New York, NY (PRWEB) October 22, 2009 — New York Photographer Robert Hooman’s self-promotional multi-media piece “Lurking,” an uncut sequence of 1,105 chronological and unedited still shots, won a 25th Annual Photo District News (PDN) Self-Promo Award. In the very competitive and crowded field of photography, it is increasingly difficult to grab the attention of photo editors, art directors and creative directors. Each year, the PDN Self-Promo Award recognizes the unique instances in which the photographer and brand make a lasting impact on the marketplace and break the monotony with their creative approach to promoting themselves.

“In creating “Lurking” by stringing together 1,105 photos from a photo shoot, my intention was to show my entire process of photographing, directing models, storytelling and incorporating video into my work and business strategy,” explains Robert Hooman. “It is such an honor to win this PDN Self-Promo Award in the beginning of my career as these awards are traditionally won by very seasoned and experienced photographers and organizations.”

Photo District News will honor Robert Hooman and the other award winners at the PDN PhotoPlus Expo “Bash” on October 22 in the famous Hammerstein Ballroom in New York. The issue honoring the award winners is on stands now.

In his first complete year as a professional editorial, lifestyle, and commercial advertising photographer, Hooman has worked with top art directors and photo editors and won multiple awards and recognitions for his photography. A collection of Hooman’s work can be viewed at http://www.roberthooman.com and “Lurking” can be viewed on Hooman’s blog at http://blog.roberthooman.com/2009/10/25th-annual-pdn-self-promotion-award.html

Robert Hooman graduated from NYU in 2000 with a BFA in Film/TV Production and spent the following eight years editing film for industry heavy hitters such as Saatchi + Saatchi and BBDO worldwide for brands including Grey Goose, L’Oréal and Visa. After working in commercial advertising and broadcast television, the New York-based documentary and editorial photographer made the leap into full-time photography with his first solo show at RIOT Manhattan in 2008. This year in Hooman’s first complete year as a professional photographer he was awarded a third place prize and five honorable mentions at the prestigious Lucie Foundation’s International Photography Awards, a merit award by the Advertising Photographers of America (APA), nine IPPA awards, and a place in the 11th Annual Painting, Drawing, Photography & Print Juried Online International Art Exhibition. He is currently a finalist for the 2009 Pix Digital Imaging Award. Clients have included National Grid, Right Gin, Belvedere vodka, CWRU, Black Star, The Box NYC, Wilhelmina Models, Kelliher Samets & Volk, NY Post, Schmap Guides and Altmar Brands.

© 2009, The F Stops Here. All rights reserved. (Jessica D. Korman)

“With the introduction of these new optics, Lensbaby is moving beyond the realm of selective focus to offer photographers a Creative Effects SLR lens system, with 6 different optic options. The Fisheye and Soft Focus Optics, unlike earlier Lensbaby optics, do not feature a sweet spot of focus,” said Craig Strong, Lensbaby President and Co-Founder. “The new Fisheye Optic transforms a Lensbaby Composer into a fun fisheye lens and the new Soft Focus Optic creates images that are overall soft and diffused, much like a classic Imagon portrait lens. The Lensbaby Optic Swap System now offers three selective focus optics, and three optics that provide even more options for creative photography.”

About the Lensbaby Fisheye Optic
The new Lensbaby Fisheye Optic allows photographers to turn their Lensbaby Composer or Muse into a fisheye lens by swapping out the installed optic and dropping the new Fisheye Optic into the lens. This optic’s six element multi-coated optical design features an ultra-wide 12mm focal length capable of capturing a 160 degree fisheye angle of view from infinity all the way down to one-inch from the front of the lens.

The Lensbaby Fisheye Optic features a system of interchangeable aperture disks, with possible aperture settings ranging from f/4 to f/22. To change the aperture, users unscrew the top element of the Fisheye Optic and replace the aperture disk using the included Aperture Tool.

Due to the extremely wide angle field of view, photographers who use a full-frame camera will generally see a black circle around almost the entire image, and smaller APS-sized sensor shooters will see black at the corners of their images. This black edge is typical for standard fisheye lenses. However, the Lensbaby Fisheye Optic features a creative lens flare effect that causes the edge areas that would ordinarily be black to glow with color whenever there are bright light sources in the image. The Fisheye Optic lens flare effect is particularly apparent when shooting with a full frame camera.

The Fisheye Optic is different than previous Lensbaby optics, with a much flatter field of focus than the Double Glass, Single Glass, and Plastic Optics. The images created by the Fisheye Optic are sharp throughout the image at darker apertures. While the Fisheye Optic creates some edge blur at brighter apertures, it does not feature the Sweet Spot of sharp focus and dramatic blur that are trademarks of the Double Glass, Single Glass, and Plastic Optics. Instead of bending the lens, photographers typically will point their Lensbaby straight ahead to achieve a classic fisheye look.

The Lensbaby Fisheye Optic is available immediately for $149.95 (MSRP).

*A special adapter is required to use the Fisheye Optic with the Lensbaby Muse. The Fisheye Optic is not recommended for use with the Lensbaby Control Freak.
Fisheye Optic Product Specs:

About the Lensbaby Soft Focus Optic
The Lensbaby Soft Focus Optic works with Lensbaby’s Creative Effects SLR camera lenses, the Composer, Muse and Control Freak. Images created with the 50mm focal length Soft Focus Optic feature a soft and diffused appearance. The Soft Focus Optic’s multi-coated optical glass doublet creates a much flatter field of focus than previous Lensbaby optics, making this optic well-suited for a variety of soft focus applications. This new optic does not have the Sweet Spot of sharp focus and dramatic blur outside of that spot created by the Double Glass, Single Glass, and Plastic Optics. The Soft Focus Optic features Lensbaby’s magnetic disk aperture system. In addition to the standard round aperture disks for f/2 to f/22, the Soft Focus Optic also comes with three special soft focus multi-hole apertures that combine one large opening over the optic’s sharp center with small openings over the optic’s soft edges. This hole pattern creates a sharp underlying image with a soft overlay. Users can stack the soft focus apertures together or with standard Lensbaby apertures to vary the amount and appearance of the softness. In addition, the multi-hole apertures have the ability to create out-of-focus highlights that take on the shape of the aperture holes, further enhancing creativity. When using the Soft Focus Optic, photographers typically point the lens straight ahead to achieve a classic soft focus look.

The Lensbaby Soft Focus Optic is available immediately for $89.95 (MSRP).

Soft Focus Optic Product Specs:

About the Lensbaby Optic Swap System
The Lensbaby Optic Swap System now features six interchangeable optics that can be swapped in and out of Lensbaby’s Creative Effects SLR Camera lenses, the Muse, the Composer, and the Control Freak. Each optic creates a different type of creative image, giving photographers unlimited freedom to achieve their unique artistic vision. The Double Glass, Single Glass, and Plastic Optics have a curved field of focus that allows the photographer to control depth of field in a unique way by creating a Sweet Spot of sharp focus that is surrounded by beautiful blur. The other 3 optic options, Fisheye, Soft Focus, and Pinhole/Zone plate all feature a flat field of focus and create distinctive looks.

For more information about the new Lensbaby optics and the Lensbaby Optic Swap system, please visit www.lensbaby.com.

© 2009, The F Stops Here. All rights reserved. (Jessica D. Korman)

NEW YORK, Oct. 22 /PRNewswire/ — Kodak’s finest-grained professional color negative film, KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTAR 100 (EKTAR 100) Film has turned one year old! Since its release in September of 2008, EKTAR 100 Film has taken the photography world by storm with its high saturation, ultra-vivid color, and smooth, nearly undetectable grain.

“Next year we’re celebrating film’s 125th anniversary,” said Steve Decker, Vice President of Kodak’s Film, Photofinishing and Entertainment Group, “and we’re happy that, as this historic landmark approaches, we continue to innovate. Just a year ago we launched EKTAR 100 Film in 35 mm format and some six months later introduced it in 120 format to an extremely enthusiastic response. It’s another great product that continues to fill the needs of film photographers as the art evolves.”

At the annual Photo Plus trade show in New York City, Kodak will be celebrating the film’s first birthday by:

  --  Announcing an exciting photography contest seeking the best images
      captured with KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTAR 100 Film (details below).

  --  Giving away samples of EKTAR 100 Film in 135 and 120 formats for
      photographers to sample.

While digital cameras are a popular choice amongst every photographer type (from moms shooting their children’s first birthdays to high-fashion photographers at an editorial shoot), film holds an important role in today’s photography. In fact, many professional photographers use both film and digital image capture, for a variety of reasons. While digital generally wins on the convenience front, film photographers grabbing another roll cite the following:

  --  Film has a unique "look and feel" that digital cannot replicate.
  --  Film eliminates the "shoot now, edit later" philosophy; film
      encourages the photographer to carefully consider each shot,
      eliminating time-consuming post-production.

  --  Film leads to more printing and a tangible result, rather than digital
      files that often live online only.

“Digital photography has been a great help to pros, and I’m grateful for its introduction,” said internationally-acclaimed photographer Jonathan Torgovnik. “However, even with the great digital options out there, I continue to reach for KODAK Film for the projects I’m most passionate about. Digital simply doesn’t offer what film does in terms of both the results and the experience.”

KODAK PROFESSIONAL EKTAR 100 Film Photography Contest

Film enthusiasts are encouraged to shoot EKTAR 100 Film, scan their results and upload them to http://www.flickr.com/groups/kodakektarcontest- starting today! The entry period will run through December 31st, 2009. The collective judging period will last one month after entries close, with winners announced on or around February 1st. This contest is open to United States residents only. First Place winner will receive one year’s supply of EKTAR 100 Film up to 1200 rolls; an all-expense paid “Adventures by Disney” travel package in North America for two people; feature on kodak.com, and feature of their image on Kodak’s New York City Times Square Gallery; Second Place winner will receive 600 rolls of EKTAR 100 Film; feature on kodak.com, and feature of their image on Kodak’s New York City Times Square Gallery; Third Place winner will receive 300 rolls of EKTAR 100 Film; feature on kodak.com, and feature of their image on Kodak’s New York City Times Square Gallery; and five Honorable Mention winners will receive 20 rolls of EKTAR 100 Film, feature on kodak.com, and feature of their image on Kodak’s New York City Times Square Gallery.

© 2009, The F Stops Here. All rights reserved. (Jessica D. Korman)

Built on the LicenseStream platform, LicenseStream Business Edition gives owners of premier collections and libraries of images, video and audio a quick-start, all-inclusive, Web-based service that allows content owners to showcase, license, track and monetize the full value of their content through their own branded online stores.

“With LicenseStream Business Edition, content owners can publish their content directly to their own online store or anywhere else on the Web and to global search engines, enabling anyone in the world to find their search-optimized content and pay for it with a mouse click,” said Iain Scholnick, chief executive officer, ImageSpan. “This essentially makes the content itself the storefront. It dramatically speeds the pace of transactions and drives incremental revenues. Until now, media companies, libraries and owners of premier collections had a tough time justifying the cost of putting the head as well as the long tail of their content on the Web because the revenues they realized could not cover the costs associated out-dated manual licensing transactions. Now content owners of all sizes can make their entire catalog of media – not just the hits – available online to maximize their assets’ value.”

Missouri History Museum already has made available online via LicenseStream Business Edition more than 3,000 images, including a wide range of Civil War-era images, a wide range of early daguerreotypes and other photos and images related to American Indian people and culture, and images of oil paintings and artifacts related to Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, who headed up the first overland expedition by the United States to the Pacific Coast and back.

“We often receive requests from visitors asking us about the art and artifacts we display and how they can get copies,” said Dr. Robert R. Archibald, president, the Missouri History Museum. “With LicenseStream Business Edition, we can now publish images of our collections directly to the Web so that anyone in the world can find our search-optimized images and pay for them with a mouse click. LicenseStream also has dramatically cut the time spent by our staff on searching for and processing such image requests so we can respond to requests in a day versus months, accelerating both of transactions and revenues while cutting costs.” (Please see related release: Missouri History Museum Selects ImageSpan’s LicenseStream to Maximize the Value of Its Photos, Prints)

American history teacher turned Producer-Photographer-Writer Joseph Sohm is now using LicenseStream Business Edition to license the more than 1,300 photographs included in his “Visions of America: Photographing Democracy,” ($60; November 2009; Visions of America LLC/Midpoint Trade Books Dist.) a book that offers a sweeping portrait of life in the American democracy via an epic photographic journey across the United States. For more than 25 years, Sohm traveled and photographed all 50-states. Images from his “Visions of America” collection have been published 50,000 times in his lifetime.

“LicenseStream Business Edition enables me to publish my work directly to my own branded storefront as well as to the Web and major search engines in a way that also lets potential buyers license it on the spot,” said Sohm, whose “Visions of America” recently won the Gold medal for “Best Coffee Table Book” at the 13th annual Independent Publishing awards in New York City. While requiring minimal investment, LicenseStream also allows content owners to retain a larger share of royalties for each transaction – multiple times the 20 percent royalty fee offered by most major agencies. “That key difference makes it affordable for me to shoot, metatag, process and offer my customers a much greater selection of photographs online.”

LicenseStream Business Edition pricing starts at $5,500 annually with a 25% transaction fee. The annual fee can be billed one-time, monthly or quarterly to suit a client’s needs.

ImageSpan’s Vice President, Enterprise Business Development Candice Murray will speak on “Tools for Selling Stock Direct” at 1:15 p.m. Thursday, October 22, at the PDN PhotoPlus Conference in New York.

ImageSpan also will be demonstrating LicenseStream Business Edition and its other LicenseStream services in Booths #1155 at the concurrent PhotoPlus Expo in New York, October 22-24. Come see Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Deanne Fitzmaurice talk about LicenseStream’s benefits in the ImageSpan booth at 11 a.m. Friday, October 23rd.

© 2009, The F Stops Here. All rights reserved. (Jessica D. Korman)

Two Wiley authors will be making presentations at the event. Kevin Ames is a well-known commercial digital photographer who has written several Photoshop and photography books. His company, Ames Photographic Illustration, has done work for Honda, AT&T, and Westin Hotels. He also writes the “Digital Photographer’s Notebook” column for Photoshop User magazine, and is a Photoshop World Dream Team instructor.

Ames will be presenting on “Light, Exposure & Lenses” on October 22nd at 8:45 a.m. and then again on “Fantastic Portraits: It’s All Smoke, Mirrors & Photoshop” on October 24th at 8:45 a.m.

Rick Sammon will present on “Exploring the Light” on October 24th at 3:30 p.m.

Sammon has published more than 34 books and DVD’s, including Studio and Location Lighting Secrets for Digital Photographers, Rick Sammon’s Digital Photography Secrets, Digital Wedding Photography Secrets, Rick Sammon’s Canon EOS Digital Rebel Personal Training Photo Workshop DVD, Rick Sammon’s DVD Guide to Using the Canon EOS Rebel XSi/450D and Rick Sammon’s DVD Guide to Using the Canon EOS Rebel XS/1000D , and Rick Sammon’s DVD Guide to Basic Lighting and Portraiture; all of which will be available at the Wiley booth. Sammon writes for PCPhoto, Outdoor Photographer and Layers magazine. He is also the author of the Canon Digital Rebel XT lessons on the Canon Digital Learning Center and is a Canon Explorer of Light.

Authors appearing in the Wiley booth during the event include Kevin Ames, Bob Davis, and Rob Sylvan. Their appearance schedule is as follows:

Kevin Ames, author of Adobe Photoshop CS2: The Art of Photographing Women (Thursday, October 22 at 1:00)

Bob Davis, author of Lights, Camera, Capture: Creative Lighting Techniques for Digital Photographers (Thursday, October 22 at 2:00)

Rob Sylvan, author of Photoshop Lightroom 2 For Dummies (Thursday, October 22 at 3:00)

Wiley will have a variety of books on Digital Photography, Photoshop and digital imaging featured at the show; a cross-section of selections from the Sybex, For Dummies, Visual and Wiley imprints. Two new titles that Wiley is excited to offer at the event include one of the first to market on Photoshop Elements 8, Photoshop Elements 8 For Dummies and the first book in a new series by Harold Davis called Creative Composition. All books will be offered at a 25% discount at the show.

Please visit www.wiley.com for more information on these titles. For more information, please contact Ashley Evens via email at aevens@wiley.com or call 201.748.6702.

Here is a complete list of Wiley’s Photo Plus Expo offerings:

Adobe:
Adobe Camera Raw for Digital Photographers Only, 2nd Edition
Camera Raw with Photoshop For Dummies
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 For Dummies
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and Photoshop Workflow Bible
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom For Digital Photographers Only
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2: Streamlining Your Digital Darkroom Process
Photoshop CS2: The Art of Photographing Women
Photoshop CS4 After the Shoot
Photoshop CS4 All-in-One For Dummies
Photoshop CS4 Digital Classroom
Photoshop CS4 For Dummies
Photoshop CS4 Workflow: The Digital Photographer’s Guide
Photoshop CS4 for Nature Photographers: A Workshopin a Book
Photoshop Elements 7 For Dummies
Photoshop Elements 8 For Dummies
Teach Yourself VISUALLY Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2
Teach Yourself VISUALLY Photoshop CS4
Teach Yourself VISUALLY Photoshop Elements 7
Digital SLR Photography with Photoshop CS2 All-In-One For Dummies

Canon:
Canon EOS 40D Digital Field Guide
Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide
Canon EOS 5D Digital Field Guide
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Digital Field Guide
Canon EOS Digital Photography Photo Workshop
Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi/450D For Dummies
Canon EOS Rebel T1i/500D Digital Field Guide
Canon EOS Rebel T1i/500D For Dummies
Canon EOS Rebel XSi/450D Digital Field Guide
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III Digital Field Guide
Canon Speedlite System Digital Field Guide
Canon VIXIA HD Camcorder Digital Field Guide

Digital Imaging/Editing:
Color Confidence: The Digital Photographer’s Guide to Color Management, Second Edition
Color Correction FOR Digital Photographers ONLY
Color Management for Digital Photographers For Dummies
Create Your Own Photo Blog
Creative Composition
Creative Shutter Speed: Master Your Camera’s Most Powerful Control
Digital Portrait Photography and Lighting: Take Memorable Shots Everytime
Skin: The Complete Guide to Digitally Lighting, Photographing, and Retouching Faces and Bodies
The Official Nik Software Image Enhancement Guide: The Photographers Resource for Professional Workflow Techniques
Studio and Location Lighting Secrets for Digital Photographers
Exposure and Lighting for Digital Photographers Only
Photo Finish: The Digital Photographer’s Guide to Printing, Showing, and Selling Images
A Digital Photographer’s Guide to Model Releases: Making the Best Business Decisions with Your Photos of People, Places and Things

Digital Photography:
Digital Photography All-in-One For Dummies, 4th Edition
Digital Photography For Dummies DVD Bundle
Digital Photography For Dummies, 6th Edition
Digital Photography For Seniors For Dummies DVD+Book Bundle
Digital Photography Simplified
Digital Photography: Top 100 Simplified Tips & Tricks, 3rd Edition
Rick Sammon’s Digital Photography Secrets
Shooting Digital: Pro Tips for Taking Great Pictures with Your Digital Camera, Second Edition
Digital SLR Cameras & Photography For Dummies, 3rd Edition

iPhoto:
Teach Yourself VISUALLY iPhoto ’09
iPhoto ’09 For Dummies
iPhoto ’09 Portable Genius

Nikon:
Nikon Capture NX 2 After the Shoot
Nikon Creative Lighting System Digital Field Guide, Second Edition
Nikon D300 Digital Field Guide
Nikon D5000 Digital Field Guide
Nikon D5000 For Dummies
Nikon D60 Digital Field Guide
Nikon D60 For Dummies
Nikon D700 Digital Field Guide
Nikon D90 Digital Field Guide
Nikon D90 For Dummies

Photo Workshop:
Portrait and Candid Photography Photo Workshop
Digital Infrared Photography Photo Workshop
Composition: Photo Workshop
HDR Photography Photo Workshop
Photographing Children Photo Workshop
Exposure Photo Workshop
Lighting: Photo Workshop
Macro Photography: Photo Workshop

Sony:
Sony Alpha DSLR-A200 Digital Field Guide
Sony Alpha DSLR-A300/A350 Digital Field Guide
Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 Digital Field Guide

Twitter:
Twitter For Dummies
Twitter Power: How to Dominate Your Market One Tweet at a Time
Twitter Tips, Tricks, and Tweets

Wedding Photography:
Digital Wedding Photography Secrets
Digital Wedding Photography: Capturing Beautiful Memories

DVDs:
Rick Sammon’s DVD Guide to Basic Lighting and Portraiture
Rick Sammon’s DVD Guide to Using the Canon EOS Rebel XS/1000D
Rick Sammon’s DVD Guide to Using the Canon EOS Rebel XSi/450D
Rick Sammon’s Canon EOS Digital Rebel Personal Training – Photo Workshop

© 2009, The F Stops Here. All rights reserved. (Jessica D. Korman)