We have just received the final result of the 8th Salon International Photo-Phylles – 2015, Bordeaux, France, world wide contest. Salon Chairman Jean-Jacques Milan informed us, they received 2386 images from 26 countries around the world. Based on the judges decision and their scores, two of my wife’s images, “Foxtail Barley” and “Columbine” and two of my images, “Cranes among the Corn Field” and “Reed Geometry” were selected for the exhibition and those will be published in the Exhibition Catalog. The exhibition is open from April 21 – May 31, 2015 in the Botanical Garden of Bordeaux, France and from June 7 – June 14, 2015 in Minizan, France. The Awards ceremony will be on May 19, 2015 at 6 PM in the Botanical Garden of Bordeaux.

#708 PERLAKY, Laszlo : Reed Geometry: Observing and photographing the vegetation at the French Lake area at Wichita Mountains National Wildlife refuge, Oklahoma, USA, I found this reed like marsh plants in the shallows of the lake. I moved around and I was impressed with the beauty of the reed geometry. I captured the moment.

#711 PERLAKY, Laszlo: Cranes among the corn field: During winter, thousands of Sandhill cranes stay at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, U.S.A. After roosting in the ponds, they fly to feed to the cornfields. They are always alert and watching for coyotes or other danger. We slowly walked on the dirt road and watched the birds from a distance, and tried to find a good spot, where we can photograph their feeding, communicating behaviour. The feeding cranes slowly walked between the lanes, picking seeds from the plants or from the ground. However, few cranes always were alarmed, looked around, and when the watchers picked up few seeds, other cranes looked around and watched for danger. We were impressed with the beauty of the red hooded grey birds, and how did they blend into or became visible in the cornfield.

#714 NEMETH, Alexandra: Foxtail Barley: We searched for moose at the Snake river flood area at Grand Teton NP, Wyoming, early morning, when the Sun was low. We slowly walked on the dirt road when we saw these Foxtail Barley patches nearby. The wind gently moved the heads and they were sparkling in the backlight. I captured the moment.

#715 NEMETH, Alexandra: Columbine: We hiked and photographed scenery and wildflowers at Silver Jack area, near to Courthouse Rock, Colorado. This columbine was in a dark area; the trees behind it provided a dark backdrop while the morning sun hit the flower.

Comments from e-mails and Facebook:

• Congratulations! Very exciting. (Geoffrey Koslov)
• You two are ROCKING it!! (Dion McInnis)
• fantastic! (Nathalie Brouard)
• Nice Laszlo, Congrats to you both (Steve Sherman)
• That’s terrific. Congratulations you two. (David Mann)
• Great!! Congrats (Dr. Robert Davis)
• Congratulations Laszlo, that’s amazing and fantastic! (Dr. Stacey Berg)
• Nagy-nagy gratulacio mindkettotoknek a Bordeaux-i sikerhez! (Dr. Horvath Gyozo)
• Hi dad, that’s great news – congratulations! love d (Daniel Perlaky)
• Congratulations!!! (Eva Kapus Talbot)
• Congratulations for a job well done! Best wishes. Bill (Dr. Bill Dewey)
• Congratulations! (Dr. Susan Blaney)
• Wonderful, Laslo and Lexi!!! (Sally Stubbs)
• Wow! Congratulations on such a prestigious award! This shows that you and your work are truly worthy of worldwide recognition. Of course, to those of us who know you, we aren’t surprised, we know your work speaks for itself. And by this global recognition, your friends are right again!  Congratulations to both of you! See you soon! Ron & Georgia (Ron Fontenot)
• Hi Laszlo and Lexi, Congratulation, I wish I lives closer to Bordeau to go and check it out.. Cheers, Nathalie (Nathalie Brouard)
• Wow guys, that is really great! I hope you can make some monetary gain from this! (I mean in local print sales). at any rate it is pretty prestigious company you are keeping! ciao Marie (Marie Curtis)
• Weeeeeee. Such brilliant news! (Marti Corn)
• Congratulations! Thanks for sharing. (Sharon Hanzik)
• More wonderful news for you and Lexi! What a dynamic duo you two are!!! Congratulations, Charlotte (North Valley Art League)
• Congratulations to you both. Beautiful photos. Anna Dell (Anna Dell Williamson)
• Wow. Congratulations to you both. Bill (William Burychka)
• You really are doing well, you two. Congratulations. (Louis and Emilce Vest)
• Laci!!! That is outstanding, superlative, supercalifragilistec – hugs and congratulations to the both of you. Do pass on my best wishes to Lexi. I am so proud to call you friends. Plus, I am even more proud of the beautiful framed picture you gave me at my retirement party. It is a gift I treasure with all my heart. (Dolores Bertrand)
• Great!! Congrats (Dr. Robert Davis)
• Best of luck to you. (Sarah Wasserman)
• It just keeps getting better! Again, congratulations!!! Al Iverson (Ivy Optics)

The 8th Annual International Color Awards 2015 Winners and Nominations Photo-show is online from 8 PM (GMT) / 3 PM (EST) Saturday, April 18th, 2015. (more info) (winners)

One of Lexi’s images, “Punk Caterpillar” in the Nature category and one of Laszlo’s images “Dried Dance” in the Still Life category were selected for “Nominee” Award and one of Laszlo’s images “Cranes in the Corn Fields” was selected for “Nominee” and for “Honorable Mention” Awards in the Wildlife category.

Dear Laszlo, CONGRATULATIONS on being a Winner at the 8th Annual International Color Awards. 7,358 entries were received from 79 countries and your work received a high percentage of votes overall. Certainly an achievement, well done! (INTERNATIONAL COLOR AWARDS | www.colorawards.com 324 S. Beverly Drive, Suite 266, Beverly Hills, CA 90212 | 310-499-4230) 

For eight years International Color Awards has been committed to bringing you world-class Juries selected from the most influential names in the industry. The Color Awards is recognized around the world as the most renowned body of its kind, dedicated to honoring the highest achievements in color photography.

Members of the awards jury pool are invited annually to review the entries and make their nominations. Images are judged on the basis of artistic merit, originality, subject and style.

THE JURY:

• BONHAMS – New York, Heather Russell, Director of Prints and Photos
• THE GUARDIAN – London, Bridget Coaker, Photo Editor
• DB AGENCY – Milano, Daria Bonera, Founder
• HOT DOCS CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL – Toronto, Charlotte Cook, Director of Programming
• CHRISTIE’S – Paris, Jonas Tebib – Photographs Specialis
• FRIEZE – London Lauren Wetmore, Curator
• WHITECHAPEL GALLERY – London Christopher Aldgate, Head of Exhibitions
• ARDMORE ADVERTISING – Belfast, Larry McGarry, Creative Director 
• CONTEMPORARY ART SOCIETY – London, Fabienne Nicholas, Head of Consultancy
• ART BEATUS GALLERY – Hong Kong
• GUP MAGAZINE – Amsterdam,Katherine Oktober Matthews, Online Editor
• EYESTORM – London, Angie Davey, Creative Director
• CLAIR GALERIE & ART MANAGEMENT – Munich, Anna-Patricia Kahn, Owner
• CONTEMPORARY BY ANGELA LI Angela Li, Director
• GALERIE ERNST HILGER – Vienna, Ernst Hilger, Founder
• OPIOM GALLERY – Alpes-Maritimes Eve Janprasert, Director 
• GALERIE CLEMENS GUNZER – Zurich, Clemens Gunzer, Owner
• BFI – London, Heather Stewart, Creative Director
• FRIEZE – London, Lauren Wetmore, Curator
• EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL Diane Henderson, Deputy Artistic Director
• SIERBEELD IMAGEMAKERS – Nijmegen, AB SIER, Owner 
• ERIC FRANCK FINE ART – London, Augusta Edwards, Director

COMMENTS FROM E-MAILS AND FACEBOOK:

• LOS ANGELES April 22, 2015 – Amateur photographer Laszlo Perlaky of USA was presented with the 8th Annual International Color Awards Honorable mention in the category of Wildlife and  Nominee in the category of Still Life at a prestigious Nomination & Winners Photoshow webcast Saturday, April 18, 2015. The live online gala was attended by over 8,000 photography fans around the globe who logged on to watch the climax of the industry’s most important event for color photography. 8th Annual Jury members included captains of the industry from Christie’s, Paris; Frieze Art Fair, London; DB Agency, Milan; Clair Galerie, Munich; Edinburgh Film Festival; Art Beatus Gallery, Hong Kong; Gup Magazine, Amsterdam; and Eyestorm, London who honored Color Masters with 541 coveted title awards in 33 categories. “It is an incredible achievement to be selected among the best from the 7,358 entries we received this year,” said Basil O’Brien, the awards Creative Director. “Laszlo Perlaky’s “Cranes in corn field,” an exceptional image entered in the Wildlife category, represents contemporary color photography at its finest, and we’re pleased to present him with the title of Honorable Mention.” INTERNATIONAL COLOR AWARDS is the leading international award honoring excellence in color photography. This celebrated event shines a spotlight on the best professional and amateur photographers worldwide and honors the finest images with the highest achievements in color photography. www.colorawards.com

• CONGRATULATIONS! Both images are just amazing! Well done! (Ron & Georgia)
• Way to go!!! Congratulations to both of you. (Kathy Adams Clark)
• Congratulations! Very cool. Dion (Dion McInnis)
• Wow, that’s a big deal! Great job! Love, Gergo Perlaky
• Congratulations!!!!! I want to tell you and Lexi how much I loved your presentation at HANPA! It was so inspiring! Thank you once again for sharing your “inner peace” and knowledge. Mary Anne
• Congrats to you both !! SS. (Steve Sherman) Real Photographs are Born Wet
• Wonderful….. Congratulations, both of you…. Milton (Milton Finegold)
• Nagy orommel olvastunk ujabb sikereitekrol, oszinte szivbol gratulalunk hozza! (Horvath Gyozo)
• Fantastic!! Congratulations to both of you. Wow! Jerry (Jerry Brown)
• Congratulations Laszlo and Lexi! (Laura Rossi)
• Laszlo….Many congratulations to you and Lexi ! Beautiful work ! Eleanor (Eleanor Brown)
• Congratulations to both!!! (John and Phyllis Freeman)
• Big Congratulations to you both for sure!!! Keep in touch! JB (JB Harlin)
• Congrats to you both.  Really like the cranes in the corn! (Bill Burychka)
• Congrats, (Juliana Ferrero)
• Congrats (Carol Miller)
• Congratulations Lexi and Laci (Bill Dewy Professor Emeritus of UCSF)
• That’s wonderful. I’m glad to see you two getting such well earned recognition. (Louis and Emilce Vest)
• Awesome great stuff – now Angie your turn 🙂 (Alan Sweeney)
• Gratulalok!!! Megerdemled! (Pungor Andras)
• Congrats you two! Really nice images! (Marie Messina Curtis)
• You guys are amazing. (David Mann)
• Congratulations (Bob Warren)
• Congratulations! (Al Iverson, Ivy Optics)
• Congrats to you both (Joe Aker, Aker Imaging Gallery)
• Thanks for sharing Laszlo! So cool! Take care, Carol (Carol Miller, Flutot’s Camera)
• That’s very great, congratulations! I’m completely buried in work and more work…love d (Daniel Perlaky multimedia design and creative direction)
• Those are two great images. Congratulations! (Joseph Smith)
• Congratulations Lazlo!!! (Joe-Anne White)
• Wonderful work!!!! (Julie Brook Alexander)
• Well deserved Lazlo and Lexie! (Frank Sherwood White)
• Congrats to you both! donna (Donna E Perkins)
• I am thrilled for you both. Wonderful news. Narinder (Narinder Sall)
• Great news; you and Lexi keep up the good work! (Rocky ((Rocky Kneten Photography)
• Big congratulations! Beautiful images! Deborah (Deborah Bay)
• Another great big WOW….Well deserved congratulations to you both and the images are super !!!! Mike Marvins (Mike Marvins Photography)
• Congratulations, Laszlo and Lexi!! I love both of your images. Charlotte (North Valley Art League)

We will have a table there filled with camera related goodies (4×5 large format equipment, tripods and heads, grab bags) and many more. Stop by if you are in Dallas on this Saturday. 

Saturday, April 18th: Doors open from 10-4pm at DCP

DCP will be full of photo gear for you to buy or trade. Expect to find the usual and the very unusual on 24 tables of cameras, lenses, lighting, bags, doodads. . . we’re not sure what will show up! With 18 vendors the range will be wide. We already know that one vendor will have film, film cameras, and Polaroids for sale.

If you’ve been a regular to the swap meets that Don’s Camera has been putting on for decades then you know we haven’t had one in a while. We’re glad to break the dry spell. If you’ve never been to a photo swap meet now’s the time!

We still have a couple of tables available if you have some gear you want to sell. You know, like all those camera bags you bought trying to find the perfect one.

• Doors open at 10am and close at 4pm.
• Ticket price is only $3 online until April 17, $5 cash at the door
• Kids 12 and under get in free
• Plenty of free parking on Algiers St.
• Vendors who have rented tables will park in the rear entrance on Iberia
• Google map link for 4756 Algiers, 75207

Notes, comments:

• Friendly atmosphere, many people at the small DCP Studio area. We met old friends from previous camera shows and other friends who just visited the swap meet.
• I hope we can participate again.

This writing is a copy of the Houston Audubon Society (HAS), Houston Audubon Nature Photography Association’s (HANPA)  website announcement: “(by Laszlo Perlaky) Perhaps seven years ago, one of my friends who specialized in large format photography talked with me about large format photography, introducing me to the magic of lens and camera movement, and I began using tilt-shift lenses for my digital photography. That was a nice experience, but I missed something. My friend and I continued discussing more and more about the advantages of large format photography, mostly from a technical point of view. Finally, after a year of hesitation and much serious discussion, I felt I was ready to dive into it. Lo and behold, my wife surprised me with a carefully selected large format camera! While I was happy with it, I didn’t know at the time that this fine instrument would completely change my vision. I made several hundred fine negatives with extremely high resolution. The results were fine art prints that showed detail and depth — on black & white, of course. Previously, I wished to have everything and when I finally arrived at the fields and waited for the sunrise, I was not relaxed. I was still filled with the remnants of the daily grind from the previous week. However, something special happened to me during the past years. I finally became relaxed more and more and I started seeing the world around me differently. I even focused on nature differently from before. I began pre-visualizing my never-seen images and saw more images when I was alone with the upside-down and reversed orientation 4″x5″ or 8″x10″ image on the camera’s ground glass. I would talk with my image. I tried to make it work within my storyboard. I would tell my story and the image replied to me generating a special connection and binding. The camera’s dark cloth separated me and my image from the disturbing surroundings and this slow, precise, and intimate image-making process opened my heart and cleared my mind. When I finally clicked the shutter and captured the image, I felt inner peace. I was happy. If everybody could feel similar to what I experienced, we would all be large format photographers. We would all be able to change the world around us, perhaps giving inner peace and happiness to all hearts.”

“Laszlo Perlaky is a Baylor faculty member at Texas Children’s Cancer Center during the week and a photographic artist on the weekends. He born and raised in Hungary and came with his family to Houston, TX in 1990. After 20+ years of black and white photography, he has transitioned to the chrome medium, and then the new technology helped him to rediscover the monochrome, combining large format film photography with fine art photographic printing. He has won several prestigious awards, published and exhibited his work on art festivals, group and solo exhibitions. He is member of the New England Large Format Photography Collective (NELFPC), several national and international photographic organizations, past Print competition Vice President of the Houston Photographic Society, photography instructor at Houston Center for Photography and Houston Photography Study Group and leads his Naturalperl workshops. Websites: Naturalperlart,  HCP webpage.“

“Houston Audubon Nature Photography Association (HANPA) is an informal photo club for Houston Audubon members. Meetings are held September through May on the third Wednesday of each month at 7:00 PM in the Edith L. Moore Sanctuary headquarters library.”

Comments from e-mails and FaceBook:

• Dad, I really enjoyed reading that blurb. I’m glad that you are getting so much joy from photography and that you and mom are both able to share that experience! Love, Gergo (Gergo Perlaky)
• I wish we could make it, Laszlo. Should be most interesting. Milton (Milton Finegold)
• I know it will be great Laszlo. Regards, Joe (Joe Aker, Aker Imaging) 
• Nice Laszlo! I hope you aren’t getting too much violent weather, although it sometimes makes for good pix! Marie (Marie Curtis, Curtis Studio)
• Congratulations Lazlo! You are everywhere these days! A good thing! Jo-Anne (Joe-Anne White and Frank White, Frank Sherwood White Photography)
• I loved reading about you and your conversion to large format and the peace and joyful experience it has brought to your photography. That you actually pre-visualize your images is impressive. You make me want to experience large format! Who knows…… Charlotte (Charlotte Bryson, North Valley Art League, Carter House Gallery)
• I want to tell you and Lexi how much I loved your presentation at HANPA! It was so inspiring! Thank you once again for sharing your “inner peace” and knowledge. Mary Anne (Houston Audubon Society)