Microstock Calendar

Photographer and cameraman Wes Skiles, who explored, mapped, and filmed caves around the world for three decades, died Wednesday afternoon while on a dive near Palm Beach, Florida. He was 53.

Diving companions found Skiles unconscious on the ocean floor near a reef, shortly after he had signaled to them that he was going to the surface for more film. His companions pulled him to the surface and tried to revive him while rushing him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The cause of his death is unknown. A medical examiner will conduct an autopsy, according to the Palm Beach Post.

Skiles was a long-time contributor to both National Geographic magazine and National Geographic Television, At the time of his death, Skiles had just finished shooting a scientific expedition related to marine life off the Florida coast on an assignment for NGTV. “The shoot had wrapped, but he stayed on with the researchers” to do more shooting, says National Geographic spokesperson Beth Foster.

Skiles also shot the cover story for the current issue of National Geographic, about the dangerous submarine caves of the Bahamas called blue holes.

"He set a standard for underwater photography, cinematography and exploration that is unsurpassed. It was an honor to work with him, and he will be deeply missed," said National Geographic editor-in-chief Chris Johns in a statement on the publisher’s Web site.

Skiles grew up exploring the caves of northern Florida. On its Web site, National Geographic credits him with developing and refining a technique for using multiple strobes to dramatically light the underwater environment of caves.

He was also the creator, director and cinematographer of the PBS series, 'Water's Journey' and his production company, Karst Productions of High Springs, Florida, directed and filmed all the underwater scenes in a feature film titled 'The Cave'.

He is survived by his wife, Terri, and two children.

Photographer and cameraman Wes Skiles, who explored, mapped, and filmed caves around the world for three decades, died Wednesday afternoon while on a dive near Palm Beach, Florida. He was 53.

Diving companions found Skiles unconscious on the ocean floor near a reef, shortly after he had signaled to them that he was going to the surface for more film. His companions pulled him to the surface and tried to revive him while rushing him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The cause of his death is unknown. A medical examiner will conduct an autopsy, according to the Palm Beach Post.

Skiles was a long-time contributor to both National Geographic magazine and National Geographic Television, At the time of his death, Skiles had just finished shooting a scientific expedition related to marine life off the Florida coast on an assignment for NGTV. “The shoot had wrapped, but he stayed on with the researchers” to do more shooting, says National Geographic spokesperson Beth Foster.

Skiles also shot the cover story for the current issue of National Geographic, about the dangerous submarine caves of the Bahamas called blue holes.

"He set a standard for underwater photography, cinematography and exploration that is unsurpassed. It was an honor to work with him, and he will be deeply missed," said National Geographic editor-in-chief Chris Johns in a statement on the publisher’s Web site.

Skiles grew up exploring the caves of northern Florida. On its Web site, National Geographic credits him with developing and refining a technique for using multiple strobes to dramatically light the underwater environment of caves.

He was also the creator, director and cinematographer of the PBS series, 'Water's Journey' and his production company, Karst Productions of High Springs, Florida, directed and filmed all the underwater scenes in a feature film titled 'The Cave'.

He is survived by his wife, Terri, and two children.

First we had the case of the missing caddie. Now one of the stars of MTV's Jersey Shore -- the prosaically named JWOWW -- appears to have lost her belly button to a clumsy Photoshop job.

Check out the nearly buttonless shot to the left from Maxim; and the "before" photo to the right with strategically placed religious ornamentation dangling.

(If you ask us, they both look like disasters...waka waka.)

(From Gawker via ONTD)

First we had the case of the missing caddie. Now one of the stars of MTV's Jersey Shore -- the prosaically named JWOWW -- appears to have lost her belly button to a clumsy Photoshop job.

Check out the nearly buttonless shot to the left from Maxim; and the "before" photo to the right with strategically placed religious ornamentation dangling.

(If you ask us, they both look like disasters...waka waka.)

(From Gawker via ONTD)

Fotolia and myPhotopipe.com, Inc. announced a new strategic relationship in which myPhotopipe.com, Inc. will serve as fulfillment provider for Fotolia, a leading social marketplace for royalty-free stock images. Fotolia has nearly two million members worldwide, with over 100,000 contributing artists.

"Fotolia has some of the most talented photographers in the world," noted Garth Johnson, Executive Vice President of Fotolia, North America. "myPhotopipe.com has superior quality, leading-edge technology and exceptional customer service, and we're very pleased to extend this service to our community."

Bob Quick, myPhotopipe.com, Inc. President and CEO, said, "myPhotopipe is honored and excited to be part of the tremendously talented and respected Fotolia team. We look forward to a successful long-term relationship with Fotolia's growing community."

About Fotolia.com

Fotolia is the first major microstock company to have an international presence and to offer both crowd-sourced and professional images on one site. Fotolia is Europe's leading provider of royalty-free images and offers one of the largest collections of free and affordable photos, vector, illustrations, and videos that are perfect for any medium, web or print.

With an unbeatable commitment to quality and affordability, high-resolution images on Fotolia start at less than $1.00. Since its inception in 2004, over nine-million royalty-free photos, vectors, and videos have been uploaded to Fotolia's collection, making it one of the largest stock image sites. Today, Fotolia is proudly represented in 12 countries and offers service in 10 languages.

About myPhotopipe.com, Inc.

myPhotopipe.com, Inc. is a web-based online provider of digital photo processing, photo finishing, photo-sharing, and related services. The Company's unique blend of 1000 print options, combined with manual print inspections and professional color management, have positioned myPhotopipe.com as one of the fastest-growing providers of digital photography services for professionals and serious amateur photographers.

The Company is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, with operations in Atlanta, Georgia, and its common stock is listed on the OTC Pink Sheets under the symbol "MPPC." Additional information is available on the Internet at www.myPhotopipe.com.

 The deadline to enter Vimeo's first video awards competition is July 31. The Vimeo Awards  are intended  to honor creativity and originality (no rehashed clips stolen from TV here) in video creation. The contest is open to videos in nine categories, including Documentary, Narrative, Music Video and Original Series. Two finalists will be selected in each category by a panel of judges, then the jury will select one  Best Video winner who will receive a $25,000 grant to produce new work. 

Vimeo has so far named 19 judges who will review entries in different categories. Designer Neville Brody, Ricky Van Veen of Connected Ventures and Ze Frank of the daily video blog "The Show" were recently added to the roster. Other judges  include directors David Lynch, Roman Coppola, Lucy Walker and Morgan "Super Size Me" Spurlock, multimedia artist and composer DJ Spooky, Motionographer.com founder Justin Cone and photographer Vincent Laforet. 

The awards competition is part of the lead-up to a two-day festival of screenings and parties to be held in New York October 8 and 9. 

You can find more info on the awards rules, eligibility, rights and categories at vimeo.com/awards/about.