Via Reuben Abraham

“Came across Cerebration, a webzine edited by Amrita Ghosh and ex-NDTV producer and host, Smita Maitra. Cerebration hosts writing from around the world on topics ranging from politics and science to literature and music. They also invite submissions for their poetry and short story sections. Other NDTV-ers involved include Barkha Dutt (editorial board) and Vishnu Som (who has submitted a poem). Figured some of you may be interested in reading and some interested in submitting amateur writing.”

A couple of days back I wrote about how the power of images is shifting public opinion. Here is the promised link to the Deborah Norville Tonight show's transcript.

According to the DNT show three images have set the tone of this war in Iraq. What do you think?

I still don't get it why a photojournalist wasn't asked to be on the May 11 panel.

Thanks to friend and fellow photographer Kalpesh Lathigra in the UK, a few days back I came to know of Suki Dhanda‘s beautiful photography. Suki is a London-based photographer who often contributes to The Observer.

The web site isn't terribly intuitive (my only carp); the navigation arrows are in subdued grey melting into a white background and Suki's email and other information is buried somewhere inside her portfolio. Once you hit the site, however, you will have to click on Suki's name and then go from there.

I love her portraits. Regardless of her use of soft window light or strobes, you can at once tell her subjects trust her completely. They are so much at ease, making it sometimes appear that they do not even know that she is there. This comes out of a sense of respect for the photographer. Given Suki's long list of clients and documentary photography experiences, I can tell she has earned it.

The magazine world is a funny business. It's as cantankerous as Mother Nature; destroying and rejuvenating at the same time. I cringed as DoubleTake magazine shuttered its doors (not completely, I hope). It was a fine magazine, over-reaching in the writing at times but the photography was always excellent. I saw it sputter to its last breath and felt that the glossies had finally won, killing off all that was good in the world. But as I said the magazine business is fickle and when one dies there is at least on other to take its place.

I have come across two very interesting magazine projects which may or may not fill DT's august shoes. One Story magazine delivers readers a single work of short fiction every three weeks. In today's NYTimes I read about Topic magazine, now located in editor David Haskell's apartment in Williamsburg, New York. Topic promises us a chance to experience the writing and photography of a diverse group of people.

As always here are links to their submission guidelines: One Story and Topic.

The current controversy of some very disturbing images coming to light from the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq has brought to center stage, for better or worse, the power of photography and its impact on all of us. Right now on Deborah Norville Tonight is a segment on the POWER OF PICTURES.

While the discussion is stimulating, I found it odd that no photojournalist was represented in the panel. What's up with that? It's not like photojournalists are incapable of stating an opinion or staking a position.

If any of you find an email address for the DNT show, would you please email it to me? I couldn't find it on the DNT web site. I'll post the transcript from tonight's show when it is up on their site.

My friend Arvind Devalia has written a book called Get A Life. Arvind is a life-coach; someone with whom you can interact to ascertain your purpose on this planet. While he may live in London, I am sure he is still accessible by means of email and telephone. The first session is free, he says. His pleasant demeanor and commitment to his own calling makes for a great combination. Check out the book and connect with him.

It's not easy coming up with a list of women photographers whose work inspires me. It's not because there are so few of them. In fact, it's just the opposite. The list is so long!

I'll begin by a listing a few here and add to this list from time to time. I think you will agree that these women are masters of their craft, have incredible discipline and present their subjects with great dignity, style and class.

Jodi Cobb in National Geographic and Photo District News

Melissa Farlow on the Aurora Photos website and at the Missouri Photo Workshops

Melissa Lyttle's personal web space and A Photo A Day

Karen Kring's personal site and her Picture This Projects

Julia Dean's site about her active workshops and her baby, The Child Labor Project

Joyce Tenneson's personal site

Mary Ellen Mark's personal site

Helen Levitt on National Public Radio and in the New York Times

Also check out Photo Betty

Magnum Photos announces the second $5,000 Inge Morath Prize, which will be awarded to a female photographer under 30 years of age. The prize is designed to assist in the completion of a long term documentary project.

Morath, an Austrian-born photographer who was associated with Magnum for almost 50 years, died in January, 2002. As Morath devoted much of her enthusiasm to encouraging women photographers, this award is given as a tribute by her colleagues.

Applicants should assemble a portfolio of slides or a CD–between 40 and 80 images–and a one-page project description. The photographer's name, telephone number and shipping and mailing address should be included.

Send support material to:

Magnum Photos Inge Morath Award
c/o Magnum Photos
151 West 25th Street 5th Floor
New York, NY 10001
USA

The deadline is June 1, 2004, and the award will be announced on July 15, 2004. Return of material is the responsibility of the applicant. Please send sufficient postage or return shipping address and courier account number.

It is with great reluctance I placed my Leica M6 and Leica 28mm lens up for auction on eBay.com today. Spring cleaning hurts!

Here they are:

My priorities may have shifted a bit too. I am more interested in replacing my trusty but rusty Powerbook that has served me well for about four years now. Time to get a G5 desktop and a high end digital camera that will come to some use as I start to photograph more weddings.

If you bid for these items and win, send me a note saying you won the item(s) and you are subscriber to this site – Tiffinbox. [I will check the Bloglet roster for your email address] In return, I'll scratch the shipping and insurance costs off for ya. Good luck bidding!

Via Donald R. Winslow

The Fulbright Scholar Program is offering 23 lecturing, research and lecturing/research awards worldwide in journalism and communications for the 2005-2006 academic year. Amy Flickinger at the Council for International Exchange of Scholars is the source of this information and the point of contact.

Awards for both faculty and professionals range from two months to one academic year. Some are at host institutions, while a number of the grants are open “All Disciplines” awards that allow candidates to propose their own project and determine their own host institution affiliation. Some foreign language skills are needed in some countries, but most Fulbright lecturing assignments are in English. Grant awards are available in Algeria, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Morocco, Pakistan, Poland, Singapore, Syria, Turkey, Ukraine, and the West Bank.

The application deadline is August 1st. U.S. citizenship is required.

To learn more about the particular awards and other grants in journalism and communication, other eligibility requirements, and an online application, please see this web site or this web site. Or, directly contact Amy Flickinger.