As the year comes to an end, there are a few items of note to share with you. First, the news that you've been waiting for—just who will be the 2011 Second Edition Hot Shots!?—is coming soon*. In the meantime, we know that if you're like us, there are a couple other things you might have on your mind. It is, after all, the time of year for friends, family, merriment and gifting. We've culled a few of our favorite prints for photographers—good for giving (and for getting!). As you know, prints sales on 20x200 directly benefit your fellow photogaphers. Now that's a gift that truly gives back!

HEY, HOT SHOT! HONORARIES
One of the (many) perks in submitting an entry to Hey, Hot Shot! is that all of the work is reviewed for participation on 20x200. In fact, since the competition launched in 2005, some 45 photographers found through the competition have released limited-edition prints. From two-time winning Hot Shot Joseph O. Holmes' NYC-centric works, to 2010 Ultra Chikara Umihara's tranquil, idyllic landscape and First Edition 2011 contender Rubi Lebovitch's humorous, surreal B-sides, you can find (and support) Hot Shots on 20x200.

THE GREATS
Artists Jessica Craig-Martin, Simon Fujiwara and Mike + Doug Starn have all released photographs through 20x200, adding to their roster of stellar photographers like Roger Ballen, Tierney Gearon and former HHS! panelist Todd Hido.

THE PAPARAZZO PURISTS
Whether it's Todd McLellan's exploding (then neatly, dare-I-say obsessively, organized) antique camera, or a collector's-must-have illustration of vintage beauties—a Polaroid Land Camera 1000 with trademark rainbow stripes; the boxy Ilford Sprite 35 from the '40s; the plastic, space-age Spartus Rocket from '62, and more—these prints pay homage to the tech of yesteryear.

THE ERUDITE EYE
It's hard getting all the best photobooks on one shelf, but Jane Mount's Ideal Bookshelf 367: Photography has done it for you, listing some of our favorite photobooks from the likes of Paul Fusco, Zoe Strauss, Ed Ruscha and Hiroshi Sugimoto. Meanwhile, Winter 2007 Hot Shot Mickey Smith's photographs of bound periodicals and journals in libraries are a lament of sorts of the digitalization of the written word.

HOLIDAY SAVINGS FROM 20x200
Just in time for the holidays, from now until 12/19, there's free shipping on all orders $99+ and free giftwrapping on 8"x10" and 11"x14" prints through 12/18 (enter code FREEWRAP at checkout). If you'd like to nab a print for yourself or a gift, be sure to also check out 20x200's selection of Ready to Ship framed prints that arrive the next business day. To ensure delivery in time for the holidays, use this guide:

Standard Shipping: Order by Sunday 12/19 for 12/23 delivery
Expedited Shipping: Order by Thursday 12/22 for 12/24 delivery

Note: USPS or FedEx factors out of our control may affect actual delivery timing. Please order as early as possible for best results.

Many thanks to all the photographers who submitted their work to the last round of competition for 2011. Such an amazing and diverse array of photography was sent to us! Our discerning panel of industry pros, along with our curatorial team, will be convening next week at HHS! HQ to select the Second Edition 2011 Hot Shots. And very, very soon afterwards, we'll be announcing the Hot Shots, not to mention the Blurb credits-winning contenders, who'll have the opportunity to publish their own photography books. Be sure to keep an eye on your inbox, the site and our blog for the big announcements.

+ Speaking of self-publishing photography books, 2010 Hot Shot Amy Stevens recently published her book, Confections, using Blurb credits she won through Hey, Hot Shot! Amy's had a busy year—she recently returned from the Lishui International Photography Festival in China, where she was invited to exhibit in the curated exhibit American Life and was awarded an Excellence in Photography award. The exhibition will be traveling to museums throughout China for one year, starting in January.

+ Summer 2006 Hot Shot Ernie Button attended the Lishui Photography Festival in 2009. His photographs of that journey are now on exhibit at Modified Arts in Phoenix, Arizona. Riding through Lishui will be on view through December 10th, but join him for a reception this Friday, December 2nd, from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.

+ The SFMOMA recently acquired several works from Second Edition 2009 Hot Shot Alejandro Cartagena's Suburbia Mexicana project for their photography collection. They will be on display for a major exhibition on Mexican photography, slated for March 10th, 2012 through July 8th.

+ The Aperture Foundation (of which panelist Lesley A. Martin is publisher of their book program) and the BFA Photography Department at the School of Visual Arts, along with Dear Dave, magazine (both of which are headed by panelist Stephen Frailey) are presenting a re-screening of An Evening with Diane Arbus and Marvin Israel. An original audio recording of a 1970 slide presentation by Diane Arbus, in which she eloquently discusses her work and her motivations, will be followed by a screening of Who is Marvin Israel?, the 2005 short documentary on the life and work of the enigmatic Marvin Israel, whose influence on Diane Arbus, Richard Avedon and Lee Friedlander, among others, is explored in the words of those who knew him. The screening will take place on Thursday, December 15th, at 7:30 p.m. at the SVA Theatre, 333 West 23rd Street, New York.

+ Registration is now open for the Palm Springs Photo Festival 2012, slated for April 1st thru the 6th. A week-long event for photographers, it consists of workshops, portfolio reviews, seminars, symposiums and parties.

Great news, photographers! You already know about our grand prize: $10K, a solo show and two years of gallery representation. And you already know that each and every submission is reviewed for participation with 20x200, where Hey, Hot Shot! photographers have sold nearly $1 million worth of prints.

Just ahead of our looming deadline, today we're announcing a new prize, eligible to EVERYONE who submits an entry. Jen Bekman and her curatorial team will select five photographers from the Second Edition 2011 round of competition, and each will receive a $200 Blurb credit towards publishing his/her very own photography book. To give you an example of what $200 can get you from the self publishing giant, that's about six landscape-sized, full-color books at 40 pages each. Think of all the opportunities to have your work seen—and held, and revisited. But don't get too lost in thought; you only have FOUR days left to apply. All entries must be submitted by Monday, November 21st, at 11:59 p.m. ET. Enter now!

Blurb truly is an amazing company, putting the bookmaking tools directly in the hands of artists. And they've been a great partner to Hey, Hot Shot! in past rounds, offering $1,000 credits to winning Hot Shots. They've also got a competition of their own: Their annual Photography Book Now competition awards great prizes to the very best in self-published photo books. We were, of course, thrilled to learn three of the winning photographers from 2010's round were all Contenders. In fact, the 2010 PBN grand prize, $25,000, went to Contender Judith Stenneken. With some 30 Hey, Hot Shot! photographers having created their own photo books through Blurb, it was only fitting we created a bookstore for the talented shooters. Will your own photo book be listed among them?

If you'd like more information on publishing a photo book, be sure to check out Blurb, as well as Hey, Hot Shot! panelist Darius Himes' in-depth, insider-written and helpful Publish Your Photography Book, co-written with Mary Virginia Swanson.

Resting on a Bush, by Yijun (Pixy) Liao

Photographers, the end of the competition is fast approaching. Even faster: The entry fee will once again rise on Saturday, November 12th at midnight, EDT (to $80). That means you have a little over a week to start your entry. You'll have until the deadline, November 14th at 11:59 p.m. EDT to complete it, but start your entry now to lock in the $70 fee.

+ Congrats to Hot Shots Laurie Kang (First Edition 2011), Jessica Eaton (Second Edition 2009), Kurt Tong (First Edition 2009), Yijun (Pixy) Liao (Second Edition 2008) and Justin James Reed (Spring 2007), who'll be part of the Flash Forward 2011 Emerging Photographers exhibition and book launch, which kicks off Wednesday, November 9th, from 7:00 - 10:00 p.m. in Toronto's AirShip 37.

+ Lens Culture FotoFest Paris 2011 is taking place from November 7th through the 9th. Our own Sara Distin will be representing JBP and reviewing portfolios. Be sure to say hi if you're there.

+ Also in Paris: Magnum Foundation and 20x200 will be presenting their latest collaboration, a pair of limited-edition prints by renowned photographer Inge Morath, to benefit Magnum Foundation's Legacy Program. Stop by Magnum Gallery on Friday, November 11th, from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. to see the prints, and/or just say hi to Jen, Sara, President of Magnum Susan Meiselas and Director of the Legacy Program John Jacob.

+ And be sure to sign up for the 20x200 newsletter to get first dibs on the special, never-before-published pair of prints by Inge Morath, which will first be revealed on November 10th to newsletter subscribers.

+ In London: American photography critic A. D. Coleman will be leading a discussion titled "Dinosaur Bones: The End (and ends) of Photo Criticism." Set for Tuesday, November 8th, at 6:30 p.m., the panel and discussion will take place at Hotshoe Gallery.

Filter Samples, by Jessica Eaton

Hey, Hot Shot! Second Edition 2011 is in full swing, and entries from talented photographers far and wide are coming in. But your chance to enter for $60 is slipping away. This Monday, October 31st, the entry fee will increase to $70, and will rise again incrementally throughout the remainder of the competition. With the deadline set at November 14th, the earlier you submit, the better. Consider this fair warning and don't delay—get your entry started today.

+ First Edition 2008 Hot Shot and 20x200 artist Colleen Plumb will be holding a book signing for her monograph, Animals Are Outside Today, this Saturday, October 29th, at Radius Books in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

+ If you're in New York, don't miss the recently-launched solo show Life Near Windows, by Jen Bekman Projects VIP Youngna Park (Summer 2005 Hot Shot, 20x200 edition-maker and HHS! 2010 fearless leader and writer). The exhibit is in Brooklyn's Saffron, and is on view through January 7th, 2012.

+ Also in NYC, Second Edition 2009 Hot Shot and fellow 20x200 artist Jessica Eaton has a new solo show, Cubes for Albers and LeWitt, beginning November 3rd at Higher Pictures gallery, on view through December 17th.

+ In 20x200 news, photographer Taj Forer will be having a book launch for his monograph, Stone by Stone, in NYC's Bubble Lounge. The party is this Friday, October 28th, from 8:00 to 11:00 p.m.

+ Speaking of parties, renowned photographer Jessica Craig-Martin has teamed up with 20x200 to release a pair of limited-edition prints. Known for her irreverent shots of the well-heeled, well-to-do crowd, Jessica's all-access pass to glittering galas and fashionable fetes provide the best vantage point from which to take her subversive candids. Get in on the revelry and snap up Let's Party and Cougar Friends before they're gone.

Texting, Crosby Street, 2011 by Joseph O. Holmes

+ HHS! Panelist Darius Himes is participating in a three-day photobook workshop in September. Photographers Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb will be in attendance in this Radius Books-hosted event, which is open to anyone "who is passionate about a photography project that he or she has been working on—from serious amateurs to seasoned professionals, from documentary to art photographers, from those photographing a theme, place or issue to those working on a more personal series of photographs of family or friends." Head to the Magnum Photos site for more information.

+ Hot Shot and 20x200 MVP Joseph O. Holmes' latest series, Texters, has been making the blogosphere rounds, being picked up by several notable sites in the last week and touted on Twitter. For the full series, check out the prolific photographer's photostream on Flickr.

+ Photographers have been paying attention to Google+, and not for reasons you might think. Flak Photo's Andy Adams got a conversation started after Photofocus and the Washington Post's BlogPost called attention to Google's Terms of Service.

Gosling Lake, by Kurt Tong

After eight weeks of receiving amazing submissions, the Hey, Hot Shot! First Edition 2011 round of the competition closed on June 27th. So strong was the body of work this round that we are very eager to share it with everyone! So, beginning in July, at least one photographer that submitted will be selected each month (for at least the next three months) to fast-track a 20x200 edition. Our curatorial team is already poring over the extraordinary entries, which is no easy feat. Will you see a Contender's photography featured on 20x200? Or will your own photography be chosen first? To see which First Edition 2011 photographers make the cut, sign up for the 20x200 newsletter.

Meanwhile, we will continue to feature Contender posts until the Hot Shots are announced. For the latest on all things Hey, Hot Shot!—including announcements on the next round of the competition—be sure to check the blog frequently, keep up with us on Twitter and Facebook and sign up for our low-volume newsletter to get the latest news in your inbox.

+ Ruben Natal-San Miguel, who runs the eponymous photography consulting firm and is the blogger of ARTmostfierce, will present a fair tour entitled "How to Invest and Collect Fine Art Photography" for photoHamptons, which is taking place Thursday, July 7th to Sunday, July 10th. This is the first year ArtHamptons is featuring significant fine art photography.

+ 2009 Ne Plus Ultra Kurt Tong's series In Case it Rains in Heaven will be shown for the first time in Germany at Uno Art Space in For You, a two-person show. The exhibition premiered on July 1st and will be on view through the 28th of September, when Kurt will be attending the closing party to talk about the series.

+ Photographer and 20x200 artist Jeremy Kohm is featured on Prison Photography, which was recently named one of LIFE's top 20 photo blogs. You can also see Kohm's work in person as part of the group show Dawn Till Dusk, at Jen Bekman Gallery through July 30th.

+ Fall 2006 Hot Shot Shen Wei got glowing reviews in the New Yorker for his work from Chinese Sentiment, which was featured in the group show Moveable Feast at the Museum of the City of New York.

Jen Bekman is featured in Kelly Kingman's recently released ebook, Going Pro: How To Make Money From Your Photography. Released by the Digital Photography School, the 91-page digital download provides step-by-step guidance, advice, insight and tips for becoming a professional photographer.

Jen—a writer, curator, gallerist and entrepreneur—is approached as a gallerist for one of the ebook's expert profiles, where she dispenses invaluable information for photographers looking to sell to collectors and to get gallery representation. Among her words of wisdom for would-be pros: Figuring out how to market yourself and build your audiences is a big part of being successful, whether you have a dealer or not; having a well-defined, well-edited body of work is a cornerstone of any fledgling career.

From choosing a business model that fits your working style, to marketing and selling your work, and from selling stock, to resources for protecting your work, Going Pro touts itself as the complete guide for photographers who want measurable success, as written by an established magazine photo editor. The recession, the digital age and the emergence of microstock have all been factors that have been consistently shaking up the photography world, forcing professionals to rethink the way they approach their craft and success. This ebook—part of a kit that includes two hours of audio interviews with photography professionals and a downloadable guide called Getting Published in Photography Magazines—aims to make the murky waters more navigable, and urges would-be pros, "If you've ever dreamed of making money from your passion, now's your chance to make it happen."

The ebook and kit are available for download here.
For a previous article Kingman wrote about Jen, click here.

David Griffin on How Photography Connects Us from TEDTalks.

There's something about podcasts that's magical and intimate. They're perfect for slow afternoons, long commutes and slightly reminiscent of the fireside chats. You can start 'em and stop 'em as you like, rewinding if you weren't paying attention or hitting replay for an episode or podcast you really loved. Today, we've rounded up some of the best photography related podcasts we've found to date:

About Photography and Its Origins
The Candid Frame
Your Host: Ibarionex Perello
Who It's For: Those looking for inspiration and the ins and outs of the business.
What It's About: The Candid Frame features high quality interviews from artists. In addition to turning you onto new and emerging projects, this podcast covers the business and art of photography.

History of Photography from Jeff Curto
Your Host: College of DuPage Professor Jeff Curto
Who It's For: The wish-I-could-go-back-to-college type.
What It's About: Professor Jeff Curto started this podcast in 2008 with sparse updates, but lately he's picked up the pace and started updating consistently. His informative lecture coverage goes deep into the influences that make photography what it is today and includes everyone from Daguerre to Cartier-Bresson and Meyerowitz. If you're really interested in going back to college with this podcast you can find the class syllabus and more here.

Photography Monthly
Your Hosts: Photography Monthly editors Grant Scott and Sean Samuels
Who It's For: The insatiable photography addict.
What It's About: This relaxed podcast features news, gear reviews, and insightful interviews from photographers with a variety of styles and subjects.

Tutorials and The Tactical
The Digital Story
Your Host: Derrick Story
Who It's For: The spec-obsessed gadget lover.
What It's About: This highly technical weekly podcast features a lot of talk about specs but also offers tips, gadget reviews and more.

Learning Digital Photography
Your Host: Jason Anderson
Who It's For: Digital photographers at any level.
What It's About: The intro of this podcast drags a bit but after that this program flies with informative Q&A's, how tos, and equipment reviews for those looking to advance their art.

LightSource Studio Photography
Your Hosts: Bill Crawford, publisher of StudioLighting.net and Ed Hidden, exclusive iStockPhoto.com photographer
Who It's For: Photographers interested in lighting.
What It's About: The hosts have had technological issues that have prevented them from updating consistently, but when this podcast updates it's always chock full of tips.

For Inspiration
New York Times Lens
Your Host: Photojournalists + documentarians.
Who It's For: Aspiring photojournalists any current events buffs
What It's About: A variety of photojournalists narrate the story of their work against photo slideshows from their journeys. There aren't many episodes of this podcast, but the ones that exist are both beautiful and striking.

TEDTalks Podcast
Your Host: Various Speakers from the TEDTalks Conferences
Who It's For: Anyone interested in the hows and whats of the world.
What It's About: This inspiring video podcast gives you the chance to sit back every now and then and hear the thoughts of geniuses. By no means is everything from TEDTalks is photography-related, but most of it has everything to do with innovation, thought processes, and new frontiers for the world we live in. A few specific talks we love? David Griffin on How Photography Connects Us; Jame's Nachtwey's Searing Photos of War, Frans Lanting's Lyrical Nature Photos, Taryn Simon Photographs Secret Sites; Edward Burtynsky on Manufactured Landscapes.

Did I miss any of your favorites? Let us know in the comments.

We know what it's like. The new year is still a month away and yet you already know what's going to top your list of 2011 resolutions. You're going to get yourself back to the darkroom and start making photographs the "old-fashioned" way, the tactile way, the way that involves dodging and burning—and not in Adobe Photoshop.

In your honor, we present you with the New York City guide to darkrooms (from the least to the most expensive).

ABC No Rio
Price: $6/hour; Cash Only; Photo ID Required
Hours: Seasonal hours. Check their calendar here for the most up-to-date schedule.
Phone: 212.254.3697 ext. 324
Location: 156 Rivington St, New York, NY 10002
Note: This is probably the least expensive darkroom in the city, but make sure to bring your own paper.

My Own Color Lab
Price: $12.00/hour with credit card; $11.00/hour in cash
Hours: Monday - Friday 9 a.m. - 10 p.m., Saturday noon - 8 p.m.
Phone: 212.696.4107
Location: 18 W 27th St, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10001
Note: They also have a Imacon 949 scanner you can rent should the need arise.

Beth Schiffer Conventional Darkroom
Price: $11/hour Single Darkroom; $18/hour Double Darkroom.
Discounts: 10% student discount. One free hour for every four hours you work there and paper discounts if you buy your paper there.
Availability: With reservations.
Phone: 212.219.1553
Email: info@bethschiffer.com
Location: 385 Broadway, Suite 4R, New York, NY 10013

Brooklyn Photo [Studio]
Price: $15/hour (in 3, 6 and 9 hour slots). Cash only.
Hours: Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 6:30 a.m.; Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.; Weekends, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Availability: By appointment on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Phone: 718-384-1825
Email: mail@brooklynphotostudio.com
Location: 39 Ainslie Street #3, Brooklyn, NY 11211
Note: Black and white darkroom only. Photographers can print in formats from 35mm to 4"x5" and hand process paper sizes up to 16"x20".

Print Space
Price: $20/hour for a private B&W darkroom and every fifth hour in the darkroom is free.
Color, C-41 and Digital Hours: Monday - Thursday 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.; Friday 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Saturday noon - 8 p.m.
Black & White Hours: Monday - Thursday 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.; Friday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Saturday noon - 7 p.m.
Phone: 212.255.1919
Email: darkroom@printspacenyc.com
Location: 151 W 19th St, Floor 8, New York, NY 10011
Note: Prince Space also has enlarger rooms, Mac stations and more.

Beth Schiffer Digital Darkroom
$25/hour
Available: With reservations
Phone: 212.966.3800
Email: info@bethschiffer.com
Location: 385 Broadway, Suite 4R, New York, NY 10013

thesmalldarkroom
Price: Available Upon Request
Discounts: 20% Student Discount.
Available: With reservations. Weekend and overnight times also available.
Phone: 212.243.0170
Email: main@smalldarkroom.com
Location: 437 W 16th St, New York, NY 10011
Note: thesmalldarkroom's clients include Annie Leibowitz, Brian Finke, Matthew Brookes, Lazslo Konrath and many more.

Less Conventional Means For Getting Darkroom Space
The Camera Club of New York has an annual Darkroom Residency Program that gives emerging photographers 24/7 access to their darkroom facilities. The 2011 application deadline has just passed, but it's worth keeping in mind for the future. You can also gain access by joining as a member; members can sign up for three 4-hour sessions of darkroom time weekly. Their facilities are open 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

The International Center of Photography is known to offer volunteers an hour of free darkroom time for every hour they volunteer with the organization. If you're just beginning to learn your way around a darkroom, ICP also offers both B&W and Color Darkroom classes from the beginner level to the more advanced.

Same Difference - Teaser from Lisa Udelson on Vimeo.

Ever present in the news due to same-sex marriage legislation battles and the recent passing of Prop 8 in California, questions of childhood and family also come to the fore in contemporary photography. We've seen a range of interesting takes on these issues here at Hey, Hot Shot! Recently, contender Glen Erler's Family Tree project delved into the locales and personalities that inhabited the photographer's childhood to investigate "the loss and rebirth" of his family, Elizabeth Clark Libert's work investigated the complex dynamics of growing up extremely wealthy and Kevin C. Moore, whose father was an anonymous sperm donor, searches for his identity through a series of portraits and documents from his personal history .

While there are boundless examples of nostalgia and excavation of family history through photography, we hardly hear from children themselves about family and childhood. Photographer Catherine Opie has collaborated with filmmaker Lisa Udelson to create Same Difference, a documentary that does just that.

Catherine Opie became known for her portraits of California's queer communities, though she has trained her lens on a host of other subjects—Los Angeles' sprawling freeways, Minnesota's ice houses and high school football stars. Her portraits are inquiries into way that identities and communities are formed. This latest project asks children of same sex partners to talk about their family experiences.

A short clip from the film features several interviews with kids ranging from so-young-he-needs-a-booster-seat to 14 years old, speaking in casual, heartwarmingly mature and deadpan manner about their own family structures. The creators' website says of the project:

Renowned photographer Catherine Opie and award-winning filmmaker Lisa Udelson became interested in the lack of children's voices in California during the debate over the anti-gay marriage bill Proposition 8. Questions arose for these longtime friends. Do we want to get married? Raise macho men or boys in pink tutus? Observe traditional holidays? Do we want to fit in? Is it possible to celebrate our differences while yearning, even demanding, to be accepted and treated the same?

Same Difference focuses on the opinions of children with same sex parents...They speak with humor, insight, intelligence and passion about their lives and their families. The film includes their parents and grandparents, including the filmmakers, who daily navigate the landscape of queer family...This is a reflection on the modern American family, not only those within the LGBTQ community, but society at large.

Using the same website through which Zoe Strauss raised funds for her On the Beach project, documenting this summer's Deepwater Horizon disaster, Catherine Opie and Lisa Udelson are hoping to raise $15,000 in finishing funds. Rather than relying on museum and film festival screenings, they're hoping to reach an even broader mass:

Our hope is for Same Difference to reach the widest possible audience, particularly in light of the timeliness of debates over gay marriage...While the film will have a presence at museums and film festivals worldwide, we feel that broadcast television is the perfect venue, where audiences are more inclined to watch programming out of their comfort zone. There is access to deliver this thought-provoking message of recognition and encouragement to a wide array of viewers without asking them to go to a theatre or pay additional cable fees.

Please help them out with a donation, so that we can see this project hit small screens across the country and beyond!

Working The Line by David Taylor, published by Radius Books

We've waxed on and on about the gorgeous books produced by Santa Fe-based independent publisher Radius Books, where HHS! panelists Darius Himes in a founding editor. Their latest publication is Working The Line, by Guggenheim Fellow David Taylor, who traces a line of obelisks that dot the U.S. - Mexico borer between El Pason/Juarez to San Diego/Tijuana.

Radius writes of the book and of Taylor:

These monuments--striking objects situated in impossibly gorgeous and difficult terrain--were installed between the years 1892 and 1895. In the process of his work, Taylor earned remarkable access to U.S. Border Patrol facilities, agents and routine operations. Patrol agents often refer to their job in the field as "line work" which is an apt description of Taylor's own time as he documented the obelisks. Being on the "line" has given Taylor a unique view into overlapping issues of border security, human and drug smuggling, the continuing construction of the border fence and its impact on the land.

Hardbound in a slipcase, the book is a 148 page visual investigation of a border that's increasingly tenuous, also featuring essays by Hanna Frieser and Luis Alberto Urrea.

Lucky for New Yorkers, David Taylor, alongside editor Darius Himes and designer David Chickey, will be at NYU next week talking about the book.

The Details:
In Conjunction with Anna Deavere Smith Works, Inc. at New York University and the "Bodies on the Line" Symposium*
Presentation and Discussion with David Taylor and David Chickey & Darius Himes of Radius Books
Tuesday, November 2nd, 6-8 pm
NYU, 20 Cooper Square (5th and Bowery, 5th Floor)

You can also purchase three versions of Working The Line online—a trade edition for $50.00, a signed edition for $55.00 and a limited-edition (of 40) signed and numbered version 17"x22" version for $800.00. Learn more about Taylor, the essayists and the book at Radius.

Untitled (Ocean), from Folded in Place, by John Mann

Happy early birthday to Piece of Cake North America! While it's not something you can eat, the work produced by this one year old group of top-notch North American photographers is a feast for the eyes.

The POC website provides a little more background about the original European group:

Created in Rouen in 2002 at the initiative of French photographer Charles Fréger, "POC" - standing for "Piece of Cake" - comprises twenty or so young European artists whose preferred medium is photography. The group's raison d'être is to enable the artists to interact as they create, produce and distribute their works. The permanent links for this exchange network, in the form of e-mail and other multimedia tools, and an efficient website, form the vectors for POC's activities.

The North American branch doesn't technically turn one until October, so we're celebrating a little bit early, but they've been keeping busy. They recently guest blogged on I Heart Photograph, and have held two workshops this year. POC member Brian Ulrich provided some insight into how the group formed and how they work with each other on his blog:

In 2009, Cara Phillips approached me about the possibility of creating a North America faction of Piece of Cake. Charles and the Euro members has initiated the idea with her and she became the organizer of testing the waters to see if artists here in the states felt like a POC collective would be beneficial. Honestly my early reaction was based on the fact that I often operate this way regardless, without the strong community and network of artists and comrades I wouldn't have had half the luck navigating the difficult sea of making my work a full time job. An email call for submissions was put forth and the Europeans POC's made the votes on who would be the first US members.

The group has so far had 2 workshops, where all the US members (+ two Euro members) gather for a intense weekend of sharing work, crits, meetings with local professionals and general art debauchery (i.e. booze). I can't write how wonderful it's been to get to know all these talented people and feel their strong commitment to each other and their own work. We'll define our antics as we move along.

Who exactly is POC North America? You may find you know many of their names. Let's start with the Hot Shots—of which there are plenty in the group: John Mann, Cara Phillips, Birthe Piontek, and Justin James Reed; as well as several photographers who have done 20x200 editions like William Lamson, and Stefan Ruiz, and Brian Ulrich. The group is rounded out by photographers Timothy Briner, Kelli Connell, Matthew Gamber, Christian Patterson, Will Steacy, Amy Stein, Bill Sullivan, and Ofer Wolberger.

Piece of Cake North America, Chicago Workshop, May 2010. Photo by Justin James Reed with shutter release by Jon Gitelson. Top Row from L: Timothy Briner, John Mann, Ofer Wolberger, Justin James Reed, Mathieu Bernard-Reymond. Bottom Row: Brian Ulrich, Kelli Connell, Amy Stein, Birthe Piontek, Cara Phillips, Matthew Gamber, Bill Sullivan. Not Pictured: Christian Patterson, Will Steacy, William Lamson, Stefan Ruiz

Come October, make sure to wish a happy birthday to this inspired group of photographers. You can stay updated about the members and the group at their website-we look forward to seeing what's next from Piece of Cake!

Rachel Sussman gives a TED Talk on The World's Oldest Living Things

Rachel Sussman's 2,000 year old trees and shrubs have made a few appearances here in the past on both the HHS! and 20x200 blogs. But, there is a new reason to cheer for Rachel's astoundingly (geographically and chronologically) ambitious project, The Oldest Living Things in the World. We find cause to write about Rachel and her project yet again today, as the project is experiencing even more (much-merited!) exposure: Rachel was invited to give a talk about the project as part of the TED lecture series, offering a concise and fascinating account of her ongoing endeavor to track and document of some of the world's oldest living organisms.

Initially inspired by an encounter with the 2,200-year-old Jōmon Sugi tree, while on a trip to Japan, for the past five years Rachel has traveled the globe, hunting and photographing ancient, continuously-living species of plant, fungus and bacteria, among others. She set 2,000 years as a minimum age—the idea being that everything documented would thus pre-date what is commonly thought of as "Year Zero".

On her adventures, Rachel has encountered some amazing things, many of which she describes in the lecture: Siberian Actinobacteria (400,000-600,000 years old!); Baobab trees in South Africa, which grow so large that their hollow interiors have in the past been variously used by people as toilets, prisons, and even bars; as well as a clonal colony of Quaking Aspen trees in Utah, (80,000 years old!) which resembles an entire forest, but is in fact a single tree, all connected by one enormous subterranean root system.

sunland baobab #0707-2301 (2,000 years old; limpopo province, south africa) by Rachel Sussman

Rachel has traveled around Africa, Asia, North and South America, and to Greenland and Scandinavia. She has a map where you can follow her progress—blue markers indicate the places and species she's photographed; red ones are those she has yet to visit, in part funded by her successful campaign on the micro-funding site, Kickstarter. She estimates she will spend another two years on the project, and has trips to Sicily, Australia, Antarctica and others in the works. She also keeps a blog that charts the progression of her research and travels in detail.

She describes The Oldest Living Things in the World as "a record and celebration of our past, a call to action in the present, and a barometer of our future." With the project, Sussman attempts to call attention to these astonishing and little-known environmental phenomena, and in so doing, ensure their continued preservation.

Watch her TED talk above—it's an excellent and thoroughly entertaining introduction to her project, and check out more images from the series on her website, (but be prepared for the frenzy of nature-related Google-ing that it will doubtless inspire).

On Friday, Jen (@jenbee) asked the Twitter-verse, "What's your favorite photography related quote? Who said it? Points for something pithy!" And, the responses came rolling in. Here's a compilation of what we heard:

"And all these no's force me to the yes." - Richard Avedon. (@litherland)

"If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough." - Robert Capa (@kavehg)

"To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event." - Henri Cartier-Bresson (@AnthonyRhoades)

"Any photographer who says he's not a voyeur is either stupid or a liar." - Helmut Newton (@laughingwoman)

"Taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies." - Diane Arbus (@cgmoyer, @kowalskiphotos)

"I hate cameras. They are so much more sure than I am about everything. " - John Steinbeck (@katetropa)

"Photography ... is the only medium in which there is even the possibility of an accidental masterpiece." - Chuck Close (@josephholmes)

"A camera is a tool for learning to see without a camera." - Dorothea Lange (@josephholmes)

"One doesn't stop seeing. One doesn't stop framing. It doesn't turn off and turn on. It's on all the time." - Annie Leibovitz (@josephholmes)

"I never have taken a picture I've intended. They're always better or worse." - Diane Arbus (@josephholmes)

"Too many photos make a statement, not enough ask a question." - Joseph Holmes (@josephholmes)

"Photography is all right if you don't mind looking at the world from the point of view of a paralysed Cyclops." - David Hockney (@austinkleon)

"Photography begins with an "f" sound that stands for fiction, fake or forgery. And that is the original sin of photography. Only the most untainted purists (and the pedantic New York Times) seem to be unaware of this." - Jorge Calado (@katetropa)

"Above all, I know that life for a photographer cannot be a matter of indifference." Robert Frank (@sethbutler)

"There's nothing as mysterious as a fact clearly described. I photograph to see what something will look like photographed." Garry Winogrand (@jessangelo, @laughingwoman,@bryanf)

"To shift the structure of a sentence alters the meaning of that sentence, as definitely and inflexibly as the position of a camera alters the meaning of the object photographed. .... The arrangement of the words matters, and the arrangement you want can be found in the picture in your mind. .... The picture tells you how to arrange the words and the arrangement of the words tells you, or tells me, what's going on in the picture." - Joan Didion (@bobulate)

"One should really use the camera as though tomorrow you'd be stricken blind." - Dorothea Lange (@moyamcallister)

"Photographs stop time and bring people together." - A Mexican Street Magician (@juanrFotos)

"When your mouth drops open, click the shutter." -Harold Feinstein (@PanoptGallery)

"All photography to some extent is a violating act as you are seeing someone as they could never see themselves." - Susan Sontag (@Weegee)

"There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept." Ansel Adams (@BespokePhoto)

"Above all, I know that life for a photographer cannot be a matter of indifference." - Robert Frank (@momenta,@AhrensEditions,@indifferences)

"When people look at my pictures I want them to feel the way they do when they want to read a line of a poem twice." - Robert Frank (@sandyiowacity)

"Photography is not an accident --it's a concept." - Ansel Adams (@J_Isarankura)

"Photography.. is the only medium in which there is even the possibility of an accidental masterpiece." - Chuck Close (@AnthonyRhoades)

"I believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers." - Mahatma Gandhi (@dantebusquets)

"Teachers don't work in the summer, and photographers don't shoot in in the middle of the day." - John Loengard (Steven Quinn on Facebook)

"Shoot first, ask questions later." - Victor Burgin (Kylie Macey on Facebook)

"I have all but killed myself for Photography. My passion for it is greater than ever. It's forty years that I have fought its fight - and I'll fight to the finish - single handed & without money if need be. It is not photographs - it is not photographers - I am fighting for. And my own photographs I never sign. I am not fighting to make a 'name' for myself. Maybe you have some feeling for what the fight is for. It's a world's fight. This sounds mad. But so is Camera Work mad. All that's born of spirit seems mad in these [days] of materialism run riot." - Alfred Stieglitz to J. Dudley Johnston, 15 October 1923 (Tim Baskerville on Facebook)

‎" . .with one hand he sucked a sad poem right out of America onto film" - Jack Kerouac in the intro to Robert Frank's The Americans (Vance Lessard on Facebook)

Thanks to all who sent us their favorite lines. We hope this inspires you to take a second look at your own photographs and send us five before Hey, Hot Shot! 2010 comes to a close tomorrow night, 8/31 at 8:00 p.m. (EDT). If you have a favorite quote that you haven't sent in yet, we'd still love to hear it. Leave a comment or send it to @jenbee + @heyhotshot on Twitter.

Delaware Bay by Jeff Gates, from the latest Pictory Showcase

JBP's own Youngna Park guest-curated the latest Pictory Showcase: In Deep, presenting a variety of takes on the theme "bodies of water." The photographs are complemented by a cool, ebbing and flowing design by Sleepover SF, and a few words by Editor Laura Brunow Miner. Dive in and escape the summer heat, without even leaving your desk!

Want to be part of the next Pictory showcase, Summer Jobless? Submit here.

We're excited to announce that JBP's own Youngna Park will be guest curating Pictory's next showcase of picture-stories around the theme: Bodies of Water. The deadline to submit is August 11th, so hurry up and send your photos in!

Editor Laura Brunow Miner writes:

There's something so indescribably calming about oceans, lakes, rivers, swimming holes, even pools. Show us the bodies of water -- large or small -- that summer adventures have taken you to and describe your experiences there. We've invited Youngna Park of Jen Bekman Projects (20x200, Hey, Hot Shot!, and Jen Bekman Gallery) to guest curate.

For the unacquainted, Pictory is "a showcase for people around the world to document their lives and cultures." How does it work? Anyone can submit one large, captioned image to each of Pictory's editorial themes. These submissions are assembled by Miner, a guest curator, and a guest editor into collaborative photo essays on subjects like: New York City, Are You There, Dad?, Life Lessons, The One Who Got Away, and more. As you can see, the Showcases are pretty wonderful, and this is a great opportunity to be a part of Pictory!

To keep updated on new Pictory showcases, follow them on Twitter: @Pictory.

Tonight is the eve of Review Santa Fe, the annual portfolio review event that takes place amongst the low-slung adobe structures of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Photographers from far and wide apply to bring their portfolios, and 100 are selected to bring their projects, both complete and in-progress, to be reviewed by esteemed curators, editors, publishers galleries and their own peers.

Fire, Ise-Shima by Emily Shur

Emily Shur, who attended Review Santa Fe last year, writes about some questions and thoughts she faces with the new body of work, Shizenkan, that she's bringing to the event tomorrow:

As I finish up my preparations for Review Santa Fe and make sure all my ducks are in a row, I get that this is something that will probably come up in my reviews. Am I showing something new or am I just photographing the same interesting things that many before me have found interesting? And does it matter? I guess what matters to me and what matters to gallerists, book publishers, and the like might be two different things. I go into this year's review having the benefit of participating previously, and I am not as nervous as I was last year. I know how I feel about this work. Whether or not my explanations of the project are what my reviewers are hoping to hear, I can at least go there knowing that other photographers before me have made their own personal masterpieces out of work they felt strongly about.

These are amongst the challenges—and inquries—many of these photographers will face, who come from fine art, editorial, commercial and documentary backgrounds as they open themselves up to hearing sometimes-laudatory and sometimes-harsh criticism that can both inspire and sting (but on both fronts is always meant to challenge intent and grow the artist).

After Day 2 of last year's event, Emily wrote:

I can honestly say that after today's reviews, I am officially in need of improvement. The art review is not my normal scene. Stick me in an office with a photo editor or art director, and I'm fine. The work is what it is. They either respond favorably or negatively. The art world is that, and then some....what is the intent behind the work? Why do you take these pictures? The pressure for those answers to be good and meaningful is pretty intense. This is what I have been thinking about all of last night and today.

While the 100 photographers attending the event are entrenched in their own rigorous schedule involving twenty (yes, twenty!) 9-minute viewing sessions, there is also a Portfolio Viewing session free and open to the public, where you can go and view the works of this talented bunch.

Review Santa Fe Portfolio Viewing
When: Friday, June 4, 5:30 - 8:00 p.m.
Where: Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza, 100 Sandoval St., Santa Fe, NM
Cost: Free and open to the public

Untitled from the series Custom Machinery by Joseph O. Holmes

There are quite a few JBP photographers bringing new and continuing bodies of work to Santa Fe, so while you're out there, be sure to keep a special eye out for these photographers and their projects:

Alejandro Cartagena: Fragmented Cities; Views of Suburbia Mexicana 2006-2009
Emily Shur: Shizenkan
Joseph O. Holmes: Custom Machinery
Lacey Terrell: The Passing Ring 1996-2010

If you're not lucky enough to be out in the Southwest, CENTER has released the names of the 100 selected photographers whose portfolios will be reviewed, which you can also view online. There's truly a trove of talent here, so take the time of these hot and humid days to click around.

By now it would seem everyone with a pulse has heard about the historic and marathon performance piece that Marina Abramović is currently enduring/undergoing/exhibiting at MoMA, aptly titled, The Artist is Present. In an audio piece for the exhibition, Abramović explains that the title for the show is derived from the habit of many show or exhibition cards stating somewhere prominently that at the opening reception, "The artist will be present." In her two-and-a-half-month long piece, she goes on to say, "We go a step further...I will be present with you for the entire time of the exhibition." And present she has been—every single day that the Museum of Modern Art is open from March 14, 2010 through May 31, 2010. When the exhibit closes after Memorial Day, Marina Abramović will have "been present" for 42,990 minutes (or 716 hours and 30 minutes).

Installation view of The Artist is Present, © Scott Rudd for MoMA

The conceit of the piece is astonishingly simple: there are two chairs, a table between them. Marina sits in one, the other is open for anyone to join her for as long as they wish. There can be no speaking or touching. You are to sit across from her, and she from you, and the two of you are then "present" to one another; consciously sharing one another's space while being entirely conscious of each other in that space. Emblematic of many performance pieces, the "audience" is a necessary component of the piece, and the performance could not exist without audience participation. Often described as a "staring contest" (the New York Times rightly honed in on the fact that "strangers staring at each other in the eye [is] one of the final taboos of modern New York"), the experience of sitting across from Marina has been described eloquently and at length by the likes of Irish novelist Colm Tóibín and earnest and honest anonymous people on metafilter.

With all the press that MoMA and Marina have been getting about The Artist Is Present, there's an aspect of this show that has been comparatively under-reported: photographer Marco Anelli has been documenting every single person that sits across from Marina through the duration of the piece. For every one of the over 42,000 minutes Marina is performing, Anelli is at work making certain that he's produced a faithful document of the sitter and their experience. Posted on MoMA's Flickr set for the exhibition, each sitter is labeled with the day during the performance, their number in that day's sitting sequence, and the duration of their stay with Marina. While he's not sitting and engaging the artist directly, the fact of his meta-performance, which is posted to the Flickr stream daily, is a compelling testament to the power of the gaze and of one's connection to the Other.

Marco Anelli photographing sitters at The Artist Is Present, © Joseph O. Holmes

Sometimes the sitters are famous themselves; sometimes they are fellow performers making their own performance piece out of their experience; many times they cry. Some sit all day; some come back again and again. Marco's camera captures them all, every single one, every single time.

Day 4, Portrait 23, 9 minutes, Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present, Photo by Marco Anelli. © 2010 Marina Abramović

Day 10, Portrait 1, 52 minutes, Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present, Photo by Marco Anelli. © 2010 Marina Abramović

Day 20, Portrait 20, 20 minutes, Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present, Photo by Marco Anelli. © 2010 Marina Abramović

Whether or not one has been able to sit across from Marina, regardless of whether one has even been able to stand on the sidelines of the second-floor atrium and watch the performance, the documentation of it—be it the live feed or through Anelli's photographs—has been fascinating and addictive for those who have. On the face of it, the question begs to be answered, What Is So Interesting About These People? Face after face, day after day—the same lighting, the same ratio of face-to-frame. Maybe MoMA never intended or could anticipate that these photographs, a flickr stream set, would generate such a devoted following or enthusiasm from virtual on-lookers.

My sense is that there are two factors at work here: one is the very unmediated and intentionally non-conceptual framework of the portraits themselves. In Anelli's stream of sitters we have an exhaustive rendering of a defined subset of people that face after face, day after day, amounts to a project that's a 1:1 scale representation of this performance piece. Akin in this regard to August Sander's socialist revolutionary work People of the 20th Century, what we are seeing is a large-scale classificatory photographic project, adhering to a broadly applied structure or set of rules, that ultimately renders to us, the end-viewer, something very real and un-performed that we are clearly experiencing an emotional response and/or connection to. This is where the second factor comes in: while the portraits are generally un-posed objects themselves, it is the performance that Marina is engaging in with each sitter that successfully renders every individual into a bared vulnerable state that is then captured by Anelli's camera.

In a really great interview with Laurie Anderson in Bomb magazine from 2003, Anderson asks Abramović a question that forms the crux of her orientation to the performance currently on view"

Anderson: How do you see the audience?

Abramović: It's such an important question, because the relation to the audience is the essence of performance. In my case, the need to be completely open and vulnerable, to give everything I can, 100 percent, is extremely strong. Every single person in the audience is important. I don't have this kind of feeling in real life, but in performance I have this enormous love, this heart that literally hurts me with how much I love them. In the last performance, when I lived for 12 days, totally exposed, in the Sean Kelly Gallery, almost nothing happened. But just being there, with this openness--there is just skin and bones; there's nothing else but being there for them. I was there to be projected on. The whole thing has to be almost an invisible exchange. You asked what the connection was like in that performance. I really looked at the people in the gallery. To me the eyes are a door for something else, and whatever is happening in their lives, I pick it up. You can't imagine how much I cried in that piece. This sadness comes because they project their own sadness onto me and I reflect it back. And I cry out in the saddest way, so they are free. People would come like drunks—instead of a shot of vodka they came to have a shot of this connection with the eyes. They came in the morning; at quarter to nine they were there waiting, in business suits. The gallery would open at nine, and they would come in, look at me for 20 minutes and go away. A lot of them told me later that they are not even connected to art. I was thinking that people usually don't look at them in this intimate way, so maybe they just needed to be looked at in that way before going to work.

These minutes or hours or an entire day of engaging with and contemplating a complete stranger has been transformative, transcendent and terrifying for the sitters. Paddy Johnson gets that it's an emotional stand-off. Jerry Saltz concedes that, "There's something powerful and uncanny and pure about an unbroken gaze." Colm Tóibín got it when he wrote that the experience, "...was serious, too serious maybe, too intimate, too searching. It was either, I felt, what I should do all the time, or what I should never do." It is this unsettling is-ness that nearly every sitter is reduced to, and what comes across in this stream of images that Anelli has produced. A rare and wonderful thing to see something so obvious and unguarded shown to our normally guarded selves in seeming endless repetition of what I can only surmise to be a kind of vulnerable hope.

Marina Abramović in The Artist is Present will be on view at the Museum of Modern Art until May 31, 2010.

All of the photographs that Marco Anelli is making of the sitters in the performance piece can be viewed on the MoMA Flickr stream.

The clock is ticking down to Sunday, May 2nd, at 15:00 hours Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is just under three days away. You may be in New York City reading your morning paper, in San Francisco on an early morning bike ride in the Presidio, or in Beijing having a late night beer with friends to cap off the weekend. What else will happen at that moment in time? Photographers all around the world—including you, we hope—will pull out their cameras and snap a picture capturing the world around them.

Photo by Jan Paulick on Flickr

The New York Times is inviting the world to create a collaborative portrait in which they are asking "everyone, everywhere, to join in making this worldwide photographic mosaic, with each photographer submitting their one best picture." They suggest topics like family, community, nature, economy, social issues and work—the possibilities are endless, so long as they happen at 15:00 UTC.

The project pays heed to a 1986 project, A Day in the Life of America, organized by David Elliot Cohen and Rick Smolan in 1986, which was also coincidentally on May 2nd. This project, part of a series of books capturing a day-in-the-life of a specific place in the world, has been published internationally as compelling portraits of our vastly diverse cultures.

You can snap a picture with camera phone, Polaroid, Contax, Canon or Nikon. Shoot digitally, on film, by pinhole, or through your computer's camera. You may be a professional photographer, a hobbiest, or a student. The invitation extends to everyone, all over the world: really!

Once you've taken the picture that represents your moment on time, be sure to submit it to The New York Times. Pictures will be published up to 1000 pixels wide, so the larger the file the better. Then, send your image to submit.nytimes.com/moment anytime before Friday, May 7th. Between the 2nd and the 7th, the photos will aggregate on the Lens blog and the NY Times, where you'll be able to view them by country and topic.

To find out what time 15:00 UTC is in your part of the world, check Time and Date, then set your timers and have your cameras ready.

We here at Jen Bekman Projects are social media on steroids. We've got three blogs: (Jen Bekman Gallery, 20x200, and what you're reading now at Hey Hot Shot), a tumblr site, three Facebook pages, three twitter feeds and who knows what else is on the horizon. Sometimes we can cross-dialog well with our audiences of our various projects that might have different agendas and interests from one another.

And that's why I'm writing now, fellow photographers and photo lovers, to alert you to the two-part discussion on photobooks that's been going on over at the 20x200 blog this week.

The first post tackles the changes in point-of-view, production models and consumer trends in the world of photo and art books. We examined both the alarm being displayed by purveyers of traditional publishing models at the sweeping changes in consumer trends and funding for production, as well as the liberty and opportunity to be found by other publishers small and large to be explored during this moment of flux.

The second part looks at what artists near-and-dear to us have been thinking/making/doing in response to this changing landscape: we take a look at recent book work by Shen Wei, Jonathon Gitelson, Chad Muthard, Austin Kleon and William Powhida.

Since being savvy and informed is the best weapon anyone can have in their artistic arsenals, we thought you might want to head on over to our sister site and check out the conversation.

Alec Soth needs your help! He's heading out West next week for a new project entitled, The California Sleepwalker's Treasure Hunt and is actively seeking leads to the following people, animals, hangouts, and actions-in-progress:

-Condors
-Sleepwalkers (specific individuals would be best)
-Punk hangouts
-Self-mutilation/flagellation, scarring
-Horror film (in progress....otherwise horror makeup artist)
-Star Wars iconography / Star Wars collectors
-Dolores Huerta / United Farmworkers
-Bats
-Hare Krishnas
-Metal detector enthusiasts
-Hang Gliders
-Frankenstein
-Emo's in Tijuana or Mexicali
-anything else that fits this stream of thinking

Alec Soth's treasure hunting route

If you're familiar with Alec's work, you know that he has a proclivity to wander along the wayfarer's path, whether that's down the Mississippi River, to and from Niagara Falls, or on a birthday trip to Las Vegas. Some of these travels are now being documented in his new blog in The New York Times, "Continental Picture Show"; last week's first installment took viewers to New Orleans in the aftermath of Mardi Gras, which begins with a shot of a barelegged Alec watching celebrations on TV from his hotel room then continues with an annotated foray into Nawlins. As expected, Alec's wanderings reveal a few truths beneath the celebratory veneer and those revelations surface much to the viewer's delight.

In an interview with the Walker Art Center in May 2006, shortly after completing NIAGARA, Soth spoke of his lists, and how they inspire his framework for looking:

PS: If you're starting a new project, how does that work? Do you just start shooting and see where it takes you?

AS: No. I did this project recently in Niagara Falls, and it started before I'd ever been to Niagara Falls. I had these pictures in my head of things I'd hoped to find. I have a list of things I want to shoot. One thing is "men in pajamas." I've yet to find a man in pajamas, but it's something I'm looking for. Why is that? That's the way I go out into the world, is looking for certain things.

This time around, Alec is crowdsourcing your insight and expertise to guide him from Los Angeles to San Francisco by way of condors, Hare Krishnas, hang gliders and punk hangouts. If you have hot tips you can leave them in the comments over at Little Brown Mushroom, where there is also an ever-growing discussion about the list itself.

Dresses 1, by Elizabeth Ribuffo

Of all the student photography shows in New York, SVA's annual Mentors exhibition — which opens tonight in New York — ranks among the most interesting in concept. Curated by Stephen Frailey, HHS! panelist and head of the school's BFA photo program, the show features work by over 80 students inspired by mentorships with some of NYC's best known art figures. "Our mentors are from every corner of the photography community - they help to inspire our students to take their work to a new level and to grow as professional photographers," writes Frailey.

This year's diverse group of mentors included several of our esteemed Hey, Hot Shot! panelists: Jen Bekman, Darius Himes, and Lesley A. Martin; photographers Taryn Simon, Gregory Crewdson, Ryan McGinley, and Brian Ulrich; gallerists Yossi Milo, Julie Saul, and Yancey Richardson; and photographer/blogger Joerg Colberg. The list goes on and on, and it's star-studded enough to make any photo-buff jealous.

Pictured in this post is work being exhibited by Jen's mentee Elizabeth Ribuffo, who stopped by JBP HQ on Friday to catch up with Jen and talk about the exhibition. The images are from her series Production Stills, taken while Elizabeth works on film sets.

"I was really struck by Liz's resourcefulness," says Jen, "I love that she's showing work that she made while on film sets, because it's the sort of thing I've seen evolve with other photographers who are trying to figure out how to make a living." The work of 20x200 edition maker — and HHS! honorable mention — Lacey Terrell comes to mind, for obvious reasons!.

Jen continues:

I'm impressed that Liz had the maturity to figure out how to work on parallel paths in an interesting way. It reminds me that great work is often made while working on other stuff. William Carlos Williams was a freaking DOCTOR and one of the greatest American poets ever. Once you enter the real world it's a huge struggle to not give up, I see it all the time. So I am really heartened by Liz's approach. I really love that wedding dress photo because it's kind of a perfect metaphor on a lot of levels."

"I think working on other things can make work more interesting. Not always, but often," says Jen. For the young photographers who were given the opportunity to work alongside these established mentors, the years of experience and second opinions are sure to have made the work more interesting. Mentors is only up through April 3rd, so make sure to get over to SVA and catch the show before it closes.

Mentors
March 19 - April 3, 2010
Reception: Tuesday, March 23, 6-8pm

School of Visual Arts Gallery
601 West 26 Street, 15th floor
New York, NY 10001

Installation shot of work by Elizabeth Ribuffo

Spreads from Lay Flat 02: Meta

Back in January we wrote about photography journal Lay Flat taking pre-orders for their second issue Meta. Fast-forward two months and it's now available to order! The sample spreads from the website (above) look fantastic.

The issue's theme encompasses photographic works that deal with the medium of photography itself. Included is work by our own 2009 Second Edition Hot Shot Jessica Eaton and 20x200 artist Penelope Umbrico as well as an essay by HHS! panelist Lesley A. Martin.

Issue 02 was produced in an edition of just 2000, some of which are already being shipped out as pre-orders. You can visit their website to learn more about Lay Flat and order your copy.

Today marks the official opening of the 2010 NYC Art Fairs! For starters, that means the gallery is open for the 2009 Second Edition Hot Shot Exhibition a full day early, so drop on by today from 12 - 6 p.m. to have a sneak peak before tomorrow evening's opening reception (from 6 - 8 p.m.). The gallery will also be open this Sunday, March 7th, from 12 - 6 p.m. so everyone who is in town has a chance to see the show.

For the art-fair unacquainted, this annual event draws galleries from around the world to exhibit their artists in NYC for the weekend. In celebration of the occasion, everyone at JBP HQ has been working extra hard to put together a special present for you: our Art Fair Survival Kit! The kits feature all kinds of goodies including postcards, stickers, special invites, Daily Candy's City Pocket Guide, a "Visual Palate Cleansing System" for the visually overstimulated, and all kinds of other snacks for both mind and body. We'll be at spots across the city distributing the bags, so keep your eye out for the green and orange totes sporting the 20x200 logo and our Live With Art It's Good For You slogan.

We also wanted to shine the spotlight on one particularly awesome piece of the package that we'll be giving out at the fairs this weekend: The Map.

None other than Jason Polan, who can be seen drawing while on the move in our great metropolis, is profiled in today's Los Angeles Times. And, for the survival kit, he has created a hand-drawn version of the Google Map of our opinionated guide to the NYC Art Fairs we posted to the web last week.

We're throwing a printed copy of the map into every Survival Kit, but we love it so much that we're also putting it online as a downloadable PDF so that everyone can print it, use it, share it, or put it in a frame!

Though putting all the art-fully amazing things happening this weekend onto one sheet of paper was no easy task, we hope that our guide will help you get the most out of your time at the fairs.

The Art Fairs and Other Useful Spots Map by Jason Polan, [download as a PDF]

We've been keeping an eye on ways the art world has been supporting earthquake relief in Haiti over on the 20x200 blog for the last month. A few days ago, The Nymphoto Collective announced that they too are coordinating an online auction and print sale to benefit the relief effort.

Artworks will be available for sale February 27 through March 7, 2010, with 100% of the proceeds going to Partners in Health.

Nymphoto writes,

It has been only a month since the earthquake in Haiti, but the press is already beginning to slow down its coverage, which is why the Nymphoto Collective has organized this online auction. The Haitian people have a very long road ahead to recovery. The artists participating in this fundraiser want to show their solidarity and let the Haitian people know that they will continue to support them in the months and years ahead. Some of the participating artists have family and friends in Haiti, and some have built relationships with the Haitian people and culture through photography.

The auction features work by Hot Shot Yijun (Pixy) Liao, and 20x200 artists Emily Shur and Tema Stauffer along with Keliy Anderson-Staley, Nina Büsing Corvallo, Jeff Cate, Rona Chang, Cameron Goodyear, Candace Gottschalk, Laura Heyman, Geoffrey Hutchinson, Hee Jin Kang, Michelle Kloehn, Minette Lee Managhas, Tiana Markova-Gold, Stephen Meierding, Maria Passarotti, Suzanne Révy, Jon Shireman, Brea Souders, Julianna Swaney, Jane Tam, Hidemi Takagi and Jennifer Williams.

You can preview the artwork available for sale at The Nymphoto Collective.

2009 AIPAD show catalog; Movie Theater, Midland, Texas, March 25, 1995 by Dan Winters

While there might still be snow and slush on the ground, the spring arts calendar in NYC is beginning to fill up with great gallery shows and opportunities. Among the annual rites of spring in the city is one of the biggest international photographic events of the year, the AIPAD show at the Park Avenue Armory from March 18 through 21, 2010.

If you've never had a chance to make it out to AIPAD before, here's the skinny*:

AIPAD is short for the Association of International Photography Art Dealers. Every year for this long weekend at the beginning of spring, photographic galleries from all over the globe convene on the Armory site and set up shop. The idea is to give viewers and collectors a good sense of the kind of work that each gallery represents, as well as to provide face-to-face access with gallery owners and assistants that are on hand to field any questions or have a nice, casual conversation about art, the universe and everything. And if you're the sort with a nice cushion in your bank account you can even purchase work at the event.

It's an invaluably useful tool for photographers at all levels of their careers, as you can visit the show and in one weekend have compiled a list of galleries that might represent the kind of work you're doing, and whom it might be fortuitous for you to approach (but *after* the AIPAD event, not during!). And aside from personal gain, it's also an eye-popping experience of micro-gallery-going on an international scale. Will you be able to travel easily to Berlin in the near future and see the what's on the walls at Galerie august-fotokunst? Or have you been curious about the emerging scene in China and would like to see what's showing at Beijing Jade Jar Fine Art? At this once-a-year event, all the galleries of the world come to you (if you're in New York). And instead of wearing yourself out trying to cram in everything that's showing in Midtown, Chelsea and the Upper East Side—let alone in Argentina, France or the UK, you can do it all in one building one weekend in March. (View a full list of this year's exhibitors right here).

AIPAD 2008, © Susan Sermoneta

AIPAD will be on view from:
Thursday, March 18 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Friday, March 19 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 20 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 21 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

For more information on ticket sales and special exhibition talks (want to hear Bruce Davidson speak?), visit the AIPAD website and download their education program (pdf).

And, if you know all about AIPAD but have never been able to make it, promising "next year, next year," at least pencil it in for now. Not just because it's also a Whitney Biennial year and you can cram both of those two venues into one action-packed-art-weekend, but also because our very own Jen Bekman is co-chairing the Aperture Snap! Out of Winter Party. We'll have much more info on this soon, but in short: the ticket to the party comes with a print giveaway of photographer Dan Winters' work, a subscription to Aperture magazine, fine champagne and a Polaroid photobooth—with all of the proceeds for the event going to the Aperture Fund for Emerging Artists. Sound good? You can buy tickets right here (and you'd get to meet Jen + team 20x200). What other motivation could you possibly need?

*I had the chance to visit in 2008 and left full of notable impressions of the fair.

I'll admit it: I'm a sucker for stories without discrete endings—tales of lost loves, notes written into the ether, missed connections and stories of profound relationships that dissolved for reasons beyond one's control.

Pictory Magazine's newest project, The One Who Got Away, collects photographs and anecdotes about lost friends and loves from contributors around the globe. Magazine editor, Laura Brunow Miner created Pictory as a way for people to share the stories that accompany their photographs. For each issue, Miner selects an editorial theme, ranging from the conceptual (danger) to the much more specific (Portrait of London), then accepts submissions of captioned photographs. At any given time, several themes are open for entries, then 20-40 images and captions are published as collaborative picture stories.

In the introduction to The One Who Got Away, Miner writes:

Think about the people missing from your life, and how you feel about them. What we remember -- and what we forget -- may reveal more about ourselves than about them. We have photos, letters, souvenirs, and fragments of memory, but our powerful imagination takes over from there: We color in the blanks. And that's OK. Retouching old loves is a way of understanding what we want. It helps us find our way to new ones.

It's impossible to know whether the experiences below are about infatuation, true love, lust, or something else entirely. But we can be sure that each of these contributors learned about life and themselves in the process.

See Pictory's theme page for topics currently open for submission, and make sure to take the time to read through the captions of The One Who Got Away; they'll tug on your heartstrings.

The School of Visual Arts in New York is already known for their outstanding photography program and over the years has sent many artists by way of JBP. This year, they are offering a new intensive residency program, Photo Global, specifically for international students to have the opportunity to fully immerse in a critical dialogue of photography. The program is full-time for one year and offers opportunities for photographers who already have experience to advance their individual work through rigorous critique, dialogue, practice and visits to New York's myriad photography institutions.

Past and future speakers to the program include a wide variety of photographers and photo professionals, including: Tina Barney, Charlotte Cotton, Elinor Carucci, Roe Etheridge, Joseph Maida, Roxana Marcoci, Vik Muniz, Eva Respini, Collier Schorr, Taryn Simon, Larry Sultan, Eric Weeks and James Welling.

I had the chance to talk to Stephen Frailey, the Chair of the Photography Department at SVA (and a Hey, Hot Shot! panelist) about the program and why it might be the right fit for you or other photographers you know who are looking to bring their body of work to the next level:

Youngna Park: What was the evolution for the Photo Global program, and how is it different from the undergraduate degree in photography?

Stephen Frailey: I wanted to create a way to create a liaison with photographic communities around the world. As an international location for photographic practice and dialogue, New York City offers infinite opportunity and information, and the community of SVA a threshold for that experience. The goal of the certificate program is a multi-cultural and international learning experience that will enhance the knowledge and understanding of both the resident undergraduate students and those who will gather from various parts of the world. The program was started three years ago as a way to increase our understanding of photography on an international level, to elevate the undergraduate program by the strength of work from those who were somewhat more advanced, and to share our community and facilities.

It is different from the undergraduate program in that the participants are more advanced in their careers, thinking and practice.

YP:How does this program combine photographic practice with theory and immersion?

SF: Through the critique class, and by the choice of other electives that we offer that engage theory and critical thinking. The applicant for the program will be judged based not only on the originality of the work but its theoretical insight.

YP: Who is your ideal student?

SF: One whose work is advanced, fairly sophisticated and original, and is informed by the broader issues that animate photographic thinking specific to their genre. One who is, perhaps, at a turning point in their work and will take advantage of a new context and community and the resources that SVA and New York offers, and one who has an open mind and heart.

YP: What can international applicants learn from the Photo Global program that other programs don't offer?

SF: The program features a lecturing faculty that, individually, has shaped the discourse of contemporary American photography. In addition to the full resources of the BFA Photography Department, the resources of the MFA photography program will be available on an informal basis. It is an opportunity for non-American photography students to work in technologically advanced facilities with renowned photographers who bring critical rigor to the work of the advanced student. The function of the program is to progress the content of individual work through critique, lectures, museum and gallery visits and dialogue with other participants. The full breadth of the most advanced photographic technology is available, including studio, darkroom and digital facilities, as well as all formats of camera.

To learn more about the Photo Global Program, visit the program website. The deadline for applications is April 30, 2010 for the upcoming fall residency.

Spring 2005 Hot Shot and 20x200 edition-maker Rachel Hulin is no stranger to writing about photography. Since writing for Photoshelter's widely read Shoot! The Blog, Hulin has served as a photography columnist for The Daily Beast and The Faster Times while also writing a blog of her own.

Rachel has just joined the tiny team at The Photography Post, an all new site aggregating the latest in photo news from blogs, newswires and beyond, and propelling discussions about the state of contemporary photography. The Photography Post provides dynamic content in many sub-categories of the industry including: business, commercial, editorial, fashion, art, reportage and more. You can opt into one (or many) of their filtered "Live Feeds," providing you access to the full range of content within these topics. Editors Kate Steciw and Hulin oversee the content that streams into each of the feeds, which are updated (an unbelievable) every 15 minutes.

You can tune into The Photography Post on facebook and twitter or subscribe to their RSS.

The High Tide by Alejandro Chaskielberg, 2009 grant recipient

As we briefly mentioned in last Friday's week in review, Magnum photographer and burn magazine editor David Alan Harvey has announced that Magnum Photography is now receiving submissions for the 2010 Emerging Photographer Fund. This year's award is $15,000; funding is awarded with the goal of aiding a photographer to complete a personal project. The deadline for submissions is April 15, 2010, with winners to be announced in June.

The jury is typically composed of both Magnum photographers as well as respected members of the gallery and publishing realms. Last year's jurors were: Martin Parr, Gilles Peress, Eugene Richards, Carol Nagar, Fred Ritchin, Maggie Steber, David Griffin, John Gossage and James Nachtwey.

Of the inception of the EPF and burn magazine, David Alan Harvey writes:

I started BURN MAGAZINE just before Christmas 2008. So we have been rocking along now for just over a month. BURN is a spinoff of my 2 year old Road Trips blog which was heavily influenced by both Alec Soth and Martin Fuchs. The very nature of my blog, and the evolving BURN, is a clear educational imperative and so in 2008 I created a $5,000 grant to be given to an emerging photographer who needed financial assistance with a project. Sean Gallagher was the first recipient of the Emerging Photographer Fund grant of $5,000. to continue his environmental series on the "desertification" of China...With the publishing world changing right before our eyes and a recession hanging over most of us, I do see more opportunities than ever before. It will take a quick wit and some nimble thinking and stealth, but I truly believe that the audience will in effect become the publishers. I do see a time for BURN when the online audience will be sufficient enough to create the sponsorship for not only stipends to finish self started projects, but will lead to an annual print publication as well.

Magnum is a hallowed name in the photography world, whose history and trajectory is as complex and fascinating as the members themselves (if you're ever in the mood for a great contextual read on the legendary agency, this is it). A persisting misconception is that Magnum is dedicated to straight documentary work. The award of last year's EPF to Alejandro Chaskielberg, whose work is concerned with the Paraná River Delta and writes that his intention is, "...to work with photography in the border between reality and fiction," should mitigate that point-of-view.

For more information on this fantastic grant, take a look at this entry in burn magazine and the submission form for the competition can be found here.

Issue 11 of Fraction Magazine is now on view featuring work by Hey, Hot Shot! contender and 20x200 edition-maker Liz Kuball, Jonathan Blaustein, John Divola, Gordon Stettinius and 20x200 edition-maker Brian Ulrich.

Untitled by Liz Kuball

All of the series by the above artists surround the theme of "place," focusing on spaces that are imagined, idealized, celebrated and mourned. Kuball's California Vernacular reflects on going to a place surrounded by mystique—and the fantasy, expectation and desire that come with what you'll find once being there. She writes of California: "we hang on--hang on to a world that, to us, is even more fantastic than the one we thought we'd find, because it's real in its absurdity and because we have stories to tell."

(X18F5) Brady Bunch House - Stage 6 by John Divola

John Divola explores transient places: sets made on The X-Files during their final season in 2002. He photographs aspects—otherwise ordinary—of homes created to make a fictional world full of its own existential mysteries, feel more real. Divola writes of his series, "I was interested in The X-Files because it is literally a stage for the expression of these desires. I hope that there is some resonance between the generic nature of these sets, the character of photographic insistence on the observable present, and the X-Files as cultural fact."

Fraction is also collaborating with Radius Books to give away six signed books—three each of Debbie Fleming Caffery's The Spirit & The Flesh and Michael Light's Bingham Mine/Garfield Stack. To enter, send an email to fractionmag@gmail.com with the subject line "radius book giveaway" and you automatically get a discount code good for 25% at the Radius Books online store. The winners of the signed artists' books will be randomly selected on March 1st.

Short notice, but if you happen to be in Richmond, VA tonight, Alec Soth is giving a lecture at the Singleton Center for the Performing Arts from 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. hosted by the Photography department at the VCU School of the Arts.

After several years' hiatus, Alec has recently returned to blogging at Little Brown Mushroom, which is also an independent publishing venture most recently offering Alec's Las Vegas Birthday Book (and sculpture), a one-off publication that "comes with a unique, signed sculpture made out of Las Vegas prostitution advertisements (spoon and $100 bill are also included)." While you've missed your chance at that one of a kind work, you can see Alec and his work in person if you're down in Virginia. Details below:

Singleton Center for the Performing Arts
Sonya Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Monroe Park Campus
922 Park Ave, Richmond, VA
January 27, 2010
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.

More images available at Alec's site and his Magnum portfolio.

Cover of Lay Flat 02: Meta

There's photography, and then there's photography about photography. The medium is (relatively) young, but what it lacks in history it makes up for in inquiry, and wild experimentation. Shane Lavalette has put together the second issue in his series of photography books, Lay Flat, this time bringing together "contemporary photographers whose images are conceptually engaged with the history, process and conventions of the medium itself." The publication, co-edited with Michael Bühler-Rose, will span 102 pages and be produced in a limited-edition of 2000.

The lineup of contributors is pretty incredible, including work by our own 2009 Second Edition Hot Shot Jessica Eaton and 20x200 edition-maker Penelope Umbrico as well as an essay by HHS! panelist Lesley A. Martin.

However, since the print run is limited, to secure your copy you will need to pre-order Lay Flat 02: Meta by January 31st at 10pm. The previous issue of Lay Flat, printed in an edition of 1000, is now completely sold out so you'll want to get in on 02 while you still can. I am happy to say that my pre-order has been placed and I'm anxious to see the publication in all its printed glory, come February.

Lay Flat 02: Meta
102 pages, perfect bound
Edition of 2,000

Edited by Shane Lavalette and Michael Bühler-Rose.

Photographs by Claudia Angelmaier, Semâ Bekirovic, Charles Benton, Walead Beshty, Lucas Blalock, Talia Chetrit, Anne Collier, Natalie Czech, Jessica Eaton, Roe Ethridge, Stephen Gill, Daniel Gordon, David Haxton, Matt Keegan, Elad Lassry, Katja Mater, Laurel Nakadate, Lisa Oppenheim, Torbjørn Rødland, Noel Rodo-Vankeulen, Joachim Schmid, Penelope Umbrico, Useful Photography, Charlie White, Ann Woo and Mark Wyse are accompanied by the textual contributions of Adam Bell (Co-editor, The Education of a Photographer), Lesley A. Martin (Publisher/Editor, Aperture Foundation), Alex Klein (Editor, Words Without Pictures), artists Noel Rodo-Vankeulen and Arthur Ou, as well as an interview with James Welling by Lyle Rexer (Author, The Edge of Vision: The Rise of Abstraction in Photography).

This Tuesday, January 12th, you're invited to a conversation between Hey, Hot Shot! panelist and publisher of the Aperture Foundation's book program, Lesley A. Martin and photographer Joel Meyerowitz. The two will be discussing Meyerowitz's book Legacy, a result of the first government commission to document public parks in New York City since the 1930's. As any New Yorker will tell you, our beloved parks—all nine-thousand acres of them—are thriving some eighty years since the documentation first began. Here are some more details about the event:

Ms. Martin, who edited the book, will talk with Meyerowitz about how this ambitious project evolved from conception to completion, what surprises he encountered in the course of discovering these corners of nature hidden within the concrete world of the city, and how Legacy connects with his first New York project documenting Ground Zero for nine months following 9/11, which resulted in the publication of Aftermath: The World Trade Center Archive.

This discussion is part of the "Architectural Explorations in Books" series at the New York Public Library, a program of events which seeks to "delve into the critical role that architecture books play in the understanding of contemporary urban developments and structures." Not only is Tuesday's discussion a great opportunity to learn about photo books and the evolution of parks and green spaces in New York City, but it is totally free and open to the public.

The Urban Sublime at The New York Public Library
Joel Meyerowitz in conversation with Lesley A. Martin
Tuesday January 12, 2010
6:00 p.m.

Stephen A. Schwarzman Building
Margaret Liebman Berger Forum
Room 227 (2nd Floor)
476 Fifth Avenue (5th Avenue & 42nd Street)
New York, NY 10018

Where will we be on February 28, 2010? At the annual powerHouse Books photography portfolio review!

The Sixth Annual powerHouse Portfolio Review event [is] a platform for all levels of aspiring and professional photographers to present their body of work to be reviewed and critiqued by leading experts in the fields of photography, art, media, and advertising and to receive guidance and mentoring for future artistic and commercial career development.

This year the panel of experts includes our own Jeffrey Teuton, Associate Director of Jen Bekman Gallery, and Sara Distin, Associate Director of Jen Bekman Projects. Each photographer who signs up will be assigned five one-on-one reviews of his or her portfolio. Reviews such as these are an extremely valuable way to develop your artistic practice, as well as get on the radar of experts like ours. We’ll make sure to keep reminding you about this awesome opportunity as it approaches, but for the early birds who do their research: the full list of reviewers, and much more information, is available on the powerHouse website.

The registration form (pdf) is available online, and we recommend that you sign up as early as possible because there is a 100 person cap on the event.

A book (photo courtesy of Darius Himes)

Happy betwixt-holidays everybody! Hope you are all resting, spending time with loved ones, and taking care of personal projects with any free time you may have.

We wanted to make sure you check out the very intriguing networked blog discussion about the future of photography books started by Andy Adams of Flak Photo and Miki Johnson over at liveBooks' Resolve blog. More than 45 intriguing posts on the subject later, some highlights have now been organized for your convenience.

The roster of contributors to this discussion is impressive (I say, noting my contribution but attempting to keep modesty intact): Hey, Hot Shot! panelists Darius Himes and Lesley Martin, as well as Daylight Magazine, Lens Culture, Amy Stein, Alec Soth, and Bryan Formhals of La Pura Vida Gallery, Marc Feustel of eyecurious, and Todd Walker of Ocular Octopus (the latter three of whom will be moderating the next phase of the discussion next week).

Perhaps this discussion isn't going to change the publishing landscape of photobook publishing overnight, but the concentration of wisdom and forward-looking speculation on the subject here is unprecedented. Check it out before Phase II begins!

Steep Rock Campus in Connecticut

Calling all photographers: it's time to wake up from your holiday daze and submit your applications to the Steep Rock Arts residency. Applications are due December 31st, so you only have a few days left!

Steep Rock Arts Association is a non-profit organization whose campus is situated on a 100-acre estate in Connecticut where emerging visual artists are provided with time and space to develop their work in a creative environment. From their site:

Residencies are awarded competitively, at no cost, to national and international emerging artists. Applicants are evaluated by a panel that includes a variety of professionals in the art field. Those selected will be awarded an eight week Residency. Each artist will receive a $10,000 stipend to cover the cost of materials and transportation.

That sounds perfect to me, however, this residency may not be for everyone:

All applicants should consider that the residency is an opportunity to have two months in solitude. Residents are on their own for most of the time in a small town. Neighbors are friendly and there are nearby shops—but it is a small, quiet village. Residents should feel comfortable working and living on their own (or with their families).

Applications can be submitted online but remember that they are due by December 31st, so get cracking! Winners will be notified by mid-February.

The holiday gift season is off to a roaring start! First, don't miss all the amazing offers going on over at 20x200 during the 12 Days of Festivus, where we're featuring twelve consecutive days of new editions embedded with extra-special deals and steals.

While you're in the mode of gifting art, don't forget that photography books also make great gifts. Several of our esteemed Hey, Hot Shot! panelists are also photo book editors and publishers and their publishing houses are offering great deals at the moment.

1. Aperture, where panelist Lesley Martin is publisher, is currently offering 30% off books, 15% off limited-edition prints and 50% off magazine subscriptions through January 5, 2010. The special holiday prices are listed below the original prices, and you can start browsing their holiday offerings right now.

2. Chronicle Books (whose CEO Nion McEvoy is also a HHS! panelist) is offering a whopping 35% off and free ground shipping through midnight tomorrow! Start shopping and enter promo code FRIENDS at checkout.

3. If you happen to be out in Santa Fe, then Radius Books is having a holiday party tomorrow, Friday, December 4th where books and limited-editions will be 30% off. You can also take the opportunity to meet HHS! panelist and Radius co-founder Darius Himes.

Details:
Friday, December 4, 2009 5–8 p.m.
519 Cerrillos (in the old Luna building, across from Hotel Santa Fe)
Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Fortunately for the rest of us, Radius is offering the same great discount through their online store. Just use the code SALE09 when checking out, and get 30% off of ANYTHING through December 24!

4. And, last but not least, don't forget the Deep Discounts page at Photo-Eye. We've already got our eye on a few books there ourselves!

If you know of any other photo book specials happening during the holidays, please do let us know in the comments below.

One of the things that makes Flak Photo one of our favorite photography sites is their excellently curated and generously sized daily photo. Not to mention that Flak's online gallery has been known to feature the work of several Hot Shots, including Colleen Plumb, Brad Moore, and Alison Grippo.

This week Flak Photo started a 25-day showcase featuring the winners of this year's Photography.Book.Now, the photography book competition launched last year by Blurb. Among them will be 2009 First Edition Hot Shot Kurt Tong, who took home two prizes, including first place in the Editorial category.

Several months ago on a Tribeca rooftop, Darius Himes—Hey, Hot Shot! panelist and lead judge of Blurb's Photography.Book.Now competition—gave a speech about the future of photography books and the possibilities self-publishing affords.

Darius said,

Books are ancient vehicles for the dissemination of ideas and resonate with us as objects even today. Photography, by contrast, is no more developed than a toddler in the scope of human history. It is a gift of modernity and it is changing rapidly before our eyes...and all of that is as exciting as anything I can think of.

The Photography.Book.Now contest was not just another "photography" contest. This was a photography-book contest—and specifically, one that celebrates print-on-demand technology. Many thanks and shout-outs to all the photographers who submitted, attended the party and decided to participate in something fresh and exciting, without really knowing where we're all headed.

You can read the rest of the speech over at Darius' blog, and don't forget to check in with Flak to see the great books that they'll be featuring through mid-December.

2005 Hot Shot Shawn Records is dad to one of the world's most recognizable kids. His son, Max Records, stars as "Max" in Spike Jonze's film adaptation of Maurice Sendak's Where The Wild Things Are, currently out in theaters all over the world. Lucky dad that Shawn is, he spent four months on set with his son during the filming of the movie, photographing his experience behind the scenes, which he has compiled into a book, Owners of This World.

Of the collection, he notes that the images are "a collection of fears and reassurances, upon letting his son out into a world that is beyond his control" rather than any secret insights into the making of the movie. He invites you to take a look into the temporary and magical world he visited with his son Max.

More info below:
PHOTOGRAPHER: Max Max's father, photographer Shawn Records
WHAT: A book of photographs, Owners of This World
WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE: Now!
WHERE TO GET IT: Available on Publication Studio

PS: We Love You So, the blog for Where The Wild Things Are, compares Shawn Records's aesthetic to Joel Sternfeld and William Eggleston, and I would not disagree. Read an interview with Shawn and sneak a peek of the book here, then get yourself a copy on Publication Studio.

See more of Shawn's work on his website.

On Tuesday, October 20th, the gallery will host the Official Release Party for City Walks Architecture: New York by Alissa Walker, published by Chronicle Books.

Join us at 6 Spring Street for drinks and to view Hosang Park's exhibition, A Square. Once a group has gathered, Alissa will lead a walk through the ever-changing Lower East Side with special stops at the New Museum, the Storefront for Art & Architecture and more. The evening winds up back at the gallery for a tasting of four New York-inspired flavors of gelato from il laboratorio del gelato. You will be able to purchase a copy of the book, on-site, that evening, and Alissa will be in-house for signing.

Order of Events:
6 p.m. -- Meet at Jen Bekman Gallery, 6 Spring Street
7-8:30 p.m. -- Walk through the LES
8:30 p.m. -- Gelato reception at Jen Bekman Gallery

From October 18–24th, Alissa will be leading a Week of Walks, taking six different urban adventures based on the twenty-five available in the book. Check out Alissa's blog,Gelatobaby, for a full list of the walks which include Greenwich Village, the Empire State Building, Central Park and the World Trade Center Site.

Whether you are a visitor or a New Yorker yourself, Alissa's walks point out idiosyncratic historical knowledge within the city's many neighborhoods and highlight buildings, parks and monuments that may have gone unnoticed before. All walks are free and open to the public; you can simply show up at the schedule time ready to stroll. All tours include a complimentary serving of gelato or ice cream, plus all attendees will receive a coupon good for a discount on City Walks Architecture: New York.

The first HHS! Confab + Print Trade at White Rabbit went down last night, and it was awesome to see so many photographers, Hot Shots, and panelists in attendance. Everyone's spirits seemed high, even with the technical challenge of not having a microphone; everyone handled my bullhorn-voice with good cheer. We hope all of you who made it had a great time, met and mingled with other photographers, and for those who participated in the print-trade, left with new artwork for your home.

Extra special thanks go to our photographer for the night, Winnie Au, who took all the photos you see here, and our event sponsors: Manish from Arlo/Artists, Perry and Yancey from Kickstarter, and the fine folks from Crumpler. Arlo is very kindly extending a 25% off the $100 annual fee discount on occasion of the Confab. With Arlo/Artists, you can build your custom portfolio website without setup or additional fees, inclusive of hosting, custom design, unlimited images and video, a multimedia blog, and integration with Twitter and Facebook. Use the code HHS322 after a two week free trial.

And of course, thanks to our venue, White Rabbit, and the members of the Jen Bekman Projects' team who made this happen: Casey, Jeffrey, Jacqueline, Raul, Jane, Youngna, Sara, and Kika . We missed the presence of our fearless leader Ms. Bekman—and indeed a few of us feel a tad under the weather today (Get those flu shots! Wash those hands!)—but it was great to have so many of us in one place to meet all of you in the HHS! community.

If you were there last night and took pictures, please tag them "Hey, Hot Shot! Confab". We'll be adding our batch of event photos to flickr shortly, so look for more shots of the night there.

And, don't forget: The Hey, Hot Shot! 2009 Second Edition Competition is still open. We're accepting entries until October 23, 2009 at 8:00 p.m EST. Enter here, and we look forward to seeing you at our next event!

July 22, 2009 :: Broadway by Joe Holmes

In addition to being ridiculously talented photographers, our Hot Shots (like Beth and Alison, among many others...) are fast developing a reputation for being experts in the field of self-publishing.

For example, last week we found out that Hot Shot Kurt Tong was awarded two spots in Blurb's highly competitive Photography.Book.Now competition.

Today, two-time Hot Shot, 20x200 edition-maker, and prolific NYC street photographer Joe Holmes is teaching a class on how to put together a photo book of your own. The class promises to "walk you through the process of editing your images for presentation in a hardcover photobook as well as show you tips and tricks to create the book you want." In addition, Allen Murabayashi, CEO of Photoshelter, will be talking about how to "promote your brand and market yourself as a photographer."

The class has a cover charge of $10, but that $10 will be automatically refunded in the form of a coupon towards your new AdoramaPix photo book, which they describe as having "high-quality silver-halide prints carefully bound to lay completely flat with no gutter or stitching to break up the view on double page spreads."

Space is limited; so if you are interested, make sure to RSVP online. If you're in New York today, this class could be just the push you need to start your book!

Monday, September 21, 2009
6:30 PM - 8:00 PM

Adorama
42 West 18th street
5th floor
New York, NY 10011

Psst! There's more to come from Joe today on 20x200... stay tuned.

Hot Shot, 20x200 edition-maker, and JB artist Joe Holmes just passed along a bit of very exciting news: his image, West Forty-third Street is today's PDN Photo of the Day!

Click on over to PDN to see the image larger.

Joe's editions, Prospect Park and amnh #30 have completely sold out on 20x200, but lucky for you, there are still editions of amnh #62, amnh #10 and Prospect Park #2 left. Look out for more 20x200 editions to come from Joe very soon!

P.S. Have you RSVP'ed for the first-ever Hey, Hot Shot! Confab + Print Trade yet? Read more about it here.

I recently became aware (courtesy of the New York Times) of kickstarter.com, a Brooklyn-based online community that attempts to match artists and creative thinkers with interested patrons to support their projects. Judging by the popularity of this relatively young micropayment model, this seems like a smart way to bring people together to realize a creative goal (and sometimes lifelong dream)

The founders of Kickstarter do not receive any money from the projects or seek creative rights. Project creators can offer numerous incentives to solicit patron donations, including artwork.

While Kickstarter requires that the financial goal be met in order for any funds to be disbursed, there is ample potential to exceed donation expectations. Artist Laura Kicey, for example, set out to raise $350 to go to Iceland and take photos. She offered prints of her excursion for anyone who helped sponsor the trip, and ended up raising $1630!

On a larger scale, FOUND magazine co-creator Jason Bitner teamed up with Emmy-nominated editor and director Joe Beshenkovsky, to create a documentary film based on found studio portraits of the populace of LaPorte, Indiana by photographer Frank Pease. The film, based on Bitner's previously published book of the photographs, will share the stories of this tight-knit American community. Their goal to raise $7,500 was greatly exceeded (to the tune of $12,153) with pledges made in exchange for original photographs, caricatures, VIP tickets to the premiere, and even a "song portrait" sung to you by their super musician friend.

This past January one of our own 20x200 artists and Hey, Hot Shot! panelists, Kent Rogowski launched Scaffold (announced here earlier), a non-profit that also supports emerging and mid-career artists by rewarding fellowships. With Scaffold, Kent intends to create an artists-helping-artists environment whereby the community essentially serves itself. Lots of small contributions, made by donations and application fees, aggregate to provide the award. Fellowships are awarding in the continuous bi-monthly schedule and unlike Kickstarter there is no time limit for pledging donations. Also, Scaffold is specifically geared toward painters, sculptors, photographers and new media artists, making this art funding from within the art world itself.

All this reminded me of Youngna and Sara's SXSW2010 panel proposal about supporting artists through social networking. Whether your project is big or small, social media networking can really promote and support artists, while also reaching a mass audience that is not exclusive to the art world. This is yet another innovative, web-enabled way to spread creativity — and another great funding opportunity for all you creative people with big ideas.

As we all too well know, the right combination of the internet and photography can provide for some highly addictive websites. Whether it is online galleries, photo-sharing networks, art projects, well-designed portfolios, or friends' ffffound accounts, our ability to easily discover, aggregate, and create galleries of compelling images is in large part attributable to the ease of the web.

Enter mus-mus, a collaborative photography space on the web founded earlier this year that "will strive to use the ease and power of the web combined with the talents and camaraderie of the global photography community to develop a striking online archive of images." They do this by compelling photographers and photo-experts to contemplate a topic, most recently by taking us on a quick virtual trip to gay ol' @PARIS. In this newest "exhibit," mus-mus presents essays and a photo gallery featuring work by our own Joe Holmes, Colleen Plumb and Beth Dow, Hot Shot Georg Parthen, contender Shane Lavalette, and many other names familiar to the JBP family.

Darius Himes, one of our esteemed Hot Shot panelists also makes his mark on @PARIS in an essay titled Abdu'l-Baha In Paris. Himes examines a photograph of Abdu'l-Baha Abbas, a man photographed at age 65 under the Eiffel Tower after being exiled from Persia for 50 years, and suggests that the moment captured is both an explicit record of the past as well as a "signpost" for the future. While the group's posture, suggestion of time and day, and the history of the subject's travels become locked into the story of this single frame, the ideas of Abbas and his desire to build cultural bridges, cannot be bound to this image alone. History and photography are also entrenched in Ulrich Baer's essay Photography and Paris as the Promise of Possibility. Both essays are available, in full, online.

The photographs in @PARIS are displayed in non-symmetric columns and span the gamut from historical to whimsical. Jurors Stephen Shore, Gil Blank, and Denise Wolff had the tough task of capturing the essence of place through this curated selection of images. Like any portrait of a place, one version exists through the eye of the beholder, but a more collective (if less cohesive) version exists through the eyes of many. Bruce Davidson's Central Park is a very different place than Tod Papageorge's, which is a very different place from the Central Park of all flickr users combined. In creating a collective portrait of Paris, already imbued with heightened romance, style, nostalgia and history, it invites the challenge upon the jurors of discerning the ineffable elements that comprise true Parisian essence. Click over to the gallery to see the full collection of images.

We're always excited to see photography being curated and presented in new ways online, like mus-mus has done here. We're curious—what are some of your favorite web-only photography projects, and how does the presentation service the medium?

The BLDGBLOG Book by Geoff Manaugh and Library of Dust by David Maisel, edited by Alan Rapp

After last week's flurry of announcements, there is very little that you don't know about Alan Rapp, the newly minted Associate Director of Hey, Hot Shot!

What you may not know is that Alan, a self-professed "book geek", can never turn down questions about publishing. At the top of his response to my questions was a disclaimer: "I have lots of opinions on this." Alan's experience in the world of what he jokingly refers to as "old school" publishing lends a unique perspective to anyone considering putting together their own book.

Tell me a little bit about your background with publishing and photography.
Like many people in book publishing, I am a lifelong book geek. For people like us, every aspect of a book—the weight and smell, the quality of the stock, small production details like head- and tailbands—are like a mysterious language that we keep striving to master. Books were all around me during childhood, at home and at the library, and I worked at several bookstores throughout high school.

In college, I had the privilege of working at the legendary art and architecture bookstore Hennessey + Ingalls in Santa Monica. I was an English major, but art books, in a way, became my second major. I knew I wanted to pursue this for a living somehow. I moved to San Francisco after graduation and started in the publicity department of Chronicle Books, a premier visual book publisher. After a few years as a publicist, I moved to the editorial department and managed the art, design, and photography books. So my interests converged in the perfect job, and I helped bring approximately a hundred books into being over the course of ten years.

What role did you play at Chronicle in putting together a book of photography, such as David Maisel's beautiful book Library of Dust?
Well, thank you for the kind words, that's a special project to me. I started attending photography portfolio reviews such as Review Santa Fe, Fotofest, and Photolucida, in order to keep apprised of the diversity of photographic work today, and also to help educate photographers about how they could adapt their work into a book and create effective book proposals.

At one of these reviews I met David, who had just published The Lake Project with the excellent Nazraeli Press. We bonded over numerous mutual interests, including an obsession with the artist Robert Smithson, and since he was also based in the Bay Area, we stayed in contact. I was gradually pushing Chronicle's photo book list in a direction that could accommodate strong fine art work, and by the time David was creating the work that would be Library of Dust, he felt there was an opportunity to publish it in a more ambitious way than his previous books had been [published]. I was honored to work with an artist I admired, who was also a friend, and I think the book benefited from a great level of collaboration. It was also one of the last books I worked on at Chronicle, so it felt a fitting end to that phase of my publishing career.

It's a given that with self-publishing, the creator has more control over their book, but what are some of the aspects of the traditional publishing process that self-publishers miss out on? How can self-publishers compensate for this?
I am not sure that it is a clear given that self-publishing affords authors more control over books, though in principle that seems right. As with many things, it depends on the author's level of education and awareness, because total control isn't worth much when your knowledge, imagination, and other means are limited. And the flip side of the "control" consideration is, now that you've created the book, you have to distribute it. Have fun—that is arguably the hardest part of the process, no matter if you publish with an established trade publisher or [if] your book is waiting for orders to get printed with a service such as Blurb.

But back to your question: for all the possible flaws in the trade publishing model, one thing I always liked about it is the collaborative process. It defies the auteur model; the author is almost never the sole creator. I suppose that this could sound like the ex-editor making a case for the value of his role in an industry that is really undergoing massive and fundamental changes, but I stand by the principle: all content benefits from editing. The author, whether a verbal or visual one, is almost always too involved with the material to see how it can be best adapted to another form. And the design and production processes are also critical to making the best book possible; one thing [that] I think is in danger of getting lost in self-publishing is the production potential. The physical aspects of books make important, and often subliminal, effects on the reader, but we are getting a much more homogenized offering through the current self-publishing models.

Where do you see self-publishing heading?
I can't see the exact shape of it, but I see self-publishing services taking on more traits of the traditional publishing house, and trade publishers incorporating more of the self-publishing model. They are going to keep meeting in the middle. With primarily verbal, or at least one-color, books, this is getting more and more refined—more books republished on demand through Lightning Source-type services, and even bookstores hosting printing and binding machines like the vaunted (and terribly named)Espresso Book Machine. It's visual books that are still the big question mark to me. They require more intensive design and production than non-visual books, and the material costs are high (and ever higher). They also tend to be for a smaller and more select audience—take that all together and you get a really delicately poised product profile. I think everyone who creates and consumes visual books wants to figure this out and keep quality publishing alive regardless of the model.

The Espresso Book Machine can print and bind a book in just a few minutes at the push of a button, while you wait.

You were the editor of the BLDGBLOG book, which, as its name suggests, is a blog-turned-book. What's so special about print?
It's fairly common publishing practice now to harvest book content from blogs, and this has been done in various degrees of success. When I started talking to Geoff Manaugh, the author of BLDGBLOG and the new BLDGBLOG Book, I wasn't thinking in terms of let's flip blog content for a quickie book. I was foremost a fan of the site. BLDGBLOG is exceptional among many blogs in that it is very writerly and the posts are rather long-form; Geoff is a very book-oriented person as well. He wanted to explore the possibilities of the book, from how he wrote it, to the design and production features. So, we were in agreement that the blog is the blog, but the for the book, we wouldn't hew to those conventions; there are enough creative possibilities in books. It worked out great, I think, though I know I am biased.

We've talked to two artists who have submitted to Blurb's Photography.Book.Now competition, so, we know a bit about what that's like, but what's it like to judge those thousands of entries?
Thankfully the level at which I was judging, I did not go through every single entry. There were several categories, and then a core group of judges tightened the selection further before we got to it. That said, there were still a lot of books, and we were evaluating ten different qualities of each. I try to "read" visual books with attention, which means it can be slow going, but the entrants all put a ton of work into these and so it's attention befitting of their effort.

What do you look for in a photo book?
The first level is almost always the photos themselves, of course. But that doesn't mean I must have a personal predilection for the kind of work to appreciate it, and everyone's work can be put in the best light through the particular framing of book conventions. That sounds heady and wordy, but I mean basics such as the edit, the sequence of images, how the reproductions lay on the page and work on the spread, how the other components, like text, interact with the art, and the physical qualities of the book. At workshops I call books "machines," which sounds kooky and sci-fi, but I really mean that they are still unparalleled technologies for presenting content, and every part of them makes them behave differently. All that to say, I try to look for everything in a photo book, and when all the components work together in a compelling way, you have a great book.

Cape Girardeau, Missouri 2002, from the series Sleeping by the Mississippi by Alec Soth

What is your favorite photo book?
That's the ultimate question, isn't it? I'll venture my first edition of Alec Soth's Sleeping by the Mississippi. I met Alec before he published it and, like many people, fell in love with his work. But I also think that the book is so strong because it conveys the concepts and methodology behind the photos exceptionally well. The geographic journey Alec made for that body of work is a conceptual echo of the journey the reader takes through the book.

What advice to do you have for photographers who are self-publishing their own books?
Know thyself and know the field. All decent work can make for a good book, but there may only be a few ways to make the "right" book of your photographs. If you are confident about your own work then you will have a much clearer understanding of how it can adapt to the book form. But also do your homework about photo book history and conventions; start paying attention to every aspect of your favorite photo books, and learn from them.

So concludes another interview. Next week we will wrap up with a reflection on our interviews and the state of self publishing today. Stay tuned and let us know how those books are coming along, everyone.

Last week the glorious swissmiss posted a very intriguing trailer for an upcoming documentary about Polaroid photography by internet-famous photographer Grant Hamilton.

I first stumbled across Grant's graphic, colorful, geometric Polaroids on Flickr a few years ago and they stopped me in my tracks. Polaroid photography had always seemed, to me, to be a medium exclusively devoted to overt sentimentality or the impulsive antics and wild partying of Dash Snow; Grant's minimalist compositions were eye-opening.

Assorted Polaroids by Grant Hamilton

The documentary, to be released in 2010, is called TIME ZERO: the last year of Polaroid film. Grant's strong engagement with the medium makes me confident that this film is going to rock!

However, by the time this film about the end-times of Polaroid is released, the format may have made it's comeback thanks to The Impossible Project. Started shortly after Polaroid announced the shutdown of their film factory in Netherlands, the team secured a 10-year lease on the building and aims to not just revive, but arguably reinvent instant film in a way that is more sustainable to produce.

P.S. The excellent Chronicle Books blog rounded up some great Polaroid links and images in a post a few days ago, don't miss it!

Second in our blog-mini-series about self-publishing is an interview with esteemed photographer, best-selling 20x200 edition-maker and acclaimed self-publisher,Beth Dow. A few months ago, there was an extremely well done interview with Beth in Macworld UK, that covered lots of bases, but we sent her some burning questions of our own:

Tell me about your book.
I received a generous fellowship from the McKnight Foundation several years ago to make most of these pictures. I lived in London for many years, and grew to love the sense of quiet confusion, and occasional danger, of these unusual landscapes. I never think of gardens as pretty places. At least not the gardens I choose to visit. This book invites the viewer to lose themselves in landscapes that are confounding yet beautiful.

Why did you want to put together a book?
Every single photograph I have ever made has been with the hope that it would be part of a book. Yes, I know that's a little pathetic. Holding a book can be a much more intimate experience than viewing a photograph in a gallery. I love the physical nature of books, and they just smell so good! I was that freak in elementary school who sniffed the new textbooks.

I put together my Blurb book in very little time as an exercise in sequencing and curiosity about the software. I think I have a good eye for design, as well as some experience with typography, and was stuck on my ass with a freshly broken ankle. The Photography.Book.Now deadline was looming and so I gave it a stab. I was thrilled with the result. Like most photographers, I'm used to the letter that begins, "Competition was fierce this year, and we regret . . ."

It's no secret that print-on-demand has pretty weak profit margins for content producers and most print-on-demand books only ever sell a few copies or are created as promotional giveaways. Did winning the competition result in significant profits from the sale of your book?
I don't get a huge amount from a sale, but I have sold more books than I anticipated.

Who is your audience?
These garden pictures have different crossover appeal from my other work. I hope gardeners, Anglophiles, and other dark souls will understand the work, and that people who are not regular fans of landscape photographs will change their minds about what a carefully considered and articulated environment can be. Americans tend to think gardens are where we keep the pretty flowers. I'm not interested in such places, and flowers are rarely in my work.

How is putting together a book of photography different from putting together an exhibition?
It depends on the book, I suppose. A print-on-demand book can be re-sequenced and re-designed as often as you like. A published book is set in stone, and that finality must be deliciously comforting. My photographs have hung in many different kinds of venues, and I love how the special demands of each space affects the relationships between images.

Did you look at other options? Why did you choose Blurb?
What were my other options? I still want a publisher for this work, and all of my other projects as well! I chose Blurb because of the fantastic competition and its stellar judging panel. [I] then made the book as an exercise and love the resulting book. I'm still very open to completely changing the format and design, and want, most of all, for it to be printed by a fine press on gorgeous paper. How could I not want that? The original prints are handmade in platinum, on lovely paper. The physicality of a photograph is integral to my work, and I always say photographs are three-dimensional objects rather than 2-D images.

It seems like everyone I know has publishers falling all over themselves, and two more friends announced their new books just this week. I haven't learned that secret handshake. If you know it, please tell me. There is nothing I want more than for a publisher to express interest in my photographs, but I have yet to crack that code. My Fieldwork project was recently one of the top six finalists for the Critical Mass book award, so I was in with a chance for a little while, at least.

What was the process like? What took the longest?
This book design really was a fluke. It's more quiet and conservative than me, but I went with the requirements of the images. I spent most of a day putting together a completely different project (Fieldwork) but didn't like the way those square images sat on the rectangular page. No matter how I re-sized the images and moved them around, I just wasn't happy, and I would love those to be printed in a huge square slab.

Out of frustration, I switched to the garden pictures simply because they are slightly rectangular, and went with that. This was around 2 days before the entry deadline, so I had no time to second-guess myself. My design instincts are usually good, and I only run into trouble when I have a lot of time to over-think things.

What is your biggest problem with self-publishing? How long did it take to make?
My biggest problem is that people seem to assume it was my goal all along. Instead, it was an invaluable tool to mess around with sequencing and to make me feel I was actually getting somewhere. Absolute instant gratification. It took me 2 1/2 days, start to finish. Did I mention the Percocet from my orthopedic surgeon? Might have helped.

Do you plan to self-publish in the future?
Sure. It's a great way to throw together a sequence and see what happens, and I like that an artist can also just order a single book and not offer copies for sale. I also might shoot some pictures exclusively for a Blurb book project. I see those book ideas as tangential, however. There is nothing I want more than a publisher who really loves and understands the possibilities of well-made book to take a risk with me.

What's your favorite photo book?
That answer changes all the time, so I won't even begin to throw titles at you.

What things are important to consider when creating your own photo book?
Know what you like, but be willing to do what's right for the images. If your favorite picture doesn't play well with others, let it sit this one out. Decide from the start if the book is all about the pictures or all about clever design, and don't think one of those choices is necessarily better than the other. I tend to prefer books that facilitate my experience with the photographs and eschew noise.

Clever-clogs typography usually pisses me off, and I just dislike it when a book looks like it was designed by a hired [hand] that didn't understand the images. This isn't to say I don't like bold design, though, and a good example would be my friend Chris Shaw's stunning book, Life as a Night Porter, from Twin Palms.

from Life as a Night Porter by Chris Shaw

Attention-getting design that is a natural companion to the images is an amazing thing to see. Look at the stunning things John Gossage makes. Mercy me! And please don't forget that the cover is important. In some odd way, it can be the most important because it has the most power to lure a person to pick it up. Or, of course, to ignore it altogether.

What advice do you have to photographers self-publishing their own books?
First of all, understand why you want a book. There are so many good reasons, and not all involve aesthetic issues. For example, a book might function as a kind of catalog for a project. In this case, like the best web sites, the design will get the hell out of the way of the images.

Another kind of book might require a bigger experience, and use color, typography, scale or texture to transform the context of the images. Keep looking at books to learn what you like and dislike. Self-publishing through a print-on-demand house only costs you the price of a single copy. If you hate it, no big deal. Keep going until you get it right or accept it's a pile of crap and move on. If you're not confident in your design skills, find someone who can help you. Maybe you can barter some prints or copies of the book as payment. Just make something that you can love.

So concludes another post. Don't miss Beth's beautiful and award-winning book, In the Garden. Check back next week for an interview with Alan Rapp.

The Aperture Foundation is teaming up with the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund to support five emerging photographers—including Fall 2006 Hot Shot and 20x200 artist Shen Wei—in documenting New York City's green carts. Focusing on these mobile produce stand, located on street corners all over the city, the photographers have been asked to apply their own style of portraiture, landscapes, and street photography to this project. Photographers LaToya Ruby Frazier, Thomas Holton, Gabriele Stabile, and Will Steacy have also been selected to participate and we are thrilled to see these fine emerging artists have the opportunity the embark on a project unifying their individual artistic visions with a project embracing these historical and timely landmarks of New York City streets.

artdaily.org writes,

The photographers will capture the Green Carts in designated neighborhoods in all five boroughs over the next eighteen months, photographing not only the carts themselves, but also the stories of the vendors, customers, and communities around them. The photographers are: LaToya Ruby Frazier, Thomas Holton, Gabriele Stabile, Will Steacy, and Shen Wei. The overall goal is to raise awareness about the geography of healthy food options and its relationship to a community's health, and to document the challenges and opportunities of starting a new business. Each of the five professional photographers brings a unique artistic vision and point of view to this effort.

Aperture will exhibit the works created in September 2011 as well as publish images throughout the project in their quarterly, Aperture Magazine. Congratulations to all of the photographers; we look forward to seeing the images you create!

A few weeks ago, we got an email from our 2006 Ultra and 20x200 edition-maker, Alison Grippo, letting us know that she had just self-published her first book: CHASING: The Friday Night Fights NYC using Blurb.com. Intrigued, we sent Alison a few questions about her self-publishing process:

Tell me about your book.
It's a documentary about the fighters from The Friday Night Fights NYC. It's funny, I was looking through it and it actually does not have any photos of people hitting each other. I heard about the fights from a friend a few years ago and I thought, "Wow, men fighting in the basement of a church...who doesn't want to photograph that?"

I was completely in the dark about the sport, about this particular group, all of it; I just thought, "Holy spectacle." After the first fight, I realized that I had happened upon something that was easy to judge but not so easy to understand. At that point, I just wanted to keep photographing the fights, and the man who runs the show, Justin, was kind enough to let me come a few times. By the third fight, I knew that I wanted to do something bigger than just a few photos. I had proclaimed, "I'm going to do a book about this!" without really knowing what it means to create a book, a body of work, etc.

That seems to be how I operate though, I go way in above my head and then push to figure it out and make it happen because I said I would do it. Also, in working with everyone, from the trainers to the boxers, it became more of a requirement than a goal. Here were people that were working hard for something with the same odds as the lottery—how could they go unknown?

Why did you want to put together a book?
For boxing at least, it's a narrative. I lean more towards documentary work probably because I'm a nosy little brat...

I feel that all the photos [in the book] are required to get the story across, they work together, they share the overall point. There are some photos I have which I think capture a particular portion of what I wanted to say, but only when coupled with the rest is the story really told...

The point of the book (once I figured out the point) is not to show the dirt or the primal aspect of fighting that people immediately assume, it was to show the nobility of it, the beauty of the fighters and the scene, the character it takes to really be a fighter and stand up in a ring with another man who you respect and admire with the idea that you are there to best him. Part of why it's a book is because I can't explain it in words but I think I can explain it in photos. I hope I did—certainly the people involved deserve that.

How is putting together a book of photography different from putting together an exhibition?
Volume for sure. I couldn't do a show of 70 images just about boxing. Maybe I could but I don't think it would be as effective. In the end, I want people to own the whole collection even if there are some photos which don't resonate for them because it is meant to be seen as a whole.

As an exhibition, I think I'd have to do a lot a more of telling the tale behind some of the images because they could be out of context. Then again, I've had the luck of seeing some of the images at 20"x30" and the impact is completely different.

Did you look at other options? Why did you end up choosing Blurb?
I had a few options, some small places were genuinely interested in releasing the book and some independent publishers too but photo books are a rough business. I don't think you do it to make a living, unless of course you're a collective like Magnum, or you're Annie Leibovitz or Vanity Fair.

I didn't want to do a book that was a limited edition and super expensive. That did not fit with the topic, the purpose or the spirit of what I was doing. Most of those interested in working with the book wanted to do very selective, limited releases. I didn't spend the last 2+ years shooting this because I wanted 500 people to own it, I wanted people to know who these boxers were, I wanted people to see what I saw. I had already invested so much of myself in the project that the idea of not making this as available as possible was counter-intuitive. Then there is the fact that I'm not exactly Annie Leibovitz and there won't be a hoard of people rushing to grab my retrospective on boxing.

I chose Blurb for a couple of reasons. If I did it through Blurb, then I had to really own it and finish it. I had to edit it and take that last step in the process of creating this story. I like that I can I say it's 100% what I wanted; of course, if it sucks, I prefer people leave me to my own delusions. I'm sure if I had worked with a publisher, issues like how much it costs to print, how many photos I could have, the theme, etc. would have been up for more debate. I didn't want to debate that. I will see how this does as I think it's still pretty costly. I will probably release a less expensive version (smaller, maybe softcover) later on if the interest is there. Again, this is about people learning about boxers like Damon Rowe, or Jamel Spencer, and the more who can, the better.

The other reason is that Blurb runs Photography.Book.Now which gave me a deadline. I need deadlines. I was really motivated by the jury who was looking at the work, and that Beth Dow won last year (and I just love her work, all of it). I'm looking now at all the submissions and another freaky portion of publishing a book online is that you see everyone's everything...

What was the process like? What took the longest?
I made about five versions, so the process was exhausting. The multiple versions came from having to own up to what I wanted to say. One version was about the glory, which was wrong. Another was about the environment, which was totally wrong. Each was a topic that alluded to what I wanted to say but never actually said it because I was afraid. When I finally sucked it up and said to myself, "This is what you're going to focus on," it became easier.

Editing is an amazing learning experience, I've edited words but not photos as much. I've done a few articles and other short pieces with my photography so I'm not totally new to the editing process but taking on something that personal and that large was daunting. At one point, I actually stopped working on the book and started shooting again to avoid having to go through the photos and give myself more to procrastinate with. Going through your own work is brutal, often I just sat there saying, "Wow, wow I'm really horrible, these are awful, what was I thinking?" There was a great deal of self-flagellation, there still is. I gave up a few times. It's like anything else very personal, you're your own worst critic so you have to fight with yourself to just keep going. Wow, that sounds like a self-help platitude.

The longest part was accepting what I was going to be talking about or showing. I have a personal relationship with a lot of people in the book, some very close, and I was very unsure of how they might feel towards me if I did a book that was not the glory tale. This isn't a book about winning, it's about losing. It's about what it means to endure for a dream you will probably not achieve and how phenomenal of a person you become through the process of trying. I didn't want to judge but I had a point of view.

From a purely technical standpoint, having to actually lay it out, pick photos, beg people who I trust to look at it and tell me, "That's a really bad idea," so I could do better was painful. There are a few folks out there who I owe a lot to but want to choke to death for making me delete photos, change the order or rewrite the intro over and over and over again.

What is your biggest problem with self-publishing? How long did it take to make?
The printing. The printing is not exact, so you can print at home and it looks great, then you get the proof and you want to cry. Then you get another proof and even though you've done nothing to the photos, for some reason, they are all green. Black and white printing is no one's specialty, I think. The first proof I received, the cover was bubbly and the blacks on the photo didn't match the black on the book.

I've done a few test prints with Blurb to try and calibrate and I've gotten pretty good at telling what will print well and what won't, but (sorry Blurb 'cause I love you) it's still a bit of a crap shoot. My photos are very high contrast, I like my blacks to be black and my whites super white, sometimes the tones just don't come out through the printing process there. But I haven't seen anyone do it better than Blurb (and I've tested a lot of self-publishers). The premium paper helps exponentially but I'd love it if there was more consistency between what I print and what they print. Such is life.

Who is your audience?
My mom. Oh, who is it intended for, not who do I think is actually going to read it and tell me I'm special? My bad. You know, I didn't think about it. I just thought, someone needs to see this, someone needs to know how hard these men work.

Do you plan to self-publish in the future?
Not a clue. If I can come up with an idea that merits a book, maybe. Right now the idea of doing another book on the heels of just finishing one seems masochistic :)

What's your favorite photo book?
Ack. No idea. I've been searching for an out of print Gilles Peress book which might be my favorite, if I find it. I just went to look at what photo books I own and I can't pick a favorite.

What things are important to consider when creating your own photo book?
Have a point of view, stick to it, and edit edit edit. If you have a great photo that doesn't work with story you're trying to tell, then it isn't right for the book.

What's next for you? What are you working on now?
Right now, sleep is on my radar. I need to just clear my head for a while I think and see what happens next. I haven't taken a photo in a while but I'm going to start carrying the camera around again. I received a great piece of advice once from a super fancy photographer during a portfolio review; he said, "Just when you think you're done, throw it all out and start again, bust it all wide open." That's where I'm at, I need to throw it all out, start again, and see what happens.

Good luck and thanks for taking the time to answer our questions, Alison!
So there you have it! Make sure to check out the preview of Alison's book, CHASING, and then buy a copy or five. Tune in same time next week for an interview with JBG artist, 20x200 edition-maker, self-publisher, and winner of last year's PBN Grand Prize: Beth Dow!

remember to thank all the books you haven't read over the past three years by ailatan

Less than ten years ago, the entire book publishing industry could be summed up in one famous quotation by journalist A.J. Liebling, "Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one." However, in the last several years, digital print-on-demand self-publishing has grown from an obscure, expensive and low-quality hassle into an accessible, beautiful and worthy pursuit for anybody with a creative edge.

With the rise of digital printing, thousands upon thousands of new print-on-demand books have popped up for sale all over the internet. Maybe it shows just how young I am, but I was shocked to read in an essay by HHS! panelist Darius Himes that, "up until the early 1990s it was easy to purchase every photography book because there were only a handful that were published in any given year." Browsing the thousands of titles in the online bookstore at Blurb.com is a sign of the times that this is certainly not the case today.

Within this absolute saturation of photography books are many worth a look and certainly some worth having on your shelf. In the next few weeks, we'll be publishing a few posts featuring interviews and advice from some of our favorite self-publishing Hot Shots, artists and bookmakers. Stay tuned!

If you've got stories, links or advice about self-publishing that you want to share, don't hesitate to leave a comment or send a reply to @heyhotshot on Twitter.

Issue 8 of Fraction Magazine, the just-over-a-year-old Albuquerque-based online photography magazine, features work by HHS! contender Katrina D'Autremont and 20x200 edition-maker Kevin J. Miyazaki. D'Autremont's series, Si Dios Quiere, of which a selection was submitted to the last round of the HHS! competition, concentrates on her Argentinian extended family, exploring the intimacy and distance of relatives who live in a faraway place.

Miyazaki's ongoing body of work, Within Reach takes a look at the everyday objects of the home: a bar of soap, a quarter of a sandwich, a roll of toilet paper, and examines them with a close and re-contextualized eye.

A recent Fraction Magazine special feature, The Un-Natural Nature of Food, an online gallery curated by Melanie McWhorter, recently caught our eyes on the HHS! blog as well. The collection hones in on the strange, routine, and fascinating world of what we eat, how we eat, and who we eat with, and makes one think twice about just what it is we are putting in our bodies. Kevin's work is also featured here alongside images by Colleen Plumb, Brian Ulrich, and many others.

Take a peek at the magazine's current issue which also features great work by five additional photographers.

Light Work, the Syracuse-based artist-in-residence program, gallery, workspace, publication house, and store, has just released their Light Work Annual 2009, featuring images from Amy Stein's series Stranded alongside an essay by an artist very familiar to all of us here at JBP: Alec Soth. The annual features work by emerging and mid-career artists who have participated in the artist-in-residence program or have been supported by a Light Work Grant.

The current issue features work by the following artists: Scott Conarroe, Kelli Connell, Lola Flash, Cristina Fraire, Admas Habteslasie, Deana Lawson, Paula Luttringer, John Clark Mayden, Christine Osinski, Oscar Palacio, Xaviera Simmons, Amy Stein, Krista Steinke, and Garie Waltzer. Also included are the Light Work Grant recipients Kathy Morris, Paul Pearce, and Nancy Keefe Rhodes. Essayists include Dawoud Bey, Julie Bolcer, Josh Brilliant, Leslie Rose Close, Mary Goodwin, Jessica Heckman, Mary Lee Hodgens, Jeffrey Hoone, Karen Irvine, David L. Jacobs, Allison N. Kemmerer, Stuart Krimko, Peter MacGill, Maria Moreno, John Wesley Mannion, Alison Devine Nordström, Franklin Sirmans, Alec Soth, and Spring Ulmer.

The catalog is available online for just $27.00, and you can even preview it small-scale online.

If you are interested in Light Work's Artist in Residence programs, grants and resources, there's lots of information available on their website. For those of you in the Syracuse area, stop by the gallery, store, and community darkrooms. There's lots abuzz from near or far.

Few are the moments when nearly everyone in the world can remember en masse exactly what they were doing when a historical event transpired. September 11th is one of these moments, and the "what I was doing" stories and images are varied and innumerable. JFK and John Lennon's assassinations may weigh in with the same gravity, depending on who you are and where you were; July 20th, 2969 -- 40 years ago today -- when man first walked on the moon, is another one of these collective memories .

The New York Times has extensive coverage of the 1969 voyage to the moon including an interactive feature of major political, cultural, and social events of the year, a feature of the moon mission itself, and a gallery of images taken by the astronauts who were on Apollo 11. They also feature Readers' Moon Memories, images submitted by Times readers 'round the world, of what they were doing in 1969 in those days surrounding Apollo 11.

Readers submitted images of babies born on and around that fateful day, families gathered by the TV, themselves or their siblings engaging in amateur astronomy, and signs on billboards and in storefront celebrating our men on the moon. The images are both mundane and quietly celebratory, another view of this historic day that affected kids, adults, men, women, and grandparents alike. Do you have a memory of this moment, or do you have a memory of it's legacy?

We're curious what moments-to-come will mark instances of future collective memory, and hope that those that do are bathed in the glow of accomplishment rather than that of tragedy. Are there moments shared in your memory that are part of a collective experience? If so, can these moments be marked by specific images -- photographs or pictures in your head? We'd love to know what these are.

Lens, the photojournalism blog of The New York Times, has some interesting background today on super-large-format photographer Shaun Irving. You may have heard of his Camera Truck, which took its first exposure in 2003. The converted former postal truck, which cost Irving his life savings of $3,000, was cobbled together with parts from eBay and a military surplus store. The lens is salvaged from an old submarine periscope and the shutter is a cardboard box.

Windmills, Mota Del Cuervo, Spain by Shaun Irving

Nevertheless, Irving has produced landscapes of Virginia and Spain that are as gigantic as they are beautiful. The Camera Truck's prints can run up to 8 x 4 ft and many have a beautiful painterly quality from where Irving has sponged on the chemicals.

However, not too many galleries have the space for Irving's huge prints, so to make ends meet he has had to sell the original van (while fortunately keeping the lenses). By day Irving is working in advertising, but he leaves off by saying that he's clearing out the squirrels living in a new van and getting it ready for action. Head over to Lens to read the full story, and then don't miss the Camera Truck gallery online.

If you're not ready to take the plunge into making your own Camera Truck, but want to ride the wave of Irving's DIY spirit, consider a trial run with one of these print-cut-and-fold-it-yourself paper pinhole cameras from ReadyMech and Corbis, which you can download on their site.

Another one of my favorite oversized photographic pursuits is the Camera Obscura series by photographer Abelardo Morell. Morell covered the windows in rooms adjacent to interesting landcapes then poked a pinhole in the covering. This turned the room into an instant camera obscura. The next step was to take a long exposure of the darkened room from inside the room itself. The juxtaposition of interior and exterior is strange and extremely captivating.

Times Square in Hotel Room, 1997, Abelardo Morell

If you want to experience a camera obscura for yourself, head up to Connecticut's Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, where their only permanent feature is a walk-in camera obscura on the second floor. Just make sure it's a sunny day and give your eyes plenty of time to adjust.

Lastly, if you've got a party or event coming up and want the thrill of a camera obscura, but prefer not the sit in a darkened room waiting for your eyes to adjust, don't miss ShootBooth. Among other photography-related party tricks, this Brooklyn-based company rents out a photobooth cleverly disguised as an old bellows camera. It's the perfect mix of old school photographic fun and instant pleasure.

Hope you enjoyed this round-up of larger than life photography. I've heard stories of pinhole cameras made out of everything from soup cans to shipping containers so if we missed something awesome, please let us know!

Two days ago Youngna directed us to My Best Shot, an interview series in The Guardian in which photographers are asked to recall their most truly memorable images. Youngna then put forth the idea that all photographers must have these eureka moments and invited you all to send us a link via twitter of your very own best shots.

Cue Pat Benatar's Hit Me With Your Best Shot while I share with you a few of the "best shots" we've received so far.

@pleyades was the first to respond with her eerie night image titled Loiterers, seen below:

Loiterers by @pleyades

Not long after, @GarciaLachner sent a link to his website with some knockout photos taken in Costa Rica.

Untitled by Andres Garcia Lauchner

We then received replies from @marcievargas, @revbean, and @getthebubbles, all directing us to favorite images of theirs -- a clandestine subway portrait, an emotional woman and a foggy sunset over a bay.

Photographer John Cranford, also known as @withfilm submitted this summer portrait of a young man splattered in mud by the side of a lake, seen below.

Untitled by John Cranford

@Ishootsrockstars, @zaidasofia and @_frommetoyou all cued in soon afterwords; click on their usernames above to see their own best shots.

To all who replied, thanks so much for sending us your images! Keep them coming, too; just reply to us including @heyhotshot and send us a link to your favorite image.

Richard Avedon has been famously quoted for telling his sometimes-collaborator Truman Capote that he immediately knew when he had got the image he really wanted. He would often walk into a portrait session with an image already in mind; the sitting was just to actualize his vision. While Avedon's skill for pre-meditating his masterpieces is rare, most photographers can pinpoint the moment they captured a shot they knew would truly be memorable. The UK Guardian has an inspiring series titled My Best Shot, called to our attention by Gallery Hopper, which interviews photographers about the image they consider their finest work.

Pittsburgh (Man cutting grass), 2004, from the series A Shimmer of Possibility by Paul Graham

Favorites include Paul Graham's Pittsburgh (Man cutting grass), in which he describes the moment as the following:

In one image from this sequence, he is to the left, then he's to the right, then he's wiping his face with a cloth. Then this beautiful moment happened: the sun burst through and the rain came down, and all the raindrops were illuminated in the shaft of light. It was quite extraordinary.

I'd seen this particular image in person recently at MoMA and left with many questions about the interaction between Graham and his subject. His description illuminates the scenario, and one learns that in photographing this laboring, sweaty man in the fading sun Graham was neither being voyeuristic or watch-dog-like, but instead observing a moment he recognized as mundane and truly beautiful.

Capturing a ritual by Tod Papageorge

Tod Papageorge's Capturing a ritual is another favorite, in which he observes a moment where an older man combs a younger boy's hair. He says:

There was a kind of poetic connection, I thought, between the ritualistic little circle and the ritual of the father combing his son's hair. It seemed to me something that a photograph could put together. But I realised as I went to make it that only if we saw the comb against the boy's head - not lost in the father's hand, or above him - would the picture have the clarity that it should, in order to have any meaning at all.

That photographers ingrain precise moments in their minds of often mundane activities like lawn-mowing and combing hair suggests that memories are not always the instances we suspect will have the longest lasting legacy. Memories, and the photographs that capture moments past, are generated by forming an attachment to the myriad qualities of a specific time and place -- whether that is a serendipitous or produced scenario. It's well worth the time to look through the archives of My Best Shot and we're curious to know what you think of as yours.

Those who have attended the prestigious annual portfolio review, Review Santa Fe, know that the support for photographers in this part of the Southwest rivals that of any other town. We received word via email yesterday of the Santa Fe Workshops schedule for the remainder of the year and wanted to pass along note of the opportunities they offer for photographers of all levels. The courses range in time and price, from 3-day long weekend intensive to week-long sessions, and range in subject matter from commercial lighting techniques to photographic book-making.

Some of the classes that especially caught my eye are: Visual Storytelling with Audio, Lighting the Editorial Portrait (taught by the renowned Andrew Eccles), and Blurb Intensive: Publishing Your Photographic Book, which focuses on guiding you towards editing and creating your own photo publication using Blurb's software. Classes can be great incentive to motivate past projects that may have plateaued at some point, or a good place to finally work on a project idea that you've been thinking about for ages.

If you do venture out to Santa Fe for a workshop, make sure to also stop by at photo-eye bookstore and gallery to browse amongst their expertly selected collection of photo books.

See here for the workshop schedule in Santa Fe, San Miguel de Allende, and around the world.

VII Photo Agency, founded by seven photo-journalists in 2002, has added four new photographers to their prestigious roster. Lynsey Addario, Ziyah Gafić, and Seamus Murphy will join the VII network and Adam Ferguson will join the Mentor Program under the guidance of Christopher Morris.

Conceived of in 2001, the photographers of VII are bonded by their mission to document they document social, political, and environmental conflict -- both in war-torn areas and in zones of peace. They document the individuals and places affected by major and minor conflicts all over the world.

Addario, Gafić, Murphy, and Ferguson are all courageous photographers who have traveled the world on a mission of capturing instances of devastation and places and people of transition for many years. Instanbul-based Addario is a self-taught photographer who has spent the last 10 years in Afghanistan, Darfur, and exploring horrific, but necessary stories like the images of her series, Rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Sarajevo-born Gafić has also focused on places of transition, including war-torn Bosnia, Rwanda, and Chechnya. Murphy's images -- many in a deeply emotive grainy black and white -- focus on Somalia, Nigeria, and war-torn Afghanistan, offering a scarily intimate perspective of violence, poverty, and a crumbled environment. Lastly, Ferguson has visited the depths of Mumbai slums and the valleys of Afghanistan where US forces have been training for the last several years. All of these photographers have risked their lives for the edification of viewers all over the world.

We congratulate Addario, Gafić, Murphy and Ferguson their addition to VII and look forward to the amazing photo-documentation we are sure they will continue to produce.

Jacob Pritchard photographs girls in bed. That is: girls with cats, girls with ipods, girls with their boyfriends, girls asleep and girls with books. In this new project, Pictures in Bed, he shoots aerial portraits of twenty-somethings snuggling, making out, drinking tea, reading, and twisted between their sheets and blankets. The lighting is bright and even and the frame extends so that the bed's surroundings form an even frame around the mattress.

Like a honed-in version of The Selby, where photographer Todd Selby photographs the creative and fashionable in their homes, Pritchard's project attempts to create an image of their person with this slice of their personal space. The images form a set of snapshots that suggest our beds, their order and disorder, and how we occupy them are another form of self-portrait. In Pritchard's project, we would love him branch out to a far more diverse demographic whose bodies are less posed in the motions of sleep. Theories on sleep -- the meaning of postures, how many hours we need, what it means to dream -- are abound, but what does it mean to be in bed and not be asleep? We're curious to see where Pritchard goes with this project, and who and how he finds people in bed.

London-based photography and fine art printer, theprintspace, is running a monthly photography competition judged by photographers Julia Fullerton-Batten, Harry Borden, Rob Jarvis, and Editor & director of 1000 Words Photography Magazine, Tim Clark.

Each month brings a new theme and a new round of the competition; photographers can submit up to 5 images each month. All images selected for monthly competitions will also be included in theprintspace's two-week long grand bi-annual group show at their gallery in East London, opening at a TBD date. Winners of the monthly competitions will also receive a mounted 20x24-inch print of their choice from theprintspace studio, an entry on the 1000 Words photography blog and continued exposure from theprintspace.

This month's theme is Portraiture and the deadline for entries is tomorrow, June 30th. Applicants must join theprintspace's Facebook group for further details about entry terms and conditions. Winners will be announced on July 13th and notified via Facebook. Good luck to all applicants!

Untitled by Shawn Rocco

The NYTimes' photojournalism blog, Lens, posted an album of images this morning captured by professional photographer, Shawn Rocco, on his Motorola E815 camera phone. Several years back, he was given one of the cameras by the newsroom he works for at The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, which he soon discovered were simple tools for creating serendipitous images. He started the blog, Cellular Obscura, which has since solidified him in the ranks as a cell-phone-photo guru.

The blog writes,

"Serendipity is a very powerful thing," Mr. Rocco said in a telephone interview this week. "I'm not a voyeur, but I like catching people in their own little world, without interrupting them."

...

He discerns parallels between cellphone and Polaroid photography. "With Polaroid, it wasn't a crapshoot," Mr. Rocco said, "but you left a lot of things in the hands of the chemistry."

The idea of serendipity of photography is hardly a new one -- the William Eggleston or Garry Winogrand moments of the beauty in the mundane have been prominent since the 40s and 50s -- perhaps earlier, with Walker Evans. But, Rocco's images call to mind other photographers who use intentionally "lo-fi" cameras, like Magnum photographer Christopher Anderson, who took only a Holga with him traveling for 8 months, which led to his book Nonfiction. Both mediums shy away from what Rocco calls the "megapixelmania" of digital photography, some respite, perhaps, from Rocco's day-to-day shooting at the paper. This consciousness delineates the two groups, as the unknown chemistry of the tool is part of the thrill for Rocco and Anderson.

To see more of Shawn Rocco's cell phone images, visit his blog, Cellular Obscura.

The last remaining photo processing lab that handles Kodak's legendary Kodachrome film will develop it's last roll of that variety at the end of 2010. Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas, has for some time been the sole photo lab that handles the world's first commercially successful color film, created by Kodak in 1935. But, as sales of film have dwindled and processing centers have disappeared alongside, Kodak has decided to retire Kodachrome once and for all.

Kodachrome film stock is projected to last through the early fall of this year. If you're a lucky photographer with rolls in stock, make sure you shoot 'em and send them to Parsons, Kansas before the end of 2010.

See Kodak's tribute gallery to Kodachrome and see the Kodachrome pool on flickr.

Hello, hello and happy Friday! If you're whiling away the hours, waiting for the weekend, I have good news for you — head on over to 20x200 to browse some art and you'll see that we are offering 20% off every print, now through Saturday at 11:59 p.m.! Enter the code RIDONK at checkout.

$20 prints are now $16
$50 prints are now $40
$200 prints are now $160
$500 prints are now $400
$2,000 prints are now $1,600

As we mentioned here last week, there's a lot of really great photography from Hot Shots available. But some of those editions, won't be around for long.

There are just 17 of Justin James Reed's Idaho Springs, Colorado $20 $16 prints remaining, and only 17 and 14, respectively remaining, from Joseph O. Holmes's amnh #10 and amnh #62. Brad Moore, Birthe Piontek, Colleen Plumb and Youngna Park all have editions that are about to disappear as well!

There's never been a better time to start collecting the work of some of today's most promising photographers. All of these Hot Shots have work available on the site, and it's all 20% off through tomorrow at midnight: Dorthe Alstrup, Ian Baguskas, Nina Berman, Kate Bingaman-Burt, Colin Blakely, Dan Boardman, Jessica Bruah, James Deavin, Scott Eiden, Juliane Eirich, Todd R. Forsgren, Alison Grippo, Shuli Hallak, Brandon Herman, Joseph O. Holmes, Karolina Karlic, Robert Knight, Jeffrey Krolick, Gregory Krum, Pixy Liao, Brad Moore, Chad Muthard, Bob O'Connor, Hosang Park, Youngna Park, Kirby Pilcher, Birthe Piontek, Colleen Plumb, James Rajotte, Justin James Reed, Kelly Shimoda, Mickey Smith, Rachel Sussman, Matthew Tischler, Carlo Van de Roer, Donald Weber and Shen Wei.

Want to be among the first to hear about future 20x200 events and editions? Sign up for the 20x200 Mailing List and get Jen's twice-weekly edition announcements. She'll have new editions from the latest crop of Hot Shots very soon!

Every round of the Hey, Hot Shot! competition makes us aware of new photographic memes, but it is often surprising how different competitors choose to articulate and interpret a specific topic. This round, we saw a handful of entries where photographers set out to capture the current state of the economy, putting a visual on the nebulous effects of a crashing housing market, rising unemployment, failing banks, and suffering businesses. Contender Christopher Frot captures deadpan storefronts in France in his project Proximity Closure, Eve Morgenstern focuses on portraits of foreclosed houses in Detroit and Oakland in her project Foreclosure and Abandonment that are reminiscent of Becher-style uniformity, and Jenny Pfeiffer captures a more distant view of sparsely occupied neighborhoods in her series Tract Homes taken in Tracy, CA.

The series submitted this round are void of the people who created these spaces, now derelict, and this vacancy is present in other artistic series' made in recent periods like in Brian Ulrich's Stores That Are No More and Todd Hido's images of foreclosed homes' interiors. Each of these works captures a solemness in what's left, tracing a narrative along the lines of a house or the division between a clapboard and a storefront edge.

Magnum photographer Bruce Gilden has taken his journalistic eye into Detroit as well, capturing a more personal state of poverty with faces and names attached to the city's downfall. He shoots in black and white, going into run-down homes, shelters, and following the city's poor down the street with his camera. In his essays Detroit: The Troubled City and Foreclosures, he has created a throw-back collection of images that seem taken in another era.

He writes,

There is homelessness, job loss, economic difficulties, etc, etc, etc. In Detroit the problem is not only a subprime problem it's a problem of people who lost their jobs. And this has been going on for many years. So it's a much more serious situation. When I went to Detroit - even though I had known that the city was pretty desolate - I was amazed that a major city in America in 2009 can look like this.

Certain areas look like Berlin after World War II or like Beirut. Something is wrong here. Recently I have read books and articles and watched television shows on the foreclosure problem. How can you have a trillion dollar industry that's not regulated?

Blogs and news media have made their own efforts in aggregating a view of the economy: The New York Times recently launched a reader-submitted online album feature called Picturing the Economy that shows a collection of snapshots, like baby chickens reflecting one family's attempts to grow their own food, images of homes for sale, empty storefronts, penny-saving jars, and empty basketball courts. Individually, the photographs are unremarkable, but collectively, the interpretation of what is recessionary to the everyman strikes a louder cord about how no man is immune. Picture essays in the Boston Globe reflect another news angle, showing that no matter how global, the economy is a conceptually impossible topic to sum up in a handful of photos.

Whether approaching the visual side of the recession as a photojournalist, an artist, or a person with a camera-phone, the documentation and images are compelling of a period where a problem has become so visible, it is impossible to ignore. It prompts us to wonder what these areas -- Oakland, Detroit, Cleveland -- will look like in 5 years or 10 years or 50 years, and whether these areas and communities will be able to find a revival, or if these photographs are capturing the last remnants of these cities as we once knew them.

The bi-ennial Review Santa Fe juried by LACMA Department of Photography curator Charlotte Cotton recently wrapped up, and we've been excitedly glimpsing through the portfolios of The Review Santa Fe 100, which names the top hundred nominees of the review. Many of the names are familiar to us, with Hot Shot! and JBP artist Brad Moore and Hot Shot! John Mann making the list, as well as contenders Katrina d'Autremont, Susan Worsham and Lacey Terrell featuring accolade-worthy work.

The 2009 Santa Fe Prize of $5,000, an online exhibition, and participation in the Review went to Hiroyo Kaneko for her series Sentimental Education, a collection of intimate images of her multi-generational family bathing together.

She writes,

Bathing in hot tubs is one of the most ordinary daily rituals in Japan. Because our modern society is highly competitive and reserved, we tend to be uptight. However, once soaked in hot water, we emerge relaxed, revitalized, and unspoken emotions with others and nature.

We bathe with family, friends, strangers and sometimes with the opposite sex showing subtle impressions which waver between vulnerability and flexibility, openness and hesitancy, and intimacy and loneliness. I focus on these impressions as I believe that they represent a fundamental form of humanity.

Kaneko's work offers a consistent quietude in the rituals of daily life in Japan. The baths portrayed are sensual and private, revealing without being invasive. In another series, Picnics which also made The Review Santa Fe 100, Kaneko offers a similarly calming portrayal of controlled community as friends and families gather under blossoming cherry trees in the park. Both series offer an unobtrusive glance into the private moments of families and friends, inviting the viewer in with an uncommon openness.

See additional work by Hiroyo Kaneko on her website and read about one photographer's experience at Review Santa Fe on Emily Shur's blog.

Douglas Stockdale has been writing photo book reviews at his blog The Photo Book since last September, but it was brought to our attention again today via Rob Haggart, and we returned to the site to re-discover Stockdale's fantastic insight into a long list of photo books, both new and old. I was psyched to see interior shots of the retrospective of William Henry Fox Talbot edited by Geoffrey Batchen and Stockdale's discussion of the book's printed page. He also offers a great list of links and resources to photo book publishers, gallery bookstores, university presses, and other related resources. If you are either book or photographer-lover, or like us, both, then Stockdale's blog is a daily must-read.

This has been a huge week at JBP HQ for Hey, Hot Shot! We announced the 2008 Ne Plus Ultras on Monday (congratulations again to Hosang + Colleen!) and the 2009 First Edition Hot Shots today.

Through it all, we've been looking at a lot of amazing work, from photographers we consider friends and family as well as from many we hadn't yet had the pleasure of knowing via their entries and websites. It was overwhelming; I can only imagine the burden felt by Ms. Jen Bee and her slew of stellar panelists to make the final calls.

The only thing possibly as exciting and rewarding as working alongside this crew as they culled the best of the best? Looking back on *all* of the Hot Shots named over the last few years and working with many of them to create some pretty excellent 20x200 editions — and knowing that there's more to come!

In celebration of this week's announcements, we pulled together all of the 20x200 editions produced by Hot Shots. Thanks to all-star intern, Kika Gilbert, you can see them right here:

Dorthe Alstrup
Ian Baguskas
Nina Berman
Kate Bingaman-Burt
Colin Blakely
Dan Boardman
Jessica Bruah
James Deavin
Scott Eiden
Juliane Eirich
Todd R. Forsgren
Alison Grippo
Shuli Hallak
Brandon Herman
Joseph O. Holmes
Karolina Karlic
Robert Knight
Jeffrey Krolick
Gregory Krum
Pixy Liao
Brad Moore
Chad Muthard
Bob O'Connor
Hosang Park
Youngna Park
Kirby Pilcher
Birthe Piontek
Colleen Plumb
James Rajotte
Justin James Reed
Kelly Shimoda
Mickey Smith
Rachel Sussman
Matthew Tischler
Carlo Van de Roer
Donald Weber
Shen Wei

I am happy to report that I have more than a few works by these photographers in my collection. Now's the time to pick up prints of your own (if you haven't already or even if you have). It's a great (um, read: affordable) way to have a little art in your home and support fellow artists. Enjoy!

We've been fielding lots of questions about HHS! contenders featured on this very blog and want to address the two most common asks today. The most important thing to know is that the work featured here is selected by the editors of this blog and should not be considered representative of the tastes and views of our esteemed panel.

Hope y'all find this helpful:

Q. If you are not featured on the blog as a contender, does that mean that your photography is not considered for 20x200 editions?

A. No. Each and every photographer who submits work to Hey, Hot Shot! is considered for participation in 20x200. Hey, Hot Shot! is the *only* way photography is reviewed for 20x200 which makes it extra important for us to look at each and every entry. In addition to viewing the three images every photographer has submitted, Ms. Jen Bekman (founder and curator of 20x200) will visit entrants' websites to view more work for potential 20x200 editions. We're thorough (and sneaky!) like that! So, don't be surprised if you don't see your work here and we drop you an email asking if you'd like to participate in 20x200.

Q. If you are not featured as a contender on the blog, does that mean you are not in the running to be a Hot Shot?

A. No. Again, please remember that the selections of the editors of this blog for contenders posts do not necessarily reflect the tastes and considerations of the HHS! panelists. While we love being able to feature a lot of great work here, it's really only a minor introduction to the wealth of work that is submitted by photographers and is carefully considered by our panel.

If you have more questions that are not answered in this post or in our FAQ, please write them in the comments and we'll do our best to answer those too! Thank you!

Image by Hot Shot Rachel Hulin

Two distinguished Hot Shots, Rachel Hulin and Willamain Somma, along with Meagan Ziegler-Haynes and Marla Leigh Caplan, are members of LUCI, a new curatorial collective. The fab four have curated a satellite show, (super)natural, to correspond with this week's New York Photo Festival in Brooklyn. A reception for the artists will be held this Thursday, May 14, from 5:30 - 7 pm, at the Tobacco Warehouse.

From the press release:

(super)natural is a group show featuring artists whose work engages with and reimagines the idea of nature and natural phenomena. From large format landscape photography to site-specific installation, the work on view gives visible form to the trace of something just beyond - pointing to an excess of visual language and yet an ultimate failure to convey a precise meaning. The awesome and terrifying aspect of the sublime explains the darkness that pervades the show, evident in the depths of Victoria Sambunaris' cave; the threat of storm beneath Christopher Lamarca's rainbow; Theresa Ganz's delicately encroaching vines suddenly strangling. Chasing after the elusive spirit of the landscape, these images explore the expanse of history and possibility beneath a deceptively mundane surface.

(super)natural : May 14th-16th, 10 am to 7 pm
Curated by LUCI
Satellite Show @ The Tobacco Warehouse
Directions: The Tobacco Warehouse is on the corner of Water + Dock streets in Dumbo, F train to Jay st

More info? Click here.

Spring 2006 Hot Shot Casey Kelbaugh is the brains behind Slideluck Potshow, which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: a slideshow + potluck. SLPS has been bringing people together to share good art and good food for a couple years now and has brought that same sense of community to the web. It be be a little bit of the chicken before the egg, or the egg before the chicken, maybe? SLPS made a name for itself by bringing people together the old fashioned way, in actual physical space, before really establishing their virtual community. Regardless, the SLPS network is in full swing and it's a good site to to browse for info on upcoming SLPS events as well as other opportunities and events for photographers and artists.

Upcoming Events:

Slideluck Youth Initiative Event | March 20 | 6:30pm | LES | Please bring food & drinks | RSVP: network.slideluckpotshow.com
SLPS Los Angeles VI | April 11 | 7 - 11:30 pm | Location TBA
SLPS Portland III | April 25 | 7 - 11:30 pm | Sandbox Studio

I am looking forward to seeing this exhibition, Brought to Light: Photography and the Invisible, 1840-1900, at SFMOMA, in a few short weeks. Hopefully it will satiate my desire for salt, albumen, cyanotype, and silver gelatin prints until I can totally indulge/immerse myself in Richard Benson's The Printed Picture, which is hopefully enroute to my mailbox. Aside from offering some gorgeous examples of traditional printing methods, the show at SFMOMA, according to this interview with SFMOMA associate curator of photography Corey Keller, promises to agitate the old adage, "seeing is believing." Also agitating, in a good way, I think: SMOMA's interests in vernacular photography, and in particular, photography that isn't from the 20th century. Read the interview!

If you're in SF or also happen to be headed that way, hopefully you'll be around on Monday, April 6th. Ms. Jen Bekman and members from team 20x200 (myself included) will be hosting 20x200 collectors, some Cali-based 20x200 artists (maybe even a Hot Shot or two), and you, with our friends at Chronicle Books.

We hope it'll be as fun as the Collector's Confab we last hosted in NYC.

So see you, Monday, April 6th, from 6-8 p.m. at Chronicle Books, 680 Second Street, San Francisco. More details soon!

Jen and Jeffrey will be manning the Jen Bekman Gallery booth at the PULSE New York Art Fair today, March 5th, through this Sunday, March 8th, 2009. Photographer Beth Dow's series Fieldwork will be featured alongside work by Ian Baguskas, Mara Bodis-Wollner, Christian Chaize, Gregory Krum, Holly Lynton, Carrie Marill, Brad Moore, Hosang Park, Jason Polan, Kent Rogowski, and Carlo Van de Roer. Stop by Booth I-12; we hope you'll say hello!

Booth I - 12
PULSE New York
Pier 40
353 West Street @ West Houston

Winter 2006 Hot Shot Juliana Beasley (whose work will be featured at Art Fair! opening tomorrow) and Brian Ulrich, who exhibited work in A New American Portrait at Jen Bekman Gallery, are two of the fifty photographers participating in The 50 States Project. The year long project began January 2nd, 2009, when Stuart Pilkington emailed an assignment to all fifty participating photographers (one per state) asking them to capture one or more individuals they felt represented the state they live in under the topic of "People."

He writes,

I asked them to interpret the assignment using their own unique voice and to photograph something/someone iconic, or emblematic, symbolic, or real to their own lives. They were free to interpret the assignment however they wished.

Each photographer had two months to produce one image in response to this assignment, (namely 'people'), and what you are about to see are the results. As you visit each State, (in alphabetical order), hopefully a picture of the United States will be conjured up for you like a quilt made up of 50 parts.

Every two months, photographers will be sent a new assignment by email, then have two months to create an image they feel best represents the topic, as well as expressing their own photographic style. The results from the second assignment, "Habitat" will be visible on May 1, 2009.

To see the images and learn more about the participating photographers, visit the The 50 States Project website and follow the progress of the project on twitter.

I know, it's hard to pry your eyes away from the screen and do some offline reading every once in awhile, but do it, and your eyes and your head will thank you. If you're not sure where to begin (often a problem online too...) start here, on HHS panelist Darius Himes' blog (I know! I know! I just suggested going offline, but here first, then to your couch! And then, back to the interwebs for some follow-up reading.)

Among other things, Mr. Himes manages to squeeze in some time to teach at the College of Santa Fe and has been posting his class' reading assignments on his blog. So, if you'd like, follow along and brush up your knowledge. Unfortunately, we've missed the reading aloud of The Nature of Photographs by Stephen Shore (in entirety) but next on the list is Charlotte Cotton's The Photograph as Contemporary Art. Cotton's book concisely but not too cleanly, divides contemporary photography into seven categories, leaving room for the overlap and blurring of definitions that are bound to happen.

Katarina, from Hot Shot Karolina Karlic's Dear Diary series

Spring '07 Hot Shot, Ne Plus Ultra, and 20x200 contributor Karolina Karlic is in a show. Work from Karlic's Dear Diary series is up now through November 8 at the Independent Feature Project in St. Paul, Minnesota.

The IFP notes:

The lush large scale prints of ... Karolina Karlic radiate a sensuality revealing everyday lives longing for meaning and connection.

...

Intrigued by the motivations of those that post Internet classifieds through "Missed Connections" on Craig's List, Karolina Karlic sought out the posters to create her images. Perhaps by helping to complete their need for connection she was able to draw them into collaboration to make photographs of vulnerability and longing in our contemporary world of impersonal Internet communication.

On the art-inspired-by Craigslist ads note, check out the songs of Gabriel Kahane's "Craigslistlieder." The music has been touted as, "His song cycle, Craigslistlieder, art-song settings of eight anonymous posts he found on the ubiquitous personals/classifieds website Craigslist, has won over fans and critics with its affiliation of raucous pop culture and deft high-art craft. " And it is true. Perhaps it's time for a music and photo show for Karlic and Kahane together.

P.S. Only one print is left from Karlic's 20x200 edition (pictured above)!

P.P.S. Full disclosure: I shot some photos for Kahane's recent album.

Another Hey, Hot Shot! former intern of note: the work of Alice Wells was just featured on I Heart Photograph.

To see more images from Alice's great series, Take Me, visit her site.

This series is also part of the permanent collection of the Museum of Contemporary Photography.

Are you planning to head to SXSW? Are you not going but simply super interested in all the awesome talk that will go on there? Then vote, now, for Jen Bekman's SXSW panel proposal:

Curating the Crowd-Sourced World Level: Beginner Type: Panel Category: Content Presenter: Jen Bekman, 20x200 | Jen Bekman Projects, Inc. Description: With all the stuff we weed through online, good filters are crucial. Who's best-suited to determine what's best - curators or the crowd? People have their religion about one or the other, however this panel will focus on the overlap, the grey areas and how curating and crowd-sourcing enrich each other.

With the curatorially-mediated online phenom of 20x200, Jen's a pretty good fit to head up this panel which is sure to be filled with other talents -- who can speak as both curators and "crowd" -- that she'll announce in the coming weeks.

Torn by Jonathan Allen

The print above -- today's 20x200 edition -- is not a photograph, but it does depict a pack of photographers and Ms. Bekman explains its link to Hey, Hot Shot in her newsletter description:

Jonathan's distinctive style has all kinds of intersections with past and future 20x200 artists. Faux bois has popped up in lots of our editions, and his saturated geometric planes are reminiscent of Paradigm Shift, an early edition from painter Jessica Snow. Those hues and lines are also somewhat unexpectedly akin to new work from 20x200 favorite Carrie Marill, recently completed for her solo show that's opening at the gallery next month. (The suspense might be killing you, but you'll just have to wait!) And don't you see a connection with Curtis Mann's Treetops in Jonathan's choice of subject and media? I sure do. Most randomly, his crowd of shutterbugs reminds me of Michael David Murphy's own photo-journalism and the insightful criticism that you'll find on his blog 2point8. And there are personal connections as well. Jonathan was encouraged to submit to 20x200 by fellow LMCC resident Amy Park and is (perhaps unbeknownst to him) connected to Dorthe Alstrup via their participation in the Bronx Museum's prestigious Artist in the Marketplace program.

Who's Dorthe you say? As Google will tell you in its top results, she's a former Hot Shot. She's also got a great print coming up with us here in a few weeks. Another surprise to look forward to!

And now I'm moving forward myself. This year's first round of Hey, Hot Shot! winners make their debut at the JB on Friday and there are preparations to attend to.

anhm #30 by Hot Shot and Ultra Joseph O. Holmes

Without fail, each batch of Hey, Hot Shot! entries includes work made inside the American Museum of Natural History. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. We love the museum too. Just a fun fact. And maybe something to keep in mind when shooting. Those scenes have probably been shot before. If you must shoot there, make it work in your own way. (Another day we will discuss shopping carts, for you seem to also really love shopping carts.)

My favorite example of AMNH work is from Fall '05 Hot Shot and Fall '06 Ultra Joeseph O. Holmes. His diorama series is splendid, and can be found on 20x200 as well. (There is only one print of this edition left!)

The Museum itself recently launched an online portal into its own archives of photographs, "Picturing the Museum: Education and Exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History." It is worth a look.

Shoot The Blog reprints a great Sugimoto quote about the dioramas:

"Upon first arriving in New York in 1974, I did the tourist thing. Eventually I visited the Natural History Museum, where I made a curious discovery: the stuffed animals positioned before painted backdrops looked utterly fake, yet by taking a quick peek with one eye closed, all perspective vanished, and suddenly they looked very real. I'd found a way to see the world as a camera does. However fake the subject, once photographed, it's as good as real." - Hiroshi Sugimoto

Brian Clamp of Clamp Art by Ryan Pfluger

Ryan Pfluger is not a Hot Shot, but he is a great young photographer who is working a lot in the editorial and art worlds.

July 20th's New York Times Magazine featured Ryan's portraits of writer David Carr (inside and on the cover) and Shoot The Blog's Rachel Hulin recently interviewed Ryan about his work. It is a good read. (Also, for the record, the David Carr book, The Night of the Gun, is a good read too.) Rachel's interview touches on a new project of Ryan's too:

"As for personal work, I started a project about two months back entitled "Edited". I'm photographing all the photo editors/curators/dealers in New York that I can. It's all about turning the lens on the people who are currently making decisions about photography. Most photographers don't even know what half these people look like. They are all environmental portraits in their homes, studios or galleries. I've already photographed people like Kathy Ryan, Brian Clamp, and Brooke Nipar. George Pitts, Leslie Martin and Tim Barber are also some of the people that are future subjects."

That's Hey, Hot Shot! panelist Lesley A. Martin, in fact. I look forward to seeing more of this work. What a great resource it will be: a guide to those who are looking at your photographic work. A very smart idea.

In New York City, it is hot. In Ultra Ian Baguskas's Kamping Kabins it looks nice and cold. You don't have an air conditioner, eh? Buy a print from 20x200 and dream. There are still some prints, in all three sizes, left of this great work.

Baguskas writes:

Kamping Kabins is from my project, Search For The American Landscape, which looks at the relationship humans have with nature; specifically, the conflict between our inherent love of nature and our desire to alter it and need to take from it.

These images were inspired by photographic surveyors such as Timothy O'Sullivan and Carlton Watkins who explored and documented the land and settlements in the old West by photographing landscapes not only for their beauty but also as a record of places that few people had seen before. My photographs, however, are of landscapes that have experienced human exploration and the subsequent impact from the growing demand for convenience and natural resources.

Remember that talk about websites? I still don't have all the answers. But I have a good example. James Deavin, a Summer '05 Hot Shot, has a great website and a great blog. James's last post, by chance, is about website redesign. He writes, in general, with a candid honesty that is refreshing. It is nice to see his daily snaps so close to his carefully edited portfolio projects.

And there are gems like this, ". . .using a camera/phone hybrid. These devices mean you can more easily ask your friends for advice on composition-related dilemmas." I never thought of the cameraphone that way before. Brilliant.

SEED magazine, cover photography by Summer '05 Hot Shot Noah Kalina

Summer '05 Hot Shot Noah Kalina has a stunning photograph on the cover of the current issue of SEED and a 10-page photo essay on "Labs at Night" inside the magazine. And Kalina recently stopped by 20x200 to release an edition and a chat with Jen Bekman.

Carrie Marill, A Dream World Glimmers In The Background Of The Soul (Detail)

Fall '07 Hot Shot Todd Forsgren has six photographs in the latest Jen Bekman show, Ornithology. The group show, which features a stellar array of artists working in various media, opens tonight, from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the gallery, at 6 Spring Street.

Ornithology features bird-themed works by Echo Eggebrecht, Todd Forsgren, Laura Levine, Carrie Marill, Christina Muraczewski, Victoria Neel, Lamar Peterson, Jason Polan, Alec Soth, Amy Stein, Keith Taylor, Bert Teunissen, and Luke Stephenson. Many of these artists will debut exclusive editions on 20x200 during the course of the exhibition.

In the spirit of summer, Ornithology takes its cues from the great outdoors. With their brightly colored plumage, sweet songs, and uncanny ability to fly, birds have captivated humans for centuries, making ornithologists out of even the most casual of observers. From Aristotle to Audubon, Darwin to the binocular-clad of Central Park, our feathered friends have proven to be a source of abundant inspiration.

Of his work, Todd writes:

Ornithologists now use mist nets instead of shotguns. These nearly invisible nets are set up like fences and function as huge spider webs, catching unsuspecting birds. The researcher carefully extracts the bird from the net. Each bird is measured, aged, sexed, and banded with an individually numbered anklet. Then the bird is released.

I photographed these birds while they are caught in mist nets, moments before the ornithologist extracts them. Here, the birds inhabit a fascinating space between our framework of the bush and the hand. It is a fragile and embarrassing moment before they disappear back into the woods, and into data.

Okay, so you like what you see here, and you've done some further investigating at the 20x200 and Jen Bekman sites. Hopefully you've visited the gallery and other galleries too. Now it is time to start shopping.

Join Jen Bekman, Michelle Dunn Marsh, and Amy Stein, and moderator Michael Foley for In Focus: Collecting Photography, a panel discussion, tonight, Thursday, June 12, at 7:00 p.m. at The Affordable Art Fair (135 W 18th Street, between 6th and 7th Avenues).

The Affordable Art Fair is, "the place for new and established collectors to discover and buy paintings, drawings, sculptures, video, photography and limited edition prints from distinguished galleries, all priced from $100 - $10,000. This year the Fair will host more than 70 galleries from the US, Europe, Asia, Canada, and South America."

Time is almost up.

Have you entered this round of Hey, Hot Shot!? If not, then you need to do it soon. Do it now. Send us your photos and your completed application at once, for the chance to be selected and honored in the Hey, Hot Shot! competition.

Unlike previous years, we WILL NOT be extending the deadline. Not even by a day or an hour or a minute! All submissions are due TUESDAY, JUNE 17, at 8:00 P.M.

Spring '07 Hot Shot Daniel Traub reports that the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art has acquired four images from his City's Edge series. The very series that won him a spot in Hey, Hot Shot!

Traub was also recently included in the PDN 30 2008 - one of 30 "new and emerging photographers to watch," by Photo District News.

And he's not the only Hot Shot featured on that illustrious list. Fall '07 Hot Shot Birthe Piontek and Fall '06 Hot Shot Shen Wei are honored there too.

Kent Rogowski, from Love = Love

Hot Shots and would-be Hot Shots and regular people alike: go see Kent Rogowski's show, Love = Love, at Jen Bekman Gallery.

Jen Bekman Gallery is pleased to present Love = Love, an exhibition by Kent Rogowski, comprised of six large-scale photographic prints based on altered puzzles, as well as a selection of the original objects. Love = Love will be on view until Saturday, June 14, 2008.

Rogowski’s collages are created with pieces of puzzles which are cut from the same die but depict different, unrelated images. Using these photographic fragments as his palette, Rogowski creates entirely new compositions by his careful mapping of their collisions. The intermixing of these glossy idealizations of flowers, bucolic scenery, and man-made wonders results in disorienting and wholly unique fractured fantastical landscapes. In photographing his completed objects, Rogowski transforms them yet again. Shifting the scale of the photographic image modulates the grid-like uniformity produced by the borders of the puzzle pieces, diminishing or increasing the order they exert over the chaos of the constructed image.

James Danziger, of Danziger Projects, thoughtfully wrote,

"Mixing flowers, blues skies, puffy clouds, and idyllic scenery, Rogowski creates his own alternate fractured universe, one that undergoes yet another transformation when he photographs the finished object. Humorous and cheery, they are not without their own sly commentary on the commodification of happiness and idealism.

Whether they’re photography or re-photography or collage (or a combination of all three) is beside the point. Kent Rogowski’s work demonstrates yet again that although it may be increasingly hard to come up with new ideas, where there’s a will there’s a way."

Marine Wedding, by Sping '07 Hot Shot Nina Berman, installation view.

Spring '07 Hot Shot, and all-around hot shot, Nina Berman will speak on an Aperture panel at this weekend's New York Photo Festival. As I've already implored, you MUST go to the festival, and when you're there, be sure to catch Nina talking with Vicki Goldberg and Claire Beckett at Aperture Presents: Picturing Iraq. There should be more public discussion of images of this war; I expect a great conversation with this trio.

I know where you should be this weekend: the New York Photo Festival.

Lesley A. Martin, a HHS panelist, is one of the curators, and it looks to be a tremendous affair. Jen Bekman gets in on the action too, sitting on a panel about curating tomorrow at 5:00 p.m.

The festival was created because "New York City, home to the most influential commercial and fine art photography community, has lacked—until now—a large-scale event dedicated to photography."

This year, powerHouse Books and VII Photo Agency launched the New York Photo Festival, which is the first international-level festival of photography to be based in the United States.

Visit the festival's site to see the great schedule and report back about what you go to see.

Tonight, the Griffin Museum of Photography will present Jen Bekman with its Rising Star Award at its 3rd Annual Focus Awards its annual Focus Awards. The Griffin Museum of Photography recognizes the work of people who are not photographers, but who have been instrumental in increasing awareness of the photographic arts among the general public.

Awards are presented in three categories: Lifetime Achievement, given to an individual whose ongoing commitment to photography has far-reaching impact; Rising Star, awarded to an emerging force the photographic community is watching with interest; New England Beacon, recognizing an individual whose work brings prominence to the local photographic scene; and the Spotlight Award, given to an entity that consistently shines a light on photography and enhances the art form. Ms. Bekman is this year's Rising Star.

The museum says,

"An innovative gallery owner, Bekman has used her knowledge of the Web to change gallery culture. After years of managing Web development teams at Netscape and Disney, she used her Internet skills and interest in photography to create a vehicle for connecting emerging photographers with potential buyers on the Web. She writes a blog, Personism, and is founder of the international photo competition, Hey, Hot Shot! Her latest endeavor is 20 x 200, a place to buy editioned prints and photos at affordable prices. She has been featured in many publications and was named Innovator of the Year by American Photo."

We're so proud of Ms. Bekman. Visit the museum for more info.

It's time! We are now accepting entries for 2008's first edition of Hey, Hot Shot! We're all super excited about the great changes in store for applicants and winners. And, remember, all applicants are also potential contenders for features on this very blog.

Hey, Hot Shot! offers unrivaled opportunities for emerging photographers to have their work promoted online, reviewed by top-notch panelists and exhibited in our New York gallery. Now entering its fourth year, the international competition has been lauded by curators, critics, educators and journalists. This year we'll sharpen our focus on fewer hot shots, giving them even more exposure. Read on for the details.

Fewer hot shots + longer exhibitions = more exposure
The competition will now be bi-annual. In each competition 5 photographers will be selected to be part of a two-week showcase at Jen Bekman Gallery.

Cold hard cash
All winning photographers will be awarded a $500 honorarium.

Ultras go solo
At year's end 2 Ultras will be selected from 2008's 10 Hot Shots. The Ultras will be represented by Jen Bekman and slated for solo exhibitions at the gallery.

In it to win it
As always, we'll be selecting contenders to feature daily on the Hey, Hot Shot! blog throughout the entry period. Contenders will also be considered for 20x200, Jen Bekman's newest online endeavor which offers limited edition prints at affordable prices.

So what are you waiting for? Get your work out there: apply now!

We are only accepting submissions online, via this web site.
The deadline for submissions is Tuesday, June 17th @ 8pm(EDT).
Winners will be announced on Wednesday, July 9th @ 1pm (EDT).
There is a $60 handling fee for your entry.
Submissions are open to everyone (from anywhere in the world!).
The competition is open: APPLY NOW!

2006 Hey, Hot Shot! Ne Plus Ultra Kate Bingaman-Burt

Lesley Martin, Hey, Hot Shot! panelist and the publisher of Aperture's book program will speak tonight with Harper's Books art book dealer Harper Levine, and Daile Kaplan, V.P., Director of Photographs, Swann Galleries Inc., and others in an Introduction to Collecting Photography Books, a panel discussion. They will talk about what makes specific books valuable, and thoughts to consider in building a book collection. It should be a great night for photographers and collectors alike.

The details:
Introduction to Collecting Photography Books
Panel Discussion
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
6:30 p.m.

Aperture Gallery
547 West 27th Street, 4th Floor
New York, New York
(212) 505-5555

The second part of the Starn twins' 20x200 edition is now for sale. If you missed out last time, or if you want to own both parts, you should really hurry!

Ms. Bekman writes, "Structure of Thought 6a is printed on translucent vellum and is a beautiful print on its own, so if you didn't get the first one, don't hesitate to click through and grab a print. And of course, it can be layered over Structure of Thought 6b."

A few weeks ago, Rob Haggart at A Photo Editor put out a call for work. He curated a slideshow meant to forge new relationships between photographers, photo editors, and art collectors. It's up now, on his blog, and with an embed code so that others can host the show too. It's called I Like These Photos (to the point, perfect), and it features the work of 297 (!) photographers. It's a novel way of collecting images, for sure.

He writes:

Attention art buyers and photo editors, this is a free promo that’s meant to supplement all the other ways you find photographers to hire. I created it see if there might be an easier more efficient way to quickly look at 200-300 photographers. Compared to the weekly promo pile this works pretty good. Plus, if you’re like me, you remember a picture and not necessarily who took it so you can come back to this slideshow and find the name and website of the photographer whenever you like. This project only works if you find work you like and hire the photographer. I can create more of these but it’s a complete waste of time if it doesn’t connect buyers with photographers. That’s the only reason I did this.

Are you a photographer who missed out this time? Don't worry, Haggart promises, "we’re going to do this again with different editors in a couple months."

Have you done your taxes yet? Have you had your taxes done for you yet? One day to go, and yet, there's still hope. "Business of Art: Taxing Artists," a New York Foundation for the Arts article, has some great information that's relevant to photographers and other artists. For example, "...artists should also be aware of what is known as a Un-Incorporated Business Tax. If someone is a freelance artist doing a portion of their business in New York City, there is a tax form they have to complete in addition to their federal, state and city tax returns."

• The New York Times reports that MFA students at SVA show at the MoMA. In the bathroom. The show lives on, online.
• In the 40th anniversary of New York Magazine, they attempt to define a New York Canon from 1968-2008, and they also run a few Q&As with "iconic New York artists about creating their masterworks." Mark Stevens talks to Cindy Sherman about her Untitled Film Stills. She discusses process, character creation, and, to some extent, intent.


• Earlier this week, the Pulitzer Prizes were announced. Adrees Latif of Reuters won for Breaking News Photography "for his dramatic photograph of a Japanese videographer, sprawled on the pavement, fatally wounded during a street demonstration in Myanmar." Preston Gannaway of the Concord (N.H.) Monitor won the Feature Photography category "for her intimate chronicle of a family coping with a parent's terminal illness."


• Mike Stimpson uses Legos to recreate famous photos from Robert Capa's Death of a Loyalist, to Cartier-Bresson's Behind the Gare Saint Lazare. "Strobist.com taught me everything I know," he says.


• It's photo auction time. Controversy over the oldest — or just an old— photo. Even Gawker's covering the photo auctions, drawn to the nudes. Phillips de Pury canceled a sale of Diane Arbus prints because of concerns about a recent lawsuit. There was even a Fine Photobooks Auction at Christie's.


• Cathy Horyn discusses Juergen Teller's role in Marc Jacobs' ad campaigns. How great is it to see a photographer so in charge of a commercial campaign? Small thing: the NYT blog swapped out the photo they initially had (Teller's ad that featured Victoria Beckham's legs splayed out of a shopping bag) at the top of the post. Why?

Winter '07 Hot Shot Mickey Smith

Why visit one gallery, when you can visit 75+ all at once? The AIPAD Photography Show runs today through Sunday at the Park Avenue Armory. "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 in New York City," says AIPAD.

"AIPAD is dedicated to creating and maintaining high standards in the business of exhibiting, buying and selling photographs as art. Acting as the collective voice of the art photography dealers that make up its membership, AIPAD maintains ethical standards, promotes communication within the photographic community, encourages public appreciation of photography as art, concerns itself with the rights of photographers and collectors, and works to enhance the confidence of the public in responsible photography. AIPAD members provide a wide range of services to the public, such as exhibitions, appraisals, expert opinions and consultations."

And while an armory full of exhibitors can feel like overload, it's also a great chance to quickly visit with some people you might not usually have the time (or the access) to see.

By Rachel Hulin, shown in the Hey, Hot Shot! Spring 2005 Showcase

Rachel Hulin at Shoot the Blog has done all of the hard work for you. She's compiled a list of opportunities -- competitive, fellowship, grant, publishing -- open right now to photographers like you. It's an exhaustive list, so, seriously, you should really thank her. And report back on your progress.

P.S. More info about our own competition, Hey, Hot Shot!, coming soon.

P.P.S. Hulin, herself, is a Hot Shot; she showed in Spring '05, our very first show.

From The Town and the City, by Spring '07 Hot Shot Mark Marchesi

Spring 2007 Hot Shot Mark Marchesi has a solo show at Nelson Hancock Gallery, in DUMBO. In The Town and the City, Marchesi travels between New York City and his home in southern Maine. He compares and contrasts, but also proves some similarities that might not be noticable at first glance.

"The Town and the City" is up through April 26.

Stay tuned for more from Mark and interview updates with other Hot Shots too.

Every other Spring, an international group of photographers and reviewers gathers in Portland, Oregon for a week-long "celebration of photography," called Photolucida. Their mission: an increased understanding of the world through photography. Their goal is to promote in-depth, informed, and supportive dialog between photographers, gallery owners, publishers and pundits of various sorts, and thus to promote the culture of photography.

Photolucida publishes monographs for two or more artists (who haven't previously published monographs) selected from the top-scoring finalists of its review. Lisa Hunter shared the shortlist and the Critical Mass winners on her website this weekend, and Beth Dow, a Jen Bekman represented artist and 20x200 edition-maker, is on the shortlist for the book prize.

Five Hey, Hot Shot! winners are among this year's top 50:

Colin Blakely
James Rajotte
Daniel Traub
Ian van Coller
Sarah Small

A Hey, Hot Shot! honorable mention makes an appearance on the list too: Alejandro Cartagena.

• Former Jen Bekman intern Jane Tam is selling inexpensive prints of her photos to finance her senior show. Such a simple, brilliant plan. Jane writes,

  "I am currently a senior at Syracuse University, preparing for my BFA Solo Thesis Show on May 3rd. Like many college students, I am immensely in debt from the costs of film, processing, developing, and printing. Frames cost money. Mounting costs money. The space I rented cost money. This is all for a solo show featuring my photographic series on my family. I do not ask my family for money as they are a working class family who struggle enough to put me through a private university. So, any little bit will help me. Thank you! For those who donate $15 or more will receive a 5x7 print in the mail."

  I love Jane's Can I Come Home With You? series. In it she sketches families from found family photographs into images from her own home life. Two great ones from this series are available among the prints in her store.

• I should admit, I do not know how to use Photoshop. It was only after I started shooting regularly on assignment that I figured out how to resize and rename my images before I turned them in to editors. I'm not proud of this. Since then I've been intrigued, but not hooked, each time someone shows me a free, quick-fix type tool. I've played with Picnik, etc., but I still have pages of steps bookmarked for the boring batch operations I must often perform. Last night I signed up to try Photoshop Express, Adobe's new free online version of Photoshop. The flash-based interface is easy to use, and there's even an Auto Correct option and some organizing options. A few minutes of playing with it didn't teach me how to do anything, exactly, but I'm willing to give it a try. Although, if you want to give me a cheap Photoshop tutorial, I'm up for that too.

  
  

• Rob Haggart, A Photo Editor, writes about an exciting new opportunity for free promotion:

  
  

  "I've wanted to do this for awhile and my thinking on the future of photography and photo contests and other things I'm cooking up has gotten me inspired to offer everyone the chance to promote your best work for free by submitting a couple images for a slide show. There's plenty of photo editors and art buyers who are readers and I know they will find it extremely beneficial to view a quick slide show with hundreds of different photographers featuring their best work and I can't think of any other examples where this exists, so here we go.

  There will be a bar for entry and I will edit out any photographs that are a waste of time for potential buyers to look at. I know there are a lot of top shooters who may be wary of submitting their photographs so I'm going to make sure all the work displayed is top notch. You can also remove your images at any time if you don't think I've done a good enough job.

  The purpose of this is to connect photographers with buyers for FREE. That's it. No bullshit. If that doesn't happen to anyone then the project has failed."

  Rob has a good eye, and from this, it seems, a good heart. A no-bullshit approach to connecting shooters and editors seems generous on all fronts. Visit his site for details about how to participate in this Flickr-based image pool.

  
  

• Spring '06 Hot Shot Casey Kelbaugh founded Slideluck Potshow, a slide show and potluck gathering for artists in New York (that has since branched out to other cities too). The next New York event is tomorrow night, Saturday, March 29, at the Chelsea Art Museum. The theme is patterns. Artists of all sorts each get five minutes to show slides of their work while everyone eats and chats.

A last minute heads up to anyone and everyone who happens to be in New York tonight. Ms. Bekman will be giving a special presentation at The Apple Store in Soho [@ Prince + Greene] as part of the NYC Photobloggers event. Come hear about HHS!, the gallery, 20x200, and other excitement! AND Ultra Joe Holmes is also on the bill. This is an event not to be missed.

TONIGHT - Sept 26 - 6:30PM
The Apple Store [Prince + Greene]

PS: There will be goodies involved. Be there or be [ ]

Installation shot, HHS! Spring Edition, 2007 -- courtesy of Joe Holmes

We are now accepting entries for the Summer Edition of Hey, Hot Shot!.

The deadline is Tuesday, August 7 @ 11:59pm ET and winners will be announced at noon on Tuesday, August 21, 2007. Submissions are open to everyone, from anywhere in the world!

The benefits of entering? HHS! offers amazing visibility to emerging photographers. A very impressive panel will be looking at your work this season!

Being selected as a finalist puts you in great company -- the HHS! Alumni are some of the very best new photographers. Though, it's not just the finalists who benefit from entering -- contenders who are featured on the blog also get quite a bit of attention, not to mention an increase in their website traffic.

In other words, your work gets seen.

The Summer Edition Showcase opens at jen bekman on Wednesday, September 12, 2007 and will be up through the 16th. In the meantime, bookmark this blog to stay up to date on the contenders and any other Hey, Hot Shot! news. Also, take a look here for more installation shots from the Spring Edition.

Go, go, submit your entry now!

Many thanks to Crumpler for supplying the beer for the Hey, Hot Shot! Opening and donating the snazzy bags to the Hot Shots.

On our adventure to Williamsburg to retrieve the bags, we met the fun and friendly folk who work in the Crumpler warehouse and office. We were greeted with lots of warm "Hellos!" and "How are yous!" and while nifty miniature matchbooks were being placed in my hands, they also informed us of their "Beer for Bags" Promotion where you exchange cases and cans of beer for Crumpler bags and then get an invitation to a great, huge party where you go drink all of that beer. Brilliant!

You can bring in the beer at their stores on 45 Spring Street and 49 8th Avenue. The last day to exchange beer is tomorrow, Sunday, June 17, 2007. Check out their website for more details. Go get some bags (and beer)!

I thought our lovely Jen Bekman had tipped the top of the chain letter hype and put all this meme-ness to rest. Then I saw that Hot Shot Shen Wei tagged me. While I was planning on ignoring it, I do usually try to talk about you rather than myself, so perhaps a proper introduction is in order. I'll take this as an opportunity to let you in on how and why exactly I'm the one bringing you such fascinating daily posts. Here we go: 5 things about your Hey, Hot Shot! Guide you probably didn't know.

1. My roots : still a southern belle at heart
I was born and bred in the Delta, or Memphis if you will—the home of Elvis, rock-n-roll, and I'm banking 96% of readers' favorite photographer. I attended the Hutchison School for Girls where I had ballet, etiquette, and impeccable grammar ingrained into me. I participated in cotillion, but got out right in time to avoid my debutante years. And while I can perform a rather intricate table setting, I consciously shed my drawl years ago.

2. Pre-digital days : a photographer is born
I used to take disposable cameras to school on almost a daily basis to snap pictures of my classmates (paying extra careful attention to the males I was lusting after). Then I'd have a lucky parent rush me to the nearest drug store for one-hour processing, allowing me to drool over the glossy snapshots all evening long. This was a terribly rewarding habit of mine for many, many years; in fact, I would venture to say one I still haven't quite shaken.

3. The quintessential teenage girl + her camera
On any given night between the age of 15 and my high school graduation, I could be found in a small steamy shed in my backyard in Arizona, standing in front of my enlarger with a bag of ice and a fan behind my back. Here I printed hundreds of black and white images (many a macro) of eyes, nudes, dead birds, anything mildly gooey or disgusting, and, of course, my feet. [Not exactly a surprising fact, but just thought I'd verify it for you.]

4. Paying my dues and barely a penny to show
It began with a summer under Leslie Calmes in the research department at The Center for Creative Photography in Tucson where I spent hours trying to make sense of John Gutmann's archives. I went on to intern for a photographer of many trades in New York—Gigi Stoll. A bit later, I found myself assistant to everyone's favorite Chicagrapher, Brian Ulrich. I had a brief interlude with Chelsea, only to realize running errands was not my cup of tea—which led me to the fabulous Jen Bekman, where you find me now.

5. Going on 4 years, the complex has set in.
A student after my BFA at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, I have spent an entire undergraduate career fixated on my stature. And it all started with a documentary on the human growth hormone which I dubbed The Last of a Dying Breed: ten action packed minutes of statistics, Randy Newman, and a brief shot of me secretly standing next to Steven Tyler.

Although I continue to have my curiosity humored as I watch this spread, I'll follow suit and try to wrap it up. I'll spare some lucky 5 the tags and instead prod some confidential meme-ness from our Ultras, whose show is up through March 3 and who will also be reviewing your submissions.

But for the sake of reading pleasure, here are three from the family just in case you missed them: Jen Bekman, Joerg Colberg, and Shen Wei

Not only are we on the heels of the deadline, but also Election Day. Haven't we all been looking for a way to do more than simply battle the ballot? Well, here's the opportunity. The Polling Place Photo Project is asking you to do what you do best—observe, document, and share. An experiment in citizen journalism, the project is encouraging all to document their polling locations in hopes of a clearer understanding of the American voting experience.

You've got a camera, you're going to vote, snap some shots for a good cause. Let's put our cameras to use and engage in understanding the world's oldest democracy. Any and everyone is encouraged to participate—no polling place, big or small should be left out.

Find out more, see some photos, and read the fine print here.