Hello everyone,
this is a sad moment for me, but I have to cancel the project. Giving up isn't usually a word in my vocabulary, but it seems, that it is the best solution. The main reasons for this are as follows.
Time – Shortly after the beginning of this project, time became problematic, especially for me. This has been hindering the progress of the project. And while time isn't a problem anymore, the after-effects are still there and there's no guaranty that there'll be enough spare time for the project when it is needed. This would slow the project down again and people are already discontent with the progress and impatient about it.
Law – This part is very difficult. I spent a lot of time in the last months on this topic. Did a lot of research and even discussed the topic with a lawyer and a professor who specializes in copyright law. Considering that this is an international project, with people who's identities and rights to the submitted works can't be verified by anything else but good faith, it's almost impossible to get everything legally safe and right. Contrary to my believes at the beginning of the project, international copyright laws may be out of it fledgling stages, but still are problematic with many countries, which would lead to the writing of many versions of the release form. And even if this was doable, verification would still give us a hard time. While I have good faith in the contributors, a single mistake could get me (the responsible person for the project) in lots of trouble and cost me a fortune.
Communication – Many people who contributed to this project don't respond anymore, regardless of their status and progress. If I had to break it down, there are only about a dozen people who react anymore and seem to be interested in the project. I'm aware, that this can be counted as an after-effect from the time-issue mentioned above for some people. It still makes it impossible to get enough people to compile the book as planned.
Discussing the topic with Sarah and taking all these points into account, we came to the conclusion that it would be the best decision to close down the project. I am very sorry for this and apologize to everyone who got disappointed. Please direct your complaints and hate-mail directly to me.
All submitted images and personal data remaining with this project will be deleted within one month.
I want to thank everyone who participated in this project. Thanks to every contributor who wanted to be a part of this book. Thanks to everyone who gave their support and advice. Thanks to the co-authors and especially to Sarah, who loyally stuck with me till the end.
The Future – Now, was that really everything with Collected Light? Well, for now, yes. But maybe we'll be coming back. Maybe with lesser, selected participants, from one or just a few countries, which makes the legal stuff manageable. Maybe even with the backup of a real publisher, who has the resources to take on the difficult and risky stuff. Maybe just as a website for a small photographer-group. We'll see what the future brings. But for now, we are out.
Sorry and thanks again. Farewell for now and may the light be with you.
- Oliver
(June 18th, 2007)