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Rangefinder
Magazine
February 2003
Industry News
Tamron President Bruce Landau Dies
Bruce Landau, president of Tamron USA, Inc. died suddenly on December
19, 2002. He was 56. He is survived by wife Eileen; children Jason, Michael
and Jodi; father Irving; sister Fern, and granddaughter Emily. Landau
was a strong leader and inspiring personality in the photo industry for
more than 30 years. After a brief career as a teacher of mathematics,
Landau began his career in the photo industry when he joined Berkey Marketing
Companies in 1970. He was product manager of three Japanese companies,
one of which was, ironically, Tamron. In 1978, Bruce accepted the position
of national sales manager and advertising manager of Bogen Photo Corp.
In 1988, he was promoted to vice president of Sales and Marketing. He
was with Bogen until he came to Tamron and assumed the position of vice
president of Tamron USA, Inc. in August 1999. In January of 2000, he was
named president. The family has requested donations be made in his memory
to the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society.
Olan Mills Partners with PhotoTLC for Restoration Services
Olan Mills, a premier portrait studio company in the U.S. and England,
has selected PhotoTLC, Inc., to offer photo restoration services to Olan
Mills customers, initially as part of www.olanmills.com. Olan Mills chose
PhotoTLC after careful evaluation of competing photo restoration services.
The technology behind PhotoTLC, based in Greenbrae, CA, has been used
to restore over 220,000 photographs to date. Images are normally processed
in two business days or less, with no rush charges, and restoration, colorization
and changes to photographs are all included for a single fixed price.
Information: www.olanmills.com or www.phototlc.com.
 “Digital
America”
“Digital America: Capturing Life in the Digital Age,” a new
exhibition of digital photography, brings together images that demonstrate
the creative developments in photography stemming from the recent proliferation
of digital technologies. All of the photographers in the exhibition have
been shooting with digital cameras for a number of years and are at the
forefront of this new photographic field. This exhibition challenged them
to use their entire palette, from digital input to creative inkjet media
output, and to push the envelope further than ever before. Sponsored by
Olympus America Inc. and Pictorico Ink Jet Media, this exhibit features
the work of fifteen photographers—Jeff Dorgay, Douglas Dubler, Paul
Eekhoff, Paulo Filgueiras, Mark Garten, Al Gilbert, Michael Gilbert, Mark
Greenberg, Judy Herrmann, Randy Hufford, John Isaac, Greg Kinch, Stephen
Marc, Ian Macdonald Smith and Mike Starke. Digital America, which started
in San Francisco, will be in New York City from Feb. 10–March 15,
2003 at The One Club Gallery, 21 East 26th Street, New York, NY 10010;
and in Chicago (April 1–30) at the James R. Thompson Center, 100
W. Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60601. Visit www.pictorico.com for more
information.
Herb Ritts Dies at 50
Celebrity photographer Herb Ritts, died December 26, 2002 of complications
of pneumonia, according to Ritts’ publicist. The photographer was
50. Herb Ritts was best known for his stylish black-and-white portraits,
which helped define the image-conscious ‘80s and ‘90s. Ritts
became famous for shooting the stars at their worst, including actor Christopher
Reeve wired up and immobile in a wheelchair, and Elizabeth Taylor with
a crew cut and the scar resulting from her brain surgery. Ritts is also
generally recognized as popularizing the actor Richard Gere. Born in L.A.
in 1952, Ritz believed his pictures would endure, even as his subjects
faded from public awareness. He is survived by his mother, Shirley Ritts;
a brother, Rory; a sister, Christy; and his partner, Erik Hyman.
Bert Keppler Honored
Herbert Keppler, vice president and publishing director of Popular Photography,
will be honored for his outstanding contributions to the development of
the Japanese camera industry and the promotion of the understanding of
Japan. By the time this is in print, The Order of the Sacred Treasure,
Gold Rays with Rosette will have been bestowed upon Keppler (December
9, 2002) during a ceremony at the official residence of Consul General
of Japan in New York.
Paul Klingenstein Dies After Brief Illness
Paul Klingenstein, Chairman of Mamiya America Corporation and one of the
leaders of the post-WWII revival of the U.S. photo industry, died peacefully
at his winter home in Sarasota, Florida after a brief illness. After World
War II Klingenstein established Kling Photo Corp., which brought world-famous
German brands to the U.S. market, including Linhof, Arriflex, Minox, Rodenstock
and Gossen. In 1961 his firm merged with Berkey Photo. Kling Photo Corp.
was renamed Berkey Marketing and became the nucleus of Berkey’s
import and distribution business, headquartered in Woodside, NY. Berkey
Marketing Companies became the premier photo equipment distributor, expanding
its lines with acquisitions, including the U.S. distributor of Konica
Cameras, whose president, Henry Froehlich succeeded Klingenstein upon
his retirement in 1976. Klingenstein came out of retirement in 1988 and
with Froehlich re-established the U.S. arm of the Japanese camera maker
Mamiya, which once again became one of the most respected and popular
professional photographic camera lines in the country. In addition to
his wife of 56 years, Selma, Paul Klingenstein is survived by his son,
Dr. R. James Klingenstein of Newton, MA; his daughter, Irene Hess of Pittsford,
NY and four grandchildren.
RitzCamera.com Wins “Standard of Excellence” Web Award
RitzCamera.com has received the Web Marketing Association’s “Standard
of Excellence” Web Award for 2002. This prestigious award recognizes
a “standard of excellence that all corporate web sites should strive
to achieve, based on design, innovation, content, interactivity, navigation,
ease of use, and use of technology.”
Litman Wins Major Award
Each year the Professional Photographers Association of Canada recognizes
the best photographers in the association at its annual convention. Frances
Litman, a Victoria-based photographer with numerous international awards,
received the highly coveted Wedding Album of the Year Award at a prestigious
awards ceremony held recently in Toronto, in addition to a Masters Degree
of Photographic Arts. The Wedding Album of the Year award is given to
one studio/photographer per year in Canada. Earlier, Frances Litman also
received The Best Wedding Album in B.C. Award from the Professional Photographers
Association of British Columbia, as well as a Fuji Masterpiece Award for
her wedding photography. You can view Frances Litman’s work at:
www.franceslitman.com.
Foveon’s Technology Wins Pop Science Award
The new Foveon X3 image sensor has been chosen by Popular Science magazine
to receive the “Best of What’s New” Grand Award in the
photo category. Popular Science editors reviewed thousands of new products
and innovations for 2002 and chose just 100 winners in 10 categories for
inclusion in the December “Best of What’s New” issue.
To win a “Best of What’s New” award, a product or technology
must represent a significant step forward in its category.
Fuji Appoints VP of Corp. Communications
Fuji Photo Film U.S.A. has appointed Camilla Jenkins to the newly created
position of vice president of Corporation Communications. Jenkins will
be responsible for directing the design and implementation of Fujifilm’s
internal and external communications programs and oversee several functions
including public relations, corporate contributions and community relations,
financial relations, and environmental and safety affairs. Information:
(212) 704-8147, www.fujifilm.com.
Giant Pandas Celebrate Anniversary
Giant pandas Tian Tian and Mei Xiang recently celebrated the first anniversary
of their arrival at the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park.
The giant panda exhibit, named the Fujifilm Giant Panda Conservation Habitat,
will soon be expanded to include a large, new yard for the pandas designed
specifically to meet their preferences and to highlight the Zoo’s
giant panda research and education program. The yard will also be the
anchor of a major renovation at the zoo called Asia Trail. Information:
(202) 673-0209.
IPHF Still Accepting Bids on Retro Show Images
The International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum’s exhibition:
Retro Show 2002/20 Years of Photographers is entering the last month and
you still have an incredible opportunity to place your bid on one or more
of the 85 images up for auction benefiting the IPHF! All images are framed
and have been donated by the photographer for this fundraising event.
Almost all of the images are available at a minimum bid of $100! Visit
www.iphf.org to see the entire catalog. Bids will be accepted through
January 30th.
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