Jurors for 2010

Photos and portfolios submitted for Lens Culture International Exposure Awards will be reviewed and selected by an esteemed jury of international photography experts.

Here are brief biographies of each of the jurors:

Stefanie Braun, (UK), is a curator at The Photographers’ Gallery in London (www.photonet.org.uk). After completing a degree in Visual Theories at the University of East London in 1999, Stefanie worked at Creative Camera magazine before joining The Photographers' Gallery in 2000. For the past six years, Stefanie has organized and curated the prestigious annual Deutsche Börse Photography Prize. Other curatorial projects include solo and group exhibitions of historical and contemporary photography, such as Danny Treacy: Them (2008) and André Kertész: On Reading. She regularly serves on international juries such as the ECB Award and Hyères Photo Festival, and is involved in portfolio reviews and lectures at universities and colleges.

Jim Casper, (France and US), is editor and publisher of Lens Culture (www.lensculture.com) since 2004, and founder of the Lens Culture International Exposure Awards. He participates in portfolio reviews around the world, curates shows, lectures, and writes about photography. Casper created the ongoing series of audio/video interviews titled "Lens Culture Conversations with Photographers", and is currently organizing Lens Culture FotoFest Paris 2010, a three-day conference of portfolio reviews in Paris attracting participants from more than 30 countries.

Stephen Mayes, (US), is Director of VII Photo in New York (www.viiphoto.com). He has worked at the top levels of photography for 25 years in the areas of journalism, art, commercial, and fashion — working as manager of Network Photographers; Chair of World Press Photo competition (including six years as Secretary); SVP at eyestorm.com; SVP at Getty Images; and Director of Image Archive at Art + Commerce. Stephen regularly writes and broadcasts on the ethics and realities of photographic practice. 

Kathy Moran, (US), is National Geographic magazine’s senior editor for natural history projects. A 29-year veteran of the National Geographic Society, Kathy has been producing projects about terrestrial and underwater ecosystems for the magazine since 1990. At last count, she has produced more than 160 stories for the magazine. She is a founding member of the International League of Conservation Photographers (ILCP) and serves on its executive committee and membership committee. Kathy is always on the lookout for new contributors for its natural history inventory.

Christopher Rauschenberg, (US), is an established photographer and author of several photo books. He is co-founder, co-curator and board chairman of Blue Sky Gallery (www.BlueSkyGallery.org) where over the last 35 years he has co-curated and co-produced 675 solo exhibitions and 47 group shows. He is also co-founder and past president of Photolucida (www.photolucida.org), a Portland photography festival. He is co-founder and a member of the co-op Nine Gallery and has edited and produced approximately 60 photography publications.

Sujong Song, (South Korea), Curator. Sujong Song started her career with GEO Korea in 1996, where she worked as Editor in Chief and director of photography from 2000 until 2004. Since then, her work has covered a wide range of fields in photography including publishing, editing, and organization of exhibitions. She was the symposium director of the Daegu Photo Biennale for both 2006 and 2007, the director of Seoul Photo Fair 2008, and curator of the Angkor Photo Festival and Ulsan Photo Festival 2009. In 2008 and 2009, she served on the jury of World Press Photo. Sujong studied Visual Culture in Korea University and is a board member of the Visual Culture Society in Korea.

Mary Virginia Swanson, (US), makes it her goal to help photographers find the strengths in their work and identify appreciative audiences in today’s marketplace. She is considered an expert in the area of marketing and licensing fine art. Swanson’s lectures and seminars on the subjects of industry awareness and marketing opportunities in the arts have proven to aid countless photographers in moving their careers to the next level. Swanson maintains a popular blog about opportunities for photographers and she is the author of The Business of Photography: Principles and Practices, which is available through her website: www.mvswanson.com. Swanson and co-author Darius Himes have recently completed writing Publish Your Photography Book which will be released early in 2011 (Princeton Architectural Press).

For complete information about the Awards (how to enter your photographs, deadline, etc.), go to: lensculture.com/awards.