The arrest of Milwaukee Journal Sentinel photographer Kristyna Wentz-Graff (©Lita Medinger)

Once again, police officers have arrested a photographer doing her job–this time in Milwaukee–only to let her go a few hours later without charges. The summary round-up of journalists at street demonstrations is a form of intimidation, and rough injustice: It’s a convenient way of putting journalists out of commission for the duration of a police action. But with cameras so ubiquitous now, it’s ultimately a losing strategy for police.

In Milwaukee, Journal Sentinel photographer Kristyna Wentz-Graff was arrested last Wednesday while photographing a peaceful Occupy demonstration. Just before she arrived on the scene, police had ordered protestors to leave the street. Police had blocked the street with their cars, and started making arrests. Wentz-Graff started taking pictures of an arrest as soon as she arrived.

According to the Journal Sentinel, “While she was taking pictures, she was grabbed by an officer, handcuffed and arrested, without warning or without being told why she was being arrested.”

Under criticism for violating the First Amendment rights of a journalist, the Milwaukee police chief held a news conference Thursday to defend his officers. He said the arresting officer thought the photographer was a protester and added that her status as a journalist “was not obvious to the officers” at the scene.

But looking at the pictures taken by others of the arrest, one has to wonder: Do Milwaukee police officers need to get their eyes checked? Wentz-Graff had her press ID badge clearly visible, as an image by Lita Medinger in the Journal Sentinel shows, and two cameras around her neck–one of them with a very large Canon telephoto lens that screamed “journalist.”(That camera and lens are hidden behind the police car in the Journal Sentinel image, but were clearly visible in this  TV video of the arrest.)

The mayor, after watching a TV video of the arrest, said to the Journal Sentinel, “It appeared very clear to me that she was a photojournalist.” He added, “I very much support her First Amendment right to be there.”

The police chief acknowledged that Wentz-Graff had “big fancy cameras,” but protestors carry cameras, too, he noted. And he added, “According to the officer at the scene, he didn’t notice her ID. He was just focusing on the task at hand. He perceived her as part of the problem he had to solve.”

Fair enough. But with his boss in the hot seat, the arresting officer has probably been advised to pay more attention to what he’s doing.

More importantly, though, Milwaukee’s police chief has pledged to try to make things right with the media. He says he’s going to meet with editors of various Milwaukee news outlets to examine police policy, and “identify those circumstances in which the perception is we are not playing fair with the press and let’s correct it.”

It’s hard not to imagine that all the pictures of the incident had a lot to do with an outcome that’s so good for the First Amendment, and for democracy. It’s not too much of a leap to argue that the whole Occupy movement has been at least partially protected by a force field of cameras. A few incidents of police brutality have resulted in more support for the movement, and widespread condemnation of the police departments involved (in New York City and Oakland, California.)

The police certainly do a tough, important job protecting us from crime, but to avoid accountability by arresting photojournalists, they’re going to have to arrest pretty much every bystander with a cell phone.

Photographer Giles Revell frequently merges science and art in his work. He has used electron microscopes, a CT scanner and other scientific equipment to create images that examine the architecture of insects of flowers, insects and bubbles.  When Red Bee Media was creating an ad campaign for a new arts program on the BBC, creative director Tony Pipes tapped the London-based Revell to create a 60-second spot that would evoke curiosity and wonder.  The tagline is “See something different every time.”

Creative credits for the campaign can be found on Vimeo.

The Palm Beach Post has reported that Florida authorities cannot determine how 53-year-old underwater photographer Wes Skiles died last summer, so they have ruled his death an accidental drowning.

Skiles died July 21 near Palm Beach, shortly after completing an assignment for National Geographic Television to photograph an underwater research expedition. He remained on location with researchers, signaling at one point that he intended to surface for more film. His diving companions found him unconscious on the sea floor a short time later, but they were unable to revive him.

An medical inquiry that included toxicology tests was inconclusive. “There was nothing to indicate natural causes or outside forces,” Harold Ruslander, chief investigator for the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner told The Palm Beach Post. “All we’re going to be able to say is that it was an accidental drowning.”

Skiles explored, mapped, and filmed caves around the world for three decades. He created the PBS series ‘Water’s Journey,’ shot underwater scenes for feature films, and was a long-time contributor to both National Geographic magazine and National Geographic Television.

“He set a standard for underwater photography, cinematography and exploration that is unsurpassed,” National Geographic magazine editor-in-chief Chris Johns said in a statement in July just after Skiles died.

Last summer when Kodak announced it was discontinuing its once popular Kodachrome film, Steve McCurry requested the last 36-frame roll manufactured by the company.

For nine months he planned a nostalgic journey to places he shot in the past. Followed closely by a National Geographic Channel TV crew, McCurry ventured this past June on a six-week global trip that brought him from Brooklyn to southern Asia, Italy and Turkey, and finally to Parsons, Kansas, where Dwayne’s Photo, the only Kodachrome-friendly film processing facility left in the world, processed McCurry’s roll.

Those who still have unused and/or unprocessed Kodachrome should take note: Dwayne’s will quit processing the film at the end of this year.

National Geographic Channel is planning on broadcasting a documentary about McCurry’s journey sometime in 2011

—Cameron Handley

Related: Kodachrome Culture of PDN Photo Of The Day

Via: http://www.dailynews.com/ci_15660092

Oops!

Panasonic’s PR department must be kicking itself for releasing this behind-the-scenes video of the making of a new commercial for the Panasonic Lumix G2.

Watch the clip below and you’ll see the Canon 5D Mark II with Canon L-series glass being used frequently throughout the filming of the spot even though the G2 shoots 720p HD.

Truthfully, most consumers — who this camera and the commercial are primarily aimed at — aren’t going to notice (or care) but camera geeks will and the behind-the-scenes footage is already turning up far and wide in the tech blog-o-sphere.

Doh!

UPDATE: Looks like the behind-the-scenes video has been removed. Wonder why.

(Via Photography Bay & CrunchGear)

May 19th, 2010

We catch some grief for mentioning Vincent Laforet's name in this blog from time to time (how dare we talk about someone who is making news in the photo industry!) but while watching the season finale of House the other night, we couldn't help but wonder what Mr. Reverie thought of the show considering it was shot entirely with a Canon 5D Mark II.

Laforet's saved us the trouble of calling him up and interviewing him by writing his own blog post entitled "Thoughts on 'House' Finale."

Like us, Laforet thought the episode looked "STUNNING."

But what impressed Laforet more than the performance of the 5D Mark II was the lighting, giving big kudos to House's Director of Photography Gale Tattersall. Read more here.

As a side note, we've received some questions from readers about whether Canon paid Fox to shoot the House finale with the 5D II. According to a Canon spokesperson, that was not the case.

"Canon did not pay or sponsor the show at all," said Len Musmeci, Senior Specialist in Public Relations at Canon U.S.A. "It was their decision to use the 5D Mark II."

If you missed the House finale, you can catch it on Fox's site for the next week.