Instagram is a lot of things: a photography app, a social network, a way to express yourself and a cause for headaches for the photographers who aren’t trilled by the concept. For the most adamant of Instagram users, however, Instagram is a community.

And it’s that community that filmmaker Paul Tellefsen sought to connect with when he chose to create the above short documentary Instagram is. Read more…

Hipstamatic has seen better days. Ever since Instagram came along and stole its thunder by offering filters for free, the app hasn’t had the same following it once did. But the company isn’t going to take this lying down. After having to fire several core employees last August, Hipstamatic is bouncing back by debuting a new social networking app called Oggl. Read more…

We know that the Instagram community is alive, well, and more than 100 million strong, but until today, we had never heard of an Instagram meetup. Called Instameets, it seems that these meetups have been happening all over the country for a while now; and for a recent Instameet in Santa Monica, Instagrammer Ravi Vora decided to put together a mini-documentary to chronicle the experience. Read more…

Are you a Canonite who’s sick of hanging out in the same forums as photographers who pledge allegiance to other brands? If so, that’s kinda sad — why can’t we all just get along? — but Canon has something new that’s perfect for you. The company has just launched its own official online forum, giving photography enthusiasts a new place to “ask questions, get answers and share experiences with peers.”
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Everyday People is a photo project for Oklahoma newspaper Tulsa World by photographer John Clanton. The goal is to meet one new person in the community every day of the year, create a portrait of them, and display the image along with a short blurb about who they are. Clanton writes,

Looking at the 2012 calendar and trying to imagine getting a portrait every single day seemed daunting before I started. Photo Editor Christopher Smith and I refined the idea through several conversations at the end of last year. We picked a consistent, vertical composition, always using a 50mm lens and decided that the discipline of looking for a picture every single day was of utmost importance. I’m not allowed to stockpile pictures and then release them on a different day.

I’m not looking for people who stand out in a crowd. The majority aren’t famous or in positions of power. They’re just Everyday People, like me. They are your neighbors, your co-workers, your kids’ teachers, the guy who prepared your food or the people you drove past on your way to work. They are people who love their work or live for their past-times. They are people with plenty to say or just enough time for a picture. Through these portraits I’m getting to know the city.

Everyday People [Tulsa World]

Thanks for sending in the tip, Mark!

Brooklyn-born and bred art cooperative United Photo Industries have a treat in store for any and all photography enthusiasts who happen to find themselves in New York between June 22nd and July 1st. In partnership with many different galleries, vendors and national institutions, United Photo Industries is putting together a photographic village it’s calling Photoville — and it’ll be made almost entirely out of shipping containers. Read more…

This video shows a social experiment in which disposable cameras were left unattended in various public locations with a simple message: “Take a Photo”. Hidden cameras were stationed nearby to observe how people responded to the cameras, and to provide some behind-the-scenes footage to how the various photographs were captured.

You may have heard that the Canon 5D Mark II has been used to film an episode of “House” on FOX. Now NBC is using a 7D for an upcoming Christmas episode of “Community”. On Thursday, Dec. 9th, 2010, they’re going old school and doing a Rudolph-esque claymation epsiode. Check out these behind-the-scenes videos and you’ll see a Canon DSLR and lens being used.
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Kodak made the surprising announcement today that their Chief Marketing Officer Jeffrey Hayzlett is resigning on May 28th to “pursue personal projects.”

Hayzlett recently authored a book on his experiences with marketing and brand-building, called The Mirror Test: Is Your Business Really Breathing?, which he has been actively promoting on a tour and Twitter over the last few months.

Hayzlett, who has been with Kodak since April 2006, is known for his accessible public presence, especially on Twitter. Though Hayzlett was often criticized for his over-sharing, strong persona via social media, he said that sharing his knowledge, especially about his use of social media as a tool, is key to his success in bringing Kodak back into the public eye.

The CMO has more than 21,000 followers, and has used the social media site to engage with customers, sometimes with literally biting exchanges. In an interview with the Huffington Post, Hayzlett said:

“I’ve had in the corporate world my public relations, community relations people walk up to me and say Jeff, I don’t think this is appropriate that you wrote “Bite Me” to this guy. I look at them and I go, well that’s who I am. The guy said something very offensive, he had no right to say it, I’m sorry. They say well please be nicer, so now I write “Please Bite Me”.

Kodak says Hayzlett will be involved with the company through August as he transitions out.

Even as Hayzlett is leaving, Kodak is sticking to developing its online presence by launching a new photo sharing website, Kodak Moments.

Photos and videos, along with captions, can be uploaded to the interactive community site. Users then tag the photo with a certain emotion. User-submitted photos can be browsed by emotion, and other viewers can tag them with emotions they feel in response. The site also has “Moments,” which are official events by Kodak, such as the Burton US Open, Celebrity Apprentice, and the People’s Choice Awards.

Kodak Interactive Marketing Manager, Mike Mayfield said that images uploaded will be displayed in email newsletters, marketing, Times Square Billboard, and other marketing outlets.

Some photographers may be uneasy with uploading, since the rather broad Terms of Service currently states:

In consideration of acceptance of my submitted photo, video and/or story (“Contribution”) as part of KODAK Moments, I hereby grant Kodak, and others with Kodak’s consent, the right to edit, copy, distribute, publish, display and otherwise use the Contribution for purposes of the KODAK Moments program without attribution, consideration or compensation to me, the photographer, my successors or assigns or any other individual or entity.

Mayfield responded to the concern, saying:

Kodak has great respect for the rights and use of images we receive. Images submitted to the KODAK Moments website will only be used in the context of promoting the KODAK Moments program. The language in the terms of service stating it could be used for any advertising or publicity is an oversight and we are correcting the terms so that language is removed. We have received some wonderful submissions and if we do decide we would like to use those images outside of the KODAK Moments program, we will reach out and obtain permission from the photographer before doing so.

So it sounds like Kodak still has to hash out some legal jargon, but at least they’ll ask your permission before running specific photos in their ads, albeit possibly without attribution.

(via PDN)

Today, the New York Times’ Lens blog posted the end result of a global photographic project. “A Moment in Time” is an interactive collection of all the images taken May 2, 2010 at 15:00 U.T.C. by the Times’ readers all over the world. By May 4, the Times estimated they had 14,000 images, and were still accepting submissions until May 7.

After what must have been a titan task of accepting and sorting thousands of submissions, uploading, checking and rechecking captions, not without some technical glitches, the Lens Blog has a very impressive portrait of the world.

The images are roughly sorted by geographical region, as well as category, though there is no way to find one specific photo or photographer without a direct link to the picture. If you can’t find the one you took, the Lens editors say that they are still processing more images to be uploaded to the site this month.

Nevertheless, the interactive interface is pretty enjoyable to browse through. There are some interesting recurring themes in regional photographs, like a collection of images of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, or intimate photos of peoples’ bedrooms, morning coffee, and sunsets.

(via Lens)