The National Press Photographers Association has announced a new category in their annual photography contest ‘to recognize the best work being produced by publicly accessible journalism web sites.’ Rules are here. Last year’s winners are all online here, including an environmental picture story reporting on the impact of the Blue Ridge Parkway by photographer Josh Meltzer who works with my friend Natalee Waters in Roanoke, VA. This includes not only sites affiliated with traditional journalism outlets but also independent journalism sites. The NPPA contest has represented the very best of newspaper and magazine photography for years, so this really represents a watermark moment by this type of organization recognizing the value and quality of independent photoblogging. Now, I have to look long and hard to see if something in my gallery might be worthwhile…
Swimsuit Post #2
Okay. This might be considered overkill in some circles to have two stories about the SI Swimsuit Issue. But I wanted to brag on my friend Chris Gibbons excellent Flash design for a project that launched today to promote the joint Sports Illustrated/NBC effort to find the next SI Swimsuit Model. A project I was involved with last year, this time around, it’s been expanded to include a six-part reality series (Wendesdays 8/7 on NBC). Viewers will vote to choose between the last two finalists in a later episode. The Flash treatment here is very slick. And the material isn’t too bad either.
Heidi, meet Seal
So my old pal Heidi Klum is gonna marry Seal (via CNN.com). So, let me clarify that. Heidi and I shared a hot tub (along with her then-husband and a bunch of other folks) in Mexico a few years back when I was on assignment for a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit shoot. She’s really down to earth, and was most fascinated by the IPIX technology we were using, including getting into the spirit of things and posing on both side of the picture, as IPIX VRs are two 180-degree images spliced together. So ‘snap’ Heidi poses on one side, Heidi moves to the other, and presto! Two Heidis, one panorama. I’d link to one of these, but SI.com has put most of the old Swimsuit content behind a subscription wall.
UPDATE: You can still see the VR! Here is one, courtesy of MSN Search’s cache. LINK.
Now I think Seal is a great musician. Although he has become quite a commercial success, and some of his stuff is a bit too pop for my taste, I think his first disc from the early 90s is great, and remind me of some Peter Gabriel stuff.
Anyway, Mazel Tov to the happy couple!
Link: Heidi Gallery at SI.com
Link: CNN.com story
Google Searches for Oddball Ad Agency
When a company declares that one of it’s guiding pricinples is to ‘not do evil’ in their S1 filing, you would expect that their approach to promoting themselves is going to take a slightly different tact than the usual Fortune 500. To that end, Google has already used the resources of innovative agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky, the folks behind Burger King’s Subservient Chicken and Method Soap’s ‘Come Clean‘ campaign.
The first work by Crispin was a series of billboards in hi-tech areas of the country seeking job applicants for Google featuring the following statement: “{first prime digit found in consecutive digits of e}.com.”
Anyway, the New York Post is reporting that Google is looking to expand their conventional advertising in light of greater competition from Yahoo and Microsoft. Google nor Crispin would comment.