Enter Ozone Zone's Gala Fifth Anniversary Edition

The Ozone Zone International Photo Competition (OZIPS), initially originating in Canada, is run this year, once again, from Dominica as the host country. The jury of acclaimed local and foreign artists and photographers will select the winners from many international submissions.

OZIPS is one of most popular international photo competitions due to significant cash awards, very low entry fees, and high number of acceptances. Winning this Salon can help accelerate your photography career, and accepted images receive international exposure.

This is Salon's 5th Anniversary edition, with massive 216 awards and medals, and patronage of many top international photo organizations. Such patronage means that authors can receive prestigious international distinctions from PSA, RPS, IUP, GPU, MOL, and other organizations.

“We had a really hard task last year to select best images, and we had some beautiful winning works. We are always excited to see such remarkable works entered to our Salon.” - says Derek Galon, MA, FRPS, FOPS – head of the jury, and Canadian art photographer now living in Dominica. “This year, due to extra patronage and many more awards, we expect many more fine entries.”



Thanks to all for making your voices heard!

House Overwhelmingly Passes Bipartisan Legislation on Selection Process for Copyright Register

Washington, D.C. — The House of Representatives today approved by a vote of 378-48 the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act (H.R. 1695).  This bipartisan bill – introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) — makes important changes to the selection process for the head of the U.S. Copyright Office, known as the Register of Copyrights. ~ House Judiciary Committee press release, April 27, 2018

Pay attention, though. H.R. 1695 now moves to the Senate!

Stay tuned for more alerts as H.R. 1695 moves to the Senate. Be forewarned that it only takes one Senator to put a hold on the bill, so your continued support will be essential to protect our basic rights.

(via the Illustrators Partnership of America)

Artists and advocates should act now to protect the future of copyright!

Congress is considering a new bill to change the way the head of the Copyright Office is appointed. It scheduled for a Rule's Committee meeting today and will likely be voted on by the House in the next few days. From there it will move to the Senate.

Under the new legislation - H.R. 1695 - the Register of Copyrights would be nominated by the President subject to confirmation by the Senate. Currently, the Register of Copyrights is appointed by the Librarian of Congress, serves under the Librarian, and as we saw last November, can be removed at will by the Librarian.

Why does this matter?

• On October 21, 2016, the previous Register of Copyrights was summarily removed by the newly-appointed Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden.
• Dr. Hayden is a well-known promoter of Open Access, and appears committed to the goal of making Internet content free.
• Many in the creative community believe she was appointed because she is a political activist whose views would serve the interests of the Big Internet firms currently lobbying for open access, orphan works legislation, etc.

Call to Action! Protecting your copyright is as important as ever!

Once again, your copyright is under threat. Everyone, not just US citizens, need to respond by January 31, 2017, to a short survey created by the Librarian of Congress asking what duties the new Register of Copyright’s primary skills and duties should be.

Be advised, this is not just an innocent request. The APA National, the Copyright Alliance (pdf), Jim Pickerell's Selling Stock, and DMLA Councel, Nancy Wolff all published notice and helpful sample responses to the Librarian's request. Please read them.

We direct your attention, in particular, to the Illustrators Partnership analysis of the survey request.

The Illustrators Partnership followed up with thoughtful advice on how to respond intelligently and effectively to the Librarian's survey. You can read that advice here or continue below, as we have republished it in its entirety.

Update! The Illustrators Partnership added new information and a sample PDF you can use as a guide to add a personal note to your submission.
http://ipaorphanworks.blogspot.com/2017/01/reminder-protect-your-copyrights.html