It was -early- this morning, press call at 4:15am ... but photos from the 16th Annual Screen Actors Guild Nominations Announcement are available for viewing at our licensing and download service at http://store.licensestream.com/celebrities

Sigourney Weaver, Leona Lewis, Michelle Rodriguez, Zoe Saldana, Cheryl Tiegs, Jamie Lee Curtis, James Cameron, Giovanni Ribisi, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Brendan Frasier, Cuba Gooding, Jr. and more!  

Photos from last night's Los Angeles premiere of "Avatar" are available for viewing at http://store.licensestream.com/celebrities

We have a few dates still available with time to get your photo shoot and editing done, and prints made in time for the Holidays. 

Family Greetings?
Corporate Parties?
Need New Headshots?
Update Your Portfolio?
Private Glamour Session for that Special Someone?

Special Holiday Prices are now in place starting as low as $150.

View samples of my celebrity work at
http://store.licensestream.com/celebrities

Contact me ASAP for Holiday Rates and Availability!

This question comes up a lot lately, especially as the pace of change in the stock photo industry accelerates.  

I have two LicenseStream sites set up, one for my RM celebrity work ( http://store.licensestream.com/celebrities ) and another for my RF scenic stock ( http://store.licensestream.com/rothstock ).  I've been with them for over a year now, and am a member of the Beta Development team.

While I will agree that a year ago the system was difficult to use, the technicians at LicenseStream have been diligently at work fixing bugs and adding enhancements. They are very eager for user suggestions, and good at implementing the valid ones.

I also went through the Beta period of their search engine technology with submission to Google Images. While still a work in progress, I can say the system works, and I have confidence that over time, will become an important factor.

Two other features worth mentioning are their ability to fingerprint your images and search the Web for unauthorized usage, and their adherence to the PLUS Licensing Standards. Via PLUS codes, the LicenseStream system actually embeds the usage terms into the Metadata of a licensed image.

The one thing missing is that they are not a sales force. That's part of what took Digital Railroad under, and PhotoShelter found that aspect of the business too distracting to their core expertise, that of running the servers and continuing development of the database technology that drives the whole process. So it's still up to you to market your images, through your own Web sites, blogs, social networks, and flatly, contacting photo editors.

When you consider that accounting, billing and disbursements are all included in the deal, it really is as complete of a package as a photographer can find in today's market. Recently, a Business Edition was made available, and I am investigating taking my Creator accounts and upgrading them to the Business Edition. Among other benefits, this will permit me to have multiple contributors, more private labeling of
the pages, and additional options for those who license the images.

Feel free to view my sites, as well as the LicenseStream site itself, and ask whatever questions you like. If I can't answer them, I'll find someone at the company who can! :)

Best to all,

Lee Roth
Executive Producer
Roth Stock Digital Media
http://www.rothstock.com
http://store.licensestream.com/celebrities
http://store.licensestream.com/rothstock

LicenseStream Home Page:
http://www.licensestream.com

Melissa Joan Hart, Jaime Pressly, Linda Cardellini, Nicky and Kathy Hilton, Jesse Metcalfe ... all at the Lupus LA Bag Ladies Luncheon.  Photos are available for viewing at http://store.licensestream.com/celebrities

Lots of screaming kids from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Burbank tonight at Cartoon Network's premiere of Ben 10: Alien Swarm on the Warner Bros. lot. And that's after a bunch of very elegant ladies scrambling to buy designer handbags at an auction to support Lupus research earlier this morning. 

Not sure which event was louder! LOL 

Photo links coming soon. 

....................

July 5, 2009, Malibu Canyon, California, USA – At approximately 5:30pm Pacific Daylight Time this evening, a dark colored Honda Civic (black or blue, witnesses were not certain) was headed southbound on Malibu Canyon Road.  While attempting to pass another southbound vehicle, the Honda entered the northbound traffic lane of this narrow, two-lane canyon road but did not have enough room to make the pass.  Instead, the driver veered to his left going over the side of a steep cliff and plummeting approximately 500 feet, according to police reports.

Northbound vehicles carrying local surfers home from a day at the beach had among their drivers and passengers, Michael Barry, Devin Ricketson and Patrick Artner.  Michael said he witnessed the Honda leaving the road, and Devin said, “We didn’t think, we just reacted.”

How these young men in their early twenties reacted was nothing short of heroic.  Dressed in little more than their board shorts from surfing, one had no shoes on, two had not shirts, these three men raced over the side of the cliff and slid down the steep incline to where the Honda had come to a rest.  Devin and Michael were clearly affected by what they had seen, stating the Honda’s driver was not breathing when they arrived.  Upon checking, Devin said there was a weak pulse, but it too, soon stopped.  Their voices trembled when speaking of what appeared to be family photos and other personal items strewn about the scene.

According to a California Highway Patrol officer on-scene, the area is known for having had many fatal accidents over the years.  The men and women pictured in green jumpsuits are members of the Malibu Search and Rescue Team of the LA County Sheriff’s Department who volunteer their time and expertise in mountain rescues.

Micahel Barry, Devin Ricketson and Patrick Artner are nothing short of heroes for their efforts and deserve the thanks of all Southern Californians.  With no thought to their own safety, they raced to the victim’s location in what they said was less than two minutes, down a steep canyon-side through brush and brambles, in rattlesnake country.  We should all hope fine people like these young men are at the scene in the event of our own emergency.

Congratulations, and thank you, Michael, Devin and Patrick … true American Heroes.

Photos from the rescue scene are available for viewing, licensing and download.

© Lee Roth, Roth Stock Digital Media

You want me to work ... for credits?  Listen to this opinion from writer Harlan Ellison on the topic!

Every now and then we have the honor of covering an event with true social meaning and impact, besides the next generic blockbuster movie.  Last night was the first of what I sincerely hope will become an annual event, "The First Ladies of Africa Health Summit".

From the press release:

The First Ladies of Africa Health Summit, a joint effort of the California-based non-profit, U.S. Doctors for Africa and African Synergy Against AIDS and Suffering, hosts fifteen First Ladies from different African nations, traveling to Los Angeles to meet with key political leaders, healthcare policy experts, as well as aid organizations and leaders in business.  The summit's focus on the First Ladies of Africa and their role in addressing such critical issues as HIV/AIDS, maternal, reproductive and child health, and girl's education throughout Africa. 

"Empowering Africa's First Ladies is an innovative approach to bettering the lives of millions of Africans.  The Summit will pair these leaders with U.S. experts, key political figures and important organizations to create ongoing partnerships.  These are some of Africa's most important leaders and aiding their efforts is critical to improving health throughout Africa," said Ted Alemayhu, founder of USDFA.

First Ladies in attendance included:

Her Excellency Ana Paula Dos Santos of Angola
Her Excellency Chantal Compaore of Burkina Faso
Her Excellency Chantal Biya of Cameroon
Her Excellency Adelcia Barreto Pires of Cape Verde
Her Excellency Monique Bozize of Republic Central Africa
Her Excellency Ida Odinga of Kenya
Her Excellency Mathato Sarah Mosisili of Lesotho
Her Excellency Maria da Luz Guebuza of Mozambique
Her Excellency Penhupifo Pohamba of Namibia
Her Excellency Hadjia Laraba Tandja of Niger
Her Excellency Hajiya (Dr.) Turai Umaru Yar' Adua of Nigeria
Her Excellency Sia Nyama Koroma of Sierra Leone
Her Royal Highness, Queen Inkhosikati LaMbikiza of Swaziland
Her Excellency Mama Salma Kikwete of Tanzania
Her Excellency Thandiwe Banda of Zambia

Delegates were also in attendance from Republic of Congo, Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, Mali, South Africa and Uganda.

First Lady of the United Kingdom Sarah Brown was also in attendance.

Hollywood talent and VIPs committed to raising awareness of Africa and other humanitarian issues also in attendance included Jessica Alba, Amy Brenneman, Naomi Campbell, Barry Gordy, Maggie Grace, Kristin Davis, Paris Hilton, Chris Tucker, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, and Billy Zane. 

First Lady of California Maria Shriver offered Welcoming Remarks and hosted the opening luncheon of the Summit, held on April 20 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.  The Post-Summit Gala was held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.

Photos from the event are available for viewing and licensing at the Roth Stock High-Resolution Publishers Download Service.

OK ... went to an event tonight that actually had the potential of being fairly good. But if you're a publicist, and you want to have credibility with the press in the future, don't put out your "wish list" of guests that you would like to have at your party.  You should have at least personally contacted and confirmed at least SOME of the talent you name.  But when an event like tonight's comes along, without a single celebrity you named on your list as coming to the party, the next thing you will be wishing for is press coverage, because I don't think most of the photographers who went are going to bother working up the images from tonight.  There's just no point in working up a bunch of people the magazines are not interested in.  And there's just no point in us members of the press paying any attention to that publicist's coverage requests in the future.

Blah!