Leica has revealed that the presentation of the Leica Oscar Barnack Award 2016 will take place in Berlin, Germany, on 28th September. The Award's return to Germany brings the competition back to the birthplace of its namesake - Oskar Barnack, the inventor of the ‘Ur-Leica.’ Approximately 3,200 photographers from a total of 108 countries submitted entries to the 2016 Award - almost twice as many entrants as in the previous year, with a record number of submissions. The portfolios of the twelve finalists in the categories ‘Leica Oskar Barnack Award’ and ‘Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award’ will be publicly announced on 15 June 2016 on the Award's website.

Macphun has launched a new Creative XXL Kit – a bundle of 6 powerful photo editing applications: Noiseless, Intensify, Tonality, Snapheal, Focus and FX Photo Studio, combined with more than 40 various e-books, training materials and photo-related apps. The standard value of all the contents in the package stands around £1715/$2000 but you can now purchase them all for only £110/$129. Do note that this is a time-limited offer, expiring on 31st May.

Phase One has released an update to Capture One Pro 9. Version 9.1.2, which is free to all Capture One Pro 9 license owners and Capture One Pro subscribers, adds support for the Canon EOS-1DX Mark II, EOS 1300D and EOS 80D, the Nikon D5 and the Panasonic G70 cameras; as well as the Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 8mm Fisheye 1:3.5 and M.Zuiko ED 8mm F1.8 Fisheye PRO, the Zeiss Loxia 2/35, Loxia 2/50, Loxia 2.8/21, Touit 2.8/12, Touit 1.8/32, Touit 2.8/50 and Batis 2.8/18, the Sony FE 70-300mm F4.5-5.6 G OSS, the Panasonic Lumix G Vario 14-140mm f3.5-5.6, and the Rodenstock HR Digaron-SW 5.6/90 mm/Aerial and ALPA HR Alpagon 5.6/90mm lenses.

Macphun have announced an update to Aurora HDR Pro, their latest Macintosh software co-developed with Trey Ratcliff. The features of Version 1.2.2 include added support for raw files generated by the Canon 80D, 1300D and 1DX Mk II, the Leica M (Typ 262), the Nikon D5, the Olympus SH3 and Pen F, the Panasonic GX80/85, TZ80/81/85/ZS60 and TZ100/101/ZS100, the Samsung Galaxy S7, the Sony A68, ILCE6300, RX1R II and RX10 III, the DxO ONE Digital Camera and the Fuji X-Pro2. The update also bringsa number of performance improvements. Aurora HDR Pro is available for $99.99.

Lensbaby today announced limited early availability of the Circular 180+ lens for use with GoPro Hero cameras through Kickstarter. Attaching to the current waterproof housing on GoPro Hero cameras, the Circular 180+ captures a 185 degree field of view, wider than the human eye can see. “I wanted a lens that would give me the perspective of our Circular Fisheye lens for DSLRs in a small, rugged package so I wouldn’t have to worry about my gear when I’m in the wild,” said Craig Strong, Lensbaby Co-Founder and CCO. “A good circular fisheye, and this is a great one, makes adventures more adventurous. GoPro shooters are all about exploration, making this the perfect Go-Pro add-on.” Lensbaby’s goal is to raise at least $30,000 through this campaign to help fund lens production and to guarantee availability by this August.

Olympus have unveiled a new rugged action camera that adds tracking data to help improve your performance. The new Olympus TG-Tracker has a 1/2.3"-type 7.2-megapixel imager capable to record 4K footage, a detachable grip, a 14mm (eq.) f/2 ultra-wide-angle lens, 5-axis image stabilisation and a 1.5" flip-out LCD monitor. It is shockproof to a height of 2.1 metres, crushproof to a weight of 100kg, dustproof, freezeproof down to -10°C and waterproof down to a depth of 30 metres. Underwater, the camera automatically adjusts white balance and other settings, and there is an up to 60-lumen spotlight for shooting when it would otherwise be too dark. And unlike products with regular geotagging, the TG-Tracker can sense acceleration, altitude or depth and temperature as well as direction of movement – in addition to latitude and longitude. This gives extreme sports enthusiasts a much fuller picture of where they were, what was happening and how they were performing at the moment any given image was captured. The Olympus Tough TG-Tracker will become available next month, priced at £279.99/$349.99/€349.00.

On Thursday, 9th June, ravel and cultural documentary photographer, Jacob James will host a free webinar delivering advice on how to take your travel portraits to the next level. From capture to post processing, learning how to use light, contrast, composition and colour will help you create powerful and impactful portraits. “All too often photographers get caught up in capturing interesting people and forget complementing that with what they know about light, backgrounds, and colour,” says Jacob. “This webinar is perfect for people who want to learn how to use all the skills a photographer has at his/her disposal to create powerful portraits that complement or contrast their subject to help tell a story”. Sponsored by Wilkinson Cameras, the webinar is free to attend but advance registration is required.

Ten recently graduated photographers have been announced as the winners of the Graduate Photographers Award 2016. The award provides a new opportunity for photographers, acknowledging the best emerging practitioners providing them with exposure to both a public and highly professional audience. The ten winners include Nicholas Constant, Emma Gruner, Tom Heatley, Sean Padraic Birnie, Sara Sandri, Vincenzo Sassu, Charan Singh, Erin Solomons, Peter Watkins and Feiyi Wen. Each winning photographer has won mentoring from a Magnum photographer, a portfolio review event with the nomination panel and a slideshow of their work at Photo London.

The new Broncolor Siros L is a highly mobile, battery-powered monolight offering up to 440 full-power flashes, constant colour temperature over the entire control range and very short flash durations. From the sales launch, Siros L will be available in two power levels, 400 Joules and 800 Joules. The 400 J version (pictured) has a t0.1 flash duration of 1/400 s and a t0.5 flash duration of 1/1200 s when used at maximum energy (1/6200 s and 1/11,300 s, respectively, when fired at its minimum energy setting), with recycle times ranging from 0.03 s to 1.9 s. The 800 J version has a somewhat longer flash duration (t0.1=1/250 s at full power) and a longer maximum recycle time, but its higher output allows you to use an aperture setting as small as f/45 at a distance of 2m when the Broncolor P70 reflector is attached. The 25-Watt LED modules offer a bright modelling ligt with a colour temperature of 3000 K. The 400Ws Siros L will be available for $2095, while the 800Ws version can be had for $2395. Both prices include a carrying bag. The Broncolor Siros L (both versions) will also be available in an outdoor kit, priced at $4195 and $4795, respectively.

Ricoh have posted a firmware update for the Pentax K-1 full-frame digital SLR camera. Version 1.10 adds compatibility with the Pentax Tethered Capture Plug-in for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and Image Transmitter 2.2.0, and improves stability and general performance. You can download the firmware upgrade from the website below.

Website: Ricoh Japan Support

Hasselblad has announced a H6D-50c Trade-Up promotion. "The H6D has become an instant success with orders received worldwide and has far exceeded our expectations," the company said in a statement. "Unfortunately due to the recent devastating earthquakes in Kumamoto, Japan, the suppliers of some components, including the 100MP sensor, have been affected." Under the terms of the promotion, customers can purchase the Hasselblad H6D-50c at the standard price and retain the option to trade-up that camera to the H6D-100c for the difference in the recommended sales price. The offer is valid through 31 October 2016.

Canon are offering up to £50/€70 cashback on selected items in the UK and Ireland, plus the chance to win a three-night break in Dubai for two people. Eligible products include digital SLR cameras such as the EOS 760D (pictured), EOS 750D, EOS 700D and EOS 100D, CSCs (EOS M3 & M10), digital compact cameras, camcorders, printers, lenses and the Speedlite 430EX III-RT flash. The offer runs to 31 August 2016.

Anthropics Technology has launched LandscapePro, an intelligent landscape photo editing application, available in standalone and Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom and Elements plug-in editions. The new software includes landscape relighting, sky replacement, 3D depth estimation, a depth of field simulator, distance controls, intelligent selection tools, and photo-adaptive controls among other features. It assumes no prior knowledge or technical skills, and photographers can create unique, dramatic effects quickly. “Inspired by the success of Anthropics’s PortraitPro software, we are delighted to introduce a new product to help photographers expand their creativity and take landscape retouching to the next level,” said Andrew Berend, CEO, Anthropics. “LandscapePro offers an innovative and easy way to create stunning landscape photography, and can be used by novices or experienced photographers alike. As its intelligent controls uniquely adapt to the features of each photo, it enables photographers to do incredible things with their outdoor photos simply by using sliders.” Pricing starts at £29.95/$39.95/€39.95.

Adobe today released Adobe Spark, an integrated web and mobile solution for "creating and sharing impactful visual stories." Free and designed for everyday communications, Adobe Spark is part of the Creative Cloud ecosystem. “Today anyone can create content and share it via social media, but most people lack the skill, time and resources to create something that cuts through the online clutter,” said Bryan Lamkin, executive vice president and general manager, Digital Media at Adobe. “With Adobe Spark, anyone can create authentic, professional looking visual content for their project, passion, cause or business." The Adobe Spark web app seamlessly syncs with Spark Post, Spark Page and Spark Video iOS mobile apps, allowing users to create, edit and share their story from wherever they are – regardless of their design experience.

The new version of Fripito for Android and iOS offers a new option for a premium subscription. Photographers and travellers can now gain access to all available guides, photo and travel tips, exclusive photos with geotagging and offline maps for a fixed monthly fee. Actually, there are two options, a one-month subscription for $9.99 and a three-month subscription for $23.99. Additionally, the option of purchasing single guides within the app is still available. You can download the Fripito app from Google Play and iTunes.

The Fujinon XF2X TC WR is a new 2x teleconverter extending the telephoto reach of two X-mount lenses, the Fujinon XF50-140mmF2.8 R LM OIS WR and XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR. Available next month, the Fujinon Teleconverter XF2X TC WR features an optical construction of 9 elements in 5 groups. In addition, thanks to the unified design when mounted to a compatible lens, the teleconverter is weather and dust-resistant and operates at temperatures as low as -10°C. Phase detection AF is still available when using the XF50-140mmF2.8 R LM OIS WR with the teleconverter mounted. With the XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR lens, photographers can use CDAF. The camera’s optical image stabilization performance is unaffected by the addition of the teleconverter. The Fujinon XF2X TC WR will be on sale in the UK from the end of June with a suggested retail price of £349.

Use This if You Want to Take Great Photographs by Henry Carroll is a new title from Laurence King Publishing. Designed to help people get creative with their camera, this book is a unique new photo journal featuring over 100 fun and thought-provoking photo prompts that will guide users through the fundamentals of creative photography. The 128-page paperback will be released in August, priced at £12.95.

Verbatim has announced a new 100GB Blu-ray disc with an average lifetime of more than 1,000 years. Incorporating titanium for added longevity, the Verbatim MDISC Blu-ray disc preserves stored data by engraving the information into a ‘rock-like’ recording layer resistant to light, temperature, and humidity. The disc is compatible with any BDXL-capable Blu-ray drive. With no more than 1 failure per 100,000 discs expected after more than 1,000 years at 25°C and 50% relative humidity, data can be reliably stored for centuries on MDISC in a typical home or office filing cabinet, the company claims. In comparison, standard Blu-ray, DVD or CDs have an average lifetime of over 25 years. Verbatim’s 100GB BDXL MDISC is sold in a 5 pack for £89.99 or in single units priced at £23.99.