Datacolor will be offering free calibration services at Photokina 2010 using its complete line of Spyder3 monitor calibration products and the SpyderLensCal, a new DSLR lens calibration device. Offering calibration of lenses and autofocus functions on modern DSLR camera bodies, the SpyderLensCal will be officially unveiled on September 22 at 10am at Datacolor’s booth (Hall 4.1, Booth E010/F019). In addition, Datacolor will also be presenting the results of its ‘Real New York’ photo contest.

The Sinar eShutter is an electronically controlled precision shutter for view cameras. The Sinar eShutter is completely integrated into the Sinar System and in addition, thanks to its open architecture, it can also be used with any other system. Integrated microprocessor controls guarantee the highest precision when working with a view camera and they provide fast shutter speeds of up to 1/250 second. Sinar says its eShutter has a compact and light construction and can be attached to different camera platforms. The Sinar eShutter will become available at the beginning of next year. The price will be announced at Photokina.

The Sling-O-Matic is a new sling bag from Think Tank Photo. Similarly to the recently announced Hama Katoomba 170RL and 190RL bags, the Sling-O-Matic has one adjustable shoulder strap that can be easily switched back and forth to either shoulder. The Sling-O-Matic series offers three unique bags to choose from, depending on the amount of photo gear a photographer needs to carry. The Sling-O-Matic 10 can carry a pro-size DSLR and three to four lenses, including a 70-200 f2.8. The Sling-O-Matic 20 and Sling-O-Matic 30 can each carry a pro-size DSLR and four to six lenses. The Sling-O-Matic 30 also features a separate laptop compartment for carrying a 15.4” laptop. All of these bags will be released in October, with pricing to be determined.

The LaCie Minimus (pictured) and LaCie Rikiki USB 3.0 are new USB 3.0 hard drives for your desktop or pocket that are claimed to be the world’s smallest in their class. The Minimus is a 1TB/2TB desktop hard drive that measures 110.7x29.4x172.8mm and weighs in at 850 grams. The LaCie Rikiki USB 3.0 is a mobile hard drive with a tough aluminium casing and a light weight of just 176 grams, available in 500GB and 1TB capacities. Both new devices are theoretically capable of delivering industry-leading 5Gb/s transfer speeds, and both are backwards compatible with the USB 2.0 standard. Pricing for the LaCie Rikiki USB 3.0 starts at £89 for the 500GB model, while the LaCie Minimus is available in 1TB/2TB capacities starting at £109.

Lastolite today launched its new TriFlash Sync shoe lock bracket, which features a built in sync system allowing the photographer to fire up to three flash guns from one triggering device. Featuring a built-in slave cell, the Lastolite TriFlash Sync can be adjusted to allow for none, 1, 2 or 3 pre flashes if required. Included with the TriFlash Sync are a 3.5mm to 3.5mm mono jack cable and a 3.5mm mono jack to PC Sync cable to attach third party triggering systems. A dummy cold shoe is also included to allow photographers who work with one or two guns to slide their trigger receiver (i.e. Pocket Wizard) onto one of the spare shoe mounts. Compatible with most flashguns - except those made by Minolta and Sony -, the Lastolite TriFlash Sync is available now priced at £100.

Rollei is presenting a new product family in the digital picture frame category with its ‘Pictureline’ range at the IFA and Photokina 2010 trade shows. With a screen measuring 15 inches diagonally, Rollei’s Pictureline 3150 (€149.95, pictured) is the largest digital picture frame in the new product range. Designed to be wall mounted, the Rollei Pictureline 3150 boasts a resolution of 1024x768 pixels and an aspect ratio of 4:3. Its Auto Slideshow function enables the frame to start displaying a slideshow immediately after a memory card (CF/MS/SD/XD) is inserted. Its smaller brother the Rollei Pictureline 3104 (€79.95) has a 10.4-inch display with a resolution of 640x480 pixels and comes with a swivelling stand plus a remote control. Both models support video playback. The 7-inch Rollei Pictureline 3070 and Pictureline 3071 digital frames round off the new product range, offering a widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio and a resolution of 480x234 pixels. These slim design picture frames will be available from early-October 2010 at a price of € 39.95 each in black and white colours.

Rollei’s new Designline digital photo frames double as E-book readers, and offer extended functionality including music and video playback. The Designline 3106 (€149.95) has a 10.4-inch screen and features Wi-Fi connectivity for e-mailing pictures and listening to Internet radio stations. A particularly convenient feature is the special battery docking station, which also doubles as the frame’s stand. The ultra-slim frame offers a resolution of 800x600 pixels.The Rollei Designline 3085 (also €149.95, pictured) offers the same resolution on a 8-inch screen, and comes equipped with stereo loudspeakers and touch-key controls. The portable Designline 3086 (again €149.95) has a similar display and closely resembles an E-book reader. This portable picture frame plays slide shows in different speeds and with ten different picture transition effects. Last but not least the Rollei Designline 3080 (€69.95) is a stylish black frame with an 8-inch display that has a battery which lasts for up to five hours.

The SD Association announced today it has defined a new, dual-row pin memory card design achieving bus interface speeds of up to 300 megabytes per second for SDXC and SDHC devices and memory cards. New high speed interface signals will be assigned on the second row of pins of select SDXC and SDHC memory cards offering the new speed. This option will be available in both full-size and micro form factors and does not change the physical size or shape of the cards. This design will be part of the forthcoming SD 4.0 specification, expected in early 2011.

Carl Zeiss now offers photographers special accessories including UV filters and polarisers tailored to the high-quality Zeiss SLR lenses and a special camera strap with air cell padding for SLR cameras. Available in sizes ranging from 58mm to 82mm, the filters feature Zeiss’ T* multi-coating which minimises light reflections on the glass-air surfaces and improves transmission. Prices have not yet been revealed.

The new Ezybox Speed-Lite from Lastolite is a 22cm x 22cm mini softbox which attaches directly onto a flashgun. Featuring removable inner and outer diffusion layers, the Ezybox Speed-Lite delivers what the manufacturer calls “unrivalled softness of light from such a small softbox”. The Ezybox Speed-Lite is available now priced at £50.

The new Benro Quick Lock tripods are now available in the UK. Kenro, the official UK distributor for Benro tripods, introduced this new range of accessories in May this year with the launch of the Travel Angel Series, this was followed by the FlexPod Series in July. Quick Locks are available in four different models, two made from eight-layer carbon fibre and two constructed in high grade aluminium. The carbon fibre tripods cost £249.99 or £299.99 with the aluminium versions having a recommended retail price of £99.99 or £119.99. Each model comes complete with an integrated spirit level to ensure a level base and also a compass that provides coordinates for recording locations.

Nikon UK has launched a promotion offering students 10% cashback on Nikon equipment. The offer is valid through 31st October, and all full-time students, lecturers or technicians attending or teaching a higher education photographic or media course in the UK and the Republic of Ireland are eligible. All claims must be received by 30th November 2010. For terms and conditions and information about how to claim your cashback, visit the website below.

Website: Nikon Student Cashback

Toshiba has announced the imminent launch of 8GB, 16GB and 32GB SDHC UHS-I cards that it claims will be the world’s fastest SDHC cards to date. With a maximum read speed of 95MB per second, and a write speed of 80MB per second, the products introduce a new level of ultra-fast read and write speeds to NAND flash based memory cards, the company says. In addition to these products, Toshiba also unveiled new microSDHC UHS-I memory cards with read/write speeds of 40/20 megabytes per second, respectively. The expanded new card series will be featured both at IFA and at Photokina.

Hama has announced a new range of “Katoomba” photo backpacks / sling bags. There are four models in the line-up,.ranging in price from €89 to €129. All of them feature a single shoulder strap and can be quickly pulled forward in front of your body using a handle. This means everything is ready at hand in an instant without having to take off the bag. The smallest model, the Hama Katoomba 150, comes in two versions, the 150R and 150L, which are meant to be worn on the right and left shoulder, respectively. The two larger models, Hama Katoomba 170RL and 190RL, feature a “two-shoulder sliding system” that allows you to move the carrying strap to the left or right. The Hama Katoomba camera bags will be showcased at the Photokina trade show later this month.

Epson is expanding its Signature Worthy line of professional media for photographers and fine artists by offering a wider selection of roll-based products. Citing the growing popularity of Hot Press and Cold Press papers as the main reason, Epson is now offering these products in rolls of 17-inch, 24-inch, 44-inch, and 60-inch widths. The company is also expanding its offerings of Exhibition Fiber Paper to include 17-inch, 24-inch, 44-inch, and 64-inch wide rolls. The new papers are available now through authorised Epson Professional Imaging resellers.

Hahnemühle has just completed new longevity tests for its papers and canvases, and has made the test results for the Digital FineArt Collection and the ‘Harman by Hahnemühle’ product line are available to every customer. Bärbel Manggold, Hahnemuhle Product Manager, explains: “According to the respective testing conditions, our media are certified a lifespan of more than 200 years. The results emphasise our standard to supply top quality, as the market leader.” All the test results and testing conditions can be found at the websites below, under the menu item ‘Longevity’.

Website: Hahnemühle
Website: Harman by Hahnemühle

Panasonic has announced its newest 8GB and 16GB SDHC UHS-I memory cards. UHS-I is the new standard for higher-speed Bus interface defined by the SD Association as part of the SD Memory Card Specification Ver.3.01, which provides up to 104MB/s performance. Both memory cards have maximum data transfer speed of up to 60MB/s and Class10 speed specification. Both new incorporate Super Intelligent Controller (SICS), which is designed for high-level data protection.cards. The two new SDHC UHS-I memory cards from Panasonic will become available in November.

Datacolor has released SpyderLensCal, an accessory designed to take advantage of the autofocus micro adjustment feature of recent digital SLR cameras. Many newer models of popular DSLR cameras have a lens micro calibration feature which requires a reference test system to adjust the autofocus. SpyderLensCal was designed to aid in correcting the autofocus by enabling photographers to store them in custom camera settings on recent DLSR bodies. With the capability to store lens autofocus corrections on recent DSLR cameras, users can easily change from lens to lens without needing to recalibrate. Retailing for $49, SpyderLensCal comes with a built-in level and is tripod mountable for optimum consistency.

Website: Datacolor

Sony has unveiled a range of new digital photo frames with innovative features. The Sony DPF-XR100 ($250) and DPF-VR100 ($200) models offer AVCHD video playback capabilities on the units’ 10” high-resolution WSVGA LED backlight LCD screens. The frames also feature stereo audio and Sweep Panorama playback, while Sony XR100 additionally features the manufacturer’s exclusive TruBlack technology. Other models in the new S-Frame range include the Sony DPF-D830 ($150), an 8” unit which bears the distinction of being Sony’s first battery-operated digital photo frame; and eight additional models that vary by screen size and internal memory and range in price form $70 to $150. The three advanced frames will be available from November, while most of the others will be launched in October.

Eye-Fi has launched its Summer Sweepstakes with prizes including a Sony NEX-3, an iPad and various Eye-Fi memory cards. To participate, simply join Eye-Fi’s Facebook community, “like” it and enter your information. Plus if you invite friends to join the sweepstakes, you also have another chance to win: if your friend wins a prize, so do you. Sweepstakes run until 6th September 2010, 11:59:59pm PDT.

Website: Eye-Fi | Facebook