The Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers (SWPP) have announced the winners of the "Faces" Photographic Competition. Olga Kuznyetsova from Kiev, Ukraine was chosen as the winner from over 700 images entered in to the competition, with the image entitled ‘Smoking Man” (above). Phil Jones, The Societies CEO says, “Its an imaginative and intriguing image which has been well captured, pleasingly lit and the smoke gives it atmosphere.” The photo was taken on a Canon EOS 7D and 50mm f1.4 lens.

36exp, a group of professionals who train photographers of all levels, has gathered a team of photography insiders to pass on their insight, knowledge and experience to give photographers the lowdown on building a photography business. The 36exp Going Pro workshop will take place on 15th February at the St Matthew Conference Centre in Westminster. The list of speakers includes Niall Horton Stephens, Emma Taylor, Mark Weeks, Gary Morris and David Locke. The price is £95.

Totally Rad! has released an update to Replichrome, a collection of 134 colour and black-and-white film emulation presets for Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Camera Raw. Now supporting raw files from twenty new camera models from Canon, Nikon, Fuji, Olympus, Sony, and more. “Replichrome continues to meet the needs of professional photographers who want their digital images to accurately emulate the subtle tones and classic color palette of the most popular types of film,” said Doug Boutwell, CEO, Totally Rad!. “This latest update will allow more photographers to benefit from Replichrome by providing the ability to work with the most popular cameras on the market.” The update is available now as a free download for current Replichrome users.

Launched last month in the United States, the Booq Python Mirrorless camera bag is now available in the United Kingdom too.  Designed to keep either a mirrorless camera with a large lens or a compact DSLR with a small lens safe from impact and the elements, the Python mirrorless is crafted with durable water-repellent 1680 denier ballistic nylon. A densely padded all-around interior compartment stores your tablet, while a removable padded divider not only shields your gear, but allows you to organize a lens, charger, or any other equipment at the bottom of the bag. The Python mirrorless is available today for £68.36 at booqbags.co.uk.

The new Looky Loo Light is billed as "a breakthrough in the world of children’s photography." Every photographer of infants and young children knows how difficult it can be to get “that” shot, says inventor Allison Carenza. “With young children you really only get a good 20 minutes in a photo session – making the most of those minutes has always been a challenge. The Looky Loo Light keeps my hands free, keeps the child focused on the camera itself, and results in a much more natural expression." A four-panel set of blinking, colorful LEDs and integrated sound, the wireless attachment fits any SLR camera lens. Interested readers are encouraged to check out the Kickstarter page devoted to the device.

Ricoh has posted a firmware update for the Pentax K-3 digital SLR camera. Version 1.02 incorporates the following improvements:

• Added Bracket shooting in [Anti-Aliasing Filter Simulator].
• Improved stability for general performance.
• Improved stability of battery level indicator when using with battery grip.
• Optimized performance of continuous shooting when setting AF.C mode.

​Website: Ricoh Support & Service 

Transcend will showcase their range of advanced SD/microSD cards and wireless LAN memory card in booth number G-09. "The innovative Wi-Fi SD card instantly adds wireless capability to a digital camera and lets users stream photos and videos to portable devices without the hassle of using cables, card readers or a computer," the company says.

Canon has reached a new camera-manufacturing milestone as combined production of the company’s film and digital EOS-series interchangeable-lens cameras surpassed the 70-million mark on February 5th. Introduced in March 1987 as a new generation of AF SLR cameras, EOS (Electro Optical System) cameras were the world’s first to incorporate an electronic mount system enabling complete electronic control not only between the lens and body, but throughout the entire camera system. Following the introduction of digital SLR cameras in the early 2000s, production of the EOS-series cameras rapidly increased, surpassing the 60-million-unit mark in October 2012 and now, approximately one year and four months later, reaching the 70-million-unit threshold.

The book Brassaï: For the Love of Paris explores the renowned Hungarian photographer’s profound devotion to all aspects of his favorite city, and how in return, his work has served to shape Parisian identity. "Celebrating the enduring romance of the city with images of elegant window-shoppers on the rue de Rivoli, coal workers along the banks of the Seine, and the pure majesty of Parisian monuments such as the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe, this book will be a welcome addition to any Francophile’s library," the publisher says. The 256-page volume will be available from April for $50.

The Society of International Nature and Wildlife Photographers (SINWP) have announced the winners of the Nature’s Surprises Competition. Michel Hagege from France was chosen as the winner from over 590 images entered in to the competition, with the image entitled ‘Storm’ (above). Phil Jones, The Societies CEO says, “This image was chosen because of its strong composition with a clearly defined point of interest, and shows the emotion in this atmospherically captured moment.” Csaba Tóth from Hungary and Bridgena Barnard from South Africa have been announced as runners-up in the competition.

Bowens is set to launch Comodo Orbit, a new camera stabilisation device designed to provide photographers and cinematographers across the world with a radical new ‘single shot’ cinematic option. Orbit enables users to shoot a scene in a single take using just one camera moving ‘fluidly - almost like flying- around the subject’ and has been developed by Bowens to spearhead its Comodo camera rig and grip range. Comodo Orbit, which incorporates a unique patented twin-grip capability, "allows one camera operator to hand-off the rig to another operator smoothly and seamlessly, making the camera appear to fly through windows and small spaces in a way no other rig can do," says Tim Haskell, Bowens Business Development Manager. "“We believe this product has potential for virtually all users of DSLR/mirrorless cameras and small/medium camcorders." Orbit, which will retail at £999 , will be showcased at the UK’s largest broadcast Tech Show – BVE at London’s ExCeL venue.

Ricoh is planning to exhibit four new reference products at CP+ 2014. Among these is a completely new medium-format DSLR camera - tentatively named the Pentax 645D 2014 - boasting the "latest, super-high-resolution CMOS image sensor" and an articulated LCD screen; a new medium-format ultra-wide zoom lens; a Q-mount telemacro lens and an interesting film duplicator that "produces digital duplicates of silver-halide-film images in combination with a digital SLR camera and a dedicated flash unit." Judging by the product shot - see gallery after the jump - this essentially means a focusing rail combined with a macro bellows, film holder and diffusor screen

Ricoh has announced a new AF teleconverter for Pentax K-mount interchangeable-lens cameras. The HD Pentax DA AF 1.4X AW rear converter has been engineered to maintain the auto focus functionality while working seamlessly with both camera-driven as well as lens-driven AF systems. Composed of four elements in three groups, the HD Pentax DA AF 1.4X AW Rear Converter incorporates the Pentax-developed HD coating to minimise reflectance inside the converter while optimising light transmittance. The converter will be available in March 2014 for a price of £379.99 / $599.95.

The Ricoh WG-4 is a new 16-megapixel water-, crush-, shock- and freezeproof compact camera with a fast wide-angle lens. Equipped with a 25-100mm (eq.) f/2.0-4.9 lens, the Ricoh WG-4 comes in two versions, with and without GPS. Thanks to the upgraded AF algorithm, the focusing speed in macro shooting has been greatly increased to facilitate close-up applications, the company says. Designed for the adventurous photographer, the WG-4 and WG-4 GPS (pictured) are waterproof to a depth of 14 metres, shock-resistant against a fall from a height of two metres, dustproof, freezeproof down to -10°C, and crushproof to 100kg. Other highlights include six LED macro lights to assist close-up shooting, sensor-shift image stabilisation and Full HD video recording capabilities. The new WG-4 GPS is available in a choice of blue or black for a price of £329.99 / $379.95. The WG-4 is available in silver or lime yellow for a price of £279.99 / $329.95. Both models will hit the shelves in March 2014.

The Ricoh WG-20 is a new, 14-megapixel water-, shock-, freeze- and crushproof compact camera with a 28-140mm equivalent lens and 25 shooting modes. Waterproof to 33 feet, shockproof from drops of up to five feet, coldproof to 14 degrees Fahrenheit and crushproof, withstanding up to 220 foot-pounds of force, the Ricoh WG-20 is capable of recording 720p high-definition movies, in addition to 14-megapixel stills. Offered in white and red, the WG-20 will be available in March 2014 for a price of £199.99 / $199.95.

The Tamron 16-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD is a new, 24-450mm equivalent ultrazoom lens for dSLRs with APS-C sized sensors. Currently in development, the lens will have an optical formula comprising sixteen elements in twelve groups and an iris diaphragm with seven rounded aperture blades. Shipping with a petal-shaped lens hood, the Tamron 16-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD will have a 67mm filter thread, 39cm minimum focus distance and a maximum reproduction ratio of 1:2.9. The lens incorporates a PZD (Piezo Drive) focus motor and Tamron’s exclusive VC (Vibration Compensation) technology to combat motion blur resulting from shaky hands. A prototype will be on display at the Tamron booth at the CP+ 2014, which will be held from 13-16 February in Yokohama.

Professional Web developer Glen Elkins has launched Zantins, a new, dedicated responsive website design and development service for photographers. "Photography is a major interest of my daughter's, and while I was researching for her I noticed a lot of websites in the industry  are not responsive… meaning they are poor on mobile devices," Glen says. "[Zantins] has been researched and designed to be quick, cheap and simple enabling the artists to focus on their work and have a working responsive site without having to learn or pay huge prices." The company's "All-in-One" service package is available for £19.99 a month.

‘Ephemeral’ is the first UK exhibition of photographer and artist Fabian Oefner. Hosted by East London gallery theprintspace, ‘Ephemeral’ celebrates the intersection of art and science in spectacular, split second moments. The 24 images intricately detail natural phenomena that appear in our daily lives, such as sound waves, liquid dynamics, forces of movement and magnetism. The exhibition opens on 6th March and runs for three weeks. The gallery is located at, 74 Kingsland Road, London E2 8DL.