Friday, July 04, 2008

Iconic Britain is a photographic competition that aims to find 100 images that define Britain. Powered by Microsoft Live Search, a new image sourcing network, you can win prizes both by submitting a photo and voting on other people’s entries, with Nikon Coolpix and D60 DSLR cameras on offer. The Iconic Britain competition is open to residents of the United Kingdom, and it runs from 19th June to 14th August 2008. A panel of experts will choose the category winners and their favourite British icon. You can enter and vote in the contest at http://www.iconicbritain.com

Click to continue...

Adobe are offering 50% off Photoshop CS3 to all licensed users of Photoshop Elements. This special offer begins on 1 July, 2008 and ends at 11:59 p.m. 31 July, 2008. It’s available only to licensed users of Photoshop Elements 1.0 - 6.0 and Adobe Photoshop Elements plus Adobe Premiere Elements bundle who purchase the full version of Photoshop CS3 directly from Adobe. the discount is available from the Adobe.com store and by calling 0800 0280148 (press Option 1 and mention the promotion code: 3HAE) and is valid in the United Kingdom only.

The four winners of Canon’s The Assignment photo contest have just been announced. The final four winners are the UK’s Ivan Hoo (Portrait), David Bernard of the Czech Republic, (Sport) France’s Alan Laboile (Macro) and Dave Derbis from Germany (Landscape). A total of 43,404 images were submitted, and voted for by 192,127 registrants on the competition website. The winners will now have the chance to plan and follow their own personal ‘dream assignment’ – each of which will be filmed for broadcast across Europe later in the year. 

Click to continue...

The new Super High Grade Digital Filters fro Marumi are specifically designed for digital photography. Each filter uses the Digital Super Coating, an ultra-low reflection coating to minimize internal reflection off the camera’s built-in CCD and CMOS Sensors. The Super High Grade Digital Filters are available as either Lens Protection - which are colourless, so there is no degradation of image - and also Polarising. They are available in the following sizes: 49mm, 52mm, 55mm, 58mm, 62mm, 67mm, 72mm, 77mm and 82mm. Kenro is the official UK distributors for the range of Marumi photographic accessories.

Click to continue...

Steves Digicams have reviewed the Casio EX-Z80, a new 8 megapixel digital camera that’s designed to be “easier” and “more fun”.

“Most of the exposures outdoors were good, however, as we have seen in our Sample Pics taken with both the S10 and the Z80 the sky in the sample shots of the canon the clouds seem to be slightly overexposed. This is a problem as it causes the area to lose detail otherwise the colors look vivid and lifelike. The 3x optical zoom, with a 35mm equivalent of 38-114mm, it is very good for landscapes and portrait photography. The zoom is great for framing or singling out an individual from a group but is not enough to bring a distant object much closer. At the wide end of the zoom you will see some barrel distortion and slight edge softness as well as some chromatic aberrations throughout.”

Website: Steves Digicams - Casio EX-Z80 Review

Thursday, July 03, 2008

The Pentax K200D is a new entry-level digital SLR camera aimed at people dipping their toes into the DSLR market for the first time. The K200D is the successor to the K100D Super, itself an excellent camera that we awarded an Essential rating to back in October 2007. The new K200D model throws some features from the K10D DSLR into the mix, most notably a 10.2 megapixel sensor and a weather-proof body. Mark Goldstein discovers if the Pentax K200D is still a compelling proposition.

Website: Pentax K200D Review

The UK’s Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, has given the go-ahead for photography to be restricted in the UK. In a very worrying sign of the times, Smith wrote in a letter to the National Union of Journalists that “Decisions may be made locally to restrict or monitor photography in reasonable circumstances. That is an operational decision for the officers involved based on the individual circumstances of each situation.” No clarification was given of what might constitute “reasonable circumstances”. The Home Secretary went on to say “‘It is for the local Chief Constable, in the case of your letter the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Force, to decide how his or her Officers and employees should best balance the rights to freedom of the press, freedom of expression and the need for public protection.” Considering that the Metropolitan Police force have already targeted photographers in a prominent poster campaign earlier this year, this isn’t particularly good news…

Website: BJP - Home Secretary green lights restrictions on photography

Repeat digital camera buyers are driving the digital camera market, according to a new report by Infotrends. In 2007, 3 out of 4 digital camera buyers purchased a replacement or additional camera, and in 2008 almost 9 out of 10 digital camera buyers are expected to fall into that category. Repeat buyers also spend more, because they are likely to be hobbyists that own multiple cameras, and their purchases are triggered by new technology or simply the desire to own a new camera. 

Click to continue...

The Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 Digital Field Guide is a full-color portable guide to the Sony Alpha A700 digital SLR camera. This new book guides you through the essential controls, features, and functions of the Sony A700 using step-by-step instructions and full-color images of each menu screen. The Sony Alpha DSLR A700 Digital Field Guide also goes beyond camera settings to offer you a refresher guide to the principles of digital photography. The Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 Digital Field Guide is available now for 16.00 EUR.

Click to continue...

Ricoh have released a new firmware update for the Ricoh R8, a 10 megapixel digital camera with a 7.1 wide-angle zoom lens. The new firmware update, version 1.22, improves the accuracy of the white balance.

Website: Ricoh R8 Firmware Update 1.22