Ever fancied taking an adventure tour of the Amazon River to explore its nature and culture? Now you can – right from your armchair in the comfort of your home.
Armchair explorers can now trek through the forests of the Amazon Basin from the comfort of their home.
In conjunction with World Forest Day on 21 March, Google has brought more than 50,000 photos of the Amazon Basin onto your computer in the form of immersive, 360-degree panoramic views within Google Street View.
Spot a critter while cruising down the Amazon river.
Cruise down Amazon river, trek through the jungles, try to spot a forest critter, or peer into life in the local community.
Many areas of the Amazon, including Rio Negro Reserve, are under the protection of the Brazilian government with restricted access to the public.
Many of us would therefore not have the chance to visit these areas even if we wanted to.
Google’s photographers were invited by Amazonas Sustainable Foundation (FAS), the local non-profit conservation organisation to collect ground-level images of the rivers, forest and communities in the Rio Negro Reserve.
Check out the depths of the Amazon via Google Maps Street View.
These images are now available in Google Maps via its Street View feature.
The images were collected by a Street View trike, and a tripod camera with a fisheye lens—typically used to capture imagery of business interiors —to capture both the natural landscape and the local communities.
The apparatus allows access to rugged terrain inaccessible to the usual Google Street cars.
It’s hard to imagine one year has passed since the triple disasters struck in north eastern Japan on 11 March 2011.
I can still remember vividly the terrifying footage of the earthquakes that started it all; the gruesome images of the tsunami rolling in and cars in its path being swept aside; and the subsequent alarm arising from the melt-down at the nuclear plant in Fukushima.
Amidst news updates of the repeatedly futile attempts to bring the melt-down under control and to stem the release of radioactive materials into the atmosphere, the greatest consolation was the quick and generous response of other countries to offer aid for the disaster victims – as well as the steadfast and stoic resilience shown by the victims themselves.
Photo tribute to the victims of the disasters and the volunteers.
Although saddened by the tragedy like many others, I put together a compilation – at that time – of some photos that I’d taken over the years in Japan.
“Photos that bring to mind some pleasant memories of a beautiful country with a wonderful culture, and most importantly the hospitable and kind people that I’ve had the privilege of encountering in Japan.
In the mass of depressing scenes depicting the horrors of the disasters, hopefully these photos will help remind us of the beautiful Japan.” March 27, 2011.
I’d hoped that the images would slightly ameliorate the depression caused by the horrors of the disasters.
It seems apt that one year after that fateful night, we should take pause from our hectic lives to remember the victims of the triple disaster, who had perished or who are still suffering from the aftermath.
May the passage of time heal the terrible wounds and losses that nature has so terribly dealt them.
Below is the photo remembrance that I compiled last year – my own little contribution – terribly insignificant compared to those who had risked life and limb physically helping out at the scene of the disasters.
May we also remember these selfless workers and volunteers who truly displayed the greatness of the human spirit.
Entries for this photography contest is open from now until 1 March 2012. Application forms, as well as terms and conditions of participation is available online.
Entries for the 2012 Oskar Barnack Award can be submitted from now till 1 March 2012.
The Leica Oskar Barnack Award will be presented for the 33rd time this year. The winner will receive a Leica M9-P camera with lens worth approximately €10,000, in addition to a cash prize of €5,000.
“This year, I will personally love to see more works from passionate photographers in Asia,” commented Sunil Kaul, Managing Director of Leica Camera Asia Pacific.A second honour in the course of the competition will be awarded in the category ‘Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award’, for (prospective) professional photographers aged 25 and under.
The winner of the first prize in this section will also be awarded a Leica M9-P complete with lens.
An international jury awards the Leica Oskar Barnack Award and Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award to photographers who capture and express the relationship between people and their environment in graphic form in a portfolio of up to 12 images.
Submissions must be a self-contained series of images in which the photographer perceives and documents the interaction between people and their environment with acute vision and contemporary visual style – creative, unobtrusive and groundbreaking.
The members of this year’s jury include:
Bruce Gilden, Magnum photographer
Stephan Erfurt, Director of C/O Berlin
Valérie Fougeirol, Creative Director of the Magnum Gallery in Paris
Karin Rehn-Kaufmann, Artistic Director of the Leica Galerie in Salzburg
Brigitte Schaller, Art Director of Leica Fotografie International magazine.
The awards will be presented in the course of the Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie photography festival to be held in Arles, France from 2 to 8 July 2012.
If you’re passionate about photography, why not submit your pictures to a stock photo agency? It might just make you enough money to pay for your next big lens.
iStockphoto workshop at the Canon Imaging Academy
Rather than let your photos collect dust in an old shoe box get lost and forgotten in the hard disk, try submitting them to a photo microstock agency.
The average contributor’s income may not be astounding, but it could be pocket money for that extra drink at the bar.
Canon Imaging Academy at Habour Front Place
I attended a workshop by Jumpei Matsuoka from iStockphoto last weekend at the Canon Imaging Academy (CIA) at Harbour Front Place.
CIA conducts photography courses, organises local outings and overseas trips, and provides free product training for photographers.
The 1-hour session was over-subscribed and the space had to be extended to accommodate almost forty photographers eager to find out how they could put their photos to work.
Jumpei Matsuoka, GM iStockphoto Japan
Matsuoka is the general manager for Japan and South Korea at iStockphoto.
He talked about how photography buffs can sign up as contributors on iStockphoto and make money from their passion for photography.
He also shared tips on what are the top selling images, the trends in the microstock industry, and how contributors can market themselves to potential customers.
iStockphoto is the world’s original source for user-generated, royalty-free stock images, media and design elements.
Its community of more than 7 million members enjoys access to a content collection approaching 10 million photographs, vector illustrations, flash, audio and video files on the site.
iStockphoto pays out US$1.9 million each week in royalty to its contributing artists.More than 50,000 files are approved each week from the site’s rapidly growing group of more than 125,000 contributing artists, with 5,500 submitting exclusively to iStockphoto.
Many iStockphoto artists earn a full-time living from iStockphoto, and many formerly traditional stock artists see micropayment stock imagery as an additional revenue channel.
I had a chat with Matsuoka after the session. The amicable fellow photographer conveyed a strong passion for photography and emphasised that a contributor should first and foremost possess this passion for photography.
With that as the backdrop, whatever income the contributor earns from submitting photos to a photo stock agency becomes an added bonus for the passion. On top of that, the contributor actually enjoys the work.
My own feel from speaking with Matsuoka is that if you’re thinking of becoming a contributing photographer, don’t quit your day job just yet.
The top six categories that bring in the most money:
Business
Lifestyle
Sports
Nature & Wildlife
Ideas
Travel
Start off small by submitting your shots to get a feel of the kind of income you can expect from the endeavour, and whether you have the eye to take photos that the agency will likely approve.
Photographers should know that the emphasis of stock photo agencies is to get photos that their paying subscribers can use – be it for business brochures or other publications.
It’s not so much the usual photo competition where there’s more emphasis on the artistic aspect of photography.
You would have heard wonderful success stories of a handful of contributors who earn big bucks from going full-time as stock photographers. But for the rest of us mere mortals, do test the waters first.
I have included some soundbites from Matsuoka about his perspectives on different aspects of stock photography. Check them out.
So dust out your old photos dig out those photos scattered all over your hard disks, and start shooting, you may just discover your ideal full-time job!
Home cooked salmon cream sauce spaghetti with chives, mixed herbs and pepper. Served with broccoli soup.
Picture taken with Leica V-Lux 3 compact digital camera in Macro mode. Handheld snapshot at f/2.8, 1/15 sec, ISO400, 25mm (35mm equiv).
The Leica V-Lux 3 compact digital camera has a mean Macro mode. You can stick the lens right into the food and still get pin sharp snapshots of your favourite food.
There is a market for everyone in KK: Sunday market, Night Bazaar, Central market, Handicraft market (formerly known as the Pasar Filipino), fish market, fruit and vegetable market.
Dried & salted fish market in Kota Kinabalu. Taken with Olympus PEN E-P3 12mm lens using Pop Art effect with Frame filter.
Blue skies and whirlpool at Le Meridien in Kota Kinabalu.
We had missed the Sunday market because we arrived on Sunday night, but there was no stopping us from checking out the rest.
After spending the morning frolicking in the hotel’s pool, we headed out for lunch and the markets.
The lunch recommendation by the concierge turned out great.
The Chinese coffee shop – Seng Heng – at the corner behind Le Meridien served great Tom Yam noodles, Laksa, Tuaran mee and Kon Loh noodles.
The three-flavored milk tea was good too, with large dollops of gula Melaka.
Handicraft market or Pasar Filipino. Taken with Olympus PEN E-P3 with 12mm lens.
Laksa from Seng Hing restaurant
After lunch, we ventured into the markets across the road from the hotel and by the sea.
First was the dried and salted fish heaven with the attendant smells, then the handicraft market with plenty of souvenirs and sea water pearls, and finally the fruit market.
Two hours in the sweltering heat of the covered markets, and we dived headlong into the air-con comforts of Centrepoint shopping centre.
It is a shopping complex resembling Sungei Wang in Kuala Lumpur and the Holiday Inn in Johor Bahru.
Dried & fresh fruit market. Taken with Olympus PEN E-P3 with 12mm lens and Pop Art effect.
BenBen slippers at Night Bazaar
After reveling in banana-chocolate-cheese crepes, bubble strawberry icees, and cut guavas, we returned to the hotel for a breather.
Time for a full-body massage at the hotel’s spa to loosen the joints and ease the aches from the market hopping.
Anyway, after a heavy shower, we ventured to the night bazaar last evening.
No watches, no wallets, no bags or knapsacks.
Just some loose change and the hotel room key card.
Trinkets at the Handicraft market. Taken with Olympus PEN E-P3.
Seems the night bazaar is notorious for pickpockets.
The night bazaar turned out to be more of the same things as the handicraft market that we had visited earlier in the day – with an emphasis on pirated goods.
So we left after a short stroll through and left for dinner at the Warisan Center next to the Meridien.
It was then “Alamak … Toyol” time back at the hotel.
The DVD movie really brought back memories from the seventies, and other associated movies in the genre – such as Pontianak, and Orang Minyak.
Facebook has identified perpetrators of the recent flood of violent photos and hardcore porn in some users’ newsfeeds.
“We’ve built enforcement mechanisms to quickly shut down the malicious Pages and accounts that attempt to exploit it,” Facebook told Bloomberg.Facebook said that it is now working with its legal team to “ensure appropriate consequences follow.”
This was after porn images of extreme violence, and fake photographs of celebs including Justin Bieber in sexual situations inundated the profiles of some Facebook users.
Exploiting a browser vulnerability, users were tricked into pasting malware into their browsers, which resulted in sharing the offensive content.
