Missing Link Photo: The Truth Is Out There

Speaking of nature photography, have you seen the image of the new "missing link" fossil now on view at the American Museum of Natural History in New York? This fossil, which is 47 million years old, is said by scientists to the earliest human ancestor--a link between the animals that became homo sapien and other mammals. It's a controversial theory, but very exciting, and the announcement is being pumped up with considerable marketing muscle. The fossil is called Ida ("eeda"), and when you gaze at the images of it, you understand the primordial fear evoked by the creature in the Alien films.--David Schonauer

Conservation Photography Conclave Planned for November

Does nature photography help save the environment. I want to think so, and I also happen to think so. As the Sierra Club discovered many years ago, an image of a wild, beautiful place can raise awareness of threats to the environment and be a powerful motivator for preserving fragile places. Images can also be used for scientific studies of endangered eco-systems and as evidence to influence policy makers. Only recently photographer James Balog presented his images of melting glaciers--part of his Extreme Ice Survey--to members of Congress.
     Balog is one of the founding members of the International League of Conservation Photographers, a group of landscape and wildlife photographers who have redefined their work, merging the ideas of art and activism. In November the ILCP is sponsoring a symposium during the 9th World Wilderness Conference, which will take place in Merida, Yucatan (Mexico). Cristina Mittermeier, the executive director of the ILCP, wants to make sure that photographers around the world are aware of the event--if you would like to attend, you get more information at the ILCP website, including how to register. Even if  you can't attend, you might want to look for news coming out of the symposium, which will feature panels on journalism, effective communications, and scientific ideas. If my schedule permits, I will certainly be there.--David Schonauer

Dangerous Mission to Save Hubble and the Art of Space

NASA is about ready to send seven astronauts into space on a dangerous mission to fix the Hubble Space Telescope. The goal of the mission is to replace a worn-out, piano-sized camera with a new one. Just a few days ago, on May 4, the old camera produced one of its last images, showing a nebula called Kohoutek 4-55 (above). The repair work will require five risky space-walks. This will be the last repair done on the aging Hubble, but it will allow the telescope to make even more awesome images than it already has. There are various "top-ten" Hubble Space Shuttle Atlantis.--David Schonauer

The Cat's Eye Nebula, NGC 6543 (because it's beautiful)

Saturn (because it looks like a great sci-fi illustration)

V838 Monocerotis Light Echo (because it's where no man has gone)

Sombrero Galaxy (because it's such a cool name)

Planetary Nebula NGS 6751 (because it looks like an eye)

Globular Cluster NGS 6093 (because it looks like warp drive)

Science as Art: Closeups of a Viral Missing Link

Sometimes the lines between art, nature photography, and science blur. And sometimes the definitions that scientists give things get blurry, too. The results, in both cases, can be amazing.
     Take, for instance, the photos you see here. They show a virus that was originally found infecting amoebas in a Parisian water tank in 1992. This virus, however, was much, much bigger than viruses usually are--indeed, it was almost the size of a bacteria. After 11 years of study, researchers concluded that it was a "missing link" between viruses and living cells--between the living and the dead.
     The researchers recently made pictures of the virus using an election microscope. Thousands of separate images were combined to create these 3-D views, which were recently published in Public Library of Science Biology. (You can also read more here.)What is amazing is that they look just the way I imagined a big virus would look, with a kind of reptilian skin and strange, vaguely scaring markings.I love it when imagery comes together. --David Schonauer

This Week in Outer Space: A Planet Made of Peanut Brittle

The European satellite Mars Express recently snapped this image of the of the Ariadnes Colles region on the red planet's southern highlands. The area features scattered rocks with flat, mesa-like shapes. I just never get tired of these photos. Some scientists wonder if the landscape looks like this because of the presence of water. Perhaps there is a presence of a hard surgery candy containing peanuts.--David Schonauer

GQ, National Geo, and New Yorker Win National Magazine Awards for Photography

Award season continued last night, as the American Society of Magazine Editors announced the winners of the 2009 National Magazine Awards.

PHOTO PORTFOLIO (honors creative photography and photo illustration)
Winner: The New Yorker, for "Service," a series of portraits of American soldiers by Platon (above).
Finalists: Bon Appétit (for "A Heritage Feast" by by Tim Morris; GQ  for "Whot It Takes," by Jeff Riedel; Gourmet for "Out of Sight" by Romulo Yanes; and W for "Come on Down to Nawlins" by Bruce Weber; styled by Karl Temper, April.

PHOTOGRAPHY (recognizes excellence in magazine photography over three full issues)
Winner:  GQ  Jim Nelson, editor-in-chief; Fred Woodward, design director; Jim Moore, creative director; Anton Ioukhnovets, art director; Dora Somosi, director of photography, for August, November, December issues.
Finalists: Bon Appetit; National Geographic; T The New York Times Style Magazine;  and W.

PHOTOJOURNALISM (recognizes photographic documentation of an event or subject in real-time)
Winner: National Geographic, for "Who Murdered the Virunga Gorillas" by Brent Stirton (photo below)
Finalists: Harper’s Magazine  for "Life and Death" by Lynsey Addario;  The New York Times Magazine for "A Cutting Tradtion"  Stephanie Sinclair; The New York Times Magazine for "The Children of God" by Stephanie Sinclair; Time for "The Forgotten Plague" by James Nachtwey
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Back to the Future: Life.com Goes Live

Life magazine published as a weekly from 1936 to 1972. From the early '80s until 2000 if was published as a weekly. Now it is back, in a new form, on the web. Life.com went live today, after about three years of planning and development. The new site features about 7 million images from the Life archive, many never seen before, along with contemporary photos from Getty Images, which is a partner in the new venture. (Getty also brought its considerable technological resources to the project, which is one reason the site is so fast and easy to use.) For me, this is a fantastic resource for exploring the history of the greatest photo magazine of all. You can search the archive in a number of ways: searching for a particular celebrity (Marilyn Monroe, for instance, seen above in a a famous 1953 portrait by Alfred Eisenstaedt), or for sports images.
It's great to see Life get another chance at life. CEO Andy Blau and editor Bill Shapiro have really put together a splendid site--they tell me it's the biggest photography website on the Internet, which seems pretty accurate, considering the archival depth of Life.com. Here's some insider info: American Photo will be featuring a portfolio of some unknown treasures from the Life.com collection in its July/August issue. --David Schonauer

More Severe Weather: Lightning Triggered by Volcano!

This photograph by Bretwood Higman shows lightning triggered by the eruption of Alaska's Mount Redoubt, which spewed ash some 50,000 feet into the air last week. The image was made at 11:20 PM on March 27.
Is it enough to say "Wow?"--David Schonauer

Annie Leibovitz Tops List of ICP's 2009 Infinity Awards

The International Center of Photography has announced the list of recipients of its 2009 Infinity Awards. This year's Lifetime Achievement award goes to Annie Leibovitz, who previously has received the Infinity Award for Applied Photography.
     The awards will be presented on May 12 at Chelsea Piers, Pier Sixty, in Manhattan. This marks the 25th anniversary of the prestigious Infinity Awards.
     Other nominees include Italian photographer Letizia Battaglia, who receives the Cornell Capa Award for her work in documenting the Sicilian mafia in the 1980s. Japanese photographer Rinko Kawauchi wins the Art award. Geert van Kesteren receives the Photojournalism award for work in Iraq. And London-based Tim Walker is recipient of the Applied/Fashion/Advertising award. Continue reading for the full ICP press release list of winners--David Schonauer

Underwater Volcano + Camera = Wow!

An underwater volcano is erupting about six miles from the coast of the Tongan island of Tongatapu. This photo is credited to Lothar Slabon/Agence France-Presse-Getty Images.--David Schonauer