“He says he went to look beyond the destruction itself in the hope of finding visuals that manifest the power of the wave.”

Environmental photographer James Balog photographed the tsunami devastation. His conversation with Lisa Mullins of The World can be heard here.

In Paris, the city of lights, you are going to have to think twice about photographing the Eiffel Tower. This isn't some half-baked French attempt to ape the New York City MTA. No, this is pure capitalism at work. This is copyright law run amuck. Lights out!

If you are in the least bit interested in the history of photography, you should check out the books Brooks Johnson, curator of photography at Chrysler Museum of Art has published over the years.

Photography Speaks I & II contain biographical information and an original statement from each photographer, accompanied by an example of their work. Photography Speaks I and II were enthralling. Now comes III.

If I were to find some fault in this series, it is that the photographers are largely from the West. But that, I admit, can be seen as petty given that photography is an invention of and from the West. Thoughts?

Shana Dressler is back from a trip to Bombay where the world's largest festival honoring the Hindu god Ganesh takes place every year.

I find her photographs are full of punchy colors and the people in them expectedly full of vigor but oblivious of her presence. The images establish a sense of place, time and mood so effortlessly.

The series of images from the Ganesh festival will soon be a part of a mult-media installation that Shana is producing. She says, “The project was made possible by the support of a film grant from Eastman Kodak Professional and the Indian Tourism Bureau of New York.”

Via Melissa Lyttle

Women photographers present their take on beauty at Beyond Compare.

Here is French photographer Brigitte Lacombe's striking portrait of Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi.

The site is sponsored by Dove. “Dove's hope is that this work will increase the number of women who take great care of themselves and who feel truly beautiful every day.”