Blue Earth project photographer Daniel Beltrá has been keeping busy these days!  Most recently, Daniel’s work has been featured in two double spreads: one in The Guardian this past June and another in July’s Popular Photography.  The spread in Popular Photography also features an interview with Daniel.  If you missed those publications, you can always view several images from his Amazon: Forest at Risk project on our web site.

Oct. 27, 2005. Barreirinha (Brazil). Big river boat trapped on a sand bank East of Barreirinha, during one of the worst droughts ever recorded in the Amazon. ©Daniel Beltra/Greenpeace

I am also very pleased to note that Daniel has generously donated a print to the Blue Earth Annual Lottery, to be held September 18th at the Palace Ballroom in Seattle.  This image (above) is part of a series that won a World Press Photo award in 2006.  If you would like to attend the lottery, and maybe even take home Daniel’s print, you can purchase tickets today via our web site, by mail, or over the phone.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Congress continues to proceed with work on the Orphan Works Act in the current legislative session.  For those who may not be aware, the term “orphan works” as used by the U. S. Copyright Office refers to “works whose owners may be impossible to identify and locate.”  The proposed legislation is intended to address concerns that “the uncertainty surrounding ownership of such works might needlessly discourage subsequent creators and users from incorporating such works in new creative efforts, or from making such works available to the public.”

The legislation now before Congress would put in place mechanisms by which orphaned works may be displayed and/or used in new works. These proposed changes have raised concerns by some visual artists that the bill could weaken copyright protections.  Both Public Knowledge and the Electronic Frontier Foundation support the passage of the bill and suggest reasons why artists should do so as well.  The American Society of Media Photographers and the Advertising Photographers of America also provide comments on suggested amendments to the bill to address their concerns.

Since it appears likely at this point that some version of the bill will pass, it makes good sense for photographers to keep up on the issues.  Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Photographer Greg Constantine was recently recognized for his work by the Society of Publishers in Asia in their 2008 Awards for Editorial Excellence.  In the “Excellence in Feature Photography” category, Greg was given the award for his work in the International Herald Tribune (one of my favorite newspapers if I may say).  His ability to “capture the heart of the story in images that mesh both news and art” apparently convinced the judges to give him the award.

The full article is available at the IHT.  In addition, Gregg has a fascinating slide show “Millions without a place to call their own” attached to the same piece.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

Camille Seaman, another talented Blue Earth project photographer, is currently sailing the northern seas as Artist in Residence on board the Prince Albert II, June 30-Aug. 25, 2008.  Right now Camille and fellow travelers aboard the ship are exploring Iceland, Greenland and other destinations in the Arctic.  In addition to other shows, Camille will also be taking part in the Polar Attractions Exhibition at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA from June 28, 2008-June 07, 2009.

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

As a testament to the skill and dedication of the photographers Blue Earth supports, even more recent awards have been won by Stephanie Sinclair and Steve Simon for their amazing work.

Stephanie Sinclair was awarded The FreeLens Award at the Lumix Festival for Young Photojournlism in Hannover, Germany for her series “Bride Price-Child Marriage around the World”.

Steve Simon was honored at the Prix de la Photographie, Paris (Px3) in the Book Series and the Portraiture categories for work from his Both Sides Of The Line and The Grandmother Spirit projects. The winning photographs from Px3 will be exhibited in Paris and published in the Px3 Annual Book.

Congratulations from all of us here at Blue Earth!

- Bart J. Cannon, Program Manager

This week was the 3^rd annual Microsoft Pro Photo Summit - a 2-day event that brings together renowned professional photographers and industry leaders to discuss the top issues affecting the industry.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Greene, Microsoft

Blue Earth was prominently featured in a 30-minute presentation by nature and wildlife photographer Florian Schulz. Florian showed examples of current and past Blue Earth projects, and spoke from the heart about how Blue Earth helped him get “Yellowstone to Yukon” off the ground. He followed that with a presentation of his own inspiring images and videos, including recent work documenting the coastal ecosystems from Baja California to Alaska’s Beaufort Sea. Florian highlighted the importance of creating wildlife corridors linking existing parks and public lands, to preserve habitats and ensure diverse and healthy ecosystems. 

Also speaking at the summit was world renown nature photographer, Frans Lanting. Frans gave the opening day photographer keynote, presenting images and poems from his Blue Earth sponsored project, “Life: A Journey through Time”.  His talk can be found here.

For more info on the Pro Photo Summit, see Jeff Greene’s blog at http://blogs.msdn.com/prophoto/.

- Larry Ockene, Blue Earth Board President

At our board’s annual retreat earlier this year, we had a lively discussion about ways that Blue Earth could increase our connection with our global community.  While we’re proud of our web site and newsletters, they are time consuming to produce and update, somewhat impersonal, and don’t provide means for two-way communication.  We needed a vehicle for reporting on topics of interest, and bringing in the diverse voices of our community.  Hence was born this blog.

There will, of course, be compelling imagery.  But we’ll deepen the dialog by telling the stories behind the photographs – covering not just the issues, but revealing the human side of a journalist’s experiences in the field.  Through this forum, you’ll hear from our sponsored photographers, board members and advisors, and others who share in our mission to raise awareness about endangered cultures, threatened environments and social concerns through photography.

We encourage you to add your voice to the dialog, and support us in using the power of photographic storytelling to motivate society to make positive changes.

- Larry Ockene, Blue Earth Board President