This is a special issue for PhotoMedia. As we enter our 16th year of publishing, we also return to the field of event production with World in Focus, a three-day event that is sure to be the Northwest's biggest photo event since our own PhotoMedia Expo from 1993 to 1996.

After a year of intense preparation and fast-paced living, all of the components are in place and ready to roll. Slated for June 6-8 in Seattle, the event will bring the photo community together for an exceptional program of education and inspiration...

As it does once every two years, our editorial focus this issue returns to studio photography. As we researched stories focusing on individuals and the industry, it became clear that these photographers, regardless of their specialty, have one thing in common: They make photos rather than just take them.

The photographers we present in these pages are masters of premeditation with an obsession for detail. From concepts to completion, they use time-tested skills as a foundation for cutting-edge lighting, exposure and post-production techniques. Without exception, they inventively capture their clients' desires on film, and often deliver much, much more.

Our thanks to all the featured photographers (and their staffs) who cheerfully cooperated in presenting their work...

This is an issue I’ve been looking forward to since last summer. While on a nature photography road trip from Seattle to Grand Teton National Park, I stumbled on a photo gallery in Jackson Hole, Wyo. It was a Sunday night, so the gallery was closed, but I was transfixed by the photos displayed inside. I was heading back on the road early the next morning, so would not have a chance to enter the gallery, but I grabbed a courtesy catalog from a dispenser outside the door.

Continuing on my trip, the memory of those photos stayed with me. As I looked over the catalog along the way, I knew we had to share those photos—and this photographer—with our readers. One of the highlights of this issue on nature and wildlife photography has been getting to view more...

This issue started out with a focus on travel and location photography. As we began talking to location and travel photographers to research stories, we learned that many are focusing on portrait photography on location.

Technically, portraiture overlaps into several of our general themes, including location and studio photography. But more and more, portraiture offers location photographers a new source of income. And, more and more portrait photographers are facing new demands to photograph subjects out of the studio, on their subjects' home turf. To explore this trend, we've focused this issue on people and places. We hope you'll enjoy what's in store...

Travel photography is often perceived by the public as a glamorous profession in which the photographer has the opportunity to experience the world in an atmosphere of spontaneity, curiosity and adventure.

Many of us grew up with National Geographic, and the impressive and dramatic photographs of exotic cultures in distant locations no doubt inspired many to take photography more seriously, and perhaps even enter it as a profession...

Since our spring issue, several events have drawn my attention to a phenomenon that has been intensifying dramatically for the last five years or so: the news media’s tendency to sensationalize stories. Whether it be the downfall of a celebrity, a senseless shooting, or a natural disaster, all segments of the news industry seem to be embracing these stories with zeal.

We are living in the age of the big story, and each new story seems to get bigger than...

It was with much trepidation that we prepared for our biannual fall photojournalism issue of PhotoMedia. We've somehow had rather uncanny timing these past few years, coming out with the issue in the midst of some of the biggest news stories of our day, which have served to illustrate our positions effectively.

In 1997, the passing of Princess Diana and the resulting focus on the behavior of the paparazzi provided the controversy. In 1999, the shootings at Columbine High School was the big story, shifting our attention to local communities and the potential for tragedy in everyday situations...

Once every two years, we revisit the subject of exotic travel photography, which is perceived by many as one of the most glamorous of specialties for a photographer. Ah, the excitement of discovering foreign countries and exploring their fascinating cultures with a camera – and even making a living while doing it! Of course, for someone with the desire, the “traveling” part of that equation comes far easier than the probability of a livelihood.

Making competent and inspiring images while abroad doesn’t automatically translate into a market for them. The photographer must not only have the passion for their explorations...

In January, I was pleased to attend the North American Nature Photography Association's (NANPA) 10th Anniversary Summit in Portland, Ore., for the first day of their four-day event. My experience there would set the tone for this issue of PhotoMedia, which is devoted to nature and wildlife photography.

About 700 attendees from across the continent (and some from overseas) made the pilgrimage to the summit, and it quickly became clear that everyone there had something very much in common. At first, I couldn't quite put my finger on it. The atmosphere at the trade show was upbeat, although many of the photographers present expressed concerns about...

As I write this, Photokina, the world’s largest biennial photo technology exposition, is being presented in Germany to almost 100,000 attendees. Notably, the manufacturers exhibiting are placing the emphasis on “prosumer” equipment, while new product introductions in the professional category are at a minimum. As the economy continues to stagnate, the industry is appealing...