News Archive - April 2009 Return to: Current News Archive Index Thursday, April 30, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: GE Breakthrough Validates Technology to Enable 500-Gigabyte Disc 17:44 EDT - GE's Micro-Holographic Discs will have 20 times the storage capacity of a standard Blu-ray disc and be read with systems similar to today's Blu-ray and DVD Players NISKAYUNA, New York, April 27, 2009 — GE Global Research, the technology development arm of the General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), today announced a major breakthrough in the development of next generation optical storage technology.... (More) New firmware: Olympus FE-, Stylus-series 15:55 EDT - Olympus has recently issued new firmware for a range of its point-and-shoot digital camera models, including both the FE-series and Stylus-series (also known in some markets as the µ-series). In all cases, the current firmware version is now v1.1, but the precise changes vary from model to model. Cameras with new updates include the Stylus 7000, Stylus Tough 6000, FE-45, FE-35 and FE-25. For... (More) PRESS RELEASE: DiiVA Specification Ready For Design In, Membership Expands To Global CE Leaders 15:14 EDT - Guangzhou, China, April 22, 2009—Aimed squarely at making the TV a simple, interactive hub of the digital home media network, the Digital Interactive Interface for Video & Audio™ (DiiVA™) consortium today announced availability of the DiiVA 1.0 specification. Demonstrating the growing momentum and commitment to the consumer electronics (CE) and home-networking standard, global... (More) Follow IR on Twitter! - Get the LATEST from the Lab! 12:47 EDT - IR is finally getting with the whole "social media" thing: We've lanched a Twitter feed, so you can get up-to-the-minute info on all the latest from our lab! (Dave here:) This was one of those hit-you-over-the-head realizations for me: We post dozens (often hundreds) of new test images every day, but until now, most readers wouldn't have had a clue they were... (More) PRESS RELEASE: DualAlign Technology Opens Doors to Innovations in Photo Montage, Panorama, and Photo Stitch Software 06:47 EDT - Photographs taken with cell phone cameras can now be turned into beautiful, lasting panoramic images with DualAlign LLC's breakthrough software innovation, i2k Quickage. This stitching software program allows users to easily combine multiple images from any camera -- including camera phones -- into one seamless, professional looking photograph. Clifton Park, NY (PRWEB) April 28, 2009 -- Photographers,... (More) Panasonic TS1, ZS1, ZS3: New firmware 06:35 EDT - Panasonic Japan has released updated firmware for several of its Lumix point-and-shoot digital cameras. All three cameras' firmware updates take them to version 1.1, and the changes are related but not identical from model to model. The TS1 and ZS3 both get the ability to play back the GH1's 1280 x 720 pixel... (More) PRESS RELEASE: SnapMyLife Launches Photo-Sharing and Twitter Applications on BlackBerry App World 06:18 EDT - Free Applications Provide 1 Click Photo-Sharing From BlackBerry Smartphones NEEDHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SnapMyLife, a leading mobile photo-sharing site, today announced the launch of two free camera-oriented applications for BlackBerry smartphones®* from Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM). Both the SnapMyLife and Snap2Twitter applications are now available on BlackBerry App... (More) PRESS RELEASE: High-end panel technology with brilliant colour performance: NEC SpectraView® 2490, NEC SpectraView® Reference 2690 and NEC SpectraView® Reference 3090 06:04 EDT - Munich, 20 April 2009 – NEC Display Solutions is expanding its NEC SpectraView® series with a hardware calibratable widescreen 24” model on the one hand, the NEC SpectraView® 2490, and with the two wide-gamut 2690 and 3090 reference LCD displays on the other hand: new benchmark standards in colour management. The IPS panel for the 2490 satisfies the requirements of top quality... (More) Wednesday, April 29, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: Phase One Launches P 40+ with Sensor+ 17:09 EDT - Medium format camera quality plus hand-held flexibility in one system COPENHAGEN, April 30, 2009 -- Phase One, the leader in open-platform based medium format camera systems and solutions, today announced immediate availability of the Phase One P 40+ -- the company’s second Sensor+ enabled digital camera back/camera system. Like the P 65+ introduced last year, this new system offers two separate... (More) Canon 5D Mark II Bodies In Stock for Immediate Shipment! 15:48 EDT - With stock of Canon's full-frame EOS 5D Mark II digital SLR somewhat of a challenge to find lately, news arrived in our mailbox from one of our affiliates that will be of interest to readers trying to obtain the camera. Today, we have good news for photographers looking to get their hands on the EOS 5D Mark II. One of our premier affiliate retailers has the camera in stock and available for shipment! Want to help out... (More) PRESS RELEASE: International Underwater Photography Competition Presents Stunning Winning Images 15:18 EDT - The DEEP Indonesia Competition Is Part Of A Series Of International Underwater Image & Video Competitions That Celebrates The Beauty, Mystery & Plight of The Oceans New York, NY (April 27, 2009) - DivePhotoGuide.com and Wetpixel.com are proud to announce the winners of the 2009 DEEP Indonesia international underwater photography competition. DEEP Indonesia is part of a unique international... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Phase One releases Capture One 4.8 15:08 EDT - COPENHAGEN, April 30, 2009 – The latest update to Phase One Capture One 4 is localized for Chinese (simplified), Czech, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and Swedish languages.  This version supports the new Phase One P 40+ announced today (including tethered support) and also the Olympus E-620. Image quality improvements include: enhancements for the Phase One P 65+, the... (More) PRESS RELEASE: LaCie's New Mobile Storage Device Combines Convenience, Form and Function: LaCie Data/Share 15:02 EDT - Recycle SD and microSD cards into USB flash keys Access data quickly and efficiently Separate private data from public data Hot-pluggable and driver-free LaCie announced today a creative new way to access the data from SD and microSD cards. Created exclusively for LaCie by the award-winning 5.5 designers firm, the LaCie Data/Share is an inventive product designed to combine these standard memory... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Samsung Focuses On Ergonomics With Two New Digital Camcorders 14:29 EDT - New SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 Offer Industry-Leading Style, Design and Ease-of-Use RIDGEFIELD PARK, N.J. – April 29, 2009 – Samsung Electronics America Inc., a market leader and award-winning innovator in consumer electronics, today announced the SMX-C14 and SMX-C10, two new ergonomically designed, compact digital camcorders offering industry-leading style and design. The new SMX-C14 and SMX-C10... (More) Tuesday, April 28, 2009 Canon service notice: PowerShot G10 16:22 EDT - Canon USA has published a service notice for certain batches of its PowerShot G10 digital camera. Cameras with serial numbers whose fourth and fifth digits are 50, 51, 52, 53, 80, 81, 82 or 83, and which don't contain a marking inside the battery compartment, may be affected by an image quality issue.... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Photographing London With The School Of Life 16:07 EDT - The School of Life has created this unusual holiday, for amatuer and professional photographers alike, to travel the city with two acclaimed street photographers, Matt  Stuart and Stephen McLaren to discover the potential for innovative photography throughout the capital. Holidaymakers will be joined by Matt Stuart and Stephen McLaren as they intertwine stories, anecdotes and slide shows to exhibit... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Analyses of Olympus E-30 and Pentax K-m Now Available on dxomark.com 14:41 EDT - Paris, France – April 28, 2009 – DxO Labs announces today the publication of detailed RAW-based image quality data and DxOMark Sensor rankings on its popular www.dxomark.com website for two new D-SLR cameras, the Pentax K-m and the Olympus E-30. “With dxomark.com, photographers can now factor in the data of more than 70 commercial D-SLR and bridge cameras when considering which models... (More) Monday, April 27, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: MAGIX Launches New Versions of its Slideshow Software – Xtreme PhotoStory 8 on CD & DVD 8 16:03 EDT - Create Hollywood inspired photo slideshows. Never mind those old boring slideshows of yesteryear; with MAGIX Xtreme PhotoStory on CD & DVD 8 create Hollywood inspired photo slideshows in no time at all. Toronto (Vocus/PRWEB ) April 27, 2009 -- MAGIX releases the newest version of MAGIX Xtreme PhotoStory on CD & DVD 8. MAGIX Xtreme PhotoStory on CD & DVD 8 is a powerful user friendly slideshow... (More) PRESS RELEASE: VholdR Introduces ContourHD: The World's First HD Wearable Camcorder 15:04 EDT - HD Video from a Shoot and Share Camcorder Small Enough to Fit on Your Goggles Seattle, WA (PRWEB) April 27, 2009 -- VholdR, the market leader for shoot and share wearable video cameras, is introducing ContourHD: The World's First (and lightest) HD Wearable Camcorder. The ideal video camera to shoot and share your active lifestyle, ContourHD combines amazing video quality (choose between crisp High... (More) Saturday, April 25, 2009 Review: Pentax 15mm f/4 ED AL Limited SMC DA 19:57 EDT - The Pentax 15mm f/4 ED AL Limited SMC DA was announced at this year's PMA show, back in early March. The lens is part of Pentax's "DA Limited" series of lenses, touting excellent results for sharpness in an ultra-compact package. We found it very appealing to shoot with, with the excellent build quality we've come to expect from Pentax's Limited series. It was in fact quite sharp in our tests, although at least one lens we've tested previously beat it, albeit at some cost in bulk. So who beats it? Click here for our full review of this lens to find out! Friday, April 24, 2009 Printer Review: HP Photosmart C4680 All-in-One 20:25 EDT - An inexpensive, elegant scanner/printer with a card reader, the C4680 includes one of the best interfaces we've seen... The HP Photosmart C4680 is a sleek all-in-one device that retails for $99.99. The scanner/printer includes a card reader (that doesn't, however, handle CompactFlash) and one USB port. But its most significant... (More) Adobe introduces Photoshop Marketplace 12:39 EDT - Adobe has today introduced its new Photoshop Marketplace website, a one-stop destination where customers will be able to find Photoshop related resources, tools, services and events. The Photoshop Marketplace hasn't officially been announced to the public yet, with Adobe instead soliciting community content for the site. Once live, customers will be able to add community ratings and... (More) Thursday, April 23, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: LaCie Introduces Three High-Performance, Economic Storage Combinations for Video Professionals 15:56 EDT - Today LaCie announced three new product combinations for professionals who expect fast, high capacity and reliable storage solutions to enhance their workflow. Leveraging the quality and reputation of the award-winning LaCie 4big Quadra–which is recognized for its high capacity, speeds, data protection, and design–LaCie premieres the 4big Quadra Bundle, which boasts huge capacities up... (More) Canon updates digital SLR firmware 08:54 EDT - Canon has released new firmware versions for the EOS 50D, EOS Rebel XSi / 450D and EOS Rebel XS / 1000D digital SLRs. Available now via Canon Japan's website, the firmware updates add support for the AF assist beam feature of the new Speedlite 270EX flash, which is scheduled to be released this month. The Canon EOS 50D... (More) Wednesday, April 22, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: Panasonic To Start Development Of New Professional 3D Production System 16:21 EDT - Industry's First System to Support Efficient Production of 3D Full HD Content LAS VEGAS, NV (April 19, 2009) -- Panasonic Corporation, a world leader in High Definition technology, today announced it will start developing a professional 3D Full HD production system. The system, which is expected to be the first of its kind in the industry, consists of a twin-lens P2 professional camera recorder and... (More) PRESS RELEASE: RocketLife Award-Winning Photo Publisher Teams With NickelScan Photo Scanning Price Leader 15:57 EDT - NickelScan.com Offers RocketLife Photo Books & Personalized Photo Products Folsom, CA, April 21, 2009 -- RocketLife (http://www.RocketLife.com), Folsom, CA and Daytona Beach, FL based inventors of award-winning new media technologies, announced today an alliance with NickelScan.com to offer NickelScan customers the ability to create and purchase RocketLife’s complete line of photo books,... (More) Tuesday, April 21, 2009 Review posted for Panasonic Lumix ZS3! 11:08 EDT - Panasonic practically created the pocket long-zoom digital camera category represented by the Lumix ZS3, and they continue to perfect it. Its 12x zoom and simple design will win you over right away, and the performance from its 10.1-megapixel sensor will make you want to take the Panasonic ZS3 along wherever you go. It's hard not to love... (More) Light Crafts launches Aurora photo software 09:00 EDT - Palo Alto, California-based Light Crafts Inc. has today announced Aurora - an application that offers a range of image editing and management capabilities in one approachable, affordable program. Following in the footsteps of the company's powerful but rather complex LightZone application, Aurora has a much simpler interface that helps users get good results without needing to understand the complex... (More) Monday, April 20, 2009 Panasonic Europe: Three new Lumix compacts 22:58 EDT - Panasonic has announced three closely related new Lumix FS-series compact digital cameras for the European market. The Panasonic Lumix FS12, FS42 and FS62 designs are all based around 4x optical zoom lenses with actual focal lengths ranging from 5.5 - 22mm, focusing to 5cm in Macro mode, and two-step apertures (f2.8... (More) PRESS RELEASE: KODAK Gallery Offers Free High-Resolution Downloads and Everyday Free Shipping on Print Orders of $4.99 or More 18:22 EDT - KODAK Gallery Brings New Value to Customers by Offering Free High-Resolution Downloads and Free Shipping on Every Print Order Over $4.99 Emeryville, California - April 20, 2009 - KODAK Gallery (www.kodakgallery.com) is pleased to announce two new service features: KODAK Gallery's 75 million members will enjoy free high-resolution downloads of their pictures and free shipping on all print purchases... (More) PRESS RELEASE: WD® Ships 2 Terabyte Enterprise-Class Hard Drives With Next-Generation GreenPower™ Technology 17:10 EDT - WD RE4-GP Hard Drives Further Reduce Power Consumption For Data Centers and Digital Video Production Facilities LAS VEGAS, Nev. - (NAB Show Booth No. SL12809) - Apr. 20, 2009 -Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC) today expanded its enterprise family of hard drives to include the next-generation 2 TB capacity, the largest and only 2 TB enterprise-class hard drive shipping today. Combining industry-leading... (More) PRESS RELEASE: The M-Line two: an all-round view camera! 15:33 EDT - You own a 35mm DSLR camera and want to take more elaborate images using shift for perspective control and Scheimpflug* for image sharpness with your medium format digital film back? Or perhaps your dream is to shoot the sharpest landscape images on 4x5”? Well, all this is possible with the new ARCA-SWISS M-Line Two! ARCA-SWISS has developed two new view cameras in response to customer demand:... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Fujifilm Wins Three Top Prizes at the European Imaging `Oscars´ 15:10 EDT - Super CCD EXR, FinePix F200EXR, and Photobook Brilliant Win at the TIPA Awards 2009 April 17, 2009 - Fujifilm’s ground-breaking sensor, Super CCD EXR and the latest F-Series camera, the FinePix F200EXR which houses this technology, have both received outstanding critical acclaim in Europe. The Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) has voted the FinePix F200EXR Best Compact Digital Camera... (More) PRESS RELEASE: EasyPano announces Panoweaver 6 14:06 EDT - Shanghai, China (April 20th, 2009) – Easypano Holdings Inc, a leader in panorama and virtual reality technology, is pleased to announce the availability of Panoweaver 6.00 Professional and Panoweaver 6.00 Batch, which offer the ability to stitch both cylindrical and spherical panoramas from single-row/multiple rows of digital photos or fisheye photos. Main features of Panoweaver 6.00: Support... (More) Saturday, April 18, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: TIPA awards the best photo and imaging products of 2009 14:43 EDT - MADRID, 17 April 2009 - The Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) announces the winners of the XIX round of the TIPA Awards. The best imaging products of 2009 were voted on at the association's General Assembly on 2 April 2009 in Budapest. The editors of the 25 member photo magazines from 11 European countries met to discuss the association's projects and vote for the best imaging products launched... (More) PRESS RELEASE: American photographer David Zimmerman wins L'Iris D'Or Award, 2009 Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year 14:34 EDT - “a unique vision of the beauty, poetry, and power possible in great landscape photography” (Mary Ellen Mark, 2009 Judging Committee) David Zimmerman has been announced as the winner of the coveted L'Iris D'Or Award, the 2009 Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year. Zimmerman received the award at this year's Sony World Photography Awards Gala ceremony in Cannes, France on... (More) Friday, April 17, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: Samsung's SMX-F34 Camcorder Wins 2009 TIPA Award 14:24 EDT - SMX-F34 Camcorder Honored as Best Entry Level Camcorder Seoul, Korea – April 17, 2009 – Samsung Electronics is proud to announce that its YouTube™ compatible SMX-F34 has received a 2009 TIPA Award, honored as the Best Entry Level Camcorder. The TIPA Awards, presented by the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), are highly regarded as the industry’s most coveted imaging awards, recognizing... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Carl Zeiss Extends Cooperation with Sony 05:05 EDT - 13 years of successful partnership to proceed OBERKOCHEN/Germany, 15.04.2009. - Carl Zeiss today announced that its Camera Lens Division will extend their successful collaboration with Sony Corporation for a further 5 years. Taking full advantages of their competence both companies agreed to cooperate even closer in developing and commercializing new imaging devices in the future. As early as 1996,... (More) Thursday, April 16, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: Olympus Posts Finalist Images And Kicks Off Public Voting For 'Photographers Of Tomorrow' Contest 18:00 EDT - Choose Your Favorite Image and Pick the Photographer of Tomorrow CENTER VALLEY, Pa., April 16, 2009 - Olympus today unveiled the 20 finalist images for the second annual Photographers of Tomorrow contest, commencing the public vote portion - which is new this year! The contest is designed to inspire students enrolled in top photography programs across the country. This year's theme is "YOUR... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Point, Shoot and Win - National Geographic and Energizer Team Up Again for Second Annual “Energizer Ultimate Photo Contest” 16:06 EDT - ST. LOUIS (April 16, 2009) – National Geographic magazine has long-represented the “Ultimate” in photography for professional and amateur photographers.  Now, through the second annual “Energizer Ultimate Photo Contest,” photographers from coast-to-coast will again have the chance to have their photograph grace the pages of the magazine in an ad for Energizer®... (More) PRESS RELEASE: GigaTribe Expands Social Networking With New "Inviter Tool" 15:34 EDT - Invite Your Friends to GigaTribe’s Free Peer-to-Peer Software File Exchange -- Over 1 Million Users Sharing Files April 16, 2009, Suresnes, France – GigaTribe www.gigatribe.com, the company revolutionizing file-sharing, today announced a new social online “Inviter Tool” that lets GigaTribe users automatically invite friends from other social networks, including Facebook, Linked-in,... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Panasonic Announces Major Expansion Of Its Nationwide Consumer Electronics Recycling In Southeast 15:18 EDT - Relationship With Creative Recycling Systems Adds More Than 30 New Drop-Off Sites Across The Southeastern United States Panasonic Recycling Program Now Offers More Than 300 Locations Covering All 50 States SECAUCUS, NJ (April 14, 2009) -  Panasonic Corporation of North America, a market and technology leader in High Definition consumer and digital electronics products, announced today a major... (More) Wednesday, April 15, 2009 Review posted for Canon SX10 IS! 23:47 EDT - Long zoom digital cameras like the Canon SX10 IS may not offer all that an SLR does, but it would take a backpack full of expensive SLR lenses to equal the SX10's range, a camera that slips easily into a jacket pocket. Primed for stills and movies, the Canon SX10's lens is also image-stabilized, and the zoom moves soundlessly as you record, not interfering with your videos. The Canon SX10's articulating screen lets you... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Animoto Introduces White Label Feature For Commercial Photography Accounts 21:38 EDT - Animoto for Photography now lets professional photographers create high-quality videos branding-free; extends music library and improves video resolution  New York, NY, April 15, 2009 – Animoto (http://animoto.com), the video creation platform that lets users quickly and easily create professional-quality videos from their own photos and music, today introduced a white label feature for... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Fujifilm Expands Technical Services And Support Division 18:54 EDT - New Service Offering Provides Technical Support Beyond Photo Sector Valhalla, N.Y., April 14, 2009 – FUJIFILM U.S.A., Inc. today announced the full-scale expansion of its Technical Services and Support division, which will provide on-site and remote support and assistance to commercial and retail businesses of all sizes reaching beyond the photo sector it has been serving for more than twenty-five... (More) Nikon releases D40 and D40x firmware updates 13:27 EDT - Nikon corporation has released firmware version 1.12 for the Nikon D40 and version 1.01 for the Nikon D40x digital SLRs. Available now via Nikon's support websites, the updates increase compatibility with the new, higher capacity EN-EL9a Lithium-ion battery pack. Nikon D40: Modifications enabled with A Firmware Ver. 1.12Remaining battery charge is now accurately detected for Rechargeable Li-ion Batteries EN-EL9a.With firmware Ver. 1.11 and earlier, the number... (More) PRESS RELEASE: dxomark.com Publishes RAW Sensor Performance Data On A Set Of High-End Bridge Cameras 06:05 EDT - DxO Labs adds detailed measurements for the Fujifilm FinePix S100fs, the Olympus SP-565 UZ and the Panasonic Lumix DMC FX150 to its RAW-based Image Quality Database Paris, France – April 15, 2009 –DxO Labs announces today the addition of RAW-based image quality data and DxOMark Sensor rankings on its popular www.dxomark.com website for the Fujifilm FinePix S100fs, the Panasonic Lumix DMC... (More) Tuesday, April 14, 2009 Apple Releases Aperture 2.1.3 9:41 EDT - Apple today released version 2.1.3 of Aperture, its professional image editing application. The 49.4MB update, recommended for all users, is available via Software Update or directly from the Apple site. According to the company, "This update improves overall stability and provides fixes for issues related to database integrity and compatibility with specific file types." Fixes include: • Nikon... (More) Friday: Web seminar with fashion photog Claudio Basso 11:32 EDT - Bogen Imaging will be hosting the latest in its series of web seminars (dubbed "webinars") this Friday, with a guest relevant to those interested in wedding and fashion photography. Italian photographer Claudio Basso has a portfolio including the likes of Iman, Monica Bellucci, Cindy Crawford and Niki Taylor, and his works have been featured in catalogs from Bloomingdales and Sak's... (More) Nikon D5000 DSLR unveiled and previewed 00:09 EDT - Nikon Inc. has today announced its latest single-lens reflex digital camera, the Nikon D5000. Based around a 12.3-megapixel DX-format CMOS image sensor and a Nikon EXPEED image processor, the Nikon D5000's live view mode has four autofocus options, including Face Priority AF capable of recognizing... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Nikon Introduces Versatile Ultra Wide-Angle 10-24mm DX-Format Nikkor Lens For Added Creative Perspective 00:07 EDT - MELVILLE, N.Y. (APRIL 14, 2009) – Nikon Inc. today announced the next addition to the expansive NIKKOR lineup with the new AF-S DX-NIKKOR 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED lens, giving photographers the opportunity to capture a unique perspective in a variety of shooting environments.  Compact and lightweight, the new 2.4x zoom DX-NIKKOR lens offers a focal length of 10 to 24mm, creating a picture... (More) Monday, April 13, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: Leica Geosystems announces the Leica RCD100, the first “all-in-one” medium-format mapping camera 15:54 EDT - (Norcross, 02 April 2009) Leica Geosystems is pleased to announce the Leica RCD100, the first completely integrated medium-format mapping camera on the market. The Leica RCD100 is a highly productive, yet affordable, mapping solution for those who want to convert from analog to digital airborne imaging and for those who want productivity and efficiency for smaller to medium-sized photogrammetric mapping... (More) Review: Olympus 12-60mm f/2.8-4 ED SWD 12:04 EDT - The Olympus 12-60mm f/2.8-4 ED SWD lens was introduced in October 2007, coinciding with the release of their flagship E-3 digital SLR camera. Olympus advertised that this particular body / lens combination produced the fastest autofocus on the market. Indeed, the lens is fast to focus, but do the images it produces stand up to scrutiny? Click here for our full review of this lens. Friday, April 10, 2009 Express Review posted for Sony W220! 14:43 EDT - The Cyber-shot W220 is an affordable, pocketable digital camera from Sony. The entry-level model of their W-series digital cameras, the Sony Cyber-shot W220 is a camera that grew on me the more I used it. Like a lot of digital cameras today, the Sony W220 is the result of the... (More) March POTD Winners Chosen! 03:10 EDT - Well, we finally managed to get the monthly winner voting in our Photo of the Day contest done before the middle of the following month! (Hopefully we'll do even better next time.) "Tranquility of the Lake," "Mojave Dunes," and "Harris Hawk" were chosen as our March winners. Congratulations to kani, Julie Furber, and Ulises Espinosa! Without further ado, here's the three monthly... (More) Thursday, April 9, 2009 Olympus E-3 firmware update v1.4 15:25 EDT - Olympus has posted firmware update v1.4, that the company says improves the AF operation of their flagship E-3 digital SLR. No further details are given. Upgrade History E-3 Firmware Ver1.3 has incorporated the following upgrades:Added [FUNCTION] menu that switches the AF point using the arrow pad under [Custom Menu 1] [BUTTON/DIAL].Enhanced the accuracy... (More) Pentax releases K20D firmware v1.03 15:21 EDT - Pentax has released firmware update version 1.03, that the company says improves the accuracy of the SR (Shake Reduction) function in their K20D digital SLR. No further details are given. Upgrade History K20D Firmware Ver1.01:Minimize the noise when taking picture with 2 seconds self-timer mode. Click here for instructions and the download. (More) Wednesday, April 8, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: AKVIS Birthday Celebration 2009: Raffle, Discounts, Contests 15:00 EDT - Every year on May 29 AKVIS organizes a raffle in celebration of its birthday. This year AKVIS is 5 years old! 5 winners will be chosen in a drawing on May 29. The prize is free license keys to a package of any 5 AKVIS programs. April 3, 2009 - AKVIS Software Inc. specializes in image processing software development and scientific research. The company was founded in 2004 by IT professionals having... (More) PRESS RELEASE: 2009 FestImage international image festival begins 14:56 EDT - The 2009 edition of Festimage – International Image Festival will begin on 8 April; it is as of this date that contestants may send in their entries, with the contest lasting until 14 May. The festival will include two competitions – with the Official Prize and the People’s Choice Prize up for grabs. The former, which will include 9,750.00 euros in prize money to be distributed among... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Nik Software Announces Silver Efex Pro™ Update for Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 2 14:36 EDT - Award-winning Silver Efex Pro now compatible with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom San Diego, CA (April 8, 2009) - Nik Software announces today that Silver Efex Pro, its popular digital photographic plug-in offering the most advanced, complete, and straightforward black-and-white solution, is now available for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2.3 and higher. The update is available now as a free download to current... (More) Tuesday, April 7, 2009 Review posted for Panasonic Lumix TS1! 20:58 EDT - Finding a good quality waterproof digital camera is one thing, but finding a waterproof digital camera that takes great pictures like the Panasonic TS1, that's another. Most waterproof digital cameras lean heavily on their rugged capabilities to attract users, but the Panasonic Lumix TS1 delivers better quality images thanks to its 12.1-megapixel sensor, excellent 4.6x... (More) PRESS RELEASE: JOBO Introduces the Affordable New PLANO Series of Digital Picture Frames 15:33 EDT - New stylish JOBO PLANO 8 digital picture frame is the first of a series of three value-packed extremely thin frames to be introduced this year Gummersbach, Germany (April 7, 2009) – JOBO AG announces the addition of an affordable new ultra thin and very stylish digital picture frame to the growing JOBO family of digital picture frames. The new JOBO PLANO 8 is the first in a series of three new... (More) Monday, April 6, 2009 Review: Sigma 300mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO 15:54 EDT - Today we review Sigma's 300mm f/2.8 telephoto lens, a less-expensive way to get closer to your subject, and available in Canon, Nikon and Sony/Minolta camera mounts. Is the lens good value for the money, or should you hold out for a more expensive "name-brand" option? Click here for our full review of the Sigma 300mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM APO lens. PRESS RELEASE: Flip MinoHD, the world's smallest high definition camcorder, is launched in the UK 09:50 EDT - New pocket camcorder and Flipshare in-built software bring new definition to online video creation and sharing The world’s smallest high definition (HD) pocket camcorder, the Flip MinoHD, is as of today, now available to buy in the UK announces Flip Video. Weighing three ounces, the Flip MinoHD is lighter than a TV remote control and small enough to fit in your pocket. As it is HD it produces... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Kepmad Systems Releases ImageBuddy v4.0 08:23 EDT - Kepmad Systems today released ImageBuddy v4.0.0, the 42nd free upgrade to its Award Winning* Photo printing program. ImageBuddy's simple and intuitive interface lets you rotate, size, crop, mask and layout your digital photos for printing in just a few simple click. Version 4.0.0 adds optional support for RAW file formats using Apple's Core Image rendering engine. ImageBuddy offers Drag & Drop support... (More) Friday, April 3, 2009 Image Stabilization Testing: A bit more detail 16:21 EDT - SLRgear.com and Imaging-Resource.com proudly announce our new Image Stabilization Testing on SLRgear.com! We've posted the results from our first lens, the Canon 70-200mm f/4, and expect to post more soon. We wanted to offer just a bit more background for our IR news readers, along with some links to background info on how we do our IS testing, and how to read the results. It was certainly a long slog... (More) IS Test: Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS USM 14:43 EDT - After nearly two years of development, we're pleased to announced our first Image Stabilization test, of the excellent Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS USM lens. Check it out, we hope you'll be as pleased by and excited about our IS testing as we are! PRESS RELEASE: EXIF Data - Analyze, Compare, Improve 07:49 EDT - Two Pilots has released a new version of Exif Pilot for viewing, editing, and creating the EXIF and IPTC data of photographs. Digital photography allows you not only to catch an interesting picture of life and to get it into a computer for further demonstration, but it also automatically records parameters used when taking the image. The additional data records have a special format called EXIF. EXIF... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Pentax Offers Instant Rebate Savings On Select Cameras 07:34 EDT - GOLDEN, CO. (April 3, 2009)…PENTAX Imaging Company has announced an INSTANT REBATE PROGRAM effective April 3 – April , 11, 2009 on select digital cameras. The instant savings range from $20.00 to $50.00 USD on three compact digital cameras and one digital SLR kit. Consumers who purchase select products during this time period will benefit from instant savings on regular MAP/estimated... (More) Thursday, April 2, 2009 PRESS RELEASE: Ritz Camera to Close More than 300 Stores Nationwide; Store Closing Sales Scheduled to Begin April 4 22:07 EDT - WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. -- Ritz Camera Centers, Inc., the nation's largest specialty camera and image products and accessories retailer, has announced that it will close more than 300 stores nationwide as part of a court-supervised bankruptcy reorganization. The move will leave approximately 400 Ritz Camera stores still open around the country. Retail inventory valued at more than $50 million will... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Phanfare Releases First iPhone App With Online Photofinishing 21:58 EDT - Phanfare Photon app lets users upload and order high-quality prints and enlargements in just a few taps PRINCETON, N.J. (April 2) -- Phanfare today introduced version 2.0 of Photon for the iPhone that enables the purchase of prints and enlargements of photos from any iPhone or iPod touch. Phanfare is the first to offer prints-by-mail from the iPhone. For the first time, the most common print sizes... (More) PRESS RELEASE: Phase One releases Capture One 4.7 15:31 EDT - New file format packages Phase One RAW images with applied settings; new support for JPEG and TIFF files; more tethered support COPENHAGEN, April 2, 2009 -- Phase One’s Capture One version 4.7 introduces a new enhanced image package file format to make it easier to share adjusted Phase One digital back-generated RAW files. It also permits adjustment of both JPEG and TIFF files. And it adds tethered... (More) Olympus E-30 firmware update v1.1 08:39 EDT - Olympus has posted a firmware update for the E-30 digital SLR. According to the company, Olympus E-30 Firmware version 1.1 incorporates the following improvements and fixes:Reduced the sound of Image stabilizer operations when IMAGER AF and HYBRID AF are being used.Resolved... (More) PRESS RELEASE: ImageSpan and PicScout Team to Deliver Best-in-Class Image Licensing and Tracking Solutions, Creating Improved Revenues for LicenseStream Subscribers 08:06 EDT - Joint ImageSpan-PicScout Service Allows LicenseStream Subscribers to Immediately Monetize and Gain Incremental Value from Content Distributed across the Web SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- April 2 -- ImageSpan Inc., the creator of LicenseStream, the market-leading licensing and royalty payment automation platform for all media and PicScout, a market-leading image copyright service provider to the digital... (More) PRESS RELEASE: liveBooks Photojournalism offers cost-effective, pre-designed websites for photojournalists 07:23 EDT - New offering through partnering organizations bolsters company’s commitment to helping photographers drive social change San Francisco – March 31, 2009 – liveBooks, Inc., (http://www.livebooks.com) is designed to help photojournalists and documentary photographers gain visibility for their work, build successful careers and support the use of their images to drive social change worldwide.... (More) Wednesday, April 1, 2009 Review posted for Canon SD780 IS! 17:50 EDT - Canon has finally taken on its super-slim rivals with the new PowerShot SD780 IS, a sweet looking little digital camera that sports a 12.1-megapixel sensor, a vibrant 2.5-inch LCD, an optical viewfinder, image stabilization, HD Movie mode, and a basic 3x zoom. Most other digital cameras make a few trade-offs to achieve a slimmer profile, though, so we wanted to know: is the Canon SD780 a slim digital camera with fewer compromises? See our Express Review of... (More) February POTD Winners Chosen! 07:20 EDT - Rather later than planned due to a heavy workload preparing our Canon T1i preview, we're happy to announce the monthly winners of our Photo of the Day contest for February, 2009. "Ducks," "Daphne on the Beach," and "Dusty Evening !!!" were chosen as our February winners. Congratulations to Eloj Lugnani, Frank Somma, and Aung Pyae Soe! Here's a look at February's winners, along... (More) Return to: Current News Archive Index