LAS VEGAS, Jan. 31, 2008 -- Attention college students; fame and fortune are just
a point, click and print away. The memories you are capturing today could be your
big break tomorrow.
Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX), along with FUJIFILM U.S.A, Inc., Adobe Systems
Incorporated and H&H Color Lab, is kicking off a nationwide photo contest
to find the best images captured by college students and presented in three
hot digital printing applications - personalized photo books, greeting cards
or calendars. The overall winner will be mentored and work side by side with
a renowned photographer at a Miami photo shoot and receive a camera valued at
$3,000.
Announced today at the 2008 Photo Marketing Association International Convention
and Trade Show in Las Vegas, MyShot08™ is free and open to all U.S. registered
college students, regardless of their major. It emphasizes the relationship
between photography and fast-growing consumer photo specialty applications.
"The contest is giving young people a way to liberate their digital images
from their computers and cell phones and make printed products that capture
their personalized memories," said Quincy Allen, president, Xerox Production
Systems Group. "We are hoping to open the eyes of talented college photographers
about how easy and fun it is to create these kinds of specialty products."
To kick-off the contest, Xerox is using the Web and popular social networking
sites along with a variety of promotional activities to get the word out and
attract interest and attention.
The Best of Show winner receives a day on location with professional photographer
George Kamper. With more than 25 years of experience in traditional and digital
commercial photography, Kamper's work has appeared in such magazines as Vogue,
Cosmopolitan, Rolling Stone, GQ and Travel and Leisure. The overall winner also
receives a Fujifilm infrared camera and a $500 print credit from H&H Color
Lab, a leading photographic and digital lab serving professional photographers
across the country. First, second and third-place winners will be selected in
each photo category and receive gift cards, Adobe® software and print credits.
"The MyShot08 photo contest is a great way to give college students the
opportunity to build their portfolio and gain valuable exposure and recognition
for their talent," said Kamper. "As a professional photographer, I'm
always looking for ways to help aspiring photographers succeed. This contest
will surely inspire this audience to explore new ways to showcase their work
and have some fun along the way."
Students will upload photos into one of the templates provided on www.MyShot08.com
and limited to one entry per each of the three categories. All entries need
to be submitted by March 31, 2008.
The panel of judges includes well-known professional photographers Kamper,
Jamey Stillings, Salem Krieger and Gina LeVay and industry print expert Jim
Hamilton, group director, On Demand Printing & Publishing, InfoTrends, a
leading industry research and consulting firm.
The contest will also have other categories and prizes including: the most
popular entry, voted on by Web users with the winner getting an Apple® iPod®
touch and a $250 print credit at H&H Color Lab. The college of the Best
of Show winner receives a $2,000 cash donation, Adobe software and a Fujifilm
S5 camera; and the college with the most entries will receive a $1,500 cash
donation, Adobe software and a $250 print credit at H&H Color Lab.
Each student will receive one free digital color print sample of their submission
for each entry, printed on a Xerox DocuColor™ 240 Digital Color Printer/Copier
by H&H Color Lab.
The MyShot08 Web site will also feature tips from the judges and sponsors on
topics such as: shooting for digital print, lighting tips, turning up the volume
on color, creating portraits with personality and how to make any photo better.
The PMA estimates that sales of photo books alone will grow 42 percent in 2008,
to $359 million, from $253 million in 2007. A recent study by InfoTrends predicts
the specialty photo printing market will grow at a compound rate of 24.5 percent
per year through 2010, reaching $800 million in revenues.
The launch of MyShot08 caps a steady stream of photo printing related announcements
from Xerox leading into PMA, including the launch of the new Xerox Picture Me
Profitable Kit, the Xerox FreeFlow Print Server with JPEG Plug-In, and the news
that Fujifilm U.S.A., Inc. has purchased iGen3™ 110 Digital Production
Presses for its Fujicolor processing labs.
Occupying adjoining booths at PMA (A101, B100, D100 and E100), Xerox and Fujifilm
are showcasing a wide array of products and services featuring Fujifilm's software
and photofinishing workflow integration services along with Xerox digital printers,
workflow and business development tools.
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