A giant pigeon “landed” on the grass beside London’s City Hall this morning. The life-like sculpture, which was specially commissioned to mark the UK launch of Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-ZX1 compact camera with an 8x optical zoom, graphically brought to life one of London’s most iconic and hotly debated creatures, Panasonic says. A team of five artists spent two months constructing the 1.52 metre high and 3.2 metre wide fibre glass structure which was lifted into place in Potters Fields, central London at 8am before moving further along the banks of the Thames for a national photo call in front of The Houses of Parliament. The giant pigeon is one of a series of objects which have been magnified and brought to life by Panasonic to illustrate the 8x optical zoom lens of the new, ultra-compact Lumix DMC-ZX1. Users are invited to submit their own photographs which showcase the fun that can be had with perspective for their chance to win a trip to the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games by visiting the website below.

Website: Panasonic 8xLife

Olympus have announced their second Micro FourThirds camera, the Olympus PEN E-P2. Essentially a modified version of the existing Olympus E-P1, the new E-P2 retains the basic specifications and control interface, but adds an accessory port for optional extras such as a detachable electronic viewfinder (EVF) and microphones, AF tracking, two additional Art Filters (Diorama and Cross Process), a colour-boosting i-Enhance function, remote slideshow control via HDMI, and an option to shoot high-definition movies in M (full manual) mode. Another point of difference is that the E-P2 is finished in black rather than silver or white. The Olympus E-P2 will become available in January 2010. The recommended retail price of the E-P2 kit (including a 14-42mm lens and a high-resolution external EVF) is expected to be £849. The US MSRP for the same kit is $1,099.99.

Update: Ian Burley has posted a hands-on preview of the Olympus E-P2 over at Four Thirds User.

Epson’s P-6000 and P-7000 photo viewers can now be tethered to a DSLR camera. Images are then automatically saved onto the camera’s memory card while a backup copy is also saved to the viewer’s hard drive. The viewers’ high resolution, 4-inch color-accurate LCD can be used to preview images and confirm any adjustments to be made on the spot. “The new tethering feature in the Epson P-6000 and P-7000 Photo Viewers can dramatically enhance the workflow of any photographer, and is yet another demonstration of our commitment to developing products that meet the needs of the professional photography marketplace,” said Rick Day, senior product manager, Epson America. The new Epson P-6000 and P-7000 Multimedia Photo Viewer tethering feature will be available in late-October as a free download.

The Sony DPP-F700 is a new digital photo frame with a built-in printer. The Sony F700 allows you to edit images before printing, and it features one gigabyte of internal storage capacity with an auto-resizing adjustment that downsizes photos to store up to 2,000 photos. The DPP-F700 digital photo frame-printer will be available for about $200 in January.

FOTOBOX Plus is a USB device that enables the creation of rich multimedia slideshows from photos and videos. FOTOBOX Plus contains an integrated memory card reader and embedded PC software with Flash memory, and automatically runs without any installation. In Easy mode, users can just import their photos, select their favorite theme template and view their final creation, while Advanced mode is designed for those that want more control over their slideshows. Priced at $79.99, FOTOBOX Plus can now be purchased on Honest Technology’s Web site, and at leading retailers including Amazon.com, Buy.com, Micro Center, OfficeMax and others.

Lexar have unveiled a new 600x Compact Flash card with a guaranteed minimum write speed of 90MB/s. Available in 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacities,  the Lexar Professional 600x CF card works with the latest UDMA 6 enabled cameras, including the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, EOS 7D and the new 1D Mark IV, and the Nikon D3x, D3s and D300s.

Lexar’s 600x card also offers increased image transfer speeds from card-to-computer with minimum sustained read speeds of 533x (80MB/s), or faster when paired with the new Lexar Professional ExpressCard CompactFlash Reader. This is a portable, high-performance reader that requires no cables and connects directly to a PC or Mac laptop computer’s ExpressCard slot.

The Lexar Professional 600x CF cards will begin shipping on October 22nd in 8GB and 16GB capacities for £149 and £219 respectively. The 32Gb version will be available in November for £399. The Lexar Professional ExpressCard CompactFlash Reader will cost £29.99.

The Leica S2, which was originally scheduled to go on sale in the summer and later postponed until October, will apparently not hit the shelves before December. According to Amateur Photographer, Leica is citing unexpectedly high demand and says, ‘Orders for the system have been much higher than expected, and in order to meet this higher demand, we have decided to adapt the S-System production lines to enable a higher daily output.’ The new launch date is calendar week 50, i.e. mid-December.

Via Amateur Photographer

The Leaf Aptus-II 5 is an “affordable” 22-megapixel digital back for medium-format cameras. Take the word “affordable” with a grain of salt though - while the Leaf Aptus-II 5 is the least expensive Aptus back manufactured today, it still sets you back some $7,995; and that’s without a lens, or indeed a camera body. However, for $2000 more, you can get both a Phase One 645 AF body and a 80mm lens, which means that for just under $10,000 you can now have a completely functional medium format digital system up and running. While this is still nearly $2000 more than the price of a Nikon D3x with a comparable 50mm lens, the Leaf back does have a couple of head-turning features in its favour, like a 16-bit A/D converter and a claimed 12 stops of dynamic range.

Website: Leaf Aptus II-5

Sony today announced the development of a single-lens 3D camera technology capable of recording natural and smooth 3D images of even fast-moving subject matter such as sports, at 240 frames per second. The introduction of a single-lens system resolves any issues that may occur as a result of having different optical characteristics for each eye, the company says. Also, by developing a 240fps frame rate CMOS image sensor with properties close to the human eye, which is capable of capture natural images of even fast moving subject matter, Sony has allegedly succeeded in further enhancing the quality of 3D images. The combination of Sony’s new single lens 3D system and its 240fps high frame rate technology has realised a single-lens 3D camera system, based on universal properties of the human eye, which enables natural and smooth 3D movies. Sony aims to bring 3D to the home in 2010.

Fujifilm U.S.A. has announced the immediate availability of the Finepix Real 3D system in the US. The FinePix REAL 3D system consists of the 3D digital camera, FinePix REAL 3D W1, a 3D digital viewer, FinePix REAL 3D V1, and 3D prints. Featuring the newly developed “FinePix REAL 3D Lens System,” the FinePix REAL 3D W1 has dual Fujinon lenses that layer together two images. An aluminium die-cast frame protects the 3X optical zoom lenses from vibration and impact for ultimate accuracy. The “Real Photo Processor 3D” synchronises data passed to it by the two lenses and two CCD sensors, to determine shooting conditions such as focus, brightness and tonality to instantaneously blend this information into a single symmetrical image for both still photos and movies. The FinePix REAL 3D V1 digital 3D viewer features Fujifilm’s newly developed 3D/2D display 8.0-inch LCD panel. This allows users to enjoy and playback 3D images without the need for special 3D glasses. The FinePix REAL 3D W1 Digital Camera and REAL 3D V1 Digital Viewer are available through ShopFujifilm.com.  Prints will also be available, starting mid-October, through SeeHere.com, Fujifilm’s photo printing, gifting and sharing web site, for $6.99.

We’ll be bringing you a review of the Fujifilm Finepix Real 3D W1 camera later today.

Phase One has just announced the Phase One 645DF camera. Engineered in partnership with Mamiya Digital Imaging for superior quality image capture and ease of handling, it sets a new standard for high flash sync speeds – up to 1/1600 of a second. The new camera introduces many performance improvements over its predecessor. Capture responsiveness and autofocus speeds are claimed to have been highly improved, allegedly giving photographers up to 5 times faster performance in a typical fashion set up. The Phase One 645DF is compatible with digital backs designed for the Phase One / Mamiya AFD mount, including backs from Phase One, Leaf, Mamiya and others. Also today, Phase One announced the availability of three new high performance leaf shutter lenses, 55mm, 80mm and 110mm, all f/2.8 and all designed with the Phase One 645DF camera in mind. The lenses are a result of close collaboration with Mamiya Digital Imaging and Schneider Kreuznach. The Phase One 645DF camera body starts at $5990/€4290 and is expected to ship in the last quarter of 2009. The new leaf shutter lenses start at $2490/€1790 and are also expected to start shipping the fourth quarter of 2009.

Hasselblad have today launched the new H4D medium format camera series, featuring revolutionary True Focus technology. The H4D-60 will feature True Focus with APL (Absolute Position Lock), making auto-focus substantially easier and more accurate for photography professionals. “This technology takes AF to an entirely new level, correcting for the vertical and horizontal focus-shift that results from the rotation of the camera around an axis close to camera,” says Christian Poulsen, CEO of Hasselblad. Two models have been unveiled, the 60 megapixel H4D-60 and the 50 megapixel H4D-50. The Hasselblad H4D-60 will be available in November 2009 at a price of 28,995 €. The Hasselblad H4D-50 will replace the H3DII-50 and will be available in in Q1, 2010 at a price of 19,995 €.

To celebrate the merging of the two premier brands in medium format photography: Leaf and Phase One, Peartree are introducing two major promotions for professional photographers in the UK. Those purchasing a new 56 Megapixel Leaf Aptus II 10 digital back will receive a free Phase One 645 camera and two lenses. Photographers opting to buy a Leaf Aptus II 6 back and a Phase One 645 camera system get an 80mm and a 150mm lens gratis. For pricing and more information, call 020 7033 7371.

DxO Labs have posted detailed raw-based image quality data on the Olympus E-P1 mirrorless interchangeable-lens system camera and the Phase One P40+ medium-format digital back / camera system. The findings are available on the DxOMark website, a free online resource that delivers key objective sensor performance metrics measured directly on the raw image for a variety of cameras.

Website: DxOMark

Panasonic has issued firmware updates for its Lumix DMC-G1 and GH1 Micro Four Thirds cameras. Version 1.4 of the G1 firmware improves AF performance with low-contrast subjects and optimises AE control for the upcoming Leica 45mm Macro lens that is due for release in October. Version 1.2 of the GH1 firmware also includes these improvements, plus decreases the operational noise of the auto-focus system during movie recording with the Lumix 20mm f/1.7 lens. N.B.: this modification also brings about a decrease in AF speed while recording a video clip with this lens, but does not affect AF speed or noise when taking stills.

Website: Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 Firmware 1.4
Website: Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 Firmware 1.2

Hartblei has announced the Hartblei CAM, which allows you to mate a Nikon F or Canon EF mount lens to a medium-format digital or film back. The Hartblei CAM uses a 35mm lens mount as an interface to support all lenses, no matter whether 35mm or MF. Hartblei claims that you can mount any of the currently available medium format backs, and points out that a combination of a 14mm lens and a Phase One P65+ back will give medium-format users an extremely wide 135-degree angle of view. The Hartblei CAM comes with a built-in shutter boasting a top shutter speed of 1/2000th of a second, and offers a motorised slider to move the back back and forth. The camera is available now at €4985 plus shipping and taxes.

Website: Hartblei

With effect from October 1, 2009, Sinar Photography will take over the Development, Sales, Service and Support divisions for the products of the Sinar brand. Sinar Photography originates from Tekno AG, which has already been marketing the Sinar products in Switzerland up to now. The German and Swiss markets will be served directly by Sinar Photography from Switzerland, with support from an existing service, repair and sales office in the Hamburg region. Additional sales support offices will be announced shortly. The ongoing product development at Sinar Photography will focus predominantly on the tried-and-tested analogue and digital camera systems. This includes the digital backs, the globally renowned Sinar view cameras for studio applications, and the specialist cameras for architecture and document photography. The continuation of the Hy6 medium-format camera is currently under negotiation, but the existing business alliance guarantees long-term technical support.

Panasonic’s Living in HD community is looking for bloggers, video bloggers, photographers, podcasters and other content creators on the Social Web to participate in the Living in HD Insider programme. Living in HD Insiders will have the opportunity to see new Panasonic HD technology before products hit store shelves and spend time with Greg Harper, technology expert and Living in HD Answerman.  As part of the programme, one winner will receive a full content creator suite of Panasonic High Definition products to fuel their creativity, as well as the unique opportunity share their experiences with HD technology with community members. The winning Living in HD Insider will also receive a Panasonic LUMIX G1 camera to give away to their own online network to encourage their readers and followers to join the Living in HD community. To enter for a chance to become the next Living in HD Insider, people should visit http://www.livinginhd.com/lihdinsider/ until 9 October. Along with their application, entrants must also submit a video that compellingly and convincingly answers why they believe they should win the content creator suite and how they would encourage their community to get involved with LivinginHD.com.

Olympus has issued firmware updates for the Olympus E-P1 camera and the two Olympus-branded Micro Four Thirds lenses released so far. Version 1.1 improves the continuous autofocus (C-AF) performance of the camera and lenses alike. In order to install the firmware updates, hook up the E-P1 - with lens attached - to the computer, run Olympus Master and select ‘Update Camera’ from the Online Service menu.

Review: Read our in-depth review of the Olympus E-P1

Kodak have issued a press release about the KAF-18500 image sensor built into the Leica M9 digital rangefinder camera. The M9 is now the fourth Leica camera to utilise KODAK CCDs, building on Kodak’s earlier support of the Leica Digital Module-R, the Leica M8 (Leica’s first digital rangefinder camera), and the new Leica S2. With an image capture area that matches the size of traditional 35mm film, M-series lenses can now be used without the imposition of artificial image cropping, Kodak remarks. Matching this larger image capture area with the rangefinder’s unique optical design required a redesign of both the sensor’s pixel and microlens configuration compared to the sensor used in the M8 camera, which Kodak was allegedly able to achieve without compromising on Leica’s stringent image quality requirements. In addition, the sensor incorporates a new IR-absorbing cover glass as well as a new red colour pigment for improved color fidelity and improved image quality.