Wildfires and K2: Tuesday’s best photos

Wildfires and K2: Tuesday’s best photos
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A member of the Society of Radiographers (SoR) on the picket line outside the Royal Marsden hospital in south London, during a 48-hour strike in their dispute over pay. Members have voted to reject the government’s 5% pay award and called for talks to reopen after other public sector workers, including junior doctors, were offered more

Sony’s new compact camera brings photography to the visually impaired

Sony’s new compact camera brings photography to the visually impaired

Sony has launched a new compact camera that is designed to help bring digital imaging to those with impaired sight. The DSC-HX99 RNV kit is a retinal projection camera that lets those who have difficulty using a normal camera viewfinder or screen take and see photographs, using a specially-designed attachment that projects the image onto the back of the eye. 

The camera is a collaboration between Sony and QD Laser, a Japanese company that has pioneered the Retissa Neoviewer retinal projection device which attaches to the zoom compact.

Apart from the projector, the new camera has the same features as the DSC-HX99 superzoom compact camera. Launched in 2018, this is claimed to be the world’s smallest 30x zoom camera – with an effective 24-720mm lens. It uses a 1/2.3in 18-megapixel sensor,  shoots 4K video, and weighs in at 243g (in its original form). 

(Image credit: Sony)

The DSC-HX99 RNV was first shown in March, but has now gone on sale for US$600 – essentially the same price as the camera on its own. The cost of the adaptation is being heavily subsidised by Sony.

“We continue to leverage creativity and technology to enhance the accessibility of our products, services, and experiences. The Retina Projection Camera Kit is a step in our commitment to a future that empowers all types of creators,” says Yang Cheng, Vice President, Imaging Solutions, Sony Electronics Inc.

Potential users will be encouraged to attend a touch-and-try event before purchase, and will only be allowed to buy one camera each; they should contact Sony Digital Production Center on +1 (323) 352-5007, or by email at DMPC@sony.com to get an appointment.

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Wearing Paint Instead of Clothes on the Streets of New York

Wearing Paint Instead of Clothes on the Streets of New York

Across from a Pret a Manger near Union Square Park, Nicolette Barischoff held still as an artist painted an open blue eye across her sternum on Sunday. It was around 88 degrees and a crowd had assembled around them. But the temperature and the audience did not faze Ms. Barischoff. Nor did the fact that she was naked.

“It’s a very Zen experience,” she said, as photographers snapped pictures from behind police barricades. “This is my fishing.”

Ms. Barischoff, 38, a writer in Los Angeles, was among the 60 people who had paid $100 to become mostly nude human canvases for 40 artists during NYC Bodypainting Day, a public art exhibition that has been staged annually since 2014. This year’s installment was the 10th — and the last, according to the event’s founder, Andy Golub, an artist. He said he was ending it to focus on other projects for his organization, Human Connection Arts.

Nije Durdeen, 31, came from Philadelphia to model after learning she might not get another chance. “You get to be nude in public and not get arrested,” she said while standing near a table holding bottles of Gatorade in shades almost as vibrant as the turquoise-colored paint covering the right side of her body.

Ms. Durdeen has been a body-paint model for about seven years. Though she has done some gigs at artists’ studios, she said she preferred to be painted in public so she could observe a broader spectrum of reactions. Some passers-by at this year’s Bodypainting Day blushed and sped past as artists decorated people of all shapes and sizes. Others leered or snapped photos.

“Art is supposed to be subjective,” Ms. Durdeen said. “Some people may be offended. Some people, this might be right up their alley.”

Mr. Golub, 57, began using bodies as canvases in 2007 after another artist introduced him to a body-painting model. He said that he found skin to be a canvas like no other, in part because it belonged to living, breathing people whose personalities would often influence artists’ final design.

A hand uses a paint brush to apply paint to the face of a man, seen from the shoulders up, with colorful paint covering his upper body and entire bald head.
David Pumo, a lawyer in Brooklyn, at this year’s Bodypainting Day.Amir Hamja/The New York Times

In 2011, he was arrested and charged with violating public-exposure laws for painting a nude model in Times Square. The charges were later dropped. Not long after, he said, other artists began to ask him how to body paint in public. Bodypainting Day, he added, has always been staged in coordination with the city, and is a way for artists to practice without fear of police interference.

“The final product is cool, but it’s the entire process that I really wanted people to see,” Mr. Golub said.

The event, perhaps not surprisingly, has had its critics. David Pumo, who has modeled at multiple installments, said that when Bodypainting Day was held at a park in Brooklyn, in 2019, some people showed up in protest arguing that nude bodies should not be painted in an area with children.

Mr. Pumo, 62, a lawyer in Brooklyn, said he thought such complaints blurred the distinction between nudity and sexualization. “This is not a sexual event,” he said as an artist painted his bald head during this year’s festivities. As he spoke, another model with delicate white flowers painted on her limbs ate from a Sweetgreen takeout bowl.

Body art is probably among the oldest art forms, said Bella Volen, an artist and gallery owner who teaches body-art history as part of a training program led by the World Bodypainting Association. Temporary paint has been used to commemorate rituals and rites of passage by the Kayapó tribe in Brazil, by Aboriginal people in Australia, by several tribes in Africa and by Native Americans.

Throughout the 20th century, body painting became more commercial as some began to use it as an expression of freedom or provocation. In the 1960s, the artist Yves Klein instructed women coated in blue paint to press themselves against canvases in front of a live audience. Women with painted bodies began appearing in the pages of magazines, including Playboy, Sports Illustrated and Vanity Fair, which featured Demi Moore with a suit painted over her nude body on a 1992 cover.

Paints used at the event came in saturated shades that looked like the colors of Gatorade.Amir Hamja/The New York Times
People paid $100 to have their bodies painted.Amir Hamja/The New York Times
Mr. Golub, who was introduced to body painting in 2007, said he liked the practice because of the extended conversations it could prompt between artist and model.Amir Hamja/The New York Times

The practice’s many adaptations — and its commercialization — can easily veer into the territory of being appropriative, said Fred Myers, a professor of anthropology at New York University who specializes in Indigenous groups in Western Australia. “You’re taking something on yourself as a kind of play which for other people are very serious parts of their identity,” he said.

Alex Barendregt, the director of the World Bodypainting Association, which has been holding its own festival in Austria since 1998, said that some of its members had criticized Bodypainting Day for treating body painting more as a spectacle than an art form.

The event in Austria, the World Bodypainting Festival, is organized as a competition: Artists submit portfolios and compete to win prizes in different categories. Bodypainting Day typically has not chosen artists based on their work, instead basing the decision on the reasons artists give for wanting to participate. (The artists at Bodypainting Day, unlike the models, were not charged to attend.)

Mr. Golub said he had been told many times that his event was a publicity stunt. But Bodypainting Day has always been more about creating a communal, artistic environment than showcasing work of the highest quality, he added.

Veronika Eber, 18, a first-time participant at this year’s event, said she had never painted a body before. She attended Bodypainting Day to broaden her skill-set before beginning her studies in art at Carnegie Mellon University this fall.

Veronica Eber, a first-time participant at this year’s event, joined in as a way to broaden her skill-set before starting her studies in art at college this fall.Amir Hamja/The New York Times

Ms. Eber said she enjoyed the challenges posed by an unfamiliar canvas: “It’s so much harder because you have to keep in mind the curvature of the human body,” she said

She used a narrow brush to trace triangles across the torso of Catherine Stein, 70, a first-time model at this year’s event. “I thought I would be more inhibited,” said Ms. Stein, who lives in New York and works at an arts organization. “It’s such a body-positive experience.”

Once all the models’ bodies had been painted, the colorful group walked to Washington Square Park, passing diners at outdoor tables and people waiting outside of a veterinary clinic along the way.

Many of the event’s models showed off their painted bodies at a photo shoot in Washington Square Park.Amir Hamja/The New York Times

After posing for a group photo in front of a statue of George Washington on horseback, several models climbed onto the top level of a double-decker bus bound for Brooklyn, their body art slightly smeared by hugs and hours of wear.

Among them was Ms. Barischoff, who by then had a pair of hands painted around her midsection, along with the eye on her chest. She, like many models, had attended past installments of Bodypainting Day, and she said that one of her favorite parts of the event was surprising people in a city where many think they’ve seen it all.

“That it’s the last one is still kind of shattering,” she said. “I love being somebody’s ‘only in New York’ moment.”

“Photographer Wants Us To Pay $1000 To Train Him”

“Photographer Wants Us To Pay $1000 To Train Him”

Making sure you’re appropriately compensated for your time and craft is always important. You might generously agree to volunteer or provide discounts for friends and family on occasion, but once someone demands payment from the person doing them a favor, the only thing they’ll be getting is a harsh reality check.

Below, you’ll find a story that an equestrian recently shared on the Choosing Beggars subreddit, detailing her recent experience with an entitled photographer, as well as some of the replies readers have left her.

This equestrian and her expert trainer agreed to help a photographer learn more about capturing horseback riding shots

Image credits: FoToArtist_1 (not the actual photo)

But once he demanded payment, he was in for a harsh reality check

Image credits: Wavebreakmedia (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Flimsy-Field-8321

Later, the equestrian shared the email that she sent to the photographer in response to his demand

Photographers typically invest huge sums of money into their training and education

Photography, in general, is not an easy field to break into. With seemingly countless different styles of shooting and over 26,000 professional photographers in the United States, it can be challenging to become an expert and book lucrative gigs. So it’s understandable for professionals to want to expand their skill sets and learn about various styles, but this can’t often be done for free. Depending on where photographers decide to study and how comprehensive their education is, courses can cost anywhere between $125-$2,500. And if a photog wants to earn a degree, they might end up paying around $50,000 per year at a private university.

While an expert in the field can earn up to $66,000 a year, equestrian photography can be a particularly difficult niche to break into, because the average person is not very knowledgeable about horses or horseback riding. That’s why it’s best to seek information from the experts, such as Shelley Paulson, professional equine photographer and author of The Quick Start Guide to Equestrian Photography. Paulson’s book includes information about understanding horse behavior, knowing how to work safely around horses, preparing horses and riders for sessions, discovering the best poses, capturing the connection between horses and riders and more. It’s one thing to shoot photos of consenting humans who understand what’s going on, but ensuring that the horses feel as comfortable as possible is a whole other ballgame.

Equestrian photography, in particular, can be a challenging niche to break into

Image credits: Jean van der Meulen (not the actual photo)

Lauren Aubert at The Plaid Horse has also written a Beginner’s Guide to Great Equine Photography, where she details the importance of experimenting with exposure, shutter speed, ISO and aperture. She explains how a fast shutter speed will capture a quick moment of action, such as a horse jumping or galloping, while a slow shutter speed can be better for still shots and dimly lit environments. Aubert also recommends photographers experiment with different locations, angles, disciplines of riding, etc. to find their own niche within equestrian photography. “Perhaps you do not want to photograph action, but would like to specialize in horse and rider photoshoots,” she writes. “In the wide world of equestrian photography, there is a place for everyone!”

According to the experts at Horse Nation, it takes more than just skill to be a great equine photographer. It’s also best to have a passion for horses. This helps photogs relate to their clients, understand how their subjects (the humans and horses) are feeling, and makes the whole experience more enjoyable for all involved. It also takes time to become an expert, so upcoming photogs must understand that patience is involved, especially in the beginning. It can take many hours of practice and experimentation to learn what really makes a great shot. 

And of course, networking and being a lovely person is always helpful. “Connections are everything in the horse world,” Kaylee from Kaylee Wroe Photography told Horse Nation. “They are what open the doors for you. Make friends with the people you want to work with, but be genuine about it. People can sniff out fake from a mile away. And do the right thing for the industry too. Undercutting other photographers won’t make you many friends.”

Clients are often notorious for demanding free services from photographers, rather than the other way around

Image credits: Lina Kivaka (not the actual photo)

When it comes to this particular photographer feeling entitled to payment when an expert equestrian is doing him a favor, it seems like the tables have turned compared to many of the posts that pop up on the Choosing Beggars subreddit. It’s a common theme for influencers, engaged couples and more to demand free or discounted work from professional photographers, so one would think that this man would understand the value of properly compensating artists and experts for their time and effort. If anything, he should be paying the trainer for her time and guidance as an investment in his future as an equine photographer.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this situation in the comments below, pandas. How would you have responded to the photographer if you were in this woman’s shoes? Have you ever experienced something similar in your line of work? Then, if you’d like to read another Bored Panda article featuring shockingly entitled individuals, look no further than right here!

Readers called out the photographer in the post’s replies, and the equestrian chimed in on the conversation

Conder, CVB looking into adding bluegrass sculpture in community

Conder, CVB looking into adding bluegrass sculpture in community
County Commissioner Larry Conder and the Daviess County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau is looking into have a new sculpture made that depicts a mandolin and a child playing the violin. They said the sculpture would welcome travelers into the community, tough they haven’t finalized a location.

7 acts to see at the 2023 Newport Folk Festival

7 acts to see at the 2023 Newport Folk Festival

Three words, music lovers: Newport Folk Festival. It’s go time, baby. From Bob Dylan going electric in 1965 to Joni Mitchell’s triumphant resurrection in 2022 and countless moments in between, no music fest consistently delivers historic and/or magical moments like the fest by the sea. With dozens of artists on multiple stages over three days, it can feel overwhelming. So if you’re one of the lucky ones to have tickets to the sold-out Fort Adams event July 28-30, fear not: I’m here to help. Here are seven artists you can’t miss.

Know that Newport bills their schedule as “rolling” and notes it’s “subject to change.” For example, Massachusetts native Jonathan Richman just dropped out, so take note if you eyed that; meanwhile, M. Ward is a recent add-on, as of July 22. Another tip: You can now download a Newport Folk app for iPhone and Android, which will help you be certain to catch these acts.

Goose

What Phish is to Vermont, Goose is to Connecticut: homegrown cow-funk. The quintet’s star isn’t just rising — it’s skyrocketing, here to fill the Dead & Co.-shaped hole in your heart. The jam-groove band played Newport last year, but has matured so much since then, I have a feeling they’ll set the stage on fire. Goose (not to be confused with Brooklyn’s Geese) quietly hatched circa 2014 at the Berklee College of Music. It spread its wings around 2019 with a stellar set at the Georgia Peach Festival, and is suddenly soaring. Raw natural talent tightened into a well oiled, jam machine. Know that the crowd’s not booing, they’re chanting “Goooose,” similar to those “Bruuuuuce” chants at a Springsteen show.

Rick Mitarotonda, Peter Anspach, Trevor Weekz, Ben Atkind and Jeff Arevalo have solid originals, but it’s their ear for unexpected covers that ooze a Phish playfulness: Paul Simon’s “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard,” Spoon’s “Inside Out,” The Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin,” David Gray’s “Please Forgive Me.” I’m hoping they break out Fatboy Slim’s “Praise You.” Fire. July 29


The Harlem Gospel Travelers

If you watch HBO’s “The Righteous Gemstones” and gape in awe at the mastery of their soundtrack, The Harlem Gospel Travelers are the band for you. Note to executive producer Jody Hill: You need to use “God’s in Control,” “Keep On Praying” and “Oh Yes He Will” next season. Religion doesn’t matter when it comes to good gospel — you feel this music in your bones and soul. Get ready to jump, dance and sway those arms in the air. July 30

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Billy Strings

Incendiary. The skater kid and flatpicking supernova is the new face of bluegrass. Equally adept at psychedelic space jamming, or channeling Doc Watson or Bill Monroe, equally at home jamming with Grateful Dead alum Bob Weir or Bill Kreutzmann, or covering Ralph Stanley. The Grammy winner’s guitar picking is second to none, but it’s his voice that slays me. It feels lifted from a 1930s bluegrass band. Pure “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” vibes. The 30-year-old hailed as a “Bluegrass icon” by NPR, he’s a tattooed jam-grass prodigy who will have you dancing, hollering and clapping like you’re at an old-school barn-burner. I could listen all day. July 30

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Peter One

This is One’s Act 2.

The 67-year-old native of Côte d’Ivoire just released his solo debut album “Come Back To Me,” marking his triumphant return to music. He now makes his Newport Folk debut some 30 years after becoming a star in his home country. Listen to “Birds Go Die Out of Sight,” “Staring Into the Blues” or “Cherie Vico” for solid examples of his unique bilingual blend of Afropop/French chanson and American folk/blues.

Born Pierre-Evrard Tra, One grew up with a love for American folk, like Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and Simon & Garfunkel, according to his website. He eventually played for stadium-sized crowds. With Jess Sah Bi, he released “The Garden Needs Its Flowers,” in 1985. The duo sang in French, English and Gouro touring Togo, Benin, Liberia and Burkina Faso. They played for presidents and first ladies; their “African Chant” was used by the BBC to soundtrack Nelson Mandela’s release from prison in 1990, according to his website. In the mid-’90s, due to an “uncertain political situation in Côte d’Ivoire,” One emigrated to the U.S., eventually landed in Nashville, and for years worked as a nurse. Then, in 2018, “Our Garden Needs Its Flowers” was rereleased, earning major buzz. He rocked SXSW and the Grand Ole Opry. July 28

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Maggie Rogers

Rogers crushed Newport in 2019 — I especially loved her cover of John Prine’s “Angel From Montgomery” — and I can’t wait to see her back at Fort Adams. This being her first Newport since festival legend Prine died in 2020, I’m hoping for more Prine covers. Her own material, of course, is stellar. She might have the crowd dancing with songs like “Want Want” off her 2022 album “Surrender,” for example, or swaying in dream-haze with ethereal vocals on softer songs, like “Light On” or “Back in my Body.” Tip: if you’ve never seen her jump onstage with Dead & Co. for a rollicking “Friend of the Devil” and goosebump-inducing cover of The Band’s “The Weight,” watch now. I had to hit replay about four times. This is the kind of magic that Newport does so well — those spontaneous duets, singalongs and collaborations. I’m hoping she surprises us at Newport. July 28

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Jason Isbell

Aside from being a fun Twitter follow, Isbell is a consistent fest standout. The four-time Grammy winner and five-time Grammy nominee is, of course, known for rocking with his band, The 400 Unit. But his Newport duets with unexpected artists always blow my mind — from rocking “Ohio” with the late great David Crosby and “Wooden Ships” with Croz and Amanda Shires (Isbell’s wife), to joining Lukas Nelson, Jonathan Wilson and Warren Haynes for powerful covers of Crosby, Stills & Nash’s “Find the Cost of Freedom” and Bob Dylan’s “Masters of War.”

Fun fact: he’ll play Bill Smith in Martin Scorsese’s upcoming star-studded adaptation of journalist David Grann’s bestseller “Killers of the Flower Moon,” and of course stars as himself in the new HBO documentary “Running With Our Eyes Closed.” Oh, right. He’s also one helluva songwriter. NPR called his 2023 album, “Weathervanes,” “a masterclass in character study and storytelling.” July 29

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Tommy Prine

Prine’s a hidden gem on the festival’s website, not listed on the main schedule page, so I want to highlight him here. The son of the late legend and Newport Folk favorite John Prine, Tommy is Newport royalty. He made a stunning fest debut in 2021 — before his first album was even out. He’s since married his childhood sweetheart Savannah, and a few weeks ago, released a stellar debut album with “This Far South.” He’s got his own distinct sound and voice, but with his dad’s sensibilities to the bone. Must-listen: “Reach the Sun.” His camp tells me he’ll play the Foundation Stage. July 30

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And a few more:

Welp, I said I’d give you seven, and I’ll keep my word, but if I could round out a dozen…

  • Jon Batiste: A Newport Jazz and Folk Fest fave, “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” bandleader always puts on one heck of set. July 29
  • Lana Del Rey: A major pop name, there will be Lana fans who go to the fest just for her. July 30
  • Black Opry Revue: What started as a website is also a touring movement. Founded by Holly G in 2021, according to BlackOpry.com: “Country and roots music have been made and loved by Black people since their conception. For just as long, we have been overlooked and disregarded in the genre. Black Opry is changing that.” When they hit the road, they’re called Black Opry Revue. Listen to an NPR interview here. July 30
  • My Morning Jacket: Led by Newport regular Jim James who never disappoints. July 28
  • John Oates: Yes, that Oates, sans Hall, with Guthrie Trapp. July 29