My friend Rick Smolan has a new project, America 24/7. Everyone is invited to participate.  It's one of his usual wildly ambitious can-we-all-get-along happenings that always seems to end up enriching our cultural heritage at the end of the day.  Participate in it!  Here's the pitch.

America 24/7

What does it mean to be American? What do we believe in? How are we perceived by the world? Does Hollywood tell your story? The media? The government? Here's a chance to tell your own story with digital photos.

How?

Through an exciting new project called America 24/7 - an all-digital event that will capture extraordinary pictures of an ordinary American week.

Produced by Rick Smolan and David Elliot Cohen, creators of the most popular photography projects ever - including the New York Times #1 bestseller, A Day in the Life of America - America 24/7 is the largest collaborative photo project in history and the watershed event of the new digital photography age.

Until now, only top pros could participate in Smolan/Cohen projects - and 1,000 of the best will shoot for America 24/7. But America 24/7 also offers amateurs and pros across America the opportunity to take digital photos and easily submit them via this website.

Your photos will be judged by photography directors from America's top magazines and newspapers. And 10,000 of the best images will be published in 53 large-format volumes by DK, known worldwide for its distinctive, highly visual books. The America 24/7series includes a national volume (2003) and one for each state plus New York City and Washington DC (2004) plus TV documentaries, an engaging website and photo exhibitions... a great showcase for your photography.

When?

Shoot week begins at 12:01 am on Monday May 12th and ends at midnight on Sunday May 18th. Only pictures taken during this seven-day period will be considered.

Compensation?

If America 24/7's editors select one or more of your images, you will receive prominent credit and the knowledge that your photos are good enough to be published alongside pictures by America's top pros. (Your chance to be discovered!) You will also receive more tangible compensation including Adobe Photoshop Elements, Photoshop Album software and a copy of the book where your photo appears- a $180 value. If your photo is selected as the front cover of one of our 53 books, you also get an Olympus Stylus 300 camera, a Lexar 512 Mb digital memory card and an Epson Stylus Photo printer- an additional $850 value.

To sign up go to http://www.america24-7.com/index.shtml.

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