Google Books: Ancient Photo of Jesus Found

While reading news about Google Books proposed copyright settlement, I decided to check out Google Books. On their home page are covers of various books and magazines including the tabloid, Weekly World News. That prompted me to recall a Weekly World News headline from the past, "Actual Photo of Jesus Found". Searching Google Books with the phrase, "actual photo of Jesus Weekly World News", bingo I found it.

The article claims that a photograph of Jesus had been found that was taken by a primitive Roman "camera obscura."

Since it is established that the first known photograph was taken in 1826 by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, it is a pure hoax to report that a photograph exists from Roman times. However the tabloid Weekly World News has never let facts stand in the way of a good story.

Just to see if Google Books could find high-minded material as well as low brow tabloid material, I searched for Eisenstein's Special Theory of Relativity and found the 1921 English translation of his work.

While writers and publishers debate the pros and cons of Google capturing and distributing their content, for the end user, Google Books provides a treasure trove of low and high culture to rummage through.

Gain by Sharing

Sharing costs can make photographing your projects more affordable. The community room pictured above belongs to an apartment complex that we photographed for the builder, the architect, and the property owner.

The typical costs of hiring a photographer for a project include the creative fee, assistant, travel costs, post-production costs, and the license to use those photographs for a specific use and a specific time period. Most often when a the project is a building or site there are multiple parties involved and all those entities may be interested in documentation of the work that they have done. All costs except for the licensing can be split.

These shared projects provide a great value to our clients as it allows some of the cost to be divided between them.

Even on a smaller budget, it is possible to have beautiful, high impact, professional photographs if two or more parties are interested in sharing the costs.

Books and Stained Glass

Originally part of a convent, this space was renovated to create a library for Princeton Academy. Photographing this library for our client, E. Allen Reeves was a challenge because it is a large space that is rarely empty. We were able to shoot during a lull in scheduled activities.

Autumn Ginkgos

Fall is upon us. Leaves are changing colors and dropping to the ground. While wandering the narrow streets of Center City Philadelphia near 11th and Spruce Streets, I shot these autumn ginkgo trees. Ginkgos are one of my favorite trees.

They are descended from very ancient trees and are one of the oldest types of deciduous trees. Their simple fan-like leaves have a simpler vein pattern than oaks or maples. Resistant to pollution, disease and insects, they thrive in urban environments. More information can be found at Wikipedia.

Modern Living

The above living room was photographed for Automatic Empire, a real estate developer that specializes in creating high-end residential spaces in Northern Liberties, Philadelphia.

Greg worked directly with the client to style the spaces to match their aesthetic.

Earlier this year we photographed another Automatic Empire project and showcased the kitchen and the innovative metallic exterior.