The next Magnum Professional Practice event will be held from 3 - 4 October 2015 in the Magnum Print Room in London. In this two day event, leading figures of the photographic industry will deliver presentations and advice on the realities of working in their sectors. Confirmed speakers include Hannah Watson, Hamish Crooks and Neil Wissink. The tuition fee is £200 including lunch.

Atomos are showcasing the 4K/HD 3RU 2ch dual 7" Shogun Studio and the Ninja Assassin at IBC 2015 in Amsterdam. Shogun Studio (£2,595/$3,495/€3,495) is the world's first all-in-one 4K & HD, 2ch, dual 7" 3RU rack recorder, monitor and playback deck. The dual record channels provide the ability to simultaneously record 2 separate inputs in your choice of resolution up to 4K 30p or HD 120p or 2 versions of the same input for parity. Ninja Assassin (£895/$1,295/€1,295) delivers 325ppi monitoring functionality and the 7" size needed to truly master 4K along with the only true 10-bit 4:2:2 professional recording solution for Apple, AVID & Adobe workflows and all with a price & weight the lowest in the market. New pricing on Atomos's HD range has also been announced at IBC. The Samurai Blade, Ninja Blade, Ninja 2 will see a price reduction in excess of 50%, taking the Ninja 2 to the lowest price seen for a Recorder-Monitor (£209/$295/€295).

Panasonic have released a firmware upgrade for their Lumix GH4 compact system camera. Version 2.3 brings the following improvements to the camera.

1. "Activation function" is added in the menu which enables the camera to comply with "V-Log L" function by using Upgrade Software Key "DMW-SFU1".
   * Follow the Installation Guide bundled in the Upgrade Software key "DMW-SFU1".
   About extended function of V-Log L for DMC-GH4.
2. Recording can be paused or stopped with a press of Fn1 button in [Time Lapse Shot] despite the length of shooting interval.

DJI have announced two new Micro Four Thirds cameras for their DJI Inspire 1 professional aerial camera platform. Equipped with a 16-mgapixel Four Thjirds sensor and a Micro Four Thirds lens mount, the Zenmuse X5 wili initially support 4 interchangeable lenses, including the DJI MFT 15mm f/1.7 ASPH, Panasonic Lumix 15mm G Leica DG Summilux f/1.7 ASPH, Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12mm f/2.0 lens, and Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8. While the Zenmuse X5 is in flight, pilots can adjust both focus and aperture via the DJI GO app or through DJI's previously-announced Follow Focus system. The DJI Zenmuse X5R camera shares the same sensor and lens compatibility with the X5, but records video both to an onboard microSD card as well as to a removable 512GB SSD on the gimbal's top plate. The Zenmuse X5 is available for pre-order at store.dji.com for $4,499 (€4,999), including a DJI Inspire 1 and DJI's MFT 15mm F1.7 ASPH lens, and will begin shipping before the end of September. The Zenmuse X5R will be available in Q4 2015 for $7,999 (€8,799).

Canon have issued a firmware update for their EOS 7D Mark II digital SLR camera. Version 1.0.5 incorporates the following fixes and improvements:

1. Improves AF accuracy when used in combination with the EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM lens or EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM lens.
2. Fixes a phenomenon in which, in very rare cases, the "Peripheral illumination correction" is applied inconsistently.
3. Fixes a phenomenon in which, while performing an EF lens firmware update, the progress bar displayed on the LCD monitor may freeze at 100% even though the update has been completed.
4. Fixes a processing error in relation to the leap second for the "Geotag information appended to image" and "Log data" GPS functions.
5. Fixes a phenomenon, where at the time of shooting in very rare cases "Err 70" occurs, or the shutter does not release.

Website: Canon Support & Drivers

The Sony PXW-FS5 is a compact interchangeable-lens Super 35mm camcorder with 4K XAVC video recording capability. Ergonomically designed for hand-held shooting, the Sony PXW-FS5 can be used in almost any location, even airborne when mounted on a drone. The camera’s Super35 Exmor CMOS sensor incorporates 11.6 million (8.3 million effective) pixels. High-quality imagery is further ensured by high frame rate cache recording at 10-bit 4:2:2 Full HD and a high frame rate of up to 240 fps, in 8 second bursts, which makes 1/10 times Super Slow Motion possible without sacrificing bit depth or loss of image quality. The PXW-FS5’s E-mount can take virtually any lens, such as SLR lenses via an adapter, as well as Sony’s E-mount and A-mount lenses. The compact power zoom E lens PZ 18-105mm F4 G OSS (SELP18105G), provided in the PXW-FS5K kit model enables zoom operation with one hand. The PXW-FS5 is planned to be available in November 2015, at $6,699 (body only) and $7,299 (kit).

The Sony A7S II is a 12.2-megapixel full-frame compact system camera with 4K video recording, enhanced auto-focus and a silent image capture mode that can be activated for 5fps continuous shooting. Additionally, the Sony α7S II features the world’s highest viewfinder magnification (0.78x with a normal prime focused at infinity) among all full-frame digital cameras. The AF system now offers 169 AF points for fast, precise focusing with greater accuracy, down to light levels as low as EV -4. To combat motion blur resulting from shaky hands, the α7S II is equipped with the same 5-axis image stabilisation system as the Sony α7 II and α7R II cameras. The Sony A7S II will be available in Europe in November 2015.

Datacolor today released Spyder5STUDIO, the next generation of its colour calibration solution suite designed to colour manage digital photo workflows. Designed for photographers who demand the highest level of control and accuracy, the new Datacolor Spyder5STUDIO includes the new Spyder5ELITE colorimeter, the SpyderCUBE and Datacolor's SpyderPRINT spectrocolorimeter. Combined, these tools enable photographers to capture consistent colour temperature and contrast from scene to camera and monitor-to-monitor, as well as quality printing results. The new Spyder5STUDIO is now available for £325.

Want to see exactly what the new Zeiss Milvus lenses look like in the flesh?

Check out our hands-on gallery of photos of the new Zeiss Milvus 21mm f/2.8, 35mm f/2, 50mm f/1.4, 50mm f/2 Macro, 85mm f/1.4 and 100mm f/2 Macro lenses.

Zeiss today launched the Zeiss Milvus product family for Canon and Nikon SLR cameras. Initially comprising six lenses, the Milvus range is optimised for today's high-resolution professional cameras. We attended the launch event in Oberkochen, Germany - here are some of the presentationn slides that were shown.

Zeiss has announced the new Zeiss Milvus line, which initially comprises six all-metal manual-focus primes optimised for today's high-resolution digital SLR cameras from Canon and Nikon. These include the Zeiss Milvus 21mm f/2.8 (€1,699/$1,843), 35mm f/2 (€1,099/$1,177), 50 f/1.4 (€1,199/$1,199), 50 f/2 Macro (€1,199/1,283), 85mm f/1.4 (€1,799 / $1,799) and 100 f/2 Macro (€1,699/$1,843) lenses. The new optics will be available from 15 October 2015. Further focal lengths will be added to the Zeiss Milvus product family over the next few years, the company says. Click through / read on for more details.

Macphun has announced that four of its photo editing tools have been updated to include support for Photos for Mac. The ability to use Macphun tools such as Noiseless, Tonality, Intensify and Snapheal with Photos will, according to the company, fill the gap left by iPhoto and Aperture. “So many people were left disappointed by the lack of editing tools in Photos for Mac. As photography enthusiasts ourselves, it made perfect sense to improve Photos’ weaknesses,” commented Alex Tsepko, COO of Macphun. “With Macphun’s photo editing extensions, Photos for Mac will finally offer the tools, features, speed and editing quality that its users were expecting... We’re confident this update will be an exciting element of Apple’s eagerly awaited El Capitan.” For existing users, Intensify, Tonality, Snapheal, and Noiseless will automatically update when El Capitan is released.

Tiffen have announced a new product that combines a polariser, a variable neutral density filter and a warm-to-cool FX fader in a single unit. Designed to be used with Sunshades and Matte boxes from ARRI, BrightTangerine, Chrosziel, Movcam, Tilta, TLS Optics & Vocas; the 138mm Multi Rota Tray incorporates an ultra-thin circular polariser delivering "the greatest field of view possible," a 2-6-stop variable ND filter, an M8 compatible gearing ring and a quick-release tray, and ships with a protective case.

Zhongyi Mitakon have taken the wraps off their newest Micro Four Thirds lens, the Speedmaster 25mm f/0.95. This tiny yet ultra-fast manual-focus lens is available to preorder now, priced at $399. According to the company, the optical construction features 11 elements in 9 groups, and a diaphragm with 11 aperture blades. Weighing in at 230 grams, the Mitakon Speedmaster 25mm f/0.95 takes 43mm filters, and offers a close-focus point of 25cm, measured from the sensor plane.

Apple have just announced iOS 9, which will be available on Wednesday, 16th September as a free software update for iPhone 4S and later, iPod touch 5th generation and later, iPad 2 and later and iPad mini (all versions). This update shall bring a longer battery life, improved multitasking with Split View and a new Picture-in-Picture mode. The brand new iCloud Drive app enables users to easily access any file they had previously saved to iCloud from their Home screen, while the revamped Notes app now allows you to add photos to your notes or take a new one with your device's built-in camera. Also, you can now use Siri to search for photos based on date, location or album name by telling the assistant to "show me photos taken in Paris last summer," for example. There are other enhancements including faster typing, more robust security, support for public transport in Maps, plus an all-new News app; but in our understanding, there are no major OS-level changes that directly affect the photo-taking experience on currently available devices (Live Photos are reserved for the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus).

Apple today introduced the iPad Pro, featuring a 12.9" Retina display with 5.6 million pixels. The new tablet comes with a powerful new 64-bit A9X processor, while still offering up to 10 hours of battery life. An optional accessory called the Apple Pencil allows for extremely precise photo editing when used in tandem with the new Photoshop Fix app. Running on iOS9, the new Apple iPad Pro features an 8-megapixel iSight camera, and can be paired with Apple’s new Smart Keyboard for increased productivity. The iPad Pro starts at $799 for the 32GB model with Wi-Fi model and $1079 for the Wi-Fi + Cellular 128GB edition, and will be available starting in November. The Apple Pencil will retail for $99, and the Smart Keyboard will be available for $169.