The Nikon SB-300 is a compact and simple flash unit with a tilting head. Offering a guide number of 18 (in metres at ISO 100/21°), the Nikon SB-300 is compatible with the manufacturer's i-TTL flash exposure control system, and boasts an FV lock function with which flash volume is determined based on monitor flashes and saved so that composition may be changed while maintaining the flash value (this function works with certain cameras only). It also has a thermal cutout function, which prevents damage to the flash due to overheating during high-intensity firing. The Speedlight SB-300 will be available later this month for $149.95/£139.99 / €169.00.

The Nikon Coolpix L620 is a new, AA battery powered camera with a 18.1-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor and 14x optical zoom. The lens covers a 35mm equivalent focal range of 25-350mm and comes with Vibration Reduction (VR) on board. In addition, the lens is able to focus on subjects as close as approximately 1 cm for macro photography. Other features include Target Finding AF, 6 Special Effects, 8 Filter Effects, 1920x1080/60i videos with stereo sound and an HS Movie function that can be applied to record movies that play back in slow motion at 1/2 normal speed for more dramatic movies, or high speed at twice the speed of normal playback. Movies recorded with the camera can also be played back on a TV by connecting the camera to the TV's HDMI port. The Nikon Coolpix L620 will be available next month for approximately $250/£200.

The Nikon Coolpix S6600 is a 16-megapixel compact camera with 12x optical zoom, built-in Wi-Fi and a side-hinged vari-angle monitor. In addition, Gesture Control recognizes the palm of the hand when the monitor is rotated to face the user, making it possible for users to perform a number of operations, including releasing the shutter and zooming in and out by simply moving their hand toward the appropriate icon displayed in the monitor. This function can also be used with movie recording. The 25-300mm equivalent lens offers a built-in lens-shift vibration reduction (VR) function and supports macro photography with shooting as close as 2cm to the lens. The Nikon Coolpix S6600 will be available next month, priced at £199.99/€239.00.

Nikon has announced the winners of the Nikon Photo Contest 2012-2013. The Grand Prize winner is Dina Bova from Israel, whose entry, "Elegy of Autumn" (above) has been selected from 99,339 works submitted by 22,752 photographers from 153 countries and regions around the world. Final judging took place between June 11th and June 14th, 2013 with the global panel of 17 judges, from a range of photography backgrounds, gathering in Tokyo. Winners were selected based on their ability to tell a universal story, diversity, the strength of their message, creativity, and the techniques used.

The Society of International Travel and Tourism Photographers (SITTP) has announced the winners of the Street Scene Photographic Competition. Mithun Saha from Gangarampur, India with the image entitled ‘Sleep on Wheels’ (above) was chosen as the winner from over 350 pictures entered in to the competition. The image was captured on a Fujifilm Finepix HS10 HS11. Mithun Saha has won a 12-month SITTP membership.

The Society of International Sport and Leisure Photographers have announced the winners of the Sporting Action Photographic Competition. Duncan Groves from Surrey has been chosen as the overall winner, for his image of Serena Williams (above), which was shot at The Wimbledon Tennis Championships 2013 using a Nikon D4. Hungarian photographer Mihály Attila Kazsuba, who resides in Barcelona, Spain, came in second; and the third place was awarded to Alexandros Dalkos from Greece.

The Society of Nature and Wildlife Photographers has announced the winners of its "Our Colourful World" Photography Competition. The winning image (above) was captured by UK photographer Paul McElroy from Kent, and was taken at a local park on a Nikon D300 50 mm / 1.4 prime lens. Sahil M Beg from India came in second, and the third place was awarded to Christopher Algar from Hounslow, Middlesex.

Triggertrap has launched a new website where users can view, upload and share timelapse videos shot all around the world. The new platform, called Primelapse, was born from the first annual Triggertrap Hackathon held in May 2013. “For our inaugural Triggertrap Hackathon, we envisioned a day where we put aside our day-to-day routines and concentrate on individual Triggertrap-themed projects that would stretch our imaginations and maybe germinate into the next generation of Triggertrap awesomeness,” said CEO Haje Jan Kamps. “We had lots of cool things happen, but the first one we’re ready to launch to the world is Primelapse.com."

Issue 30 of Landscape Photography Magazine is now available to download. This edition includes a guide to using social networks, a free article on the top ten Lightroom shortcuts, a review of the Photopills app, a tutorial on using auto ISO, a review of the book "Burmes Light" by David Hay, the second part of the article "The art of macro and close-up photography," a test of graduated neutral density filters, and much more. Some of these articles are free but do note that the full contents of the magazine are available to subscribers only

Website: Landscape Photography Magazine

Channel 5’s The Gadget Show has crowned CEWE Photobook number one in its 2013 photo book review. In the test, ten brands were compared like for like before the panel decided on the first, second and third place. Sarah Brockhusrt, marketing manager at CEWE, comments: “We are absolutely thrilled that CEWE Photobook has been recognised in such a prestigious manner on prime time show The Gadget Show. We pride ourselves on producing high quality hand-finished books which are simple to create and the judges were clearly impressed with this."

Via one of its online forums, Blackmagic Design has announced that its Pocket Cinema Camera is now shipping. "There are some new features in the software for the Pocket Cinema Camera," says Blackmagic's CEO Grant Petty. "You can now focus by pushing the focus button when using an active MFT lens. This makes it very easy to accurately focus. The focus peaking feature is still there and you enable it by double pressing the focus button. The focus zoom feature is enabled by double pressing the OK button." The Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera is available for $995. Meanwhile the suggested retail price of its bigger brother, the original Blackmagic Cinema Camera, has been reduced to $1,995.

Blackmagic Design has reduced the suggested retail price of its Blackmagic Cinema Camera. Announced in April 2012, the Blackmagic Cinema Camera includes features such as 13 stops of dynamic range, built-in high-bandwidth SSD recorder, open file format support, colour correction with full version of DaVinci Resolve and a built in capacitive touch-screen with metadata entry. Other highlights include sensor cooling, built in high-speed Thunderbolt connection, 3 Gb/s SDI output and a passive Micro Four Thirds or Canon EF lens mount. The sensor is capable of capturing both 2.5K and Full HD footage at frame rates of 24, 25, 29.97 and 30fps. The Blackmagic Cinema Camera now carries a suggested retail price of $1,995, down from the original SRP of $2,995.

Issue 18 of David Noton’s Chasing the Light eZine is now available. In this month’s edition, David considers the different and fun opportunities of shooting infrared, and his Field Trial presents Part 1 of an exploration into the creative potential of using super wide-angle lenses. In Behind the Lens, David shares Part 2 of his diary recording his recent advertising job for Canon in Patagonia. And for Stepping Back he recalls a trip to Ireland, shooting the Round Tower at Glendalough with a pack of Celtic photographers. The magazine also includes two educational videos and a Guest Feature written by Lucie Debelkova. Do note that the full contents of Chasing the Light eZine is available to f11 subscribers only.

X-Rite has unveiled its schedule of free August 2013 webinars. The first session, entitled Photography That Makes a Difference, will commence at 1pm EDT on 13th August. The second one, Colour Management for the Rest of Us, starts on 19th August, at 1pm EDT; while the third online seminar, Cataloging in Lightroom: Organising Your Images for Travel, is scheduled for 27th August, 1pm EDT. Click through / read on for the details.

Samyang has announced a new lens for VDSLR cameras. The Samyang 16mm V-DSLR T2.2 ED AS UMC CS cinema lens is a wide-angle, bright lens for cameras equipped with an APS-C sensor. Its optics comprise of 13 elements arranged in 11 groups, including an ED lens element, aspherical element and hybrid-aspherical lens element. Like all other Samyang models, all lens elements are covered with anti-reflection UMC coatings to ensure good light transmission. The lens will be released in the following mounts: Canon EF, Nikon F, Sony A, Sony E (pictured), Canon M, Fujifilm X and MFT. The suggested retail price £449.99 including VAT.

Want to see exactly what the new Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ72 compact camera looks like in the flesh?

We have compiled a gallery of 22 hands-on photos of the new Panasonic DMC-FZ72 (also known as the FZ70), which boasts a staggering 60x optical zoom lens with a focal range of 20-1200mm.