Mamiya Leaf's new Credo WS 80 and Credo WS 60 medium-format digital backs are now available. The WS (Wide Spectrum) backs are based on the manufacturer's Credo 60 and 80 products but their infrared light blocking filter has been replaced with a custom glass filter and the sensor's position has been adjusted. This extends the captured spectrum of the back, enabling recording of Near IR images (~700nm). The new backs are available in Mamiya AFD/ DF/ DF+ and V (Universal) mounts.

Leica has posted a firmware update for the Leica M (Typ 240) digital rangefinder camera. Version 1.1.0.2 adds vignetting correction for the following lenses: Leica Tri-Elmar-M 16-18-21mm/f4 ASPH, Super-Elmar-M18mm/f3.8 ASPH, Summilux-M 21mm/f1.4 ASPH, Super-Elmar-M 21mm/f3.4 ASPH, Summilux-M 24mm/f1.4 ASPH, Elmarit-M 24mm/f2.8 ASPH, Elmar-M 24mm/f3.8 ASPH, Summicron-M 28mm/f2.0 ASPH, Elmarit-M 28mm/f2.8 ASPH, Summilux-M 35mm/f1.4 ASPH and Summicron-M 35mm/f2.0 ASPH. You can download the Leica M firmware update from the website below.

Canon have developed a new 35mm full-frame CMOS sensor specifically for video recording. The new Canon 35mm CMOS sensor enables the capture of Full HD video even in exceptionally low-light environments. The newly developed CMOS sensor features pixels measuring 19 microns square in size, which is more than 7.5-times the surface area of the pixels on the CMOS sensor incorporated in Canon’s top-of-the-line EOS-1D X DSLR.

Phase One today announced the Phase One IQ2 series: three new 645 format digital camera backs with high-speed wireless connectivity and a claimed 13 f-stops of dynamic range. The Phase One IQ280 enables remote image capture and viewing of its huge 80-megapixel images on an iPad running Phase One’s Capture Pilot App. The 60-megapixel Phase One IQ260 is an extremely versatile back with exposure ranges from 1/10000s to one hour and virtually noise-free images. The 60-megapixel sensor at the heart of the IQ260 is a unique 645 format imager found only in this digital back, offering the widest exposure range opportunities on the market, the company says. Finally, the Phase One IQ260 Achromatic is a dedicated image capture device designed to deliver the highest-quality pure black and white images with no Bayer interpolation involved. Availability of the new IQ2 backs is slated for June, with prices starting at €29,990/$39,990. You can sign up for a “test drive” at the website below.

Rambus has unveiled a new “binary pixel technology” that promises to “dramatically improve” the quality of photos taken with mobile devices, in terms of dynamic range and signal-to-noise ratio. “Today’s compact mainstream sensors are only able to capture a fraction of what the human eye can see,” said Dr. Martin Scott, chief technology officer at Rambus. “Our breakthrough binary pixel technology enables a tremendous performance improvement for compact imagers capable of ultra high-quality photos and videos from mobile devices.” You can read more about the technology at the website below.

StyleShoots is an iPad controlled all-in-one photo studio that shoots, cuts out and exports product images in thirty seconds. The iPad displays a live view of what you lay on the table section of StyleShoots. When you are happy with how the products are styled on the table, you simply press the button and let the integrated system do the rest. StyleShoots takes two images, one with 4000 LED lights on and one without. The two images are then automatically morphed together to produce a sharp, high-quality product shot. The StyleShoots all-in-one photo studio comes complete with an integrated Mac mini, Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera with an EF 24-105mm lens and an Apple iPad, and is available for direct purchase or as a leasing solution.

Website: StyleShoots

Leica has posted seven full-resolution sample photos captured with the new Leica M full-frame digital rangefinder camera. Shot with various Leica lenses, these Leica M samples demonstrate the camera’s image quality at various sensitivity settings ranging from ISO 200/24° to ISO 6400/39° (pushed). Four out of the seven sample images are available in JPEG format, while the remaining three are raw DNG files. You can download the official Leica M sample photos from the website below.

Website: Leica

Panasonic has developed a new kind of sensor that does away with the colour filrer array (CFA) found in most digital cameras manufactured today, relying instead on ‘micro colour splitters’ that separate the light that falls on image sensors by exploiting light’s wavelike properties. “Conventional colour image sensors use a Bayer array, in which a red, green, or blue light-transmitting filter is placed above each sensor,” the company says. “These filters block 50 - 70% of the incoming light before it even reaches the sensor.” The development of ‘micro colour splitters” not only makes CFAs unnecessary but also allows sensors to achieve approximately double the colour sensitivity in comparison with conventional imagers that use colour filters.

Sinar has launched a new camera for architectural and landscape photographers. The Sinar lanTec is a highly portable technical camera that can be used on a tripod as well as hand-held. The shift range is set effortlessly up to 20mm left and right. In addition, you can raise the lens by up to 25mm, or lower it by up to 15mm, which helps prevent convergent or divergent verticals when shooting architecture. In the event you wish to make stitched, rotational panoramic pictures, it’s good to know the tripod mount is physically located on the optical axis, however, for hand-held use, the tripod base can be removed quickly, thanks to its rapid and secure locking mechanism. As for composing the image, your Apple iPhone or iPod Touch can be connected to the lanTec via a special Sinar rotating adapter. This serves as a viewfinder which can quickly be set for either portrait or landscape orientation. Thanks to a range of optional adapters Sinar lanTec camera is compatible with a number of Sinar, Mamiya and Hasselblad digital back mounts.

On 4th December, Lytro will unveil a new light field technology capability for the Lytro camera, featuring Perspective Shift as well as new creative tools called Living Filters.  Perspective Shift lets Lytro photographers interactively change the point of view in a picture after it has been taken. When pictures are shared to the web, Facebook and Twitter, friends can experience Perspective Shift without needing any special software. Perspective Shift also works retroactively on any light field pictures previously taken with a Lytro camera. Living Filters enable Lytro photographers to apply one of nine interactive filters to their pictures and change the look of the picture based on light field depth. Unlike traditional digital photo filters, Living Filters create additional effects as viewers interact with a picture. These features will be available to customers via a free Lytro Desktop software update.

Developed in partnership with Samsung, the Google Nexus 10 is an Android 4.2 powered 10” tablet with a 2560x1600-pixel display boasting a resolution of 300ppi. The panel’s aspect ratio is 8:5 (or, as display manufacturers like to put it, 16:10), which falls between the classic 3:2 proportion of photos taken by most 35mm film cameras and digital SLRs, and the widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio of HD movies. The 300ppi resolution bests the 264ppi Retina display of the Apple iPad 4 and matches that of standard photographic prints, making it especially attractive to photographers in need of a device to showcase their portfolio. Equipped with two camera modules (a 5-megapixel main camera and a 1.9-megapixel front-facing unit), microUSB and microHDMI ports, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity (but no memory card slot or 3G/4G support), the Nexus 10 will hit the shelves on 13th November in the UK, US, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Canada and Japan in two versions, with the 16GB model costing £319/$399 and the 32GB variant selling for £389/$499.

The Apple iPad Mini is a new 7.9-inch tablet. 23 percent thinner and 53 percent lighter than the third generation iPad, the iPad Mini has Multi-Touch display, FaceTime HD and iSight cameras, ultrafast wireless performance and 10 hours of battery life. iPad mini comes in a new aluminium and glass design that is just 7.2 mm thin and weighs only 0.68 pounds.

The iPad 4 features a 9.7-inch Retina display, new Apple-designed A6X chip that delivers up to twice the CPU performance and up to twice the graphics performance of the A5X chip, 10 hours of battery life, FaceTime HD camera and ultrafast wireless performance.

Both iPad mini and fourth generation iPad come with iOS 6, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system with over 200 new features.

The Apple 13-inch MacBook Pro features a stunning Retina display and all flash storage in a new compact design. At a mere 0.75 inches and 3.57 pounds, the portable 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is 20 percent thinner and almost a pound lighter than the current 13-inch MacBook Pro. Prices start at £1,449 inc VAT for a 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display with a 2.5 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.1 GHz, 8GB of memory and 128GB of flash storage.

At Photokina 2012, Pentax Ricoh is showing off a prototype for a double spherical camera that captures 360° panoramic photos in one take, tentatively named Pentax One Shot. We have compiled a hands-on gallery for your perusal.

Want to see exactly what the new Leaf Credo medium-format digital back looks like in the flesh? We have compiled a hands-on gallery for your perusal.

Want to see exactly what the new Leica M live view enabled, 24-megapixel rangefinder camera looks like in the flesh? We have compiled a gallery of hands-on photos for your perusal.

Want to see exactly what the new Leica M, S, M-E and X2 Paul Smith cameras look like in the flesh?

Check out our hands-on gallery of photos of the M, S, M-E and X2 Paul Smith edition cameras.

The new Leica M is a 24-megapixel full-frame digital rangefinder camera with Live View and Full HD video recording capabilities. This means - among other things - that Leica M users will, for the first time ever, be able to see exactly what their M lens sees prior to taking a photograph (if they so wish, that is). In Live View mode the Leica M offers a choice of two focusing aids, focus peaking and up to 10x magnified view. In addition to these the traditional rangefinder focusing method is, of course, fully retained. The brand new “Leica Max” CMOS sensor was designed and constructed in collaboration with CMOSIS specifically for this camera and its use with Leica M- and R-Lenses. According to Leica, “[t]his new development successfully transfers the characteristic advantages of CCD sensors, such as natural and brilliant colour rendition and impressive reproduction of detail, to a CMOS sensor.” The Leica M in black paint or silver chrome finish is scheduled to be available in the UK at a suggested retail price of £5,100 including VAT from early 2013.

The Leica M-E is an “affordable” (ahem) version of the Leica M9 full-frame digital rangefinder camera. Featuring a classic “Leica format,” i.e. 35mm full-frame, sensor with 18 million pixels, the Leica M-E is claimed to represent “the essence of rangefinder photography.” Described as the “ideal entry-level model for photographers wishing to experience the fascination of M-photography in its purest form,” the Leica M-E retains most of the core functionality of the M9 while setting you back “only” £3,900 including VAT (for reference, the M9 retails for £4,950).

GIMP Magazine, a brand new, free publication featuring works created by the worldwide community of GIMP users, is launching on 5th September. “Photography, digital arts, graphic arts, web design, tips & tricks, step by step tutorials, master classes, help desk questions, product reviews and so much more are showcased and explored in this quarterly publication,” says Steve Czajka, Managing Editor, GIMP Magazine. “We will be hosting a launch party on the popular Canadian Technology and Pop Culture Podcast called Dyscultured.  Everyone is invited to attend this event and meet some of the GIMP Magazine team members, ask questions, and provide suggestions for upcoming issues!  The event will be LIVE to the world!” The launch event is taking place from 10pm EST on 5 September 2012.