
Andres Gonzalez, winner of the annual 2019 Light Work Photobook Award
Awards: Andres Gonzalez Receives 2019 Photobook Award
Andres Gonzalez, an educator, photographer, and visual artist living in Vallejo, California, is the recipient of the annual 2019 Light Work Photobook Award for his monograph, “American Origami,’ which will be co-published this year by Fw:Books and Light Work. (Light Work gives the Photobook Award annually to an artistic project that deserves international attention.)
According to the press release, “’American Origami’ presents an unusual and moving reflection on the complexity of a seemingly endless cycle of gun violence in America—a timely publication that is visually striking, poetic, and painful,” said Light Work Director Shane Lavalette. “We are pleased to present Andres Gonzalez with the 2019 Photobook Award, for this powerful project.”
According to the Light Work website, Gonzalez’s current work “synthesizes in-depth research and the poetics of photography, looking for truths behind the fictional, mythic aspects of American history. Gonzalez is a Fulbright Fellow and was selected as one of PDN’s 30. He has also received recognition from the Pulitzer Center, the Magenta Foundation, the Alexia Foundation and his work has been exhibited internationally.”
The photographer says that the project on gun violence started from one particular incident: Sandy Hook. “I remember the day acutely, the complicated emotions of transition and tragedy embedding themselves in my soul. Over the following year, I thought seriously about the cloud that hangs over this country and how I could explore it as a visual storyteller. I started visiting sites of mass shootings—from Columbine to Sandy Hook—in a bid to understand the cycle of violence overwhelming America.” said Gonzalez
For more on the award, Gonzalez and Light Work, visit the website at https://www.lightwork.org
Photography Book: “Heroes of the Sea – A Marine Journey With the Protectors of our Great Oceans” By Photographer York Hovest
As many of us know, our oceans are threatened as never before from plastic pollution, climate change and industrial fishing, which are putting at risk the very existence of untold species. To help draw awareness on the plight of the ocean, a new book, “Heroes of the Sea – A Marine Journey With the Protectors of our Great Oceans” (224 pages, hardcover, 150 color photographs, $65) by German photographer York Hovest, will be published by teNeues in September 2019.
According to the press release, Hovest has “taken it upon himself to step up in the face of these challenges. He sought out and accompanied all sorts of ‘heroes of the sea.’” These include scientists, activists and visionaries “who have launched projects to tackle the problem of how to save our oceans. It led him on numerous journeys to every corner of the earth and resulted in this one-of-a-kind photography volume.” Hovest hopes that the book reveals “both the undisguised beauty of the seas as well as the threats this unique world faces both above and below the surface.”
For more, go to http://www.heroesofthesea.com/

Nikon Announces Winners Of The 2018-2019 Nikon Photo Contest
Earlier this week, Nikon announce the winners of the 2018-2019 International Nikon Photo Contest. According to Nikon, the contest had “an all-time high number of submissions, with 97,369 entries by approximately 33,000 people from 170 countries and regions around the world.
Entries to this year’s contest were accepted in three categories: Open, a single photo or photo story representing the theme of “Change”; Next Generation, a single photo or photo story expressing the idea of “Identity” open to photographers aged 25 or younger; and Short Film, a video submission that tells the story of “Hope.”
The winners for this year’s contest are:
For Open Award Gold Prize:
- Single: “Alma and Alzheimer’s” by Jason Parnell-Brookes (United Kingdom)
- Story: “hope” by Thaib Chaidar (Indonesia)
For Next Generation Gold Prize:
- Single: “Ayimpoka” by Sara De Antonio Feu (Spain)
- Story: “Fang hua / Moments in Our Youthful Days” by Tu Jinghan (China)
Short Film Gold Prize: “Hope”
- “Exulansis” by Sara Crochet (USA)
Nikon says the winners were selected by an international panel of judges, including Nikon USA Ambassador photojournalist Carol Guzy. The Grand Prize winner (selected from among Gold Prize winners in each category) will be announced at the awards ceremony to be held in Tokyo on August 23, 2019. Additionally, Nikon says “one submission will receive the Participants’ Choice Prize, while another will receive the Nikon Photo Contest 50th Anniversary Prize, a new prize implemented this year.”
To see winners, go to Nikon-photocontest.com
Online: Interviews With Photographers
Here’s a few links to some intriguing interviews with photographers:
- On The Atlantic: Why Ebony Magazine’s Archives Were Saved
- On Soapbox Cincinnati: Long overdue recognition comes for a groundbreaking photographer
- On the Seattle Times: In 52 years at The Seattle Times, photographer Greg Gilbert has seen it all. But he wants to see more.
- On New York Daily News: Brooklyn photographer for hire has rare specialty: funerals
New Product: Pelican’s New Hybrid Cases Offers Versatile Organization Systems
According to the company, Pelican’s new Hybrid Cases no longer forces photographers or videographers to choose between interior organization systems: Now, both the Pelican 1510 and Pelican Air 1535 Carry On Cases are offered with both the TrekPak system and the classic Pick N Pluck manually customizable foam system.
With the TrekPak Divider System: Case owners can lay out gear “the way they wish for it to appear in the case, measure and cut the divider sections, and lock them in place with the provided U-pins,” says the company. With the Pick N Pluck Foam, Pelican says, the foam is “pre-scored and cubed for easy manual customization and offered standard in almost all Pelican case models.”
Both cases have a sturdy pull handle, coupled with smooth stainless steel ball bearing wheels, a polymer O-ring for a dust and water-resistant seal and an integrated automatic pressure equalization valve that keeps moisture out and prevents vacuum lock, ensuring the case is easier to open at any altitude.
The Pelican Air 1535 Carry On case with hybrid foam costs $324.95 and the Pelican 1510 Carry On Case with hybrid foam costs $299.95. For more information, www.pelican.com