An iPhone 4 image of a bee hovering over a foxglove (above) has won a National Trust photographic competition that celebrates the role green places play in people’s lives. Taken by Laura Elliot in her parents’ garden in Northern Ireland, ‘Don’t bee choosy’ was shot using the Instagram app - winning both the smartphone category and the overall competition. Laura said: “I was shocked to find out I’d won. I’m studying dentistry at university and photography is just my hobby.” The winner of the 10-and-under category is James Ashton, aged 9, from Doncaster with his intimate image of ducks feeding at Clumber Park, Nottinghamshire. Tilly Rose Bellinger, aged 16,from Somerset won the 11-to-16 set with Jurassic mist, an atmospheric black and white image of the Jurassic Coastline in Dorset. The winner of the over 16 award is Eleanor Bennett from Cheshire, having composed a clever photograph of silhouettes of walkers amongst bare trees in Lyme Park, Cheshire All of the winners are featured in the spring edition of the National Trust Magazine and on the National Trust website.

Rogue has launched a brand new Small Soft Box Kit. The £45 bundle contains two of Rogue’s most popular lighting accessories, the FlashBender Positionable Reflector and the Small Diffusion Panel. The FlashBender element of this kit can be used on its own, as a positionable reflector. Photographers can also attach the Small Diffusion Panel to the Reflector using a simple and fast Velcro system to create a mini softbox. Also new is the Rogue Flash Gels - Colour Correction Filter Kit (£30) with a tabbed filter design to enable attachment to all standard speedlight flash units. Included in the set are 18 selected colour correction filters, a Rogue Gel-Band attachment and a storage pouch with quick reference dividers for easy organisation of the filters.

Seim Effect has released Color Fantasies 2, a colour toolkit for Lightroom. Rebuilt from the ground up, Seim Effects 2 offers new and remastered tools for superior control, better workflow and better mixing of effects. “It’s like Colour Alchemy for Lightroom - Built on years of development and refinement, Colour Fantasies 2 is designed to help photographers create incredible colour” said Gavin Seim, photographer, educator and owner of Seim Effects. “Colour Fantasies 2 is all about taking the subtleties of color hues and tones and giving photographers of all genres the tools they need to quickly customize their vision and make their images sing.” Color Fantasies 2 is available now for use with Lightroom on both Mac and Windows systems. The regular download price is $49, but if those purchasing a licence by 10 January 2013 are entitled to a $10 discount.

Kenro, the official UK and Ireland distributor for the Benro range of tripods, has introduced two new camera bag series. The Benro Hummer series of backpacks - available in two sizes, priced from £107.94-£119.29 - feature an ergonomic harness system that is designed for maximum ventilation to achieve the highest level of comfort and reduce uneven, heavy loading. The Benro Professional Pioneer trolley case - also available in two sizes, priced from £269.94-£299.94 - has been specially designed with commercial photographers in mind, whose schedule relies heavily on travelling with a full kit. For maximum versatility, the Pioneer trolley case can also turn into a backpack when needed by simply utilising the hidden shoulder straps found on the back compartment of the trolley.

The Samsung NX300 is a new compact system camera featuring a 20-megapixel imager with on-sensor phase detection AF sensors, an articulated OLED touchscreen and Wi-Fi connectivity. Other highlights include a sensitivity range of ISO100/21°—ISO25,600/45°, a maximum shutter speed of 1/6000 sec,  8.6fps continuous shooting, a 5-way manual key interface and i-Depth, an easy and simple way to adjust the depth-of-field of an image using the NX Series’ unique i-Function system. Available in either black or white with a contrast silver band, the Samsung NX300 is expected to hit the shelves priced at around $750. Also announced today is the new Samsung 45mm 2D/3D lens, which supports both 2D and 3D movie capture with the NX300, and boasts a maximum aperture of f/1.8. This new 2D/3D version of the Samsung 45mm f/1.8 lens will cost around $500.

The Nissin MG8000 Extreme flash is now available in the United Kingdom. Offered in both Canon and Nikon fit, the Nissin MG8000 Extreme sparked mass interest amongst the industry when shown for the first time at Focus-on-Imaging in March 2012 due to its unique quartz-based flash tube which ensures the unit remains cool, even in extreme-use conditions. When tested, the Nissin MG8000 can produce over 1000 full flashes without any fear of overheating, the company claims. The Nissin MG8000 Extreme boasts a recycle time of just 3 seconds for the first 200 shots, and then 5 to 7 seconds for subsequent frames, maintaining its guide number throughout the burst. Other highlights include an included external diffuser, tilt-swivel head, guide number of 60 (in metres at ISO 100/21° with the head zoomed to the 105mm position), full support for Canon’s and Nikon’s wireless TTL flash control systems, high-speed synchronisation and a stroboscopic flash mode. Weighing in at 400g, the Nissin MG8000 Extreme has a guide price of £545.40.

The Thule Perspektiv Daypack has won the prestigious iF Product Design Award. The camera bag has been recognised for it’s design, finish, material and innovation level, as well as functionality, ergonomics and safety. The Thule Perspektiv series has six camera bags in various sizes for different needs. This spring, the Thule Perspektiv Backpack, Thule Perspektiv Daypack, Thule Perspektiv Messenger Bag, Thule Perspektiv Medium and Large Top Loaders and Thule Perspektiv Action Camera Case will be launched at select retailers, both in Europe and North America.

CyberLink today released an update for PowerDirector 11 adding support for the latest GoPro HD HERO3 Black Edition camera.  With today’s update, CyberLink has expanded the comprehensive 4K video editing capabilities in PowerDirector 11 to support the GoPro HD HERO3 Black Edition, which delivers 4K and 2.7K video resolutions at 12 and 30fps respectively. The new PowerDirector 11 update is now available to existing users for free via the CyberLink Update Center.

Trygger has launched a Kickstarter campaign to introduce a new product: the Camera Clip. This new, detachable iPhone 5 accessory has an integrated polarising filter to reduce glare and cut out unwanted reflections off non-metallic surfaces, while delivering richer colours and superior contrast. “It’s going to make the world through your phone look more like the world you see through your eyes so you can capture all of life’s moments the way you remember them,” the company says. “We designed it to fit snugly on the iPhone 5 so no extraneous light could leak into your photos.” The planned retail price of the Trygger 5 Camera Clip is $39.95.

Website: iPhone 5 Trygger Camera Clip on Kickstarter

Geonaute, a sports electronics company based in France, has announced the upcoming launch of a 360° action camera. Equipped with three wide-angle lenses and three 8-megapixel sensors, it offers an almost full spherical field of view (360° horizontal and 150° vertical). Shockproof and bundled with a waterproof housing rated to IPX7 standards, the mountable, wearable Geonaute sports camera can be used just about anywhere while having only a minimum impact on the user during their activity. Weighing in at less than 200 grams, the Geonaute records videos in MP4 format and stores them on microSD cards. The camera comes equipped with a battery that promises recording times of over 2 hours. The camera will be officially unveiled at CES, booth 26703 LVCC South Hall, with pricing to be confirmed.

Tiffen has released a special Steadicam bundle configuration – the Steadicam Merlin Arm & Vest. The new kit includes the Steadicam Merlin 2 camera stabilising systems as well as the Merlin’s Arm Pin Kit and Vest, sold as one complete package. The new configuration offers a special discount over purchasing systems and components individually.

OmegaBrandess and Flipbac have announced a set of new add-on grips for digital compact cameras. Flipbac Camera Grips can be easily applied to the front of your camera to prevent slipping and create a solid hold. Made of 100% silicone, the Flipbac Camera Grips flex to the shape of your camera body for a perfect fit.

Issue 23 of Landscape Photography Magazine is now available for download. This edition includes a guide to depth of field, a review of the book “Photographing the Elements” by David Hay, a review of the Pentax 645D digital SLR camera, an interview with David Wiggett, an article on the creative use of shutter speed by Mark Sisson - and much more. Do note that the full contents of Landscape Photography Magazine are available to subscribers only.