Finding the Light is a new ebook by photographer Audrey Woulard. Released as part of her Enlightenment series. this ebook serves as a reference guide for photographers who are interested in Audrey Woulard's technique in finding the exquisite light that is seen in all of her portraits. She has pull back explanations on how she utilises her surroundings to achieve perfect exposure straight out of the camera. Alongside her other ebooks, Finding the Light can be purchased at the website below.

DxO Labs have released version 4.5.1 of DxO FilmPack and version 2.1.2 of DxO ViewPoint, a program dedicated to fixing problems with keystoning and volume anamorphosis. The FilmPack update improves operational stability, while the latest ViewPoint release adds two new DxO Optics Modules for automatic distortion correction.

Website: DxO Labs

The second edition of Steve Davey's book, Footprint Travel Photography, will go on sale in the United States on 1st February. "I am really proud of this book and how it has turned out," Steve says. "The first edition was very well received, and I can confidently say that the second edition is a vast improvement in every way." The book is already available in the iBookstore and a Kindle edition is coming soon. The 320-page volume will retail for $29.95 in the US and is priced at £19.99 in the UK.

One hundred years ago, Oskar Barnack created the very first Leica, the Leitz Camera, later known as the Ur-Leica. An employee of the Leitz Werke Wetzlar and a photography pioneer, Barnack invented and constructed the first stills camera to shoot 24×36mm frames on 35mm in 1914. Company archives dating from March 1914 show that Barnack originally gave his compact and highly portable prototype camera the name ‘Lilliput’. The original is still in the possession of Leica Camera AG, together with the negatives and prints of the first exposures captured with the Ur-Leica – which include pictures from a 1914 summer trip Ernst Leitz to the United States. While the Ur-Leica itself never went into mass production due to the outbreak of the Great War, the concept revolutionised photography, with the manufacturing of the first "actual" Leica beginning in 1925.

Nikon has posted a firmware update for the FX-format Nikon Df digital SLR camera. Version 1.01 fixes the following bugs:

• When Press for Custom Setting f4 (Assign Fn button), f5 (Assign preview button), or f6 (Assign AE-L/AF-L button) was set toPreview, and the camera's Fn button, Pv button, or AE-L/AF-L button was pressed with viewfinder shooting using a Speedlight SB-800, a preview was not displayed in the camera monitor and a modeling flash was not fired.

• When a Speedlight that does not support auto FP high-speed sync was used with Custom Setting e1 (Flash sync speed) set to 1/250 s (Auto FP), the maximum shutter speed was 1/200 s.

• When images captured with Auto ISO sensitivity control in the shooting menu set to Off were displayed in ViewNX 2 or Capture NX 2, Auto (ISO XXX)* was displayed for ISO Sensitivity in Metadata.  This issue has been resolved.
  *"XXX" is the specified ISO sensitivity value.

Website: Nikon Europe Support

Nikon has released a firmware update for its Nikon D5200 digital SLR camera. Version 1.02 enables the display of error messages when lenses with a retractable lens mechanism, corrects the display of focal lengths in 35mm format recorded in the EXIF data and fixes bugs. You can download the upgrade from the website below.

Website: Nikon Europe Support

Nikon has issued a firmware update for the Nikon D3200 digital SLR camera. Version 1.03 enables the display of error messages when lenses with a retractable lens mechanism, such as the AF-S DX Nikkor 18–55mm f/3.5–5.6G VR II, are used with the lens barrel retracted. You can download the firmware upgrade from the website below.

Website: Nikon Europe Support

Canon has posted a firmware update for its EOS 700D / EOS Rebel T5i digital SLR camera. Version 1.1.3 fixes a phenomenon in which the camera displays Err01 or Err60, or in rare instances will lock-up when in Live View shooting mode (or Movie shooting mode) when attached to the following STM zoom lenses: EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM. Additionally, it corrects some Korean-language misspellings displayed on the menu screen. You can download the firmware upgrade from the website below.

Website: Canon USA Support

 

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has announced the results of its annual photographic competition. Heather Buckley's photograph of foxgloves in the gardens at Great Dixter House, East Sussex (above) was chosen from thousands of entries to win the grand prize of £1,000. Speaking about her victory, Heather said: "It's a great honour to be named RHS Photographer of the Year, as it's hard to get recognised as a photographer and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to show my work to a larger audience." The RHS Young Photographer of the Year award went to 17-year-old Mateusz Piesiak from Poland for his image of a starling, entitled ‘In pastels'.

Hasselblad is set to launch the world's first 50-megapixel medium-format camera using CMOS sensor technology. Ove Bengtson, Hasselblad Product Manager said: "This pioneering 50 megapixel CMOS sensor camera is based on our H5D-50 model but will offer a faster capture rate; longer shutter speed capability and much greater ISO performance. It will provide greatly improved Live Video in Phocus and will also be available with Multi-Shot functionality." Further information and prices for the new H5D-50c models will be announced in March.

Case Logic has launched a new collection of bags and cases for SLR camera users. The Reflexion range comprises two messenger-style cross-bags, available in small or medium, and a full backpack. All bags in the collection feature a rugged, anti-slip bottom to stabilize them in cars and on ledges, whilst also offering protection from dirt and wet surfaces. Available in a number of colours, the cross-bags also incorporate a  protective stash pocket that can store a 10.1-inch tablet or, in the case of the medium bag, a 13-inch laptop.

The Daniel Blau Gallery in London has just announced its upcoming exhibition, "Eyewitness: Pulitzer Prize Winning Photographs." Opening on 14 February 2014, the exhibition features original vintage prints of famous photographs, many of which have documented and shaped our history. The show includes Robert H. Jackson’s photograph of the assassination of Lee Harvey Oswald (above) and Paul Vathis’ “Two Men with a Problem”, amongst many others. The prints will be on display until 29th March.

Akvis has announced free updates to Akvis Retoucher, Multibrush and Coloriage. The latest versions offer a new sharing feature, support for more raw file formats, and other improvements. The programs run on Windows XP/Vista/Win7/Win 8 and on Mac OS X 10.4-10.9.

The Instagramers Gallery - billed as the world's largest online photo gallery that also has two physical locations in Miami and Madrid - has announced the Instagramers Photo Prize featuring a grand prize of $100,000. Open to all Instagram users worldwide registered with InstagramersGallery.com, the Instagramers Photo Prize also offers daily prizes worth $1000 every day until 30 April 2014. The overall winner will be chosen from the daily Photo of the Day finalists.

Sony are set to unveil more new compact, bridge and mirrorless cameras at next month's CP+ show.

In a briefing held by Sony UK today, company representatives stated that a new ultra-zoom bridge camera will be announced in February with a faster processor than previous generations. The mystery product was demoed live with no annoying "Processing..." messages while images were saved, and burst shooting continuing indefinitely until the memory card is filled, albeit at a reduced frame-rate. The new super-zoom bridge model is just a small part of Sony's emphasis on faster speed for their 2014 cameras, which will also encompass faster auto-focusing speeds.

In addition to the bridge camera, new compact cameras will be announced in February, along with new compact system camera models at both the CP+ show and Photokina later in the year.

Meanwhile, the Sony Cyber-shot QX10 smartphone module apparently sold out in the UK during the Christmad period. Aided by strong sales of the more expensive QX100 model, the Sony QX series will definitely continue into the second generation.

Want to see exactly what the new Sony A5000 compact system camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of 30 photos of the Sony A5000 compact system camera.

Want to see exactly what the new Sony Cyber-shot W830 / W810 compact cameras look like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of 22 photos of the 20.1 megapixel Sony Cyber-shot W830 / W810 compact cameras.

This week we’re revealing our favourite products from last year in our annual awards, looking back at the essential photography kit that helped to define 2013.

Our eight and final award is for Camera of the Year 2013, which goes to the Sony A7R.

“The Sony A7R is the most revolutionary camera of 2013, bringing 35mm full-frame, interchangeable lens shooting to the masses both in terms of cost and size. Importantly the A7R is also well-built, a pleasure to use and delivers outstanding image quality.”

Read the Full Review

Congratulations to Sony and the A7R!

Lexar will become an official supplier for the FIA World Rally Championship in 2014. This agreement will see Lexar provide a range of memory solutions to the championship promoter and its audio-visual production team to enable broadcast of the rallies to a global audience of 600 million viewers.  High-speed Lexar CompactFlash and microSD cards will capture on-board video from each World Rally car, whilst Lexar USB drives will be used to transfer stored data and video between locations.