Lina Scheynius has the second simplest website I've seen this week (the first being here). But the design’s simplicity puts her beautiful series of photographs front and center. Aside from the technical aspects of using fuzzy images that interlace light and shadow, there is an obvious emotional connection that turns the pictures into memories, documenting some of life’s most intimate moments.

Just a warning, there are some definite NSFW images on her site and flickr. And if her work wasn't accessable enough, there is a book (for €12!!!). Yes, it’s minimalist.

We've talked about Alexandre Orion when he released his first book about his concept of Metabiotics — interaction between his street paintings and the photographs taken of them. A year and a half later the Wooster Special Edition project is releasing a new book, giving Alexandre the attention and space to define his artistic vision, and also display his work on both the street and in galleries. Aside from being a beautifully designed book, it comes with a hand cut stencil, so you can spend your summer outside tagging buildings in promotion of Orion. Copies of the book and stencil are limited to 200 … that means hurry.

We've talked about the lomography; the ultra low-tech return to photography, but the great thing about lomography is the community of users. People come together and make amazingly creative projects with these little plastic cameras. The Staple Design group has proven to be the pinnacle in the collective with their latest project.

Following the guidelines of Chakra, Staple Design sent out a mission statement of color codes to the lomography community and commissioned a few stand out photographers. After collecting thousands of images, the Reed Space is hosting an exhibition and the launch of the book "Colorsplash Chakra" for the photographs from the project. But it doesn't stop there, they’re also releasing a special Chakra Edition Colorsplash Camera. To kick it all off, there is a party tonight at the Reed Space. If you are in New York send an email RVSP to lomo [at] stapledesign.com — and hurry, space is limited. We would not recommend bringing your fancy digital SLR to document the event, instead try a pinhole camera; it'll get you street cred.

Disclaimer: no polar bears or snow leopards were harmed during the creation of these shoes… National Geographic imagery meets sneaker design in this collaboration between PUMA, Atmos NYC, and Japanese photographer Mitsuaki Iwago. Through two releases– the Polar Pack and the Asia Pack, sneaker buffs will be treated to a series of kicks inspired by Mitsuaki Iwago’s famed wildlife photos. The outsides of the shoes capture the unique characteristics of various animals, and each (removable) insole sports Iwago’s actual photos on them. The final touch is that both the name and habitat of each animal is printed on the reverse tongue and on the outsole in both English and - you guessed it - Japanese.

The Polar Pack will be on sale only at Atmos NYC and Ubiq in Philadelphia beginning on June 28th, and you can expect the Asia Pack to drop later this summer.

At the end of their careers, Musicians usually get a best-of record; artists get some wall space in a museum. Well Blaize Simon isn't going out like that– he has organized an entire section of street in London to display his works, which span the last ten years. Calvert Avenue, near Old Street station is where it’s all going on– Blaize will be displaying his artwork in the storefronts of shops along the road. Any and all passersby will be treated to an open-air gallery of his work. The exhibit is kicking off with a private viewing (i.e. party) this Wednesday, June 18th (from 5-10 p.m.) that’s expected to transform into a proper street party. Head over to haiti73 for an RSVP, but like any good street party, surely they won't turn people away on the day-of, will they? For those who can’t make the opening party, you can have a ‘walk by’ between June 19th and July 18th.

Full flyer after the jump… (Read More…)

The international women’s fashion retailer Topshop has tapped the legacy of famed fashion photog Helmut Newton to recreate the camera for which Newton became known in the 70’s. The Newton Machine is basically Newton’s self-timed camera with a mirror next to it and a strobe light connected to the “magic box.” The model adjusts the timer based on what she want’s to do in her pose– all at once she can be the photographer, stylist, and subject. The site tells us the story of Newton, explains this instant project, and most important– serves as a constantly updated place for candid photos of Topshop customers doing god-knows-what in front of that magic little box. Whether animalistic, expecting, or jumping for joy (see photos above, from left), it looks like folks are having fun with this one.

Voyeurism is an art. At least with Felipe Morozini’s Last Floor Project it is. While I avert my eyes when I see my neighbor in the building next to me walking around in her underwear because I hope to god she does the same when I’m similarly careless, this Sao Paulo resident shamelessly pulls out his camera, focuses his image-capturing device on his neighbors and shoots away, using his higher-up vantage point to capture their everyday moments. Dudes sun tanning on the ledges of their balconies, people hanging up laundry— in real life, we already knew that such mundane things could be so addicting and thrilling to watch, but I’m happy someone could document it so that we can stare as long as we want.

Distil Ennui: To extract the essence and beauty of life to appease world weariness a.k.a. the portfolio site of New York-based photography duo Alex & Cocco. They’ve approached the art of photography from the perspective that “avoiding an over dependency on post production starts with a great shot.” All of their shots are organic in the sense that they’re presented ‘as shot,’ rather than ‘as photoshopped.’ There’s something refreshing about photos that rely on their own laurels– images that are snapped not at the ‘right moment,’ but rather at ‘a moment.’ The messages within these photos are derived purely from the viewer’s imagination, not from a sort of force-fed, incontrovertible moment in time. I think you’ll enjoy browsing through their site, as I have.

Snap-Shot-City is an "urban photographic treasure hunt" that encourages folks to pick up their cameras, head out into their cities, and see things in a whole new light. After 2,000 participants, who've taken 6,000 pics in 78 cities around the world, they know a thing or two about how to get people's artistic juices flowing

Now Snap-Shot-City is back for it's third year, and to kick things up a notch they're starting a good ol' urban throw down. Posing the photographic challenge to two of the world's cultural powerhouses — New York City and London the aim is to start a trans-Atlantic photo battle that will bring people together while also showing each city's unique urban landscape.

Get registered (if you're seriously hardcore, trying entering the team category) and on the big day you'll be given a list of top-secret interpretive categories. Then, hit the streets to complete the hunt. The challenge is also linking together two of the world's biggest gaming festivals — NYC's Come Out & Play on June 6-8 and London's Hide & Seek on June 26-28.

You probably know who Hedi Slimane is — well, at least you know his work with fashion house Christian Dior. Hedi was the creative force behind men's Dior Homme collection from 2000 to 2007. Quitting last year to retain his creative freedom meant, among other things, starting a photoblog. If you like beautiful people, amazingly high-end fashion, Star Wars characters, wallpaper, drugged-out musicians and fireworks as much as we do then the appeal will be obvious. The blog doesn't have a RSS feed, which is a bit annoying, but it is a nice source of inspiring images from the man that defined the look of men's fashion for so many years.

We’re quite used to what the human body looks like, but Dutch artist Lucy McRea and Bart Hess aren't satisfied. Instead of just getting some tattoos or piercings, the duo produced an art exhibition combining ideas of architecture, fashion and yes, the body, into photographs of people draped in colorful foam. Is this a possible clothing evolution or mankind’s future bubbly extensions? Though they claim the work has "no specific intention, other to make and metabolize," we believe Lucy and Bart definitely had a lot of bubble baths as kids. Take a look at their eye-grabbing images on their website and blog.

Amazing things can happen when a brilliant photographer from the Bronx, New York hooks up with a talented graphic designer from New Delhi, India. Through the Behance Network, Parris Whittingham has been presenting his photojournalistic masterpieces alongside some of his day-to-day works as a wedding photographer. Archan Nair has also been using the platform to share some of his projects in graphic design. The two first connected by joining each others’ inner circles, and Archan approached Parris with the idea of illustrating some of his works. The resulting interpretations are examples of how two distinct perspectives and background can enrich a singular piece of work. The startling creations by Archan and Parris are The Joy Ballad and The Summer Haze and are some of our favorites.

Summer is coming to England, which means we can break out our long sleeve T-shirts and light jackets. That's a joke. It isn't that bad. But England isn't known for its bright and sunny weather. So eco-friendly London fashion line Howies sent their clothes to friends in San Francisco and Malibu to model for their summer line (also a good way to splash into the American market). The result is a photo-friendly catalog showing some of the best clothes they've put out in years, alongside some beautiful American locals. You can view the catalog as a PDF off their website, but if you can get your hands on the physical book you won't be let down. Howies is known for giving their products a great narrative, because everyone wants to know the real story behind the jacket.

The web has allowed a whole new range of collaborative photography projects to flourish. Artists teaming up are obviously nothing new, but the ease and instant gratification afforded by the Internet makes for free-flowing ideas around the world to congeal into one artistic idea. Some of these collaborations have found a way to focus on one thing that’s universal and immutable: time. Our locations, cultures, and languages are all different, but it's always going to be 10:15 a.m. somewhere. With that in mind, Ten:15 wants you to send in a picture of whatever you happen to be doing at 10:15 a.m., no matter where you are in the world.

Participants can create their own user portfolio and link it back to their personal site, making it a great way to search for new photographers — or just be a voyeur in other people's lives. You can search the archives by photographer, date, or location. Somehow, the communal collection of our banalities turns them into something fascinating. Having photographic proof that some dude in Manila is putting cream in his morning coffee just creates a little more balance and order in the universe. The casual nature and spontaneity of the photographs can't be faked. They capture that laid-back moment where someone picked up their camera or phone at 10:15 a.m. and just snapped away.

We love a good light show as much as anyone, but Elliot Golden has taken it to a sci-fi level. The fantastic lighting effects in the above image leave us terrified to ask what is dripping from that man's hands. Elliot comes from an illustration background, depicting the surreal world of bland working environments. His new work explores the possibilities of injecting that same feeling into human extremities. Whatever’s happening, it makes us want to watch old space monster movies with a black light on. Elliot has a new show that just opened in Williamsburg at the Heart and Soul Gallery.