The Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin has acquired the archive of photographer Arnold Newman.

Newman, who died in June 2006, was recognized as a master of environmental portraits taken in the subjects' personal or professional surroundings. His work includes images of such 20th-century luminaries as Lyndon Baines Johnson, Pablo Picasso and Truman Capote.

The archive spans the late 1930s to the current decade...

Citing construction in the neighborhood, as well as the proliferation of galleries showing and selling photographic works, Guy Swanson has closed his Photographic Image Gallery in Portland, Ore., after nearly 23 years. Swanson will teach a class for artists at Portland Community College, and has teamed up with Cherie Hiser to do seminars, workshops and portfolio reviews...

Although the official film of the execution of Saddam Hussein stopped short of his actual death, viewers around the world were privy to his final seconds thanks to an enterprising Iraqi citizen with a cell-phone camera.

Baby boomers may remember Dick Tracy's wristwatch/camera/phone, but few of us really expected to see them on a daily basis in schools, convenience stores, ball games and everywhere else people gather.

Video produced via cell phone has found a perfect outlet...

At the suggestion of the News Media Guild's health and safety committee, the Associated Press will fund a $20,000 study of pho-tographer and videographer injuries that will serve as the basis for an injury prevention program, the guild reported on its web site.

Surveys conducted by the guild over a six-year period revealed that photographers and videographers, who make up 10 percent of AP's workforce, accounted for approximately 40 percent of the company's reported injuries. Nearly two-thirds of the respondents...

The Stock Artists Alliance (SAA), an international association of stock photographers, has voted to expand its mission to address the business interests of all professional stock photographers. Previously, SAA limited its purview to the licensing of rights-managed images.

SAA's board of directors proposed the amendments to the association's bylaws to recognize the evolution within the current membership. The changes, the directors claim, will strengthen the association and increase its influence in the industry. SAA holds that the best business models for photographers are those that manage usage and protect intellectual property.

Last year, an SAA survey of its members revealed...

In the second week of this year, officials at Time Inc. announced that the company would be laying off 289 employees, including four staff photographers. That number represents nearly 3 percent of the company's total workforce.

Although the publisher did not disclose the personnel choices at individual magazines, nearly one-third of the lost jobs are reported to be among administrative and business staff, and the rest will encompass editorial and photographic employees at magazines across the company's library. Many of the company's titles have contracts with the Newspaper Guild, which requires that guild members...

The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles has opened a suite of galleries devoted to photographs, expanding its current photo exhibition space from 1,700 to 7,000 square feet.

The Center for Photographs features a redesigned entrance by Getty Center architect Richard Meier that is approached through a courtyard featuring 20th-century works from the Fran and Ray Stark Sculpture Collection. The sculptures will be unveiled...

Beginning with the fall term, New York's School of Visual Arts will offer a Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in digital photography. The new one-year degree program addresses the technical needs of experienced photographers who wish to advance their skills in digital image capture, management and production.

The required curriculum for the MPS degree comprises nine three-credit courses and a six-credit summer thesis project.

The program will be chaired by Katrin Eismann..

In a campaign to launch its latest European models, automobile manufacturer Ford has chosen the unusual tactic of commissioning brochures that contain no photographs of the vehicles. Instead, the company is using computer-generated images of its cars, produced by 3D technology firm ARTVPS, based in Cambridge, England.

Computer-generated images of vehicles on location...

Getty Images has established a rights-ready licensing program with a simplified pricing structure.

Under the new program, duration and territory rights are unlimited, and use parameters are broadly defined. Eight fixed fees have been set, according to basic commercial, internal-company and editorial-use categories, at levels comparable to corresponding rights-managed, single-use categories. Although image exclusivity is not granted, a total image buyout...