Tag Archives: self-publishing

Gregor International Calendar Award – now also for self-publishers

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Good news for Calvendo self-publishers: The prestigious ‘Gregor International Calendar Award’ has recognised the growing importance of self-publishing and added a new category for self-published calendars this year. So, if you feel you could be among the first ever ‘Gregor Self-Publishing Award’ winners, read on for more information about the competition! 

The most important thing first: Calvendo authors who take part in the Gregor International Calendar Award competition,will get an exclusive discount of 40% on the entry fees: 

  • Fees for submitting one to five calendar titles – EUR 96 (approx. GBP 68) instead of EUR 160
  • Fees for submitting six to ten calendar titles – EUR 150 (approx. GBP 105) instead of EUR 250

A bit of background for you: The international Gregor award was launched in 1950 by ‘Graphischer Klub Stuttgart’ (Graphic Club Stuttgart), Baden-Wurttemberg’s Ministry of Finance and Economy and the employer’s association ‘Druck und Medien’ (Print and Media) in order to showcase calendar creations in Germany and abroad. Participants can submit calendars in ten different subject categories:

  1. Travel/Landscapes
  2. Cities and Architecture
  3. Animals
  4. Art and Culture
  5. Technology and Transport
  6. Sport and Hobbies
  7. People
  8. Eating, Drinking & Lifestyle
  9. Humour/Satire
  10. Nature and the Environment

The competition works with two submission deadlines for summer (24th July 2015) and winter (11th December 2015) and a jury made up of photography and design experts, trade buyers and consumers will decide on the winners. Two jury meetings in August 2015 and January 2016 will each time result in a short list of ten who will receive an award. The ten calendars of the August short list will also be exhibited at Frankfurt Book Fair in October 2015.

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The jury will then select the final winners in the respective categories of the Self-Publishing Awards from the pool of altogether 20 short list winners (from the jury meetings in August 2015 and January 2016). The official awards ceremony will take place in Stuttgart on 21st January 2016 and from the start of September 2015 onwards award-winning calendars will be published on www.gregor-calendar-award.com.

If you’re thinking about taking part, please make sure to claim your exclusive 40% Calvendo discount. In order to do so, you will have to enter your Calvendo author ID in the field “Customer Number” on the registration form. You’ll find you ID number on your account statement in your Calvendo account (“Autoren-ID”, top right). Should you have trouble finding you ID number, please contact marketing@calvendo.com.

You’ll need to submit your calendars by post (three copies per title) to ‘Graphischer Klub’ in Stuttgart plus print outs of your registration form and a short text explaining the calendar concept. For all details how to participate including addresses and contact details please click here (scroll to page 2 of the document for information in English and page 3 for the registration form). Please note that the entry fee needs to be transferred in Euros.

We appreciate that participation involves a considerable contribution and an investment of time and money on your side. However, since we managed to get a discount for our authors and the fact that this is the only award of this kind for calendar self-publishers, we felt that informing you about this option was in order. Good luck to everyone taking part!!

CALVENDO self-publishers in conversation: Rory Garforth

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Yorkshire-based photographer Rory Garforth has a knack for black and white images. His evocative pictures make you look just that little bit longer. Here, he tells us about his photography, what influences his work and why Yorkshire is the perfect ‘shooting ground’.

Rory Image

1. Rory, we need to talk black and white with you: Tell us a bit about your specific preference for black and white photography and how it developed.

My first camera was a Russian Zenit 11 SLR, bought for me by my parents. Back then, aged 11 in the 80s, I instinctively wanted to shoot in black and white and asked my father to get me black and white film. I’ve always loved noir and the look of old movies. I’ve stuck with black and white because I love the timeless, classic feel it gives. I also love the drama in a black and white image with its strong contrast and texture; something I’ve never really achieved in a colour image. I’m also colour blind and have often wondered if this has influenced my photography. My black and white images tend to be strong, high contrast and sometimes powerful – I’m working on soft, gentle and subtle!

Isle of Skye Copyright: Rory Garforth

Isle of Skye
Copyright: Rory Garforth

My appreciation for landscape and wide open skies comes from early trips to the coast in Yorkshire, and my love of mountains from hiking trips to Scotland and the Lake District. Photography wise, my earliest influences were Ansel Adams, Fay Goodwin and particularly Michael Kenna. I felt that his photography showed me what I really wanted to learn and aspire to. Another is Bill Brandt, who really got me interested in street photography and whose dramatic landscapes of Skye first drew me to that location. I really admire the work of Susan Burnstine, she uses handmade cameras and lenses creating a really unique look. I love her book, ‘Within Shadows’.

2. You have a passion for landscape photography and the great outdoors. Looking at your portfolio, it becomes clear that your ‘home turf’ of South Yorkshire definitely plays an important role for your work. What specifically is it that you find so inspiring (apart from the fact that the scenery is indeed stunning!)? And can you tell us a bit about how you find the places and motives to shoot? Continue reading →

Re-publish your calendar for 2016: It’s easy!

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If you want to publish your 2015 calendar again for the next year and in fact any year after, we’ve made things easy for you. The “flexible calendar grid” option in our online editor guarantees that dates are automatically updated. You might not remember if you have clicked that option when initially setting up your calendar so please check and do so now:

–       Go to “Projects approved by Calvendo” in your account

–       Click on the grey button with the cog wheel symbol to the right of your published
project(s) (My Project Management)

–       Click the option “Flexible calendar grid” in the window that’s opening

–       Click on save. All done and no need to re-submit your work!

2015 calendars will automatically be updated over the coming months and in time before the next calendar sale season starts. We’ll let you know!

One more thing: If you’ve integrated the year in a text field on your calendar cover, the system will recognise that when the automatic calendar update gets under way and change it to 2016. However, if you’ve created a separate image for the cover image that integrates the year as part of the photo, our software won’t recognise that and we’ll have to ask you to change the year yourself and re-submit your project.