The jury of the 2019 edition named the photographer and photojournalist Raghu Rai, laureate of the first edition of the Academy of Fine Arts Photography Award – William Klein.

The Academy of Fine Arts Photography Award – William Klein was created in 2019 by the Academy of Fine Arts in tribute to William Klein, photographer, painter, visual artist, graphic designer, director of documentary, advertising and fiction films.

As a consecration award, this prize is intended to reward a photographer for his/her entire career and commitment to photography. It rewards one photographer of all nationalities and ages. Endowed with the sum of 120,000 euros, it is awarded every two years, alternating with the Photography Award Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière.

An exhibition retracing the career of the photographer will be held from October 24, 2019 to November 24, 2019 in the exhibition space of the Academy, at the Palais de l’Institut de France.

The jury of the 2019 edition :

• Laurent Petitgirard, Perpetual Secretary of the Academy of Fine Arts, co-chair

• Zhong Weixing, founder of the Chengdu Contemporary image museum, co-chair

• William Klein, Honorary Member

• Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Bruno Barbey, Jean Gaumy, Sebastião Salgado, members of the photography section of the Academy of Fine Arts

• Jean-Luc Monterosso and Bernard Perrine, correspondents of the photography section of the Academy of Fine Arts

• Alessandra Mauro, curator

• Alberto Anaut, president of PhotoEspaña and director of La Fábrica.

Born in December 1942 in Jhang (British India – current Pakistan), Raghu Rai qualified at civil engineer, started photography at the age of 23 in 1965. He joined The Statesman newspaper as their Chief photographer (1966 to 1976), and was then Picture Editor with Sunday – a weekly news magazine published from Calcutta (1977 to 1980).

In 1971, impressed by Rai’s exhibition at Gallery Delpire, Paris, Henri Cartier Bresson nominated him to Magnum Photos of which he is still a partner today. In 1982, he took over as Picture Editor-Visualiser-Photographer of India Today, India’s leading news magazine. He worked on special issues and designs, contributing trailblazing picture essays on social, political, and cultural themes of the decade (1982 to 1991).

In the last 18 years, Raghu Rai has exclusively devoted his work to India. He has produced more than fifty picture books on different aspects/life and themes on India : Delhi, The Sikhs, Calcutta, Khajuraho, Taj Mahal, Tibet in Exile, Mother Teresa and so on. His thorough work on the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy, a special assignment from Greenpeace International, was compiled into a book with 3 sets of exhibitions traveling from 2002 to 2005.

Many exhibitions have been dedicated to him around the world including retrospectives at Arles Photography Festival in 2007, at the National Gallery Of Modern Art of New Delhi in 2008 or whether at the Aicon Gallery of London in 2011.

He was awarded the Padmashree in 1972, one of India’s highest civilian awards ever given to a photographer, for the body of works he produced on the liberation war of Bangladesh and its refugees. In 1992 he was awarded Photographer of the Year in the United States for the story Human Management of Wildlife in India published in National Geographic. In 2009 he was conferred Officier des Arts et des Lettres by French Government. In 2018, he has been honored by Lucie Foundation, New York as Master of Photojournalism.

His photo essays have been published in many of the world’s leading magazines and newspapers. In 2012, Raghu Rai created the Raghu Rai Center for Photography to share his 50 years of knowledge and experience with the young generations.

Raghu Rai lives in New Delhi with his family and is currently working on his 57th publication.

Canon launched its next version of Cinema EOS System camera – the EOS C500 Mark II. It is created by expertise and technical knowledge by Canon’s innovative products, and built on the basis of Cinema EOS System, the EOS C500 Mark II is a small and easy to carry 5.9K Full Frame camera. The EOS C500 Mark II’s Full Frame sensor is powered by Canon’s new DIGIC DV 7 processor. Supporting 5.9K internal Cinema RAW Light and 4K 4:2:2 10bit XF-AVC recording, this camera enables professionals to explore Full Frame, cinematic image. It is the first camera in the range with the ability to record 5.9K Cinema RAW Light onto new, faster storage media and CFexpress card slots. Providing professionals with greater flexibility and efficiency and recording of the same file format is also possible to dual CFexpress card slots. The compact size of the camera provides cinematographers with unique creative freedom. With its flexible, modular design, professionals can configure the camera with different expansion units to suit production demand. The EOS C500 Mark II is the first Cinema EOS System camera to feature a user interchangeable lens-mount for EF Cinema Lock, and PL, giving professionals a wide variety of lens selection. It is also the first Cinema EOS System camera to support Electronic Image Stabilisation. The EOS C500 Mark II supports user LUTs, allowing cinematographers to apply or create their own LUTs. Loading them onto the camera for precise-look monitoring, cinematographers can also apply various LUTs for each time period. With the added LUT button, professionals have greater flexibility. The EOS C500 Mark II also includes high frame rate recording up to 50/60 fps in 5.9K resolution with the Cinema RAW Light codec.

Nikon recently announced the development of the Nikon D6 professional DSLR camera and the AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR telephoto zoom lens.

Nikon released the D1 digital SLR camera in 1999, making 2019 the 20th anniversary of the single-digit D series. According to the company, thanks to the imaging know-how cultivated over Nikon’s long history in camera development, Nikon’s professional DSLR cameras have continued to evolve by introducing some of the industry’s most advanced technologies and responding to the strict demands of professional photographers with the ultimate in performance and reliability, even in the most severe conditions. With the D6, Nikon is currently developing its most advanced DSLR to date.

This year also marks the 60^th anniversary of the Nikon F mount. The new AF-S NIKKOR 120-300mm f/2.8E FL ED SR VR F mount lens that Nikon is developing will provide professional photographers in fields such as sports photography with even greater support, claims the company.

Nikon also says that it is striving to expand possibilities for imaging expression and leading the way in imaging culture with both DSLR and mirrorless camera systems, as well as a rich lineup of NIKKOR lenses. Details including release dates, pricing and specifications for these products will be announced at a later date.

Canon has announced two new cameras , one DSLR and one mirrorless with many similar features. The EOS 90D comes through the EOS 80D and features an upgraded sensor, 4K video recording and gets Canon’s Dual Pixel auto focus system. It will cost for Rs. 85,900 approx for just the body and roughly Rs. 96,600 for the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM kit and and Rs. 1,14,500 approx for the EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM kit. Canon also launched the EOS M6 Mark II, with the same primary features as the EOS 90D, but with an electronic viewfinder and more compact body. It will be available in two colours for Rs. 60,900 approx for just the body and Rs. 78,700 approx with the EF-M 15-45mm f3.5-6.3 IS STM and EVF-DC2 kit and Rs. 96,600 approx with the EF-M 18-150mm f3.5-6.3 IS STM and EVF-DC2 kit.

Both cameras have an APS-C CMOS sensor with a 32.5-megapixel resolution. The cameras also has Canon’s latest DIGIC 8 image processor which enables the Canon EOS 90D to shoot up to 10fps continuous stills, it is a big addition from the 7fps of the EOS 80D. It also has a 45-point, cross-type auto focus (AF) system, and 100 percent viewfinder coverage. The camera also consists of face detection mode. The camera looks almost same to the 80D. You get the DSLR-style hand grip, a alternative display on the top, and a vary-angle touchscreen display. The camera also has built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

The Canon EOS M6 Mark II is a mirrorless APS-C camera, so the body is a lot more smaller and is made for amateur photographers. It is able of shooting 14fps burst shooting, with AF and AE (auto exposure) tracking and 30fps when using RAW Burst Mode with pre-shooting capability. There’s an optional EVF-DC2 electronic viewfinder attachment, which is part of the bundle if you buy it as a kit. The camera also gets a 3-inch tilting touchscreen display with built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and can shoot 1080p video at up to 120fps.

Canon’s bunch of RF full-frame mirrorless lenses just increased by two lenses. The company announced the new RF 15-35mm f/2.8L IS and RF 24-70mm f/2.8L IS.

The new RF 15-35mm f/2.8L IS USM is Canon’s first f/2.8 wide zoom lens that includes image stabilization (IS). It features 5 stops of stabilization, edge-to-edge sharpness, a control ring, and drip and dust resistance. The lens will be available in late September 2019 with a cost of Rs 1,60,000 approx.

The new RF 24-70mm f/2.8L IS USM is equal in size to the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II, except it features 5-stop image stabilization. Other features and specs include focus breathing suppression during manual focusing, sensitivity setting during manual focusing, focus ring usage adjustments, and a customizable control ring (that can be assigned to aperture, shutter speed, ISO, or exposure compensation). The lens will be available in late September 2019 with a price tag of Rs 1,65,000 approx.