Black History Month

Maya Angelou (1928-) "Still I rise," And Still I Rise (1978)

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.

 

At first I thought that Black History Month is almost over and it is too late to post this blog.  But then I thought about what I tell my children: February is a time for everyone to recognize the accomplishments of specific people but Black history is being created all the time, not bound by time or place.  We need to take note of the events that are happening and make our contributions.

 

So I am posting this blog, late in the month... but very early in the year.

As this one month comes to an end, take a moment to acknowledge a few events that have shaped the history of America and celebrate the long journey we have yet to complete.

 

Black History is American History.

 

View the complete gallery: King and America in War Time.

 

 

View gallery: Roots: Eight Nights That Changed America

 

 

View gallery: Aretha at 65

 

 

View gallery: The Tuskegee Experiment

 

 

View gallery: Poet StacyAnn Chin

 

 

And view our entire Black History Month package and tell us what you think.

 

Mo

Tags: Black History Month

Pictures of the Week: Feb. 17-23

This week's photo of the bridge in Beijing is beautiful. It's one of those photos that is bigger than the sum of it parts. On one level, the photographer took a photograph of someone crossing a bridge shrouded in fog. But by framing the image so that it's full reflection appears in the water, the bridge takes on other forms. I see it as a tunnel, or a ring or even an eye. What do you see?

 

Visit Pictures of the Week and vote for the photo you think is the week's best picture.

 

-Lee

Tags: Pictures of the Week

Library of Congress- Prints and Photographs Division

Did you know that you could go to the Prints and Photographs Division of The Library of Congress' Web site and order prints of photographs done by amazing photographers? You can do this for a nominal fee. And for a little more you can get a really nice quality print! 

 

I ordered two Walker Evans photographs quite a few years ago by simply going through one of his books and sending a research request to the LOC to find out if they had the specific prints. Now, using their online catalog of over one million digital images, it is much easier to order reprints. 

 

The catalog contains photographs of historic events, people, the environment and architecture. Its vast collections range from the historic photographs of American Indian tribes by Edward Curtis to the well known Farm Security Administration collection, which includes distinguished photographers like Dorothea Lange and Walker Evans. You can find an overview and out-takes of Dorothea Lange's famous "Migrant Mother" photographs in this collection as well.  And check out the most  frequently requested photos  in the FSA collection.  FSA photographers also produced color images, about 1600, a fact that is not widely known. Some of these were recently published in a book, Bound for Glory.

 

Here are some of my favorite images from the FSA:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can also view new collections that have been recently processed or made available online. Below you'll see some public domain images (which means you can order these) by the photographer Gertrude Käsebier, taken around 1900. She shot some breath-taking portraits of American Indians, women and children. Some of her photos are an interesting study in how the staging and depiction of subjects was influenced by classic paintings.

 

 

 

 

If you are interested in buying prints, here is some general information on photo duplication and ordering prints. 

 

- Jolie

Tags: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs

Did You See That?

Marquette's Trevor Bunch, left, wrestles Fox's Zach Meury during their Class 4, 112-pound championship match Saturday, Feb. 17, 2007, during the Missouri state high school wrestling championships in Columbia, Mo. Meury won the match to claim the state title over Bunch, who was born with a genetic disorder causing him to lose his legs.

 

It took me a few seconds looking at this photo (I had quite a few friends who wrestled in high school, so I've always paid attention to the sport) before I realized Bunch was missing his lower legs. It's amazing what people are capable of doing in their lives.

 

See the rest of the sports images of the week at

AOL Sports: Did You See That?

 

- Mike Heffner

 

 

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Pictures of the Week: Feb.10-16

This week, I'd like to get some feedback from you:

 

Are you a regular weekly viewer of the Pictures of the Week gallery? Have you just started viewing the gallery, or have you been checking in to see it each week for years? What do you like? What don't you like? I love putting this gallery together each week and I'd like to ensure that it's the best on the web ... and for that I'd like your help. Please give me your feedback.

 

This week, the photo of the two wounded Marines embracing while they mourn their fallen comrade struck me as a very powerful image -- full of emotion and composed in a way that highlights the strength, dedication and patriotism of these heroic individuals.

 

 

Do you agree? Check out the gallery and vote for what you think is the top picture.

 

- Lee

 

 

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Mini Digital Camera Magic

Here is how I transitioned from a small digital camera to a digital SLR and some perspectives on what equipment might be right for you:

 

I don't remember seeing many photos of me and my family when I was a child.  I started taking photos a few years ago - driven by the urge to capture my life.   I started with an inexpensive, traditional film-based camera but very quickly became intrigued by the promise of the digital medium.

 

My first digital camera was the Sony DSC-P92.  This camera offered limited settings and I tried to get extra mileage by exploring endless combinations of these.  The best thing about starting out with this camera was that it forced me to focus on the creative side of things as there were only a limited number of bells and whistles to play with. 

 

When I decided to upgrade my camera I chose to buy a mid-range digital camera as I wasn't quite ready for a SLR.  The Panasonic DMC-FZ5 took to me to the next level and vastly enhanced creative options: zoom, macro, and many different effects.  I was impressed by the quality and detail that I was able to capture. 

 

I applied all the skills that I had picked up from my first camera and further refined my technical knowledge & skills. I realized that things get easier once you understand the functioning of a basic camera; you can transfer this understanding to more complicated equipment and your learning curve tends to be less steep.

 

Over time my hobby became more serious and I decided to research SLR cameras and bought the Nikon D-80.   At first using this camera proved to be rather frustrating.  There were too many buttons, too many options and it took some time to understand its functionality.  However, once I figured out the controls, the camera opened a whole new world to me.  Each day I discovered a new setting, the amazing lenses and filters that create all kinds of special effects.  The accessories seem limitless.

 

On the flip side, I sometimes find that I am less creative as I am too preoccupied with technical details.  When using a simpler, point and shoot camera, you can be totally in the moment and not get too stressed about settings.

 

Below are some photos from all 3 cameras.  It seems obvious that the granularity and richness of detail increased with each camera.  But the general mood of the images did not change that much. 

 

The lesson:  A simple mini digital camera can create magic too.  Beauty can be captured with a relatively inexpensive equipment but we have to learn how to see and learn to capture the decisive moment.  This is what creates great pictures.

Here are a few photos from my first camera Sony DSC-P92:

And here are a few photos from my second camera Panasonic DMC-FZ5:

And a few from my Nikon D-80:

Have fun shooting and don't forget to post links to your images here!

- Elsa

 

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The 2007 Grammy Awards

This year's 49th Grammy's show was full of great moments and beautiful photography. The newly reunited band, The Police, kicked off the show with their classic song, "Roxanne." After a 20-year separation, it was great to see them play live, together again. I love the photo of Sting, it is a very nicely composed image. Following The Police, Beyonce graced the stage with her performance of "Listen," which made the audience do exactly that. Can Beyonce ever take a bad picture???? Reminds me of an iconic Billy Holiday photo.

 

There isn't a show without the RHCP. Crazy as always, Flea dressed the part. Yellow from head to toe, but at least clothed. Who would have known that Flea actually owns clothes?  Skakira shook her money maker to "Hips Don't Lie." The photographer really captured that moment. Christina Aguilera paid tribute to James Brown, and the big winner, Mary J Blige, brought down the house with "Be Without You." All around, a good night for music. Below are some of my favorite pictures. If you want to see more, go to AOL' s Grammy coverage at Grammy's 2007.

 

Sting performs with his reunited group, The Police, at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards, Feb. 11, in Los Angeles.

 

Beyonce performs the song "Listen."

 

Flea and Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers perform "Snow (Hey Oh)."

 

Shakira performs "Hips Don't Lie."  

 

Mary J Blige performs a medley at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards.

 

Gnarls Barkley performs "Crazy."

 

Christina Aguilera pays tribute to James Brown.

 

Enjoy! And don't forget to check out Grammy's 2007.

 

- Elizabeth

 

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Tags: Grammy Awards 2007

Pictures of the Week: Feb. 3-9

I normally try to avoid including any photos of funerals in the Pictures of the Week gallery due to the belief that people should be allowed to grieve in private. However, I will include such photos when there is a unique element. In this case, the photograph of the grieving Melia family contains something that I find fascinating in photography -- the ability to capture a series of unique reactions to the same event.

 

The mother being consoled by her son. The girlfriend of the deceased, stoic in her grief, protectively covering the little boy's ears. It is a powerful image that captures the ways in which we react in times of grief. The ways in which we seek comfort and comfort those we love.

 

Visit Pictures of the Week and let me know which of the 11 photos in the gallery you thought was the week's best picture.

- Lee

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Never won a Grammy

What is one tie that binds Led Zeppelin, Tupac Shakur and Jessica Simpson? Believe it or not, they have never won a Grammy award. Check out a few of my favorite photos, which I edited for the Never Won a Grammy photo gallery on AOL Music, and see who else has never been awarded. If this blog has piqued your interest about the Grammy's then come back Sunday, Feb. 11, to see live coverage of Grammy's 2007!

 

 

 

 

 

-  Adrienne Williams

 

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Tags: Grammys, Music

Phan Thi Kim Phuc

When I was about 5 years old, I remember analyzing Steel Pulse's album cover, "Earth Crisis," and feeling very uncomfortable and uncertain about the picture of the little girl running on the album cover. (Notice the little girl right above the album title?) The girl's naked body and intensely horrified expression was enough to make me wonder about what might have been going on in the photo.

Here are a few lyrics from the song Earth Crisis, pertaining to the album cover art:

 

The Earth is the Lord's

And the fullness thereof now

Gave man his love and they

Reward him with violence

And in these last days

Lend ears to what I say

Man in his ignorant state

Has signed and sealed his own fate...

 

Misguided people

They don't seem to care

They carry the symbol

of the eagle and the bear

Across the globe

Far east to far west

High tax and cutbacks for military defense...

 

 

This heart-wrenching photo was taken on June 8, 1972, in the village of Trang Bang. It is a graphic image and keenly captures the reality of the war in Vietnam. The little girl in the image is Phan Thi Kim Phuc. Phan Kim Phuc, 9 years old then, was running -- after stripping off her burning clothes -- from the napalm bomb attack on her village. Supposedly, the bombing was an accident.  

 

The photographer, Nick Ut, won a Pulitzer Prize for this image. It was Ut who took Kim Phuc and the other children to the hospital. Kim's skin was so badly burned that she was not expected to survive. However, after 14 month in a Saigon hospital, she returned to her village to begin rebuilding her life.

 

 

The images above are of the Nick Ut, the man behind the famous photo. The photo on the left was taken in Vietnam. That day, Nick was loaded with his camera gear, field survival kit, flak jacket and steel helmet. The photo on the right is a recent image. 

 

I spoke briefly with Nick about his experience during the moment he saw the running children. Though he was only 19 years old at that time, he vividly remembers pouring water on Kim's body to cool down the burns and then borrowing a soldier's rain coat to cover her. Nick put Kim Phuc, her older brother, Phan Thanh Tam (the boy to the far left), other family members and children into a van and drove to a Saigon hospital. 

 

The children were screaming during the ride and Kim Phuc kept repeating, "I'm dying, I'm dying."  After arriving at the hospital Nick waited until the doctors tended to her. While Kim Phuc was on the operating table, Nick left the hospital and headed to the AP offices to drop his film. He returned later to check on Kim Phuc and was relieved to know that she had survived. He ended the conversation by saying "I was so happy to save her life."   

 

 

Above is a recent image of Kim Phuc viewing a photo of herself holding her son. The scars from the napalm burns are visible on her back and arm in the photo. The exhibit, "Eyewitness 1996," was held at the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles in 1996. 

 

Since then, Kim Phuc has been a bearer of the message of forgiveness, reconciliation, tolerance and peace, especially for civilian victims of war. She founded the Kim Foundation, dedicated to helping children of war surmount their traumatic experiences by providing medical and psychological help.

 

Kim Phuc, stands as an example of not letting situations break you and inspires

strength. 

 

Do you remember the first time you saw the image of Kim Phuc fleeing the bomb attack?  What were your thoughts?

 

- Alyscia

 

If you are interested in seeing more images (note: some of the images are extremely graphic - I suggest you click on it only if you can handle strong content), here's a link to images from The War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, taken by Harrell Fletcher.    

 

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Super Bowl

As always, great photography from the Super Bowl. Our primary photo sources (AP, WireImage, Getty Images, Reuters) moved roughly 2,000 photos from the game, an unbelievable number of photos for an event lasting less than 3 1/2 hours.

 

Looking at the images of Peyton Manning winning his first Super Bowl were inspiring. As a fan, there was no one more deserving of a Super Bowl win than Manning. Even in victory, he didn't take the credit, calling it a team effort. 

 

And for those who didn't catch the AOL commercial package, check it out here:

 

Super Bowl Commercials 2007 - AOL Sports  

 

My favorite photo:

 

Indianapolis Colts' Peyton Manning holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Colts' 29-17 win over the Chicago Bears in the Super Bowl XLI football game at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Sunday, Feb. 4.

 

A great player at the pinnacle of his sport.

 

And the most fun photo: the traditional cooler dunk on Colts coach Tony Dungy.

 

Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy is dunked after the Colts defeated the Chicago Bears 29-17 in Super Bowl XLI at Dolphin Stadium in Miami, Sunday, Feb. 4.

 

There are a lot more pictures, though ... check out our weekly Did You See That? photo gallery as well as dozens of Super Bowl photos.

 

- Steve

Pictures of the Week: Jan. 27-Feb. 2

Fly me to the moon ...

 

 

That moon looks beautiful! Imagine the view from the plane. On the surface, it seems like a simple photo: a plane and the moon. But it is a result of that very simplicity that makes the image so graphic and so powerful. The direction of the plane is enhanced by the plane's contrails, which provide the leading lines that guide your eye directly to the moon. It's just one of the week's best images. Visit Pictures of the Week and let me know which of the 11 photos in the gallery you thought was the week's best picture.

- Lee

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Magnum in Motion

Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger and David "Chim" Seymour founded the photographic agency Magnum in 1947 to aggregate a new wave of photojournalists. Because of the invention of smaller, lightweight cameras, WWII became the first major conflict allowing in-depth photographic coverage, and audiences throughout the world were hungry for Magnum’s hard-news images. The agency’s formidable reputation for shooting compelling stories -- initiated by WWII reporting -- became globally appreciated. Yet almost clairvoyantly, a precocious George Rodger commented decades ago that one could "take pictures of just about anything and magazines were clamoring for it; the mistake was in thinking that it would continue."

Fast-forward 50 years, and the demand for compelling images still exists, but the ease of acquisition and the variety of available resources have changed the industry. The once definitive photographic agency began competing with wire services and freelancing specialists. Although everyone recognized Magnum’s quintessential images -- Cartier-Bresson’s idiosyncratic masterpieces, Steve McCurry’s Afghan girl, Robert Capa's Battle of Normandy on Omaha Beach -- the agency’s name was being stored away in boxes, much like the precious prints and negatives that remain in the Magnum office today. 

Magnum in Motion, a new digital venture bringing Magnum images and photographers to the Internet, has catalyzed a stagnating yet brilliant agency. Combining multimedia elements of video, audio and flash presentations, Magnum in Motion is creating a new conduit for storytelling. This novel format has generated a buzz from bloggers, podcasters and many other Web sites, bringing in fresh attention. 

I interviewed one of the co-founders of Magnum in Motion, Bjarke (BJ) Myrthu, and asked about the changing tide of digital photography and the world's reaction to Magnum reinventing itself.  By creatively using the Internet, the company has gone from being viewed as static to inventive. BJ stressed the point that within traditional media (such as magazines or other periodicals) editors and space limitations sculpt the project. Because the Internet is spatially infinite, photographers have a significant say in terms of final outcome, allowing a push for more images, audio and attention to presentation. 

 

BJ remarked that at first, the photographers didn't grasp the concept of the site until they saw the capabilities of presentation. The younger photographers were willing to embrace the technology and altered their past approaches to photojournalism. Chris Anderson, Magnum Nominee, began emphasizing the audio elements of photojournalism by recording ambient sounds and interviews during a shoot. This new cognizance of multimedia capabilities while shooting is a departure from the purely illustrative focus while making pictures. A new way of working is becoming even more apparent as video enters into Magnum's arsenal. BJ remarked that the new facility of making videos is allowing experimentation with the medium, and the Magnum photographers are jumping onboard.

 

Just like the arrival of lightweight cameras decades earlier, new devices are changing the toolbox of photojournalists … and Magnum will continue to be at forefront of advancing new gear to create compelling stories.

 

 

 

View more articles on Magnum In Motion on Slate and Today's Picture.

 

- Rachel

 

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