Google has released a software bundle that includes all of Nik Software’s plug-ins and costs only $149. Branded as the Nik Collection by Google, the bundle was announced in a Google+ post by Christian Pesch. For the $149 price you will get the latest editions of Color Efex Pro, Dfine, HDR Efex Pro, Sharpener Pro, Silver Efex Pro and Viveza. “If you’ve already purchased one or more Nik plug-ins in the past, then don’t worry, we’ve got you covered,” Pesch says. “In fact: we’re going to upgrade you to the entire Nik Collection by Google for free. Just keep an eye out for emailed instructions in the next few days.”

Website: Nik Collection by Google

DxO Labs have released version 8.1.4 of DxO Optics Pro for Windows and Mac. This update to DxO Optics Pro 8 brings support for four additional new cameras: the Nikon Coolpix P7700 (pictured), the Nikon 1 J3, the Olympus XZ-2 iHS, and the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH3. Furthermore, over 200 new camera/lens combinations have been added to the library of DxO Optics Modules, offering support for additional Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax, Sigma, Tokina, and Zeiss lenses for numerous Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, and Pentax camera bodies. This upgrade is free for all owners of DxO Optics Pro 8, as well as for photographers who purchased a DxO Optics Pro 7 licence on or after September 1, 2012.

Ohanaware has released its latest photo enhancing application “Shine” for Mac OS X. The program uses lighting effects such as light rays and lens flare, as well as colour tinting and various other effects to alter a photo. Shine is available today, priced at $9.99, from the website below.

MindSmack has released Pixies, an iOS app which allows users to add illustrations and text to their photographs. “Pixies is an exciting boost to today’s photo editing options,” states MindSmack Founder and CEO, Sam Feuer. “We’re in an age where mobile photo editing is its own art form. We’ve taken away the confusion that typically accompanies editors and produced a fun and simple app that is accessible to all users. We’re excited for Pixies’ release and can’t wait for users to begin enjoying it.” Pixies is available for free on the iTunes App Store.

Cypress Innovations have launched Digital Negative, an iOS app which captures uncompressed images that retain all of the information recorded by the camera sensor and saves them in DNG format. Other interesting features include a real?time histogram, exposure compensation and shutter speed adjustments as well as flash, focus, and zoom controls. Additionally, Digital Negative can also record high?quality JPG images or uncompressed TIFF files. Digital Negative is now available for $2.99 on iTunes.

Ed Hamrick has released VueScan Mobile version 1.2 for Android – adding the ability to use the camera as a scanner. The new camera scanning function allows anyone with a camera phone to easily take photos and store them in a JPEG or PDF format. In addition to sending via e-mail and saving to the Photos App, VueScan Mobile also allows you to save scanned images to Dropbox, GoodReader and Evernote. VueScan Mobile for Android also allows anyone with a Wi-Fi enabled HP, Canon, Epson or Brother scanner to seamlessly scan documents and photos straight to an Android device.The full version at $4.99 supports document feeders, duplex, document management and multi-page PDF. The VueScan Mobile Free App and the full version for Android devices is available in Google Play Store and the Amazon Appstore.

Ten years ago today, Phase One released the first version of its Capture One raw conversion and image editing software that added support for DSLR cameras. “
Born in the late 1990s to process raw files exclusively from Phase One’s first digital image capture devices, the software that would become Capture One was one of the first raw conversion solutions,” the company said in a statement. “Its general availability in 2003 helped support a growing DSLR market.” The latest iteration, Capture One 7, is localised for Simplified Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Spanish.

BeFunky has unveiled an upgraded, interactive online photo gallery. The new Channels feature takes into consideration the kinds of photos people love looking at, and not only helps them find those pictures, but gives them the tools to see the content in a variety of ways. Filtering options are incorporated throughout the gallery, giving people an “unparalleled” amount of control, the company says. BeFunky has also created a sophisticated algorithm that takes into account numerous factors to help photos get noticed.The latest version offers a new screen for saving and sharing photos across multiple social networks at once. Finally, BeFunky has added new features that let users customise their user profiles.

Caal Studio has released a new iOS app which is claimed to “essentially turn a user’s device into a light field camera” enabling them to take “refocusable” photos. “A single photo does not tell the complete story,” commented Chan Paey-Lun of Caal Studio. “And now with tap2focus, users can re-focus their photos, and tell a different story with each tap. It’s a whole new way to experience photography and photo editing.” tap2focus is available on iTunes for $0.99.

ACD Systems have ACDSee Photo Editor 6, a creative photo editing software solution for amateur photographers. New features include Lighting and Contrast Enhancement (LCE) technology, new lighting fixes, raw file support, a suite of creative effects and filters and advanced rich colour tools. ACDSee Photo Editor 6 is available online at a suggested retail price of $49.99.

Pomfort, a global provider of professional solutions for data and color management on the film set, has announced an upcoming upgrade to its flagship software product, Silverstack. Version 3 supports arbitrary file types including raw sequences, photos, sound files and other production documents as wekk as tools for quality check., playback and metadata controls for ARRI Alexa, and RED cameras, Canon DSLRs, Nikon DSLRs and GoPro models. Silverstack 3 will be available end of March for $599. Existing customers can upgrade to the new version for $129.

Ed Hamrick has just released version 9.2.10 of Vuescan. This update adds native support for 339 Brother scanners to the desktop edition. “We have had numerous requests from Brother customers asking us for help, and we are pleased that we have added support for such a large number of desktop scanners,” Hamrick says. Of the 339 models 204 are network capable which means they will also work with Vuescan Mobile. Vuescan Desktop will work on Brother scanners directly for Mac OS X and Linux, which means that no Brother drivers are required. In addition, Vuescan no longer needs a WIA driver on Windows or an ICA driver on Mac OS X. Vuescan Desktop is available in two editions, Standard Edition ($39.95 USD) and Professional Edition ($79.95). The Professional Edition adds unlimited free upgrades, advanced IT8 color calibration and support for “raw” scans.

Almost exactly half a year after purchasing Nik Software, Google announced that they will “no longer sell or provide updates for” the desktop (Mac and Windows) versions of Snapseed. “Existing customers will continue to be able to download the software and can contact us for support,” the company said in a statement. “We’ll continue to offer the Snapseed mobile app on iOS and Android for free.”

Nero has released a new version of its Nero 12 and Nero 12 Platinum multimedia suites. The most significant enhancements in the new version concern the Nero Recode video converting application, which now includes pre-configured device profiles for the latest generation of tablets and smartphones, including the iPad Mini, all iPad models, iPhone 5, iPod Touch 5G, iPod Nano 7G, Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro tablets, Windows 8 Phone and Kindle Fire HD. Nero Recode also now automatically detects a computer’s GPGPU (general-purpose graphics processing unit), and uses it by default to finish video converting jobs four to eight times faster. The overall performance of Nero Video was also improved to make editing and exporting faster. It now uses memory more efficiently to allow for longer and more involved projects. It also boosts the viewing and editing experience for HD formats such as AVCHD 2.0. Nero 12.5 is available now as a free online update for anyone who has purchased Nero 12 or Nero 12 Platinum.

58 North has announced that the free iPad digital photo book app, Pholium, now offers the highest-quality hardbound photo book printing capabilities. By including QR codes in Pholium photo quality printed books, viewers can experience the same interactive sound and video contained in the eBooks. When a user hovers over a QR code with any smartphone or tablet, they are instantly directed to the multimedia content. “Printed photo books are great, but they are limited to whatever is on the page,” said Robert Sinclair, co-founder of 58 North. “With this update, we’re giving life to printed photo books and allowing our users to tell and share a richer story through multimedia assets.” The lay-flat printed Pholium books are available with glossy or matte finished image wrap covers and can contain up to 158 photos, audio captions and video links.  The up to 80-page printed books start at $42 (8-inch) and $47 (10-inch). Shipping is included.

Franzis Verlag, a German publishing house, introduced its HDR Projects Platin software for the first time to an international audience at the Focus on Imaging 2013. HDR Projects Plating features an extensive array of functions and flexible editing methods for high-quality results, the company says. Highlights include seven HDR imaging algorithms, selective HDR for precise results, “exceptionally natural” and realistic rendering of high-contrast scenes, adjustable smoothing for the removal of unwanted halos and more. HDR Projects Platin is a stand-alone software optimised for MacOS 64-bit and Windows 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems and sells for £99 including VAT.

Akvis has released Version 3.5 of Akvis HDRFactory, an application that creates HDR images from a series of photographs taken at different exposures. This edition adds the new Crop tool which helps to remove unwanted areas and reduce image size, fixes bugs and incorporates support for raw images from the Canon EOS 6D, EOS 600D, EOS 1100D and PowerShot S100. Registered users of HDRFactory can upgrade to the newest version free of charge, by downloading and installing the new version.

Samsung UK today announced that the brand new Samsung NX300 camera will come bundled with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4. Recently launched at CES, the NX300 is the latest model in Samsung’s NX range. Key specifications include a twenty-megapixel imager with on-sensor phase detection AF sensors, an articulated OLED touchscreen and Wi-Fi connectivity. Other highlights include a sensitivity range of ISO100/21°—ISO25,600/45°, a maximum shutter speed of 1/6000 sec,  8.6fps continuous shooting, a 5-way manual key interface and i-Depth, an easy and simple way to adjust the depth-of-field of an image using the NX Series’ unique i-Function system. Shipping in March, the Samsung NX300 will come with a copy of Lightroom 4, which normally sells for more than £100.

ACDSystems have released Version 15.2 of ACDSee and Version 6.2 of ACDSee Pro. These updates add support for the Canon Powershot S110, EOS M, EOS 6D, PowerShot G15 and PowerShot SX50 HS, the Nikon 1 V2, D5200 and D600, the Olympus XZ-2 iHS, E-PL5 and E-PM2, the Panasonic GH3, the Pentax K-5 II, K-5 IIs and Q10, the Samsung EX2F, the Sony SLT-A99V, NEX-6, NEX-5R and DSC-RX1. The new versions also incorporate bug fixes and performance improvements. For more information see the ACDSee Pro 6.2 and ACDSee 15.2 release notes.

The RawTherapee development team have announced that they’d completed Version 4.0.10 of the program, which shall be available to download “within a day or two.” This update adds an array of new and improved features, and includes DCP profiles for a number of new (and older) digital cameras and backs including the Leaf Aptus 75, Canon EOS 5D Mark III, the Nikon D800, the Olympus E-510, E-520, OM-D E-M5 and XZ-1, and the Panasonic DMC-G5. The new builds will be available in a few days from the website below.