Panasonic will publish the work of local LUMIX amateur photographers alongside professionals in a book that will showcase the best of Australian life.

The project, ‘LUMIX Life – Focus on Australia’, is launched tomorrow with budding photographers able to submit their images for consideration at www.lumixlife.com.au.

The high-quality book will also feature some of Australia’s leading photography professionals and will go on sale in November 2010.

Panasonic Australia Marketing Communications Manager, Matthew Mannall, said: “This is a unique opportunity for our community of LUMIX photographers to be published. Images can be anything from exquisite landscapes, through to the people who inhabit it. Anything that helps show Aussie life in all its diversity will be considered for LUMIX Life.”

Professional photographers taking part in the initiative include Ken Duncan, Peter Eastway, Bill Bachman, Leo Meier, Nick Rains, Frances Mocnik, Ted Grambeau, Hugh Brown and celebrity guest photographer Ray Martin. 

LUMIX Life Pro Shooter Leo Meier said that LUMIX Life is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity for an amateur photographer to show their talent.

“When I first started out in photography, I would have leapt at the chance to be a part of something where my work would be published. I am really looking forward to the different perspectives the LUMIX amateur photographers take on this one, the brief is truly open for interpretation, and I ask all entrants to be as bold, creative and adventurous as they can.”

Proceeds from the sale of ‘LUMIX Life – Focus on Australia’ will be used to help fund ‘Walk a While’, an indigenous arts educational program which gives indigenous youth access to training and technology in the areas of photography, film and music.

The 2010 initiative follows the highly successful 2009 LUMIX Life program – where the keys to a prestigious Australian gallery were handed over to amateur photographers from around the world to exhibit their work.

LUMIX users are invited to go to www.lumixlife.com.au to enter their images. The site will also allow you to follow the LUMIX Life Pro Shooters around Australia, who for the next three months will be visiting unique spots across the country. The site will also include regular video tutorials from Ken Duncan to help contributors hone their inspiration and creativity.

Every entry will be viewed and considered by the LUMIX Life judging panel.  The panel will consider four criteria when reviewing submissions:

* Artistic and literary merit of the image and caption combined;
* Technical competency of the image;
* Photographic quality of the image; and
* A photo taken in Australia adhering to the theme of “quintessential Aussie landscape and lifestyle”.

LUMIX Life entrants will also go in the running to win an amazing Panasonic LUMIX DMC-GF1 camera, with three to give away – one each month between April and June 2010. One camera will be awarded each month to the best photo, as determined by Ken Duncan.

Online submissions to the ‘LUMIX Life - Focus on Australia’ project are welcome from 1 April to 30 June, 2010.