WICHITA, KAN. – A Kansas photographer entered into a consent judgment with the Office of the Sedgwick County District Attorney earlier this month.

The District Attorney’s Consumer Protection Division investigated Caitlin Payne of Derby doing business as CP Family Photography, after receiving several consumer complaints.

The District Attorney’s Office alleged Payne violated the Kansas Consumer Protection Act (”KCPA”) by deceptively advertising photography services using photographs taken by other photographers and failing to disclose to the consumers that the photographs were not her own.

As part of the investigation, the Consumer Protection Division received an additional complaint involving Payne sending a replacement photographer to a wedding while she was allegedly attending another event and failing to disclose the replacement lacked the skills to perform the contracted services.

While Payne denied intentionally violating the KCPA, she accepted a consent judgment to resolve the matter. The agreement calls for Payne to be liable for $30,000.00 in civil penalties, additional investigative expenses, and court costs while on a 48-month probationary period with the Consumer Protection Division. Payne will have to pay over $2,000.00 in restitution to two impacted consumers.

The consent judgment also calls for an injunction from engaging in deceptive or unconscionable acts and cooperation with any future complaints. Payne promised in future offers for photography services not to use photographs of other photographers unless they are clearly and conspicuously disclosed as only a style of photography that she is capable of reproducing.

The District Attorney reminded that “when hiring a professional for a service, you shouldmake sure to get the scope of work and all promises in writing. If you pay for the services in advance or make a deposit, make sure you understand if you are entitled to a refund in the event the professional fails to perform services or you need to cancel. When selecting a professional you should always research the provider, including on available websites such as the Better Business Bureau. If the professional provides references, be sure to verify they are  legitimate and ask for samples of work the professional has previously performed.

(CNN) — An image of a napping Polar Bear curled up on an iceberg is the winner of this year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award.

It’s called “Ice Bed.”

British amateur photographer Nima Sarikhani captured the image off Norway’s Svalbard Archipelago.

He said he hopes it inspires hope that there’s still time to reverse climate change.

More than 75,000 people voted in the competition, a record number. It was chosen from a shortlist of 25 images. Those were narrowed down from around 50,000 entries.

In addition to the winner, there are four finalists. All five images will be exhibited at the Natural History Museum in London through June 30.

A photographer spent five years traveling the world to turn the lens on amateur astronomers who have contributed to science.

Dan Homer visited stargazers across four different continents to take gorgeous black and white photos that document the environment of amateur astronomers as well as the citizen scientists themselves.

“The people I photographed are people who have contributed to research in some way,” Homer tells PetaPixel.

During the course of his project, which is currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter, he met Jack Newton whose research on supernova 2010O in Arp 299 led to him being granted time as an investigator on the Hubble Space Telescope.

“It’s all these people who are connected all over the world who contribute to research,” he says.

“Where they are [on Earth] is important because if they’re in South Africa or India or wherever, and a NASA telescope on the ground is on the opposite side of the Earth, these astronomers have a view of the object NASA wants to look at.

“The billion-dollar telescope is useless and these people who might have a $500 or a $1,000 telescope become valuable just because of their geography.”

Homer is from the U.K. but traveled to Canada, Australia, India, The Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and France for the project he calls Route de la Belle Etoile (Route of the Beautiful Star).

“Some of them live in the middle of nowhere [for the dark skies],” he explains.

“Trevor Barry in Australia lives in Broken Hill which is a frontier town; the last town before nothingness in the middle of Australia.

“You can drive to the end of the town in about 30 seconds but when you get there it just turns into desert.”

Homer says a lot of the people he met were of retriment age and had been inspired by the Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s which caused people to “look up.”

“To me, space is magic. It’s slightly surreal to think we’re sitting on this rock looking out into the cosmos and experiencing meaning as a result,” he says.

“That’s why I approached it in black and white, the various geographies I visited all over the world all look very different.

“The general background and the colors, the houses, or what people were wearing was so at odds.

“I think the black and white eliminated that a little bit which decontextualizes it and knits all these geographies together without them looking too different.”

Homer, who does not partake in astrophotography himself, says that he has spoken to scientists who confirmed that amateur astronomers make a “small but significant contribution” and have helped astrophysics meaningfully.

“They’re unpaid and they do it in their free time,” he adds.

Homer is crowdfunding to release the project as a book entitled Route de la Belle Etoile (Route of the Beautiful Star). His Instagram can be found here.

Image credits: Dan Homer

Disclaimer: Make sure you do your own research into any crowdfunding project you’re considering backing. While we aim to only share legitimate and trustworthy campaigns, there’s always a real chance that you can lose your money when backing any crowdfunded project.

A Look at the 2024 Sony World Photography Awards

This year’s Sony World Photography Awards attracted 395,000 submissions from over 220 countries, highlighting a variety of subjects and locations. The winning photographs, spanning from lush landscapes to poignant portraits, offer diverse perspectives from various corners of the world. Among the entries were captivating images: endless horizons merging with the sky, towering buildings reaching toward the moon, and serene faces evoking childhood nostalgia. These snapshots provide a glimpse into the varied array of photographs featured in the competition. Through this visual exploration, buildings take on distinct personalities, and human subjects find a seamless connection with the natural world.

image © Tran Tuan Viet, National Awards 1st Place, Vietnam, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards

Rewards and Exhibitions for Award Recipients

All recipients of the National and Regional Awards will receive Sony digital imaging equipment and will be featured in the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition and book. The overall winners across the Student, Youth, Open, and Professional categories of the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 will be unveiled on April 18, 2024, and their works will be showcased in the exhibition at Somerset House, London, from April 19 to May 6, 2024.

Discover the full list of winning photographers on the World Photography Organisation’s website here.

image © Lim Chien Ting, National Awards 1st Place, Malaysia

image © Ana Skobe, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia & Herzegovina Regional Award 1st Place, Slovenia

image © Yasser Alomari, National Awards 1st Place, Saudi Arabia

image © Ieva Lozuraityte, European Regional Awards Shortlist, Lithuania

Photography is a journey marked by constant learning and growth, where success is as diverse as the individuals behind the lens. Understanding how to accelerate this path to success while embracing the challenges is crucial for both aspiring and seasoned photographers.

Coming to you from Joshua Peg, this enlightening video shares Peg’s personal insights and experiences over the past year to illustrate key strategies for advancing in photography. Peg emphasizes the importance of relentless practice, having taken tens of thousands of photos to refine his skill set. Most of these images, he admits, did not meet his standards, highlighting a critical lesson: the journey to capturing those few exceptional shots is paved with countless attempts and failures. This process is vital for photographers to understand what works and what doesn’t in their craft. Peg’s approach underscores the significance of persistence and the willingness to experiment, even when doubts about the outcome exist.

Furthermore, Peg explores the concept of simplicity in photography, stressing the power of focusing on what to exclude from the frame as much as what to include. This principle has guided him to produce more impactful and focused images. Peg also discusses the evolution of his inspiration sources, shifting from tutorials to studying the work of other photographers to foster his creativity and define his unique style. This transition from emulation to innovation is a pivotal stage in a creative’s development, where finding one’s voice becomes the foundation of true success. Check out the video above for the full rundown from Peg.