#world nature photography awards

[jareckiworld]

Richard Li — Leopard, East Rift Valley, Kenia (The World Nature Photography Awards, 2024)

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Bombay night frog - Nyctibatrachus humayuni

By Karthik Ak, USA

World Nature Photography awards

[pcttrailsidereader]

This photo by Robert J. Ross is one of the winners in the World Nature Photography competition. While the photos have little to do with the PCT, they should be inspiration to all nature photographers to up our game. They are worth a look . . .

[wearepeace]

“Be the reason someone smiles. Be the reason someone feels loved and believes in the goodness in people.” In Baghdad, the Iraqi Children Foundation run three mobile schools called the Hope Buses. These deliver tutoring, healthcare and social support to orphans, street kids and displaced children living in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

[fiercerthanyou]

Photography By Rajeev Abeysekara, Sri Lanka,

During a trek in Sri Lanka's Kumana National Park, Rajeev came across this extraordinary Sri Lankan leopard resting in a tree, staring at us through a branch. It was an unforgettable encounter. 

Courtesy: The World Photography Organization

[nevzatboyraz44]

[mrs-stans]

Sebastian Stan Appreciates Taking Things 'A Little Less Seriously'

The actor caught up with L'OFFICIEL at the CFDA Fashion Awards to discuss wearing Thom Browne and his transformative roles in A Different Man and The Apprentice.

by Carrie Wittmer

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

Photography: Ryan Lowry Stylist: Michael Fisher Grooming: Amy Komorowski

On camera and off, Sebastian Stan is always aware of what he is wearing, whether he's suited up as the Winter Soldier in Captain America or sporting jeans and a T-shirt on a day off. The actor— who stars in and is winning over buzz for his transformative performances in A Different Man and The Apprentice—represented Thom Browne at the 2024 CFDA Fashion Awards on October 28 in New York City at the American Museum of Natural History. For the event, Stan wore a full Thom Browne look: a classic ticket pocket tuxedo with self-tipping in black, 3-ply mohair; a knit vest in black cashmere; a classic button-up shirt in white oxford; a necktie in black silk faille; and penny loafers in black patent leather.

In A Different Man, Stan plays an aspiring actor with neurofibromatosis who has facial reconstructive surgery that dramatically alters his appearance. In The Apprentice, Stan plays former President Donald Trump in a film that follows his rise to power, focusing on his mentor-mentee relationship with lawyer Roy Cohn, portrayed by Jeremy Strong from Succession. Stan received critical acclaim for his performances in both films, and is now a likely contender for the upcoming awards season.

At the CFDAs, Stan told L’OFFICIEL about his look for the night, his connection to Thom Browne, and how clothing and costumes impact his performances. Read on for the interview.

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

L’O: Tell me about your look for the CFDA awards.

Sebastian Stan: Thom Browne’s take on black tie-not traditional, polished in a new way and comfortable while being structured. I appreciate taking things a little less seriously, especially during awards season. I love my straight tie and knit vest—less serious, but certainly not less appropriate.

L'O: How would you describe your off-duty style? What do you wear on a day off?

SS: Jeans and a tee shirt.

L’O: What character that you’ve played is most likely to wear Thom Browne?

SS: Carter Baizen would wear the hell out of a Thom Browne suit.

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

L’O: Your roles in A Different Man and The Apprentice are very physical performances... and so is Bucky Barnes. How do you approach creating a character’s physicality?

SS: It all actually starts from the inside out. Muscles have memory. We wear our pains, our pride, our truth: the ones we project and the ones we keep hidden from the world. It all depends on what’s driving somebody…The need for love, the need to be heard, the need to prove, the need to hide, etc. Everything influences how you move and you walk. Obviously when you’re playing real people the clues are already there to study. Like an instrument. With something like A Different Man, there’s a backstory and the prosthetics influenced everything. Similar with Bucky Barnes. His past is always in his body.

L’O: How do clothes and costumes enhance your performance?

SS: I love costumes because they speak for themselves. When you walk in a room immediately people look at you and what you’re wearing tells a story. The choices one makes in terms of portraying themselves to the world are very revealing. So costumes are a big piece of the character before any words are even said. They also influence the way you walk. I’m particular about shoes. What kind of shoes a character wears. Sneakers make you walk a certain way boots a totally different way. Maybe you stand up taller as a result and so on. Same with clothes. A suit affects everything. So does a pair of jeans you’ve lived in for a decade.

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

Sebastian Stan in Thom Browne for the CFDA Awards 2024

[johnnyslittleanimalblog]

Polar bear asleep on a small iceberg, Norway

 Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award.

photographer Nima Sarikhani

A stunning image of a young polar bear drifting to sleep on an iceberg, by British amateur photographer Nima Sarikhani, has won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People's Choice Award.

"Sarikhani's breathtaking and poignant image allows us to see the beauty and fragility of our planet," Natural History Museum director Dr Douglas Gurr said.

"His thought-provoking image is a stark reminder of the integral bond between an animal and its habitat and serves as a visual representation of the detrimental impacts of climate warming and habitat loss."

Sarikhani made the image after three days searching for polar bears through thick fog off Norway's Svalbard archipelago.

Wildlife photography and nature fans from around the world were invited to vote from a short list of 25 images.

[itscolossal]

The 2022 World Nature Photography Awards Vacillate Between the Humor and Brutality of Life on Earth

[sitting-on-me-bum]

"Reflections Of The Frog"

By Rafal Dymarkowski, Canada

World Nature Photography awards

[mutant-distraction]

The photography that is making the world go around. One of the last two white rhino specimens left on the planet, monitored 24/7 by a military so that poachers don’t kill it. With this photo, taken at a nature reserve in central Kenya, Matjaz Krivic won the award for “Best Travel Photographer 2022”.

[mckitterick]

2023 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards Winners

the free competition is open to wildlife photography novices, amateurs, and professionals, celebrating the hilarity of our natural world and highlighting what we need to do to protect it

full roster of this year's winners with narratives by the photographers: X

[marialourenzo]

Andy Schmid: Crowd control

Credit: Andy Schmid/World Nature Photography Awards

[sicksadlit]

An author stole my book idea

What do you do when someone else publishes your book?

I was scrolling on my phone, browsing a selection of soon-to-be-released books when one in particular caught my eye.

I read the blurb and let out an audible gasp. 

The author stole my book idea. 

This man who I’ve never met, somehow managed to reach inside my brain, pluck out my story idea, write the book I am writing right now, and turn it into a fully fledged novel. He beat me to print, and now the novel I’ve been working on for the last few months is headed for the trash because how can I continue to write a story that has already been written?

It feels like my “life's work” has been stolen, cruelly whipped away from me overnight. The story that has been building and percolating inside me for years, preparing itself to arrive in my brain and out onto the page.

An accurate depiction of me discovering someone else is publishing the book I’m writing

Although, it’s possible that he didn’t actually steal my idea. It’s probable even because he couldn’t have. I don’t even know the guy. The far more likely scenario is that it is just an astonishing coincidence. He happened to have the exact same book idea at the same time as me, but the difference is: he’s a well known, successful, professional crime writer who actually managed to finish the story (and probably did a fantastic job), and I am an unpublished novice writer, who punches out a few hundred words here and there when inspiration strikes.

The best theory as to what has happened is that I have become the victim of a phenomena known as “simultaneous invention”.

Simultaneous invention is the concept that inventions and ideas are conceived independently by different creators, but at the same time.

“Rather than being the products of the individual mind, multiples (aka - simultaneous discoveries) are said to prove that creative ideas are the effects of the zeitgeist, or spirit of the times. At a specific instant in the history of a domain, the time becomes ripe for a given idea. The idea is “in the air” for anyone to pick, making its inception inevitable.” - Dean Keith Simonton, creativity researcher

There are mind-boggling cases of simultaneous invention documented throughout history. Here are some of the most famous instances:

1600s: Isaac Newton and Gottfried Leibniz both discover calculus.

1770s: Carl Wilhelm Scheele and Joseph Priestley discover oxygen.

1800s: Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace both describe natural selection.

1839: Louis Daguerre and Henry Fox Talbot invent the first photographic methods.

1869: Louis Ducos du Hauron and Charles Cros present the earliest workable methods of colour photography on the same day.

1876: Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell independently, on the same day, filed patents for invention of the telephone.

1879: British physicist-chemist Joseph Swan independently developed an incandescent light bulb at the same time as American inventor Thomas Edison was independently working on his incandescent light bulb.

1950s: Jonas Salk and Albert Bruce Sabin invent the polio vaccine.

2015: Takaaki Kajita and Arthur B. McDonald are jointly awarded the Nobel prize for finding that neutrinos have mass.

It sounds like something from a Blake Crouch novel. The idea that two complete strangers, anywhere in the world could come up with the exact idea at the same time. It would be written off as pure science fiction if it weren’t so thoroughly documented. 

It came for Charles Darwin, it came for Alexander Bell, and now, it has come for me.

Since I’ve had a solid 48 hours to walk around the house moaning in despair, I figure it’s probably time to put my big girl pants on and think about what to do next.

What does one do when someone else publishes the book you were going to write?

If there’s one thing this sad experience has taught me, it’s this: Do not sleep on that creative idea.

I thought I had all the time in the world to write my story. Donna Tartt took 9 years to write The Secret History, after all. Maybe I could take 9 years to write my debut novel too. But modern life and our shared experience may lead to someone else coming to the same conclusions – or ideas – as you have, somewhere in the world. 

This doesn’t just apply to writing. It can happen in any field where creativity and imagination are at play. 

Where does this leave me and my manuscript? I think I’ll hold onto it a little longer before sending it to my computer’s trash bin forever. Even though the original premise and core of the story is no longer viable, perhaps there’s something there worth saving. Maybe a shift in perspective or narrative voice. Could it be a white collar crime thriller instead of a murder? Could I set it in a different era? Could I change the genre? Who knows. Maybe this whole saga is a good thing and will force me to pivot. Now, I’m compelled to look at how I can better improve upon what the story was set to become. 

One of the people in my writer's group said that this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If his book sells well, publishers will be frothing to produce more of the same. That said, I’m not sure how I feel about being the runner-up for the prize of cool and interesting story ideas. 

So what’s the solution to this confounding mystery of the human mind? How can you ensure your work remains true and original to you when at any point in time, some random person out in the world might be working on the exact same thing? 

Maybe the answer is to simply try and be the first to launch, and to do your best not to let perfectionism hold you back from getting started. Maybe done is better than perfect. Or, if you instead find yourself in the same boat as me, is there room to move and change your approach? Could you see it as an opportunity to pivot and find a fresh, unexpected angle?

The truth is, I was stuck in a bit of a rut anyway. I fell out of love with the story idea a few weeks back. When I started writing months ago, I kicked off with a hiss and a roar, smashing my daily word count goal and picking up steam until I hit a wall. I didn’t like the characters and writing became a slog. Instead of feeling inspired and excited by the story, I felt bored and disillusioned. It became something I thought I simply had to finish to avoid the “sunk cost fallacy”.

This uncanny coincidence has forced me to open doors to new possibilities with the story that I hadn’t allowed myself to consider before. Now that the original plan has gone out the window, the idea of returning to the old draft feels strangely exciting again. Like anything is possible and the book could go in any direction. 

But I guess you’ll just have to wait and see… Maybe I’ve already said too much.

[fashionbooksmilano]

Nick Knight

Introduction by Charlotte Cotton

Designed by Paul Hetherington

Harper Collins, New York 2009, 264 pages, 27x32,5cm, ISBN 978-0-06-171 4573

euro 240,00

email if you want to buy booksinprogressmilano@yahoo.it

Nick Knight is among the world's most influential and visionary image makers. As a fashion photographer, he has consistently challenged conventional notions of beauty and is renowned for his groundbreaking creative collaborations with designers including Alexander McQueen, Comme des Garçons, and John Galliano. Advertising campaigns for clients such as Christian Dior, Yohji Yamamoto, Shiseido, Jil Sander, Swarovski, and Yves Saint Laurent, as well as award-winning editorials for W, Vogue, Dazed & Confused, Visionaire, and i-D magazines, among others, have kept Knight at the vanguard of progressive image making for the past three decades.

This incredible volume—with all images selected by Knight—is a midcareer retrospective of his work, from 1990 to the present day. With an introduction by Charlotte Cotton, curator of photography at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the book includes work for major advertising campaigns for Dior, Louis Vuitton, and Levi Strauss, as well as numerous prestigious fashion publications. It features collaborative work with Björk, Michael Clark, Peter Saville, Gareth Pugh, Massive Attack, and Hussein Chalayan, photographs of the natural world, exquisite editorial images for Vogue, and models who defy fashion's stereotypes. It also includes examples of Knight's ground-breaking performance and film work on his Web site, SHOWstudio.com, the first to seriously consider how contemporary fashion photography would be shaped and expanded by the Internet—and is the contemporary reference point for many of the most innovative ideas and experiences of fashion today.

With more than 300 striking images reflecting Knight's extraordinary vision and fearless experimentation, this volume is a landmark in both the genres of photography and fashion.

23/01/24