PhotographyBB has released the 26th edition of the free PhotographyBB Online Magazine. This edition examines some key traits necessary for those interested in becoming professionals, or “photo-preneurs.” Additionally, there are some helpful tutorials on conveying a sense of motion in night portraits, along with the top 5 landscape photography tips and techniques. The editorial team takes a look at the key differences, advantages, and disadvantages of shooting raw vs. JPEG, and presents readers with a very special in-depth coverage of the new Lightroom 3 Beta 2 release. PhotographyBB Online Magazine is available for free download through the PhotographyBB website.

Website: PhotographyBB

Discovery Channel’s Life, the 11-part follow up to Planet Earth - the most successful natural history documentary of all time - will launch on Sunday, featuring amazing cinematography. While Planet Earth told the story of the natural world through the framework of our planet’s ecosystems and regions, Life takes viewers on a more intimate journey as they’re introduced to different animal and plant groups, using the latest in HD filming techniques to show jaw-dropping behaviours that you may never have witnessed before. Click through / read on for behind-the-scenes vignettes and previews from the first two episodes.

To help give artists a better way to certify their fine art prints, Paris-based Galerie Vu turned to ARTtrust, a new self-certification system developed by HP and Prooftag. Designed to put inventory control back into the hands of artists, ARTtrust is a system of unique, non-removable physical tags that are verifiable online. “ARTtrust is easy and fast,” says Xavier Soule, owner of Galerie Vu. “When you sell a product to a collector, you need to prove that it is what you say it is. An ARTtrust tag on an HP print is one of the easiest ways to do that.”

John Freeman Photours has launched a series of photography prints and gift vouchers in time for Mother’s Day. The prints feature John Freeman’s award-winning photography of nature and landscapes, still life, world architecture and more. They are available on paper or canvas and can be purchased as print-only - starting at £45 - or in one of several high-quality frames. For mothers who are keen photographers themselves, vouchers can be purchased for John Freeman Photours studio workshops and luxury photography holidays to locations in the UK, further afield in Europe, or as far-flung as Namibia, South Africa and India. Gift vouchers start from £50 and are presented in specially designed gift cards featuring John Freeman’s own photography.

Website: John Freeman Photours

Canon had a fleet of branded Mini Coopers at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver - and our reader Jerry was there to take a few high-quality images of them. These cars, all decked out in Canon gear, roamed the streets of Vancouver, serving as private shuttles. “It was pretty awesome,” Jerry commented. Click through for a small gallery of his images. We thank Jerry for sending them to us.

PhotographyBB announced today the release of the 25th edition of the PhotographyBB Online Magazine. This two-year anniversary edition examines the role of amateur photographers looking to break into the professional realm, along with the impact on the photography industry. Additionally, portraiture and flash lighting techniques are featured, along with a guide on what to look for when purchasing a new lens. They also continue their detailed look at some of the new features in the Lightroom 3 beta release, including the Watermarking Tools and the new Identity Plate. Finally, in their Photography Around the World feature, they take readers to Canada for a trip through the Canadian Rockies. From the wildlife to the icefields, you’ll get a great look at the spectacular scenery which British Columbia and Alberta have to offer. PhotographyBB Magazine is a free download from the website below.

Website: PhotographyBB Magazine

The British Journal of Photography (BJP) has been relaunched as a monthly title. The world’s longest running photography magazine now features a brilliant new look, new editorial sections, more in-depth analysis and greater space to showcase the stunning photographs that are a hallmark of the publication. “We believe that print magazines have a positive future, so when we began thinking about what we could deliver as a monthly, we decided to play to the strengths of print,” editor Simon Bainbridge says. “While many magazines are cutting costs and chasing readers that now have an allegedly shorter attention span, we are investing, rewarding them with a redesigned magazine that uses higher quality paper, has superior reproduction techniques and delivers more depth.” The new-look British Journal of Photography hits the newsstands on Wednesday, 3 March. The title is on sale the first Wednesday of every month, priced £6.99.

The CompactFlash Association has announced the availability of the recently approved CF5.0 specification. The CF5.0 specification includes 48-bit addressing to allow capacities of up to 144 petabytes and more efficient data transfer, an optional Video Performance Guarantee to ensure quality recordings with no dropped frames, and other novelties. Mr. Shigeto Kanda of Canon and the CFA chairman of the board said, “The higher capacity and higher performance of CF cards enabled by the 48-bit addressing feature in the CF5.0 specification will further increase the value of DSLR cameras. The Video Performance Guarantee feature of the CF5.0 specification will help CF cards to expand into new markets such as high-speed movie equipment like professional video camcorders.”

A retired Belgian engineer who calls himself Foto Opa, or Photo Granddad, has created his own self-contained laser rig for high-speed photography. Consisting of a reflected laser light system, an external shutter, two flashguns and a system of extra lenses to look for insects in focus, the unit works in full darkness just as well as in broad daylight. It takes only 40 microseconds for the system to determine if the subject is in focus, to which the external shutter adds a lag of a mere 5-7 milliseconds. This allows him to take photos of insects in flight and other extremely fast-moving subjects. His online gallery is well worth a visit.

Terra Incognita Ecotours, an adventure travel company that specialises in wildlife-focused ecotours, is offering a new photo expedition to takes wildlife enthusiasts to Madagascar, the “land that time forgot”. In Madagascar, travellers find all of the world’s lemurs and over half of the world’s chameleons, as well as more than 170 kinds of frog. Every year scientists discover new species of plants and animals in its deserts and forests, so it’s a chance to photograph some of the world’s rarest creatures. The cost of participation in the expedition is $5399 For each participant, a $250 donation will be made to Project Angonoka, a project of the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust.

Website: Photo Expedition to Madagascar

A Spanish trawlerman has fished out a digital camera from the Atlantic Ocean and was able to retrieve five photos stored on its memory card. The BBC reports that the camera may have been dropped overboard from the ocean liner Queen Mary 2, most likely in October 2008. One of the photos features the cruiser Queen Elisabeth 2 in the background, and it was in that month that the two liners sailed together for the last time (the QE2 is now out of service). The BBC report does not mention the brand or the type of the memory card or the camera.

At press time, the identity of the camera’s owners was unknown; but it’s likely that the shooter belonged to the people seen in the salvaged snaps.

Via BBC News

Update: The camera’s owners have been identified as Barbara and Dennis Gregory from South Africa.

After more than 45 years in a personal archive, a limited-edition photography series, “Marilyn Monroe: The Visit,” has been released by famed photographer Len Steckler and Eagle National Mint. Shot in December 1961, Steckler’s intimate, unique photographs depict a natural, relaxed Marilyn Monroe during her first visit with another American legend, poet Carl Sandburg, in Steckler’s New York apartment. Steckler took these photos at nothing more than window light, with a Nikon camera loaded with black-and-white film. He kept the negatives from the Monroe and Sandburg encounter in his personal archive for close to 50 years, and has now partnered with collectibles dealer Eagle National Mint for a limited-edition release of nine unique images, available as single-shots and in triptych form, exclusively online at www.thevisitseries.com.

OmniVision has recently announced the introduction of the world’s first 1.1-micron backside illuminated (BSI) pixel. The new OmniBSI-2 pixel architecture allegedly represents a major milestone in digital imaging technology, and enables new imaging solutions with superior image quality and low-light sensitivity. “The new 1.1-micron OmniBSI-2 pixel not only outperforms our current 1.75-micron front-side illumination architecture, but it also equals the performance of our industry-leading 1.4-micron BSI pixel that is currently in mass production,” commented Dr. Howard Rhodes, vice president of process engineering at OmniVision.

Henri Cartier-Bresson is remembered as one of the greatest photographers ever - but he was also an avid and talented filmmaker. Several documentaries he shot between the 1930s and the 1970s bear witness to his affection for the cinema, a medium that he sees as “an alternative to photography in the way it sees the world and captures its movement.” A new, 2-disc collection released by New Video includes includes five of his major films plus a series of documentaries about the artist. A 32-page illustrated booklet containing reproductions of his legendary photos completes the package. Timed to release before the first retrospective of Cartier-Bresson’s works in the US in three decades at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Henri Cartier-Bresson: Collector’s Edition will become available on 30 March 2010, priced at $49.95.

This year marks the centenary of the first infrared photographs that have appeared in print. Professor Robert Williams Wood, the man who took the first published infrared photographs, had to sensitise his own photographic plates to infrared light, as there was no commercially produced infrared emulsion available at the time.

NASA has released the most detailed and dramatic images ever taken of the distant dwarf planet Pluto. The images released yesterday have been constructed from multiple NASA Hubble Space Telescope photographs taken from 2002 to 2003. They confirm Pluto is a dynamic world that undergoes dramatic atmospheric changes, not simply a ball of ice and rock. These Hubble images, taken by the Advanced Camera for Surveys, will remain the sharpest view of Pluto until NASA’s New Horizons probe is within six months of its flyby during 2015.

Website: NASA

Fastbind will be showcasing all of its photo products at PMA 2010 in Anaheim. Known for its binders and photo album machines, Fastbind now has products that allow both professional and amateur photographers to turn their photos into personalised custom albums. These offerings include the Fastbind FotoMount F32 and F46 photobook makers, and the Booxter Binder. The F32 allows anyone to quickly begin making elegant 180 degree layflat albums up to 12”x12”. The F46 has been announced to satisfy the need for books larger than 12”x12” and up to 18”x18”. Finally, the Booxter Binder is a performance-packed stapling station that not only addresses the quick low-end album market but the high-end presentation market as well. Fastbind will display these solutions in booth 3057 at PMA 2010.

WestLicht Photographica is to auction off one of the first commercially produced cameras, a Giroux Daguerréotype, which is expected to fetch at least half a million euros. The Giroux Daguerréotype was made in Paris from 1839 in limited numbers from original plans drawn up by its inventor, Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre, by his brother-in-law, Alphones Giroux. The camera being auctioned on 29 May by WestLicht Auctions in Vienna was completely unknown and has never before been documented. It has been in private ownership in northern Germany for generations. The outstanding original condition of the 170 year-old apparatus is remarkable. Every detail including the lens, the plaque signed by Daguerre himself, the black velvet interior and the ground-glass screen are in their original state. WestLicht Photographica estimates that it will be sold for 500,000 to 700,000 euros at the 17th WestLicht Photographica Auction held in Vienna on 29 May 2009.

PhotographyBB announced today the release of the 24th edition of the PhotographyBB Online Magazine. The January 2010 edition examines the merits of keeping a strong and tidy photo portfolio, be it physical or an online gallery. Additionally, this issue explores composition techniques, and how negative space can strengthen a photo while drawing the viewer deeper into the image. This month also looks at the Lightroom 3 Beta release in-depth, featuring the new Publish Services and Watermarking tools. In their Photography Around the World feature, they take you to India for a colorful look at Pushkar’s annual fair. PhotographyBB Online Magazine is available for free download through the PhotographyBB website

Website: PhotographyBB

CoolerBot is an interesting outdoor telepresence robot built for nature photography. Created by Steve Norris of Norris Labs, CoolerBot sports an infrared video camera, a Nikon digital SLR camera and two solar panels used to recharge the batteries. Rugged, waterproof and designed to stay outdoors for long periods of time, the robot is remote controlled through a 912 MHz transceiver. Norris’ CoolerBot certainly looks like it has a great potential in aiding photographers wishing to photograph timid or potentially dangerous wildlife. For more information and to see a video of CoolerBot in action, head to the website below.

Website: Norris Labs