Rafal Milach, a professional photographer from Warsaw, Poland, was awarded the $25,000 Grand Prize, sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, in the second annual Photography.Book.Now competition for his photography book, “Black Sea of Concrete.” Mr. Milach created his body of work about contemporary Ukraine while shooting with 8 other photographers from the Sputnik Photos collective. Commissioned by the Belgian-based NGO Altemus, Mr. Milach focused on the Black Sea coastline during the bitter winter of 2008. Mr. Milach edited the work and worked with graphic and book designer Ania Nalecka, with whom he has collaborated on two other photography volumes. This year’s Photography.Book.Now competition featured more than 2,400 entries from 50 countries around the world. Out of 2,400 submissions, the top 85 books are acknowledged as top prize winners and Honourable Mentions. Click through / read on for a list of category winners, first and second runners-up and People’s Choice award winners.

Blurb Press Release

Rafal Milach’s “Black Sea of Concrete” Awarded Photography.Book.Now $25,000 Grand Prize for Best Self-Published Photography Book

Winners chosen from over 2,400 photography book submissions from 50 countries in the competition’s second year

London – September 10, 2009 – Rafal Milach, a professional photographer from Warsaw, Poland, was awarded the $25,000 Grand Prize, sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, in the second annual Photography.Book.Now competition for his photography book, “Black Sea of Concrete.” Mr. Milach’s work was chosen as one of the most creative, most innovative and finest self-published photography books entered into the competition by an esteemed panel of judges. It was ultimately decided by lead judge Darius Himes, a co-founder of Radius Books, to award Milach the Grand Prize. This year’s competition featured more than 2,400 entries from 50 countries around the world.

Mr. Milach created his body of work about contemporary Ukraine while shooting with 8 other photographers from the Sputnik Photos collective. Commissioned by the Belgian-based NGO Altemus, Mr. Milach focused on the Black Sea coastline during the bitter winter of 2008. Mr. Milach edited the work and worked with graphic and book designer Ania Nalecka, with whom he has collaborated on two other photography volumes.

“I’m thrilled this body of work was noticed and recognized for this prestigious award,” said Mr. Milach, Grand Prize Winner, Photography.Book.Now. “This was my third project with Ms. Nalecka, who worked on the concept and layout after I provided her with a full edit. I’m always glad to work with someone whose eye I trust, because I get too attached to the images. Designing a photography book is dramatically different than presenting images on the web or in an editorial publication.”

“Rafal Milach’s ‘Black Sea of Concrete’ stood apart as this year’s Grand Prize winner,” said Darius Himes, lead judge, Photography.Book.Now. “Mr. Milach’s work is a wonderful embodiment of the judges’ criteria: strong photography, important subject matter, vigorous edit and intelligent sequencing, combined with a thoughtful attention to those elements that are specifically book-centric, including type treatment, page-layout and cover design. By enlisting the assistance of a designer and an editor, Mr. Milach exhibited care and attention to the book as a whole; it was truly teamwork that led to a better end result. As lead judge, I’m proud to award the Grand Prize to a relatively young photographer and book artist, and I look forward to seeing more from Mr. Milach in the future.”

The second annual Photography.Book.Now International Juried Competition is put on by Blurb®, the creative publishing platform (www.Blurb.com) that allows anyone to design, publish, market, and sell professional-quality books. The photography book competition celebrates self-published photography books and the photographers behind them. Out of 2,400 submissions, the top 85 books are acknowledged as top prize winners and Honorable Mentions. The prize winners are listed below, and the Honorable Mentions are acknowledged on the Photography.Book.Now website and in the Photography.Book.Now bookstore.

-    Grand Prize:                          Rafal Milach, Black Sea of Concrete
-    Category Winner, Fine Art:      Joshua Deaner, I Sell Fish
-    Category Winner, Editorial:      Kurt Tong, People’s Park
-    Category Winner, Commercial:  Dennis Kleiman, Volume One
-    First Runner-up, Fine Art:        Susan Worsham, Some Fox Trails in Virginia
-    First Runner-up, Editorial:        Andrea Stultiens, Pose
-    First Runner-up, Commercial:    Michael Creagh, Editorial Stories
-    Second Runner-up, Fine Art:    Hermann Zschiegner, +walker evans +sherrie levine
-    Second Runner-up, Editorial:    Kurt Tong, In Case it Rains in Heaven
-    Second Runner-up, Commercial: Sara Lando, Portfolio
-    People’s Choice, Fine Art:        Lewis Kemper, Capturing the Light
-    People’s Choice, Editorial:        Duwayno Robertson, F Ampersand
-    People’s Choice, Commercial:  Jason Joseph Cappozalo, Jason Joseph Photography

Submissions to the Photography.Book.Now competition are available for purchase in the Blurb Bookstore.

To honor all winners, judges, partners, sponsors, and supporters, Photography.Book.Now is bringing the photographic community together for several meet-ups. The meet-ups will be held in New York, San Francisco, London, and Chicago, with the kick-off event and awards ceremony in New York on September 23.

For more information on all meet-ups, and to RSVP, please visit http://pbn.blurb.com/social_events.

“We were blown away by the work that was submitted last year, and this year was even more incredible,” said Eileen Gittins, founder and CEO, Blurb. “Again this year it was truly moving to speak with each winner and hear the back-story behind their books. Congratulations to Mr. Milach and all the other winners and honorable mentions, and thank you to our judging panel, to all our entrants, and to our generous partners, sponsors, and supporters. We hope to see you all at our meet-ups this fall.”

About Photography.Book.Now

Photography.Book.Now is an international juried self-published book competition, and a celebration of the most creative, most innovative, and finest photography books – and the people behind them. Now in its second year, Photography.Book.Now offers photographers of all stripes the opportunity to showcase their work to a world-renowned panel of judges, and take a shot at a $25,000 grand prize. Submissions closed on July 16, 2009. For more information on prizes, sponsors, and upcoming social events, visit www.photographybooknow.com.

About Blurb

Blurb® is a creative publishing and marketing platform that unleashes the creative genius inside everyone. Blurb’s platform makes it easy to design, publish, market and sell professional-quality books, using our free, award-winning Blurb BookSmart® software, or via the design tool of your choice.  Use Blurb’s Bookstore and online marketing tools to market and sell your books, and keep 100% of your profit. Use Blurb’s social and community features to create and share Blurb books with your friends and colleagues with ease.

Blurb was founded by Eileen Gittins in 2005, and includes a team of design, Internet and media veterans who share a passion for helping people bring their stories to life. Blurb is based in San Francisco with offices in London, and is funded by Canaan Partners and Anthem Venture Partners. For more info, visit http://www.blurb.com.

Photo Credit: Rafal Milach

Your Comments