Third Annual International-Juried Competition Offers $25,000 Grand Prize; Winning Books Will Join Permanent Collections At Leading Photography Centers

San Francisco, Calif.—March 30, 2010—Photography Book Now 2010 is now open for entries. Now in its third year, this international-juried competition, presented by Blurb, celebrates the very best in self-published photography books and the photographers behind them. The competition features a grand prize of $25,000. Entries will be accepted in three categories – Fine Art, Editorial, and Photography Portfolio. The finalists’ books in each category will become part of the permanent collections at the International Center for Photography, the Annenberg Space for Photography and the George Eastman House.

Noted photography book expert Darius Himes will serve as lead judge for the third year. In this role, Himes will lead a panel of distinguished photographers, publishers, editors and gallery curators who will jury the Photography Book Now competition. The 2010 competition jurors include:

• Monica Allende, Photo Editor, London Sunday Times
• David Fahey, Gallery Director, Fahey Klein
• Michael Mack, Publisher, Steidl/Mack
• Lesley Martin, Publisher, Aperture
• Susan Meiselas, Photographer
• Erin O’Toole, Assistant Curator of Photography, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
• Martin Parr, Photographer
• Judith Puckett-Rinella, Senior Photography Editor, T: The New York Times Style Magazine
• Brian Smith, Photographer

“Photography Book Now offers photographers from all backgrounds and from around the world an incredible opportunity to showcase their best work in book form,” said Darius Himes, lead judge of Photography Book Now. “We are thrilled to have assembled such a prestigious group of photography professionals as jurors for this year’s competition. Submissions from the competition’s first two years have set the bar high, and our jurors are looking forward to seeing even more inspiring work this year.”

Submissions will be accepted through 11:59 pm PDT on July 15, 2010, at http://www.photographybooknow.com.

Leading photography companies and communities have joined Photography Book Now as sponsors. Hewlett Packard is the sponsor of the $25,000 grand prize. Category award winners will receive prizes provided by Sony Electronics, Lensbaby, CENTER, Wacom, B&H Photo, Digital Photo Pro Magazine, X-Rite, Induro, Tenba and Maine Media Workshops. Additional sponsors include New Page Corp., American PHOTO, Photo District News and British Journal of Photography. To view a complete list of sponsors and prize packages, please visit www.photographybooknow.com/sponsors.

An important aspect of Photography Book Now is the chance to bring together the photographic community. This spring, there will be workshops and meet-ups hosted by Blurb in New York, London, and Toronto. In October and November 2010, there will be an awards celebration in New York followed by meet-ups in Los Angeles, Seattle, Brighton, Berlin, Paris, Toronto and Rome where attendees will celebrate outstanding photography books and have a chance to meet some of the most influential figures in the field. To view the Photography Book Now events schedule and to sign up, please visit www.photographybooknow.com/events.

“Creating a beautifully produced photography book while retaining complete control of the creative process is what every artist craves,” said Eileen Gittins, founder and CEO, Blurb. “We also have heard from past winners of Photography Book Now that having their work recognized by the jurors and featured at international photography events around the world has opened new doors for them professionally as well. We are deeply committed to celebrating the medium of photography books and are proud to present Photography Book Now for its third year.”/p>

FFor more information and to enter the competition, please visit http://www.photographybooknow.com.

About Photography Book Now
PPhotography Book Now is an international-juried book competition that celebrates the most creative and innovative photography books, and the people behind them. Now in its third year, Photography Book Now offers international 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. All entries must be received by 11:59 pm PDT on July 15, 2010. For more information, 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 Blurb’s free, award-winning Blurb BookSmart® software. Blurb’s bookstore and online marketing tools enable customers to market and sell their books, and keep 100% of their profit. Blurb’s social and community features allow customers to create and share Blurb books among 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. In 2009, Blurb shipped over 1.2 million books to more than 60 countries and generated over $45 million in revenue. Blurb is based in San Francisco with offices in London. For more info, visit http://www.blurb.com