I apologize for the short notice, but The Photo Playground will be unavailable for up to several hours beginning at about 8pm EST for much needed site maintenance.  When the site returns online you shouldn’t notice any major differences, if any at all.  Our server has been neglected and requires major clean up and reorganization.  We also need to update a fair amount of the scripting that we utilize.  Thank you for your understanding and patience.

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This gorgeous machine, readers, is a 13.2 megapixel camera phone produced by Lumix.  It was debuted on the 5th of October, just two days ago, in Japan.  Unfortunately, for now it will only be available in the Japanese market.

From the backside it appears to be like many other slide phones currently available on the market, but flip it over and it looks like a point and shoot digital camera.  The lens is fixed at 27mm (nice and wide) and there is no optical zoom, only digital, so the rings around the lens are a bit misleading.  It’s design feature that adds to its appearance.  It also has a fairly powerful flash.  My point and shoot digital is a four year old Lumix that I bought brand new.  It is close to being the perfect point and shoot digital.  I absolutely love it.  If this phone hits the markets in America I would seriously consider buying it especially if it uses an app friendly browser.  I’m wondering what kind of damage this could do to RIM and Apple.

You can find the website here, but be warned it is in Japanese.

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John Szarkowski, New York, 1963 © Jacques Henri Lartigue

There is an excellent article written by Sean O’Hagan on John Szarkowski on the front page of the Guardian’s Photography section right now.  It is kind of old news, being published on 20th of July and I should have posted a link sooner, but it is better late than never.  Anyone with a deep appreciation of the artistic merits of photography owes Mr. Szarkowski the world.  Contemporary photography would be decades behind where it is had it not been for his keen insights and tireless work.  Read O’Hagan’s excellent tribute after the jump.

John Szarkowski at The Guardian

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Greetings readers, just thought that I would drop a short friendly message reminding everyone that Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day is just around the corner, 25 April to be exact.  So, grab those dusty pinhole cameras stashed away in your closet since last April and run a test roll through them, you’ve only got a month until the big day.  Some of you may be new around here and might be asking what is Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day?  Click here and see for yourself -  it’s a lot of fun.

If you don’t have a pinhole camera don’t worry you can stop on over to freestyle photo and pick one up pretty cheap or you could check out the tutorial I wrote last year and build one for yourself in about 20 minutes and it will only cost you a couple of dollars or quid or whatever you call it where ever you are.  Honestly, they really are easy to make, any one can do it and that includes you.

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Lomo, to me, is a company that makes and sells designer toy cameras.  They dominate a niche photography market, hipsters with money, by endlessly cloning their flagship cameras and applying a new paint job – a point of contention with some toy camera photographers.  I’m not really trying to knock these guys, but the contest below is just them getting their customers geared up for yet another round of the $280 LC-A+, the camera responsible for all of their initial success as a company.

More than likely, if I can come up with something interesting I’ll submit at least one entry.  It would force me to dig my old Deco’s out of their box, they haven’t seen much use in the past couple of months.  And… I like the prizes: five cameras with your design and a three day trip to the Lomo HQ in Vienna.  Free cameras and vacation!  Check it out the details are below.

Still part of our LOMO LC-A 25th Anniversary Celebrations, we’re giving all you design-minded analogue heads the opportunity of the lifetime! Your task is to create a custom skin for the legendary LOMO LC-A+. Design it with any medium you want, but keep in mind that the winning entry is meant for mass production! With your efforts, we are giving out unarguably one of the best prizes we’ve had for a Rumble ever – read on!

The Grand Prize

A life-changing opportunity to see your design concept transformed into a limited edition LOMO LC-A+ and sold all over the world!

• Priceless exposure in the design field.
• A 3-day trip to the Lomography HQ in Vienna. Hotel and flight included.
• 5 of your self-designed LOMO LC-A+ cameras.
• Runners-up will see their design concepts in a future newsletter, gallery and who knows – an exhibit of the best works!

Submission Details

• Download the LOMO LC-A+ camera template here.
• Cut it out like a paper camera.
• Use your creativity – customise the paper camera and send us the pictures!
• Upload your customised templates to this rumble page, or send it by post in all its analogue splendour to the Lomography Vienna HQ.
• Entries should be original, and should not contain any elements of copyrighted material.
• You could submit as much entries as you can – creativity is key to winning this competition!
• By submitting your entries, you allow Lomography to use submissions for promotional purposes. Entries with no initial physical submissions may be asked to send over their mock-ups as needed.
• Competition ends January 10th, 2010 MN.

The Jury

A jury will go through all the entries and contact the best ones who will then work with the Lomography Design team to see if their customisation concept could become a reality! Up and coming designers are encouraged to submit their entries – this is one opportunity that you shouldn’t miss!

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The folks at Triangle Triangle are slated to release their second book in December.  Here is what they say on their site about it:

I’m excited about the book, I love photography books!  Click the graphic above to reserve your copy and/or find out how you can earn one for free.  While you’re there be sure to dig around, they feature some fantastic contemporary photographs.  If this book is half as good as the pictures on their site, it’s going to be worth it.

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Today came the news I never thought I would here.  Polaroid is re-launching some its Instant Cameras on a limited run and they are commissioning The Impossible Project to produce the film for them.  The Polaroid licensee, The Summit Global Group, and The Impossible Project held a joint press conference in Hong Kong today stating their new temporary partnership.  It seems that The Impossible Project has garnered enough support for their mission to reintroduce redesigned and re-branded Integral films that the new Polaroid has taken notice and decided to get back into the market.

I’ve been following The Impossible Project pretty closely for quite awhile; I’m in love with instant photography. Regradless of this new arrangement, The Impossible Project will put to market at least one type of black and white instant film and one type of color instant film early in 2010.  This new partnership will not go to market until mid-2010.  I don’t know about you, but I’m terribly excited by this news.  I own more than half dozen polaroid cameras that take various types of film, soon I will be able to buy film for them again (Film that isn’t crispy from being expired for a decade and for an absurdly inflated price).  AND I’ll be able to buy a couple of new Polaroids modeled after the classics.  Honest to god, I just sighed in relief.

I’ll do my best to keep everyone informed when more details on the film and the cameras are released.

For the press release, click here.
Graphic and logo are copyrighted by The Impossible Project.

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A new exhibition “Pop Life” by artist Richard Prince opened to the public a few days ago at Tate Modern in the UK.  The show had previously been showed at the Guggenheim without stir and very little controversy.  However, when Pop Life opened to the public at Tate Modern the police were waiting with an order to have one artwork removed pending an investigation as to whether or not it violates the UK’s obscenity laws.

The artwork in question is a piece called “Spiritual America.”  The image is of a nude, prepubescent Brooke Shields.  It dates back to 1975 and was originally taken by Gary Gross with contractual consent from Brooke Shields’ mother.  The images taken in this series were published and displayed several times leading up to a lawsuit in 1981 filed by Shields against Gross.  The lawsuit was long and drawn out, but in the end Gross won and retained all rights associated with the images.  (see image below)

The actual photograph that was removed from the Tate was a photograph of the original framed work taken by Prince in 1983 and titled “Spiritual America.”  Prince later made a deal with Gross and obtained the rights to the image.

Throughout the images history it has been controversial, with two very clear stances being taken.  One side of the argument believes that image is lewd and pornographic, as Shields had make-up applied, was oiled, and was posed provocatively.  There were many complaints filed against the Tate on these grounds.

Gross is disappointed that the image has been removed and does not consider it pornographic, though he says, “she was supposed to look like a sexy woman.”

The other side argues that image was taken legally and up until this point has never been ordered removed by the authorities.  They also argue that the people who do consider this type of imagery as pornographic should question their own sexual motives and desires, as images such as this should not illicit sexual responses in normal people.

In recent years the UK has been extremely cautious when it comes to photographs of children in art.  Two years ago Police seized two images taken by Nan Goldin of two girls dancing nude, despite the fact that six years prior the Crown Prosecuting Service had deemed the images decent.

Whether or not “Spiritual America” is returned to the exhibition is still up in the air.  The authorities have not released anymore information on the investigation.

Information sourced from here, here, here, and here.

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In the upstairs gallery, the Krappy Kollage--all the entries (over 1,400) for 2007's Krappy Kamera show.

Call for Entries for Krappy Kamera XII INTERnational Juried Competition

Prospectus and Application
International entry directions

The beginning

The Krappy Kamera concept was born in 1992 at the Soho Photo Gallery® during a regular monthly opening reception when a few members admitted they preferred using their junky cameras to their high-end ones. One of the members, Sandra Carrion, proposed organizing an exhibit opportunity for other gallery members and the rest is history: we’ve held the members’ Krappy Kamera exhibition every year since then.

Sandra Carrion says, “I always used ‘Krappy Kamera’ to distinguish between my ‘good’ and ‘not-so-good’ cameras. I added the ‘Ks’ to make it funnier. We received so much publicity that it sort of took off on its own. Photographers from all over the U.S. started calling me to learn how they could be involved. So in 1997, Mary Ann Lynch, another gallery member, and I organized the first National Krappy Kamera® Competition. We worked on it together for about three years; my present position in the gallery is Koordinator of Krap.

What defines Krappy most?

As stated in the competion’s prospectus, our philosophy at Soho Photo is simple:

In the hands of an artist, great photographs can be made with minimal equipment. We will be searching for extraordinary photographs produced with cameras with lousy lenses. Artists are encouraged to explore this medium and let the creative juices flow while shooting and in the darkroom (wet or digital).

Remember, it’s the Krappy Kamera Competition – not the Krappy print competition.

We are pleased to announce the inclusion of international entries for the 2009 competition. We look forward to receiving entries from across the U.S. and abroad. Sponsorship from Freestyle Photographic, Light Leaks magazine, Brooklyn5and10.com, and Lensbabies has helped this competition achieve international recognition. Their support is appreciated.

Meet the Koordinator of Krap…from Light Leaks Magazine, Issue 7.

Archived Shows:
2009 INTERnational Krappy Kamera Competition Winners’ List and Winners’ Gallery.
2008 Krappy Kamera® Show Winner’s Gallery.

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At first glance, this may seem to be a rather unassuming image.  A neutral gray background disrupted by a patterned spattering of white lines, which themselves are broken up by a couple of dark spherical shapes.  To understand the significance of this image one must really ‘look’ at it and do a little bit of reading.  Contrary to our initial reactions, this image is truly remarkable.

The picture above is an actual photo of the atomic bonds of a pentacene molecule.  Yes you read that right, the atomic bonds.  The molecule above is a whopping 1.4 nanometers long.  For those of you who have not taken a chemistry class in the recent past, one meter is equal to 1 billion nanometers.  When you begin to consider how incredibly small that molecule is, it becomes exceptionally easy to appreciate what a landmark image this really is.  It’s no wonder that it took the mad scientists at IBM 20 hours to capture this single image.  What’s more is that they had to ensure that the molecule stay perfectly still during the exposure.

For the full article head on over to Gizmodo.

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