We’ve linked quite a few times to pieces written by photographer Asim Rafiqui, who posts regularly on his indispensable blog The Spinning Head. We unfortunately haven’t posted much about his work though. So when he wrote me this week with the great news that his project The Idea of India, which previously was awarded the Aftermath Project grant in 2009 and received Blue Earth Alliance support the same year, was just honored with a Fulbright Scholarship, I had to share here. Rafiqui will be based for a year in New Delhi, India with this support and will continue to produce new chapters for his ever expanding project. I went through a few of the essays and pulled out some of my favorite images. These pictures show the intensely rich and unsentimental texture of a nation so often photographed in cliche. I think this is a beautiful accomplishment and the essence of what makes this project and Rafiqui special.

It is great and inspiring to see interesting and important projects getting the support they deserve. And it is at least one good sign that there are photographers and supporters (grants, programs, publications) out there willing to develop long term and less-than-obvious projects. One of the first pieces I read by Rafiqui that set me off into thought was his series “What Ails Photojournalism”, which I wrote about here on Dva in March 2009 in the post What Ails Us. Rafiqui is putting his time and energy where his mouth is, and is proving that there are some outlets, however hard to track down and gain the support of, for big idea and revolutionary projects. And thats terrific, I hope we see more.

The Aftermath Project is working on publishing it’s next book, War is Only Half the Story, vol. 3, and the organization needs your help. Each print run costs about USD$20,000. Now, you can buy a print (warning: pdf link) to help fund the publication of the next volume. Prints are available from Ami Vitale, Davide Monteleone, Rodrigo Abd, Saiful Huq Omi, Donald Weber, Asim Rafiqui, Louie Palu, Andrea Bruce, and Sara Terry. The prints aren’t cheap, starting at $400, but they’re beautiful and help support the funding of future long-form journalism. The book is an interesting project, as well. The new volume will feature the work of the 2009 Aftermath project winners and finalists. Sarah Terry, director/founder of Aftermath, describes the book in more detail:

Our annual book is a central part of the Aftermath Project’s mission to help educate the public about the true cost of war and the real price of peace. It is distributed free to a broad audience, including every US senator; journalism and peacebuilding programs; and museum curators around the world. It is also available on our website, www.theaftermathproject.org.

(via Donald Weber)

• Banjo extraordinaire Danny Barnes (I don’t know his music) has a great essay on “How to Make a Living Playing Music,” and he might as well be writing about making a living taking pictures. He starts “if you are a very materialistic person, skip this article, i don’t think you are going to like what it says.” The article is partly philosophical–don’t gossip, avoid people who talk about gear, “all the trouble in the world is going to come for you in two ways. the things you say, and the things you agree to do. be very careful about these items.”–but mostly practical–”the main business strategy is to build your own audience,” “don’t be afraid to do other things to make money in the short term,” and
  

  “be totally square on your taxes. render unto caesar that which is caesar’s. if you try to fudge on this, it will come back to bite you every time. get receipts for everything, 1099 everyone no matter what, unless they are a corporation.”

  The whole thing’s a fascinating insight into what allows a successful musician to keep doing what he loves, and has many parallels to photographers working on a career.

• Kenneth Jarecke’s “2009 – Year of Transition” has a great analysis of what 2009 meant to many freelancers. He explains why he turned down editorial work (a first for Jarecke), talks about new strategies for distribution, cogently analyzes the havoc caused by editorial layoffs and how it will affect the future, and the stupidity of photographers signing “work for hire” contracts for $1200 a day with big clients.
• PDN talks with the Aftermath Project jurors to find out “What It Takes To Win An Aftermath Project Grant“
• Joerg Colberg’s excellent “We’re all Zapruders now (but that doesn’t make us journalists)” examines what it means when everyone has a camera and how that’s different from journalism.
  

  “I don’t ever recall hearing or seeing anyone describe Abraham Zapruder as a “citizen journalist”. He was seen as what we was: A chance bystander who happened to have a camera (and use it) the moment the American president was shot and killed.”

  The piece ends with strong argument for what society stands to lose by getting rid of professional journalists.

• Magtastic Blogsplosion surveys many perspectives on upcoming tablet devices and what they may mean for magazines in “The revolution to come.”
  

  “The industry also wants to avoid the newspaper dilemma – publishers were so excited to give away their content for free in the early days of the web, that there was no thought to an industry business model – and the toothpaste is proving difficult to push back into the tube.”

  And check out Magtastic’s collection of groups using the newspaper format in innovative ways in “What Newspapers Did Next” and “What Newspapers Did Next (2).”

• The New York Times covers big media companies’ likely plan to begin charging for online content in “Adding Fees and Fences on Media Sites.” Among the problems faced by the old guard,
  

  “It is the established media, with their legacy of high operating costs and outdated technology, that face this problem. Leaner, newer online competitors will continue to be free, avidly picking up the users lost by sites that begin to charge.”

• PDNPulse talks with the Wall Street Journal photo department and examines how the newspaper’s attitude toward visual journalism has changed under Murdoch. PDN reports: “The good news for photography is that our editor, Robert Thomson, is a very visual person,” says Jack Van Antwerp, the paper’s photography director. And while you’re at it, check out the Wall Street Journal’s 2009 Year in Photos, which includes many friends.

The Aftermath Project: Grant Deadline: November 3rd.

We’ve already had this listed in the Dva Calendar for awhile now but Mary Virginia Swanson, on her blog ‘Marketing Photos with..’, just put out a nice invocation to apply for the grant and recognize of the work of the Aftermath Project’s founder Sara Terry (who was previously mentioned here on my post about the Blue Earth Alliance competition).

So, let this be your final reminder: DEADLINE NOVEMBER 3rd.