Photography Blog is now running a competition sponsored by Dixons Retail. You have a chance to win a few products from Curry’s camera selection plus an external hard drives from PC World, as listed below.

The three lucky winners are: 
1st and 2nd Prizes: Anthony Jessuk and Linda Mayson - Samsung PL121 Compact Digital Camera - Black (pictured)
3rd Prize: Leana Beegum - WD My Passport Essential External Portable Hard Drive - 320GBP - Black

This competition ended on the 29th July 2012 (12:00PM GMT).

Showboat is a new scrapbook app for the Apple iPad. The easy-to-use program creates a double-page portrait photo album, a single page landscape photo album as well as a full-screen slideshow album - all at once. “Showboat was designed for anybody who wants to easily view and show their photos in a beautiful photo album format that looks like a traditional scrapbook,” the developers say. The app is available now on iTunes for $1.99.

In response to visitors’ demand, the Travel Photographer of the Year (TPOTY) exhibition at London’s Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) has been extended for a further two weeks. Now running until 2nd September, the exhibition features the winning images from the 2011 international Travel Photographer of the Year awards, with all the stories behind the pictures, along with historic images from the Royal Geographical Society’s archives and a series of special showcases. The exhibition is free to enter.

The Brand Management Group (BMG) will launch their Kodak Professional range of digital media at this year’s Photokina trade show. The range includes the new 255g Professional Inkjet Photo Glossy and Lustre papers and two heavyweight, archival quality art papers: Fine Art Textured and Fine Art Smooth, both 315g. In the United Kingdom, the Kodak Professional Range will be distributed by Swains International.

Kingston has announced the second-generation of its DataTraveler Locker+ secure USB Flash drive. The new, lower-priced DataTraveler Locker+ G2 works interchangeably between Mac OS X and Windows systems and all data is secured with hardware-based encryption. Available in 4GB (£7.43+VAT), 8GB (£8.61+VAT), 16GB (£15.33+VAT) and 32GB (£34.43+VAT) capacities, the Kingston DataTraveler Locker+ G2 is backed by a five-year warranty and free technical support.

58 North has announced that its digital photo book app, Pholium, is now free and offers a range of new features. Pholium’s latest version provides users with the ability to include an unlimited number of photos within each digital book that they create, while allowing users to share as many books as they want using iCloud. Pholium 1.2 for iPad is now available as a free download from the iTunes App Store.

The website Stadium Journey, which publishes reviews of sports stadiums from around the world, has recently posted an interesting article entitled, “Why the Back Row of a Baseball Stadium is a Photographer’s Dream.” Written by Greg Goodman, the article argues that the “cheap seats” are the best place to photograph a baseball game. Known for his Baseball Stadium Fisheye Tour series, Goodman points out that “[m]ost baseball stadiums have some sort of architectural flair on the roof that makes an incredible border for a photograph.” Interested readers are encouraged to read the piece in its entirety at the website below.

Website: Stadium Journey

Mark Gillett and Rebecca Hart have teamed up under Suitcase Media & Productions to deliver a film and photography workshop in Thornybush Game Reserve, South Africa. Taking place from 4-10 November and again from 11-17 November 2012, the DSLR and GoPro Safari Workshop is aimed at photographers who would like to explore the video function of their DSLRs, filmmakers looking for an opportunity to join a production team and anyone wanting to make a short documentary based on wildlife, conservation and the local African community. Each workshop is limited to eight participants. For more information, check out the website below.

For their end-of-year project, graphic design and photography students Luke Evans and Josh Lake swallowed pieces of 35mm film for ‘development’ in their stomachs and intestines. The two first year students were responding to a brief they had been set by their lecturers at Kingston University. “The title was ‘Outdoor’. What we decided to do was take things that are normally hidden inside our bodies and display them outside,” Luke explained. “The film was not exposed to light during the experiment, but it has created images nonetheless,” Exposed only to internal fluids, the celluloid revealed its journey with a series of marks, scratches and bumps that, under an electron microscope, created a number of dramatic shapes. “A lot of people think that because no light was used it’s not photography. Technically that’s true, but we feel it doesn’t make it any less intriguing and doesn’t devalue the work at all,” Josh said.

A fully revised and updated new edition of Doug Harman’s international bestseller, The DIgital Photography Handbook, is hitting the shelves this September. In this edition, the author includes the
very latest developments in digital technology - from cutting-edge cameras to up-to-the-minute software. “Featuring fresh new images and a new easy layout, the book will help you achieve stunning results,” the publisher says. “Crammed with professional hints and tips, this revised edition has everything you need to become an accomplished 21st century photographer.” The 224-page paperback will be availabvle from September priced at £7.9.

Picpack is a new service that allows you to print your Instagram photos on magnets. The Berlin, Germany-based start-up enables Instagram users to select a dozen images from their Instagram feed and order a 12-pack of 5,8cm x 5.8cm fridge magnets featuring their own photographs. A pack of magnets costs €18 including worldwide shipping.

Panasonic today announced that leading sports photographer, Dean Mouhtaropoulos (right) will be exclusively using the new Panasonic Lumix G5 compact system camera (read review) to capture the London 2012 Olympic Games. “Having worked for Getty Images (the Official Photographic Agency of the International Olympic Committee) for 9 years, Dean is well versed in capturing epic sporting moments including both Football and Rugby World Cups, the Olympics, Champions League football, World Championships in Swimming, Diving, Hockey, Athletics to name but a few,” the company says. Dean will also carry a selection of LUMIX G Lenses in his kit bag, ranging from 7mm-300mm (35mm equivalent: 14-600mm) including the recently launched12-35mm X lens (read review).

Manfrotto has just announced the launch of the Manfrotto 290 Carbon series - a new family of carbon fibre camera supports designed for intermediate-level amateur photographers. “The Manfrotto 290 Carbon series is designed to be easily transported and carried: 290s are small when folded, but lightweight and very stable when open,” the company says. “For this model, Manfrotto developed a next- generation Carbon tubing: an innovative composite tube ideally suited to the needs of developing photographers, which draws on Manfrotto’s professional experience. It uses optimised fibre angles to provide consistent advantages of torsion/flexion rigidity and stability compared to aluminium tubing; advantages that have made carbon fibre tripods so understandably popular among professionals.” The Manfrotto 290 Carbon range includes a “legs-only” tripod, a monopod and a small selection of ready-to-use complete tripod + head kits, divided into two sizes.

Billed as the “World’s first permanent LomoWall,” the Lomographic Society’s LomoWall Manchester was unveiled yesterday on Tariff Street. Now open to the public, the LomoWall Manchester is a 30m x 3m long artwork containing 14,000 individual “lomographs.” Alexandra King, Piccadilly Partnership Director said: “This is a new landmark on the Northern Quarter landscape, here in the heart of the Piccadilly Basin.  The LomoWall adds to the street art scene in this part of the city centre and will become a visitor attraction in its own right. We are very proud to host it and to have the world’s first permanent LomoWall is a real honour. It’s a welcome addition to the urban landscape.”

ViewBug has teamed up with Lytro to launch a photo contest focussing on the theme of “depth”. The contest will run until 6th November, and photos will be judged based on the photographer’s creative ability to capture a three-dimensional space. The winner will receive a Lytro Camera, valued at over $399.

Sony has just unveiled the newest addition to its XDCAM HD4:2:2 line – the PMW-200 Full HD camcorder. Billed as the only professional handheld camcorder in its class with three 1/2”-type Exmor CMOS sensors and full HD 4:2:2 50Mbps recording, the Sony XDCAM PMW-200 has two high-speed SxS memory card slots. Developed specifically for professional content creation applications, these cards offer high transfer rates as well as resistance to shocks and vibrations. The PMW-200 camcorder is armed with a 14x zoom lens with auto-focus and image stabilisation. The lens is also equipped with three independent rings for zoom, focus and iris adjustment. The Sony PMW-200 is expected to be available in September for a suggested list price of $7,790.

Digital Kirlian Photography is a new book by John Iovine. Kirlian photography is an alternative photography technique that can produce strikingly beautiful abstract images. “The Digital Kirlian Photography book project is a complete rewriting and updating of my original Kirlian photography book that used film,” the author says. “This new digital photography book will detail the construction of equipment needed to take beautiful kirlian photographs using digital cameras and image processing.” The publication of the book is a crowdfunding project being hosted by Kickstarter. People who help back the project will receive a free book.