighted to have Dorian on the team.”
Features
Interview with photographer and filmmaker Peter Ruprecht
Peter Ruprecht is an award-winning photographer and filmmaker and is currently in charge of Digital Strategy at WDDG, a leading Interactive Media Agency. Before joining WDDG, Peter was Vice President of Interactive and New Media for the global lifestyle and fashion company Marc Ecko Enterprises. In 2004, Peter co-founded Forza Films, a South American documentary production company that has produced work for leading networks. Peter has also had a long-standing career consulting companies of stature, including Merrill Lynch, Price Waterhouse Coopers and Opera Solutions. Born in Argentina, Peter was raised in Vermont and attended Dartmouth College. He was ranked as a top skier in the United States and has traveled the world extensively.
News
National Geographic Digital Media unveils “Infinite Photograph” web 2.0 Application
National Geographic Digital Media (NGDM) has launched a cutting-edge Web 2.0 photography mosaic application featuring user-generated content called “Infinite Photograph” featuring mosaics created from user-submitted photos of the natural world as part of National Geographic’s My Shot “As Seen on Earth” hub. Gearing up for Earth Day, the first Infinite Photograph theme debuts at http://www.ngm.com/infinite.
News
Imense launches semi-automatic keywording tool
Imense, a Cambridge (UK) company producing leading image recognition and retrieval software, has announced that it has launched a new product called Annotator, billed as a semi-automated keywording tool designed to dramatically reduce the time it takes for photographers to keyword their images. The tool uses special image recognition technology to detect and suggest keywords related to the number of people in the image, orientation, image type, presence of copy space, ethnic origin and age range, Etc. “With such dramatic acceleration in efficiency, blended with more commercially optimised keywording, Annotator is a step change in a traditionally slow and often ineffective process” says Tony Rowland, Director of Sales for imense.
News
Gulf Images launches upload module for user-generated content
Gulf Images, a stock photography company based in Dubai has announced that it has launch an Upload utility to allow professional, semi-professional and serious hobbyists to upload content to be represented by the agency. “Through Gulfimages.com Upload we are hoping to tap into unrecognized photography talent in the region, nurture their development and help them to start earning some serious money. We are also hoping to reach out to professionals and serious hobbyists from around the world who may have images on the Arabic world , said Mr Pankaj Shah, Managing Partner, Gulfimages.com.
News
Action Plus acquired by Portray Limited
Action Plus, as 30-year old sports image library, based in London, has been acquired by Portray Limited, a company wholly owned by industry veteran Stephen Hearn. For 30 years, Action Plus was owned and operated by Richard Francis, a well known and sought after car and motorbike event photographer. The library, mostly editorial with news/feature images covering over 300 different sporting events, now extends to over 1.3 million images and is currently represented by more than 20 photo agencies worldwide.
News
WIPO selects ‘Promoting Green Innovation’ theme for 2009 World Intellectual Property Day
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a specialized agency of the United Nations, has announced the theme for its annual World Intellectual Property Day to be held on April 26 will be “promoting green innovation as a key element in meeting the challenges of climate change”. In his message to mark the day, WIPO Director General Francis Gurry highlights the contribution that a balanced intellectual property (IP) system can make in enabling the development of technology-based solutions to mitigate the impact of climate change.
News
Masterfile opens office in India
Masterfile, a stock photography company based in Toronto with offices in France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom, has announced that it is expanding operations in South Asia by launching local service for clients in India. The company has partnered with stock photography, television and publishing, veteran Ramji Ravindran to open Its office based in Hyderabad. Masterfile India , will be the exclusive distributor of the Masterfile Collection in South Asia, serving clients in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
News
Johnér Bildbyrå expands to Norway and Finland
Johnér Bildbyrå, a stock photography company based in Stockholm specializing in still images and footage with a Scandinavian feel, has announced that it is expanding its Nordic operations to Norway and Finland. This follows the a similar step made by the company in Denmark last year.
News
PantherMedia & NaturFoto Magazine launch “Wonders of Nature” photo competition
PantherMedia, a growing micro-stock image agency from Munich Germany has teamed up with NaturFoto Magazine, a German nature photography magazine to launch a new photo competition entitled “Wonders of Nature“ from May 1st - July 31st. To participate photographers must register as a free standard member at PantherMedia and upload their photo for the competition. First and second prize are the Sony DSLR A200k Alpha and the DCS-W210 Cyber-Shot, followed by prizes fom MyPhotobook with a total value of 240 Euro.
