Portland, Ore.-based photographer Joni Kabana recently went to the Democratic Republic of the Congo on behalf of Mercy Corps to help photograph and film several work and relief programs. Kabana accompanied writer Roger Burks throughout the country, provided field staff with cameras and created portraits of those who benefit from Mercy Corps' efforts.

Kabana continues her Mercy Corps travel blog at xanga.com.

By noticing small details that others may miss, the Bay Area's David Sanger specializes in finding sublime images in even the most mundane locations.

Veteran travel photographer David Sanger often wonders why anyone would visit some of the places he goes, especially when he struggles to find the photographs hiding there.

He knows some magic will probably happen, and eventually he'll find the shots to make the trip worthwhile. But first, there's often some real and powerful discouragement he must overcome...

Getty Images and Jupiterimages are set to merge their services as part of a $96 million deal. At press time, the merger was scheduled to occur in early 2009.

As early as March 2007, Getty showed interest in acquiring Jupiterimages. A tentative deal valued at $388 million never materialized. Jupitermedia, the parent company of Jupiterimages, also received interest from four other buyers in 2008...

San Francisco-based photographer Mel Lindstrom was awarded a total of 47 creative awards last year. The accolades include eight International Black & White Spider Awards; two APA Something Personal Selects; nine MarCom Awards; three Silver Winners from Create magazine; four Silver Davey Awards; six International Aperture Awards; two Addy Awards...

Alongside stock agencies, imaging companies are also facing large cuts in profits and jobs. Kodak, Sony and Canon have all reported losses in earnings, forcing them to lay off workers.

Eastman Kodak announced that it would eliminate up to 18 percent of its workforce, or 4,500 jobs, this January. This is up from its estimate last year that 1,500 jobs would be cut in 2009. The company reported marked decline in several of its key businesses last year. Sales of camera equipment fell 36 percent, for instance...

Pasadena, Calif.-based photographer Patrick Hebert has been awarded the 2008 Excellence in Photographic Teaching Award from Center, formerly known as the Santa Fe Center for Photography.

Hebert teaches at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena and is the associate director...

Amid layoffs, reorganizations and market imbalance, a number of photo stock agencies have decided to trim the royalty rates they pay for rights-managed images.

The changes began in September 2008, when Alamy announced that it would reduce its royalty rates from 65 percent to 60 percent. A few weeks later, during the 2008 PhotoPlus Expo, Corbis senior vice president Don Wieshlow said Corbis would lower its rates from a range of 45 to 50 percent to 40 percent as contracts come up for renewal...

It's not easy to encompass a clear vista of well over a million people in one image, but a new panoramic mount, called the GigaPan Epic, appears ready for the job.

Demonstrating the capabilities of the new motorized mount in spectacular fashion this January was photographer David Bergman, who created a monumental image of President Barack Obama's inaugural address. The panorama became an overnight sensation as one of the most viewed photos on the internet. In the first five days after the historic occasion, more than 2 million people in 186 countries viewed the image...