Tiffinbox

Parsis

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Via Tamina Davar

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Screenwriter and photographer Sooni Taraporevala has launched a much awaited second edition of her popular book “Parsis – the Zoroastrians of India”. Taraporevala is known for her work on movies such as Such A Long Journey, My Own Country and Salaam Bombay, all graphically rich features. She is currently working with director Mira Nair on an adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's book, The Namesake.

“A twenty-four year labor of love, PARSIS is the first visual documentation of India's Parsi community, followers of the world‚s first prophet Zarathustra, and the oldest monotheistic religion, Zoroastrianism. Professional photographer and award-winning screenwriter Taraporevala offers a rare insider's view of how the Parsis, whose ancestors sailed from Persia to India over 1,000 years ago to save their religion from persecution, survive today as a religious and ethnic minority of India.

UNESCO recently celebrated 3,000 years of Zoroastrianism, once the religion of the Persian Empires. Greatly influencing other major religions, Zoroastrianism‚s followers once numbered in the millions. Today Zoroastrians worldwide – including Parsis – are thought to be on the verge of extinction. Yet the community has produced many leaders and artists, include world-renowned conductor Zubin Mehta; the late rock legend Freddy Mercury; and award-winning author Rohinton Mistry, who are documented in the book. The first edition, published in 2000 in India, sold out within several months. Taraporevala's photographs – and written essays and interviews – offer a vivid window into this community of intense contradictions and continuing endurance.”

The book is on sale at Amazon.com and the Asia Society. Please support this wonderful project.

PixelPress

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Via Melanie Light

“At PixelPress our intent is to encourage documentary photographers, writers, filmmakers, artists, human rights workers and students to explore the world in ways that take advantage of the new possibilities provided by digital media. We seek a new paradigm of journalism, one that encourages an active dialogue between the author and reader and, also, the subject.”

Fred Ritchin's PixelPress is a gold mine for documentary photographers. Touching photo essays such as this one by photographer Theo Rigby bring poignant context to a war gone bad. If you have a body of work that you want to see published, send Prof. Ritchin a note.

Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin

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Want to see fashion, art and celebrity photography collide? Check out the work of the Dutch duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin. Their work is now being compared to that of Richard Avedon and Irving Penn. So, they are hot!

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I'll be honest with you. Matadin's Indian sounding first name drew me to their photography; not the other way around. I have to confirm a desi connection here, though. Regardless, doing a casual Google search taught me a great deal about this prolific couple. They truly mix it all up. They have curated photo exhibits, created a special portfolio for the New York Times, worked with a slew of designers and collaborated with a number of other different types of artists.

Caesorship 101

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Via Mediabistro.com

You may not know the name Gary Trudeau. But it is quite likely you know his cartoon strip, Doonesbury. Well, the strip is unabashedly anti-Bush/Cheney.

Needless to say I am huge fan as I find his quality of satire to be really top notch. But apparently divergent viewpoints have no place in the American psyche. The comic strip which felt the ire of Republican readers in several newspapers across the country had already been dropped for his portrayal of the bungled war in Iraq. Now this. Toe the party line, or you will get dropped like a hot potato (or is that “potatoe,” Mr. Quayle?)

Despite what Dubya says about bringing the country together, I am afraid, very afraid of things to come.

Hold on a second, someone is knocking at my door …

Newton’s Apples

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Thanks to Sree Sreenivasan for introducing me to Joshua Newton, a Cochin-based blogger, writer and a photographer.

While Mr. Newton wears three hats (or more), what's special about him is that he excels in all three. Truly gravity defying!

His blog is a sheer pleasure to read. It's not just his wit or his command of the English language, but also his sense of style that is very impressive. Take this recent post for example. I loved the way he ended it.

I recommend you subscribe to his webfeed as I have. You may just learn something new, in a new and interesting way.

See, Shoot + Show

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Unlike so many photographers who parachute into a wedding for 8 hours (because their contract says so) and produce the most banal of images, what I am trying to do is to pursue photojournalism at weddings; to visually narrate events on a very special day for two people or two families that will be cherished forever.

If I seem preoccupied, I am. I have been honing my wedding photography skills. One way to do so is to shoot as many weddings as possible. At the end of November, I will be photographing a wedding engagement. I hope to be photographing a wedding in Los Angeles in early December. Then beginning in May of next year, as the wedding season takes off, I hope to be on my toes all the time. If you know of anyone looking for a wedding photojournalist, have them email me please. I would be happy to help them out. And I do pay a referral fee of $100 when my services are contracted.

I am also reaching out to those who are seasoned professionals in this very special genre. I'll be in Philadelphia on November 17 and 18 to attend The Foundation Workshop called “See, Shoot + Show: The Unforgettable Image.” The workshop will be held in Atlanta, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon. Joseph Victor Stefanchik and Huy Nguyen will be leading these workshops. If you are in or near one of these cities and are interested in wedding photojournalism, do check it out. The cost is $250 (if you pre-register). This shorter workshop is sponsored by the Wedding Photojournalist Association.

Both Stefanchik and Nguyen also offer a four-day course that runs from February 14-17 in Dallas, Texas.

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