Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) 7.1, Photoshop Lightroom 4.1 and Adobe DNG Converter 7.1 are now available to download. “Camera Raw 7.1 adds new Defringe controls to help address chromatic aberration,” says Sharad Mangalick, Adobe’s product manager for Lightroom. “Camera Raw can also now read 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit HDR files.” Note that ACR 7.1 is only compatible with Photoshop CS6. Additionally, Lightroom 4.1 is now available as a final release on Adobe.com and through the update mechanism in Lightroom 4.

Lynda.com has released its 500th course on Adobe software. ”With Adobe Creative Suite 6 and Adobe Creative Cloud, we created products that work at lightning-fast speed, deliver new Adobe magic to maximise user creativity as well as a new modern user interfaces in key applications to enhance productivity, and new capabilities for responsive HTML5 experiences for mobile devices,” said Scott Morris, senior director of product marketing at Adobe. “We congratulate lynda.com for their 500th course on Adobe software and applaud their efforts to give users the opportunity to receive quality education on the new CS6 and Creative Cloud capabilities in an easy and accessible format, so soon after their release.”

X-Rite has announced its schedule of June webinars that have been developed to address specific colour management topics. Designed to appeal to both professional and serious amateur photographers, the schedule comprises three webinars including “Beyond Monitor Calibration - Get Prints That Match Your Display!” on the 7th, “Get to Know X-Rite, Wacom, and OnOne Software Part II” on the 14th and “The New i1Photo Pro 2 | A New Standard for Colour Management” on the 20th of June. Click through / read on for the details.

Nikon has issued a firmware update for the Nikon D4 professional DSLR camera. As with the Nikon D800/D800E, firmware version 1.01 resolves an issue that, on rare occasions, caused the camera to lock up; and addresses a couple of bugs related to network functions and Custom Setting F15. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Website: Nikon D4 Firmware Update 1.01

Nikon has posted a firmware update for the Nikon D800 digital SLR camera. Version B 1.01 resolves an issue that, in some rare cases, caused the camera to “lock up”, i.e. become completely unresponsive to all controls including the power switch (while reviewing the camera, we ran into this issue once - then and there, removing and reinserting the battery solved the problem). Additionally, the firmware update offers a fix for two minor bugs related to I) using the Nikon D800 with the optional WT-4 wireless transmitter and II) shooting in 5:4 crop mode with Active D-Lighting turned on. You can download the firmware upgrade from the website below,

Website: Nikon D800 Firmware Update B 1.01 | Nikon D800E Firmware Update B 1.01

Fujifilm has released a firmware update for its ruggedised FinePix XP150 digital compact camera. Version 1.02 improves performance when shooting underwater. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Website: Fujifilm

MoreVibrant.com has launched a Jubilee photographic competition. Entrants are asked to submit a photograph showing either their favourite “jubilee themed” product packaging, the most vibrantly coloured items they use at home, or how they decorated their home for the jubilee weekend. The deadline is 5th June and only two pictures per person can be submitted. The results will be announced after the Jubilee weekend. Three lucky winners will receive £50 of Marks and Spencer vouchers.

The PluginSite has released its ColorStyler software, which is the seventh product in the PhotoWiz series. According to the software developers, ColorStyler reproduces the whole workflow of colour film photography, recreating traditional film effects and giving photos a special style. It features more than 20 effect types, 600 presets and plenty of masking options for applying the effect only to selected areas of a photo. Priced at $69.95, ColorStyler is currently available as a Photoshop-compatible plugin for Windows as well as a standalone application. A plugin version for MacOS X will follow soon.

The lucky winner of a great Tamrac DSLR bag, courtesy of Lovecases.co.uk, is Robin Stanford.

The Tamrac Rally 5 will comfortably accommodate your DSLR with up to a 6” lens attached, 1 long tele photo lens and one mid size zoom lens plus a flash and all your accessories. There is also space for your iPad, small laptop or Tablet PC.

Check out Lovecases’ camera cases and dslr camera bag range.

This contest closed on Tuesday 22/05/2012.

The five lucky winners of Photo Director 3, courtesy of CyberLink, are mr eastwood, barry wolohan, Moby M Xavier, Hitesh Rathod and Lutz Froenicke.

PhotoDirector 3 is designed to provide all the features photographers need to manage large batches of photos, adjust images to the best quality and showcase work in their own unique style, in a single application. Now featuring People Beautifying tools and a complete range of cutting edge processing features, PhotoDirector 3 not only enables customers to perfect every detail of scenery photos, but also create professional portraits.

This contest closed on Tuesday 24/05/2012.

The high-end Sigma DP2 Merrill compact camera has been delayed until July. Originally slated for release this month, Sigma have explained that “the preparation for this release is taking longer than our original expectation” and “will be announcing further details on our official website when a definite release date is determined.” Given Sigma’s somewhat patchy track record of delivering new cameras on time, we may be waiting for the Sigma DP2 Merrill a little while longer yet.

Website: Sigma Japan

Pentax Spain are teasing a gift-wrapped mystery product on their Facebook page. The opening of a Pentax coloured box is promised for this Friday, 1st June, on Pentax.es. We haven’t heard anything as yet from the UK or US Pentax divisions.

Panasonic have released a new firmware update for the Lumix DMC-FX90 compact camera. With this firmware update, zoom and shutter control of the LUMIX DMC-FX90 will be available while displaying live view image on the smartphone using the apps “LUMIX remote”. The following functions will be available:

- [Wireless Live View] Displaying live view image through the camera on the smartphone
- [Wireless Live Control] Adjusting zoom magnification with the smartphone and releasing the shutter
- [Self-shot Mode] Live view image will be mirror-reversed

Download the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX90 Version 2.0 Firmware Update

Olympus Japan has posted three full-resolution sample photographs captured wit the brand new M.Zuiko Digital ED 75mm f/1.8 lens mounted to an Olympus OM-D E-M5 body. All three sample images were shot with the lens wide open, i.e. at the f/1.8 setting. You can download the M.Zuiko Digital ED 75mm f/1.8 sample images from the website below.

Website: Olympus Japan

Documentary photographer Juliana Edwards (pictured) has published a powerful photographic record of the east London site that will house the 2012 Olympics. She set out to document the human traces before the future Olympic site was vacated in preparation for construction work to begin. Many of the locations photographed have since been razed to the ground, making the book an important historical record. Juliana Edwards says: “I had a sense of elation when London won the 2012 Olympics and immediately wanted to capture the area as it was. I have an intimate connection with the Olympic site, having lived in housing in Temple Mills Lane and Clays Lane which has now been demolished to make way for the Olympic Village. People’s idea of permanence is usually based on the premise that bricks, mortar and concrete will be there forever, but here in this part of east London, all of a sudden they are not.” Copies of ‘2012: The Place That Was’ can be ordered from Amazon UK for £30.

Manfrotto Distribution has announced the Lino Apparel Collection women’s line. Comprising a field jacket, a poncho, a soft shell jacket, a waistcoat and an Air Jacket, this is the first line designed specifically for women. “Each piece allows for active movement and flexibility under various working conditions in the field,” said Kayla Murata, Product Manager Manfrotto Bags and Apparel.  “The entire collection is made from high quality materials and is designed to last for years.” The items are priced from $149.99 to $349.

Facebook has released a free photo editing and sharing app for iOS devices. Billed as “a new mobile app that makes using Facebook photos faster and easier,” Facebook Camera lets users share multiple shots all at once instead of having to post one at a time. A few basic editing tools - such as cropping, rotating and a suite of creative filters - are also included. Facebook Camera is available now on iTunes.