IPC Announces Leadership Award Recipients
Eight Professional Photographers to Be Honored at Award Luncheon in May
NEW YORK, NEW YORK. March 28, 2012—The International Photographic Council (IPC), a non-governmental organization (NGO) of the United Nations, is proud to announce the recipients of its 2012 IPC Professional Photographer Leadership Awards. The award recipients will be honored at the 14th Annual IPC Pro Award Luncheon, which will be held at the United Nations in New York City on Thursday, May 17, at 11:30 a.m.
As it does each year, the IPC Awards Luncheon kicks off “May, International Professional Photographers Month,” saluting professionals around the globe. “The winners, nominated by professional photography organizations, are chosen for best representing the groups’ criteria and ideals,” says IPC President James Chung.
For the first time, international editors-in-chief will be present to receive IPC Distinguished Service Awards: Machiko Ouchi, Pen News Weekly, from Japan; and Muzammil Izhar Siddiqui, Foto Line, Karachi, from Pakistan.
Award Luncheon Chair Andy Marcus, President of Fred Marcus Photography, will discuss “The World of Professional Photography.” IPC President James Chung will welcome the group. IPC Vice President Alice Miller, President of Plum Communications, will interview the honorees to determine what drives their passion for photography, how their businesses have adapted to change, and what they consider their “must have” photography products.
Eight associations have designated honorees for the 2012 IPC Leadership Award: American Photographic Artists (APA), American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP), Federation of European Photographers (FEP), National Press Photographers Association (NPPA), Professional Photographers of America (PPA), Professional School Photographers Association (PSPA), White House News Photographers Association (WHNPA), and Wedding & Portrait Photographers International (WPPI).
The 2012 IPC Professional Photographer Leadership Award recipients are:
• American Photographic Artists (APA): Michael Grecco
• American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP): James Cavanaugh
• Federation of European Photographers (FEP): Bernd Gassner
• National Press Photographers Association (NPPA): Yunghi Kim
• Professional Photographers of America (PPA): Louis Tonsmeire
• Professional School Photographers Association (PSPA): Ralph Romaguera
• White House News Photographers Association (WHNPA): Chip Somodevilla
• Wedding & Portrait Photographers International (WPPI): Jennifer Hudson
Michael Grecco has a platinum roster of advertising clients (NBC/Universal, GE, Pfizer, HBO, Kodak, ABC, IBM, Yahoo!) and editorial clients (ESPN, Wired, Time, Premier, Entertainment Weekly, Esquire, Maxim). Featured in photographic magazines, books, and gallery shows, Michael wrote the best-seller Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait: The Art of Celebrity and Editorial Photography. A frequent speaker, he serves as photo expert for KNBC News, and has been honored by International Photography, Photo Design, The AR 100, NY and L.A. Art Directors Clubs. Michael is APA National Vice President.
A recognized specialist in architectural, interior and aerial photography, James Cavanaugh serves a broad clientele of architects, engineers, interior designers, real estate developers, contractors, architectural product manufacturers and government agencies. Featured in Architectural Record, World Architecture, Rolling Stone, Business Week, Parents, et al., Jim teaches “Professional Business Practices in Photography” at Villa Maria College, Buffalo. He is a National Director of ASMP and its President.
Specializing in advertising photography, Master Photographer and Master Qualified European Photographer Bernd Gassner is the Federation of European Photographers’ first double master QEP. Bernd also serves as President of the Westphalian Professional Photographer Association, representative of the Central Association German Professional Photographers in FEP, and an FEP board member.
Photojournalist Yunghi Kim has covered major global conflicts since the 90s. She captured Somalia, Rwandan Genocide, War in Kosovo, Iraq War, Afghanistan, Hurricane Katrina and has documented the lives of former South Korean Comfort Women, post-Katrina reconstruction in New Orleans, children with autism, and Occupy Wall Street. Accolades include World Press Photo, Magazine Photographer of the Year, Olivier Rebbot & John Faber Awards/Overseas Press Club, Visa D’Or for News/Visa Pour L’image Festival, and White House Press Photographers.
A portrait and wedding photographer in Georgia for 30 years, Louis Tonsmeire earned his Photographic Craftsman and Honorary Master of Photography degrees during his 24 years as a member of PPA. He is an Approved Photographic Instructor, and has served on the organization’s Education and Convention committees, Affiliate School Task Force and Imaging USA Task Force. Through Professional Photographers of Georgia, he has served as a counselor and director of the Georgia School.
Since opening his studio with his wife and sons in 1971, Ralph Romaguera has earned his Masters and Craftsman degrees from PPA, won the Kodak Gallery Award 10 times, received Louisiana’s Master of the Year, PPA’s International Award and an ASP Service Award. Ralph lectures in North America, Europe and Asia and teaches at the Winona International School for Professional Photography, Florida School, Mid-America Institute of Professional Photography, et al. He represented portrait photographers on the Today show in a series about the 150 Years of Photography.
Chip Somodevilla was a photographer for the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and the Detroit Free Press before moving to Washington, D.C., where he worked as a freelance photographer for newswires and newspapers before becoming a Getty Images photographer. He was awarded the Political Photo of the Year and Photographer of the Year by WHNPA, University of Missouri’s Pictures of the Year International, and NPPA’s Best of Photojournalism. Chip’s work has been published in the Washington Post, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Time, and Newsweek.
A dynamic, soulful wedding and portrait photographer, Jennifer Hudson teaches Portraiture and Photographic Illustration at the Center for Digital Imaging Arts at Boston University. An international lecturer whose programs are sought by public and private photographic organizations, she recently completed “Baptism,” a narrative series exploring a young woman’s spiritual reincarnation, and plans to begin work on “Medic,” a series that will explore human relationships during illness and recovery.
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The International Photographic Council (IPC) is a multinational, non-profit, non-governmental organization (NGO) of the United Nations, composed of representatives from every major sector of the photographic industry. Founded in 1974, IPC is dedicated to increasing worldwide recognition of photography as a universal means of communication. IPC’s motto is “Peace Through Understanding, Understanding Through Photography, the Universal Language.”