AsukaBook- How About This Business Model?

I was just researching the book publishing sites out there after speaking to fellow Nat Geo Adventure Photographer Andrew Kornylak. Andrew loves AsukaBook. I went to their site and, of course you have to register first, to get information. But what stuck me as odd was the check box to certify that you are a professional. Then the follow up email they send mentions waiting two days for approval to use their services. Who limits access to their customers? Who waits for anything anymore in the digital age?

Here's their explanation:

An email approving your registration request or requesting further information will be sent to you within 2 business days.

As mentioned on the Registration page, AsukaBook products are available to professional photographers and designers creating books for resale or promotions. To protect the integrity and confidentiality of our registered customers, we do not disclose our prices to the general public, as well as ordering capability. For this reason, verifying professional status is imperative. We may request further information from you such as business web site, membership of professional photography associations, and/or sample images. Your cooperation with this process is most obliged.

It made me recall conversations with my Kodak Pro Rep years ago in which I used to kid them that they needed to limit to whom they sold "pro" film. Those guys taking "pro" film and cross processing it were giving Kodak a bad name.

Which gets me to thinking that maybe there's room for a flickr style site that limits who can upload. Maybe a little exclusivity (or censorship?) would go a long way. Just a thought.

Roy DeCarava

 Ketchup Bottles, Table and Coat, 1952 ©Roy DeCarava

Roy DeCarava passed away this week. One of the great photographers of the last century. NYTimes obit here. Multimedia on NYT Lens Blog here

We Demand Vincent Laforet's "Nocturne" Emission

Apologies for the wordplay - it was one of those silly health class phrases - I guess I haven't evolved much from my high school days.

Just wanted to direct your attention to the newest Canon still camera. Just after midnight last week Vincent Laforet posted his newest project that showcased the video capabilities of Canon's new 1D Mark4.

Earlier in the day the creator of the smash hit video "Reverie"   had posted a note to be sure to tune in just after midnight EST for a mind-numbing blog entry. What could it be this time? Could Canon have built a nuclear fusion reactor? Well it turned out to be the EOS 1D MKIV and it's amazing low light capabilities as showcased in Laforet's newest film entitled "Nocturne." The new camera has a new sensor so sensitive to light that it can probe the unlit areas of our night-time imaginations (where no video camera has probed before.) The 1D MKIV does ISO 12,800. Remember Acufine? That's like pushing tri-x 5 stops!

Here's an excerpt from Mr Laforet's blog that night.

Just a little over two weeks ago my jaw dropped even harder when I took a prototype of the Canon 1D MKIV outdoors to test it at night.  I was on the road, it was late and I had just rushed back to my hotel to get to the unit.  I was expecting a 1D body, with 24p, a 1.3 crop factor sensor, 10 fps for stills, a new AF system - 60 fps at 720p - and of course 1080p video.

Nothing prepared me for what happened next.

I set the ASA to high - and I pointed it towards an area lit by a single flood light.  The image was overexposed by 4-5 stops.  I then started to play with the settings, pointing my light into an area in complete shadow (my eye saw nothing but black) but on the rear of the LCD I saw sharp, green leaves as crystal clear as if it were shot in daylight.

I think it’s safe to say that every single filmmaker and photographer has always dreamed of cameras that can see what our naked eyes can see.  This time these cameras can actually see more.   Sure - they may not have the dynamic ranges of our eyes just yet - but they see more than my naked eyes can see in low light.

Period.

And that’s qualifies as a paradigm shift in my book.

It was late and I had had a big day and decided to watch it later - and then when I came back to watch I found this: Canon has requested that we take down “Nocturne.”. WTF? C'mon Canon, we demand our nocturnal emission back.

Great Radio: Hookworms+Asthma

great radio going on over at WNYC's- RadioLab (thank's Seth)

Listen Here or find it on iTunes (easier to download and listen in the car)

Go See. I'll Say It Again: Really Go. (If you happen to be in Georgia.)

Sharon Core's "Early American" Exhibition at SCAD-Atlanta's Trois Gallery - it's not clear in their materials but I believe there is an opening reception and artist talk - Thursday 10/8 at 6PM
Show Runs Oct. 2-Nov. 25

Trois Gallery, 1600 Peachtree St., Atlanta, Ga.
The exhibitions department presents "Early American," a series of still life photographs by artist Sharon Core based on the paintings of early 19th-century still life painter Raphaelle Peale. In her work, Core engages the concept of illusionism central to the genre of still life and upends the notion of trompe l'oeil by attempting to create a photograph that appears to be a painting. This exhibition is free and open to the public. For more on Sharon's work see my blog here

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 William Christenberry: Photographs, 1961–2005

at The Morris Meseum of Art, Macon Georgia. September 12–November 8, 2009. Not everything is in Atlanta, so jump in the car and head South to Macon. We missed Mr Christenberry's gallery talk last month. Sadly, we just forgot to put it on our calendar.

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©Tierney Gearon

Tierney Gearon. It's ACP time  (Atlanta Celebrates Photography) (another festival, lord knows Atlanta loves a festival and every other day there's a new photography-related festival popping up) and Tierney Gearon is in town at the end of the month speaking about her work. If you don't know her images, you should. Netflix her documentary "The Mother Project" and go see her talk at The High Museum of Art Thu, Oct 29, 7pm - 9pm FREE!

 As part of Atlanta Celebrates Photography’s annual lecture series, The High Museum presents a lecture by acclaimed, native Atlantan photographer, Tierney Gearon, in The Hill Auditorium on Thursday, October 29 at 7:00 PM. Tierney’s lecture will encompass the entire span of her career as a photographer - beginning with her first portraits of her family, her early commercial work as a fashion photographer in Europe, her discovery by Charles Saatchi, subsequent shows at The Gagosian Gallery, The Mother Project, and her newest series, EXPLOSURE. 

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Check back here regularly as I'll hopefully add other directives as we move through the month.

Also NOTE: all images above are found freely and easily on the web and while used without permission here, I'm sure the images are copyright protected and rights remain with their respective owners...