BitShelter LLC Press Release

Photographers Laforet, Frakes, Ashburn choose PhotoShelter as their Online Image Archive; Award Winning Photographers Making Full Use of PhotoShelter’s Low Cost, Geographically Redundant Storage System

PhotoPlus Expo 2005 Booth 582

NEW YORK—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Oct. 17, 2005—Digital storage platform provider BitShelter LLC today announced the launch of PhotoShelter (www.PhotoShelter.com), an online image archive service and marketplace.

Vincent Laforet, a Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer with The New York Times; Bill Frakes, a staff photographer for Sports Illustrated Magazine; and 2004 Canon Female Photojournalist Award winner Kristen Ashburn are among PhotoShelter’s initial clients.

Built by the engineers behind the success of HotJobs.com, PhotoShelter offers professional photographers a truly affordable and robust archive system, along with the tools and resources they need to turn their storage into sales.

Lexar Media Press Release

FREMONT, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Oct. 14, 2005—Lexar Media, Inc. (Nasdaq:LEXR), a world leader in advanced digital media technologies, today announced that the trial court has entered final judgment in Lexar Media, Inc. v. Toshiba Corporation et al. In entering the judgment, the Superior Court for the State of California affirmed the jury verdict delivered in March in the case against Toshiba Corporation (JP:6502) and Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. (PNK:TOSBF.PK) in which the jury awarded Lexar over $465 million in damages based on Toshiba Corporation and Toshiba America Electronics Components’ breach of fiduciary duty and theft of trade secrets from Lexar.

“We are very pleased that, after six months of Toshiba’s efforts to challenge the jury verdict, the Court has rejected those challenges and entered judgment confirming that verdict in every respect,” said Eric Whitaker, executive vice president and general counsel, Lexar. “The jury’s verdict was based on a mountain of evidence, mostly from Toshiba’s own files, establishing that Toshiba deliberately violated its duties to Lexar and that a large number of the products currently manufactured and sold by Toshiba contain Lexar’s trade secrets. We are confident that Toshiba’s remaining efforts to challenge the verdict, including its inevitable appeal, will fare no better than Toshiba’s earlier attempts.”

Samsung Press Release

Samsung Introduces Mobile Phone with 3GB Hard Disk Drive

SEOUL, Korea—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Oct. 17, 2005—Samsung today introduced a 3GB HDD embedded phone, model SPH-V7900. This is Samsung’s latest model equipped with a hard disc drive following the world’s first mobile phone equipped with 1.5GB hard disc drive, model SPH-V5400, which Samsung introduced in September of last year.

The V7900 allows users to store two or three full-length movies (at 1.1-5GB each) or more than 700 music files (at 4MB each).

The V7900 also supports the latest multimedia compression technologies -MPEG-4/H.264 (for video) and MPEG-4 AAC/AAC+ (for audio). High-performance dual speakers are mounted on the exterior folder to provide 64-polyphonic stereo sound.

This model comes with harmonic color, a new feature that converts all musical elements such as scale, octave, tone and volume into visual images in a variety of colors and patterns. It also comes with a 2 megapixel camera that includes 2x optical zoom, MP3 player, and document viewer functions.

Bibble Labs releases version 4.4 with support for the Canon 5D, 1D Mark II N (1d2n), Konica Minolta A200, 5D, and Pentax *ist DL.

Bibble Labs Press Release

Bibble Labs releases version 4.4 Update with support for Canon 5D & 1D Mark II N

Includes new Fill Light control and improved sharper output.

Austin Texas (October 17th, 2005) - Bibble Labs today announced availability of version 4.4 of its popular Raw Workflow software. Now supporting over 60 of the most popular DSLR and prosumer cameras, this update includes support for the new Canon 5D and 1D Mark II N cameras, as well as the Minolta 5D, A200 and Pentax *ist DL. Using Bibble’s integrated Photoshop plug-in, users of older versions of Photoshop including 7.0 and CS can now open raw images from the latest cameras without having to pay for a costly upgrade.

The new “Full Light” Feature allows photographers to easily brighten overly deep shadows and reveal detail in the dark areas of high contrast photos. Combined with the existing “highlight recovery” feature, photographers now have two powerful yet easy to use tools to enhance their digital images .Further refinements to the raw processing engine results in sharper output then ever before

Sony Press Release

Analysts agree. Sony’s Cyber-shot® digital cameras are proving to be a popular choice among women.

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 17, 2005 - According to the NPD Group, 53 percent of all digital camera purchases from May to July were made by women. Of Sony digital camera purchases, 56 percent were made by women, beating the industry average. This is up from 42 percent a year ago.

In a research study conducted in April entitled Closing the Technology Gender Gap; What Women Really Want, analysts from IDC found that women were not only tech savvy, but also very busy, pragmatic individuals, who demand performance and convenience from the products they buy. According to the study, women don’t have time to “tinker” with their gadgets; they require reliable and intuitive devices that are ready when they are.

BBC Press Release

BBC Collective, the BBC’s interactive culture magazine, in collaboration with The Photographers’ Gallery are pleased to announce the “Create Your Own Exhibition” competition is now live on bbc.co.uk. 

Offering an entertaining and creative opportunity for photography and arts enthusiasts to use the BBC’s stills archives, the competition offers a unique opportunity for users to dream up a theme and illustrate it with your own online exhibition.  An image bank of over 450 stills taken from the BBC’s image archive is available for people to pick from.

Tamron USA Press Release

Rapid Shift to Digital SLRs by Bronica’s Core Customer Base Prompts Move to Terminate Bronica Medium Format Business

October 14, 2005, Commack, New York — Tamron USA, Inc. announced today that it has discontinued the production of the Bronica RF645 6x4.5 range finder camera model along with its relevant interchangeable lenses and accessories. The discontinuation of this last Bronica model marks the termination of the Bronica brand business. Bronica withdraws from the medium format camera business after 47 years since its first model, the Zenza Bronica D, was introduced in 1959.

Due to the drastic worldwide shift to digital over the past few years, medium format business has suffered, particularly in the portrait and wedding photography segment, the core customer base for Bronica cameras. “I believe we all understand the issues at hand when it comes to the business of medium format,” stated Kenji Nakagawa, Sales Manager of Tamron headquarters’ Overseas Sales & Marketing Department in Japan. “We have been struggling to find the best possible solution for the medium format camera business under the Bronica brand, but after careful study and the comprehensive consideration of the market situation, we have concluded that there is no other choice but to end this business.”

DigitalCameraInfo have published their review of the 12.8 megapixel Canon EOS 5D digital SLR.

“Following our period of evaluation with the Canon EOS 5D, we can fully confirm that the camera is indeed all it’s slated to be. Images produced with the camera’s 35.8mm x 23.9mm 12.8 megapixel full frame CMOS sensor were sharp and contained low noise. While the camera is not meant for speed, its 4-channel readout and DIGIC II processor handled volumes of large files with ease – processing 15 RAW images in under 22 seconds. However, the biggest surprise was the effectiveness of the newly implemented Picture Style settings. While it is slightly deceiving at first (since “0’s” are not equal to other “0” settings), the amount of control provided by the parameters was enlightening. Colors can be made to accurately reproduce the scene or slightly embellish the look and saturate the tones nicely, adding vibrancy. The design of the camera made it easy to handle and it fit my hands better than any Canon DSLR released to date. Other than a disappointing LCD screen and limited x-sync, the EOS 5D is about all consumers can ask for at a retail price of $3299. Currently, the 5D is truly without competition.”

Website: DigitalCameraInfo - Canon EOS 5D Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Canon EOS 5D

Write a Review of the Canon EOS 5D

PCMagazine have just reviewed the new HP Photosmart R817, which offers 5 megapixels and a 5x optical zoom lens.

“Affordable compact digital cameras typically have 3X optical zoom, which is fine for most situations. But when you want to get close to the action on the soccer field or at the recital, 3X won’t always suffice. So we were excited to see that the HP Photosmart R817 has 5X optical zoom—and at a reasonable price. Although our initial enthusiasm was dampened a bit by the R817’s relatively slow speeds and significant shutter lag, we still think it’s the best 5-megapixel compact camera for beginners.”

Website: PCMagazine - HP Photosmart R817 Review

Website: Read my HP Photosmart R817 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the HP Photosmart R817

Write a Review of the HP Photosmart R817

DigitalCameraReview.com have published their review of the Konica Minolta Z6, which updates the popular Z5 and features a 6 megapixel sensor, 12x zoom lens and 2 inch LCD screen.

“The Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z6 is a 6 megapixel camera that features a 12x optical zoom and Konica Minolta’s CCD-shift Anti-Shake system. The camera performs quickly with a fast auto focus system and minimal shutter lag. Manual modes provide a large range of control over images and the stabilized 12x optical zoom. However, I had problems with overexposure in a lot of my shots taken with default settings and shots were a bit too noisy.”

Website: DigitalCameraReview.com - Konica Minolta Z6 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Konica Minolta Z6

Write a Review of the Konica Minolta Z6

Color Confidence Press Release

Totally Colour Managed - The most comprehensive colour management road show ever in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Fantastic news - Due to high levels of interest and registrations, the early bird discount for the colour management event of the year has been extended for one more week. Book before the 21st October to take advantage of the special ‘early bird’ rate of £79.00 ex. VAT. Book Now!

The full rate of £99.00 ex VAT, will apply to all bookings made after the 21st October.

Remember - this event is for everyone, from amateurs to professionals and anyone interested in getting colour “right”: photographers, designers, pre-press and reprographics, new media professionals - to name a few.

ASMP Foundation Press Release

October 17, 2005 - The ASMP Foundation is reminding potential applicants that the deadline for the fall grant cycle is rapidly approaching, but there is still time to apply. The foundation, which is the charitable arm of the American Society of Media Photographers, awards grants for educational programs in photography twice a year. The deadlines are November 15 and May 15. ASMP is the
nation’s premier trade association of professional photographers.

The grants are awarded in support of a wide range of programs to benefit ASMP members and the creative community they are a part of. The goal of the foundation is to encourage the professional and artistic growth of photographers. Grant amounts vary depending upon need, but typically do not exceed $1,500. The foundation does not offer assistance grants to individual artists.

Blue Pixel Digital Experts Press Release

Award-Winning Educational Organization Broadens Digital Photography Workflow Seminars with Events Designed for Art Directors and Nature Photography Enthusiasts

October 17, 2005 – Blue Pixel Digital Experts, leading photographers and consultants committed to teaching digital photography from an unbiased, real-world perspective, announced plans today to build on the success of the popular Just Show Me How seminar series in 2006.  Next year’s professional seminar series, entitled “Blue Pixel Presents”, is designed to educate and improve the day-to-day digital imaging experience of art directors, nature photographers, and professional commercial and portrait photographers.

PHOTOgraphic Magazine have reviewed the new entry-level Konica Minolta Dynax 5D digital SLR camera.

” I loved the 7D’s Anti-Shake system—my “dream D-SLR” would certainly include this feature—and it’s equally effective in the 5D, enabling the user to get sharp hand-held shots at much slower shutter speeds than is possible without, especially handy when shooting in dim light, with long lenses or in close-up work. And that huge LCD monitor is a delight—I can set everything without my reading glasses, and it’s easy to evaluate just-shot images for sharpness and highlight/shadow detail with the one-touch 5X zoom feature.”

Website: PHOTOgraphic Magazine - Konica Minolta Dynax 5D Review

Website: Read my Konica Minolta Dynax 5D Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Konica Minolta Dynax 5D

Write a Review of the Konica Minolta Dynax 5D

PHOTOgraphic Magazineave reviewed the new A3+ printer from the HP, the Photosmart 8750, which was announced at PMA in February.

” Black and white output is among the best I’ve seen from a inkjet printer, with good neutral prints easily handled by the included drivers. When printing on HP papers, the display life is estimated at 108 years—much longer than a traditional print would last! If you’re a fan of fine-art paper the 8750 can handle these through a manual feed slot. The paper tray holds up to 50 sheets of photo or plain paper.”

Website: PHOTOgraphic Magazine - HP Photosmart 8750 Review

Website: Read my HP Photosmart 8750 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the HP Photosmart 8750

Write a Review of the HP Photosmart 8750

creativepro.com have reviewed the new Epson Stylus Photo R2400 A3+ photo printer.

“Compared to the 2200, the R2400 provides a little extra brightness in the yellows and reds and in some greens, and a slight saturation boost overall. The new K3 ink system improves detail, too. I viewed 2200 and R2400 prints side by side and saw noticeably more fine details in the R2400 print. Also, because the K3 system allows for truly neutral grays, the R2400 does better with gray elements in your color images. Cloudy skies and other gray subject matter fares better on the R2400.”

Website: creativepro.com - Epson Stylus Photo R2400 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Epson Stylus Photo R2400

Write a Review of the Epson Stylus Photo R2400

TrustedReviews have reviewed the new 5 megapixel Kodak Easyshare C360 digital camera.

“So it’s very easy to use, but what are the results like? Well, if I had lent the C360 to my father he’d have got much better holiday snaps. The autofocus system is exceptionally quick and accurate, and operates reasonably well in reduced lighting. The exposure system is also very good, and as usual Kodak’s Colour Science image processing is superb. The resulting picture quality is outstanding, with bold clear colours, deep rich shadows and virtually no burned out highlights even in very strong lighting. There is some slight purple fringing, but it only appears when a light area is below a dark one, so rooftops and trees are not unduly affected.”

Website: TrustedReviews - Kodak Easyshare C360 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Kodak Easyshare C360

Write a Review of the Kodak Easyshare C360

DIWA member Steves Digicams have taken a look at the new Sony PictureStation DPP-FP50 photo printer.

“The print quality is the equal of conventional, wet-processed photo prints and thanks to its protective overcoat, just as UV resistant and durable. The printing process is totally dry, no leaky ink cartridges to change, just a ribbon cartridge and the special paper that it prints on. Dye-sub printers make four passes on the paper, three to lay down the primary colors (magenta, cyan and yellow) and the fourth pass puts a protective overcoat on the print.”

Website: Steves Digicams - Sony PictureStation DPP-FP50 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Sony PictureStation DPP-FP50

Write a Review of the Sony PictureStation DPP-FP50

Sanyo Epson Press Release

Sanyo Epson Develops High-Resolution LCDs Featuring “Photo Fine Chromarich” Boasting Over 100% Coverage of the NTSC Color Gamut

Sanyo Epson Imaging Devices Corporation (“Sanyo Epson”) has announced the development of three new high-resolution LCDs featuring “Photo Fine Chromarich” technology that achieves more than 100% coverage of the NTSC* color gamut. Mass production of the displays will commence in early 2006.

The fusion of telecommunications and broadcasting through digitization and the seamless integration of cable and mobile communication have raised expectations for next-generation mobile devices. Consumers hope such devices will bring more convenience, richer content, and wider service coverage. There is particularly increasing demand for LCDs with higher resolution, a wide color gamut, a wide viewing angle, and quick response, as well as being lightweight, compact, and ultra energy-efficient. The higher popularity and functionality of digital cameras and camera-equipped mobile phones mean that consumer demand for clearer displays are particularly strong in these areas.

Canon USA has announced rebates for a large number of products, including the EOS 20D and Digital Rebel Xt DSLR cameras. Qualifying products must be purchased at an authorized Canon USA dealer or reseller between October 15, 2005 and January 15, 2006. Claims must be postmarked by February 6, 2006 and received by February 13, 2006. For more details about the Double and Triple rebates please download the rebate coupon below.

Website: Canon USA Rebate Coupon