Axtremex is set to release a number of new Compact Flash memory cards with a 800x speed rating. The UDMA 7 compliant Axtremex 800x CF cards, available in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB capacities, support read speeds of up to 120 megabytes per second and write speeds of up to 95MB/s. Additionally, the company has announced an “800x Plus” range of Compact Flash cards, which will support both read and write speeds up to 120MB/s. These cards also offer a Video Performance Guarantee (VPG) at 20 Megabytes per second, which is currently the highest rating. Initially, the new Axtremex memory cards will be available from NanoFlash.net for USA and international customers. For UK customers, the new CF cards are available from CCK Media Technologies and other authorised dealers.

Downloadbuyer.com have a new exclusive bundle deal available for three MacPhun products for Mac. The software bundle includes FX Photo Studio Pro, Colour Splash and Snapheal. The price is €22.68, a 50% saving on the combined SRP of the three programs. To take advantage of this offer, head to the website below.

Focus On Imaging has released official visitor statistics for this year’s show. The total number of attendees was 37,684 which, according to the organisers, made for a very busy show floor across all of the four days. Stars of the show included the Canon EOS 5D Mark III, the Fujifilm X-Pro1 (read review), the Nikon D800 and the Olympus OM-D E-M5. Alongside these exciting new products, many of the exhibitors at this year’s show presented an array of talks, seminars and demonstrations on a wide range of subjects.

Browse our photos from the Focus on Imaging 2012 photography show

Metro Imaging has become one of 159 companies to receive a warrant from HRH Prince of Wales, in recognition of its close relationship as a supplier to the Duchy of Cornwall. This highly prized status is only granted on consistent demonstration of quality and excellence. “We are really proud of this prestigious acknowledgement,” says Steve Macleod, Creative Director at Metro Imaging. “We love our work and always strive to give our best to every customer.”

Developed in collaboration with nodesign, the all-white DIA digital photo frame from Parrot sports a simple design, tactile buttons and a high-resolution 10.4-inch screen. “Dismantled, deconstructed, disconnected from the frame as if there was nothing behind, this screen is transparency; is light,” says Henri Seydoux, founder and CEO of Parrot. “The picture, your photo, appears through this ‘light box’ in a brand-new aesthetic dimension.” DIA Parrot by nodesign offers a comprehensive set of connectivity options, including USB, SD card, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and sells for £459.99 including VAT.

Slideshow tool provider Photodex has announced the latest version of its Adobe Lightroom plug-in for ProShow. Providing a seamless bridge between ProShow’s slideshow output and Adobe Lightroom versions 2, 3 and 4, the free plug-in supports both Mac and PC, and is now compatible with all three versions of Photodex’s ProShow line of HD slideshow tools. Additionally, it provides new and improved show titles and special characters for the ProShow Web application. The ProShow Plug-in for Lightroom can be downloaded directly from the Adobe Lightroom Exchange website.

The Rollei Powerflex 800 is a compact travelzoom camera with 12.5x optical zoom and a fourteen-megapixel Sony sensor. Other highlights include 22 different shooting modes and a 720p HD video mode. The Rollei Powerflex 800 will go on sale in early April in black, silver and red, for a RRP of €199.95.

The World Photography Organisation (WPO) has announced the Open and Youth category winners in the 2012 Sony World Photography Awards. Category winners in the Open Competition include Filippo Di Rosa (Architecture), Sanket K (Arts & Culture), Victor Vargas Villafuerte (Enhanced), Natalia Belentsova (Low Light), Giovanni Frescura (Nature & Wildlife, for the photograph shown above), Denise Worden (Panoramic), Ana Gregori? (People), Piotr Stasiuk (Smile), Tobias Bräuning (Split Second) and Krzysztof Browko (Travel). Category winners in the Youth Competition include Kolyaskin Sergey (Culture), Bernard Pieterse (South Africa) and Karian Sembe (Portraits). The overall Open and Youth competition winners will be announced at the annual Sony World Photography Awards ceremony and gala dinner on 26th April at the Hilton Hotel in London’s Park Lane.

Western Digital (WD) today announced the next generation of its My Passport line of portable hard drives, offering consumers a fresh new enclosure design and the first-ever 2TB capacity in a portable drive. Now available in five colours including white, black, silver, blue, and red, with a range of capacities beginning from 500GB; the new WD My Passport drives feature scratch- and fingerprint-resistant finishes on their outer shells, USB 3.0 connectivity and password protection with hardware encryption. Shipping with WD SmartWare automatic backup software, the new-generation Western Digital My Passport Hard Drives are priced from $129.99-$249.99, depending on capacity.

Corel today launched CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6. With a focus on opening up new creative possibilities for the design community, this update is claimed to deliver improved workflow and performance for both aspiring and experienced designers. Including Corel PHOTO-PAINT X6, CorelDRAW X6 and four other programs, CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X6 is available immediately as an electronic download (ESD) from the website below. Box versions will be available from Corel’s authorised resellers later in March. Suggested retail pricing is £399 for the full version and £179 for the upgrade.

X-Rite has announced its schedule of March 2012 webinars. The first online seminar, starting Wednesday, 28th March, 11:00 AM EDT and 1:00 PM EDT and hosted by Joe Brady, is entitled “Image Edits and Enhancements in Lightroom 4.” In this webinar, Joe will explore both basic and advanced image editing techniques and focus on the new editing capabilities offered in Lightroom 4. The other webinar, entitled “Creating the Mood with Texture, Color, and Sharpness,” will feature educator, photographer and author Katrin Eismann, who will share a number of colour management, editing, and enhancement techniques that photographers can use in their digital workflow. The second webinar will take place from midday (EDT), 29th March. Click through for the webinar registration links.

Phase One has launched a new website and announced a price cut on its Capture One 6 software. The program comes in three versions. Capture One Pro supports virtually every professional DSLR and most popular camera models and includes powerful tools to enhance the capture and editing processes. Capture One Express features the same processing engine as Capture One Pro, but is without some of the more advanced tools. Capture One DB ships with all Phase One medium format camera systems. Capture One Pro is available for $299 and €229; Capture One Express is now priced at $99 and €69. In addition, the trial period of the software from 30 to 60 days.

Nikon Europe has made the English version of the Nikon D4 User’s Manual available for download. The 22.5-megabyte PDF file can be downloaded from the website below.

Website: Nikon Europe

The instruction manual for the Nikon D800 and D800E cameras is now available to download. Nikon USA have made the user guide for the D800 available as a 24-megabyte PDF file, giving you the chance to read all about this exciting new DSLR before it launches on Thursday. (The Nikon D800E is the same camera as the D800 except that it incorporates an optical filter with the anti-aliasing properties removed in order to produce the sharpest images possible.)

Download the Nikon D800 / D800E User’s Manual

DSLR Triggers have announced the upcoming launch of their Stedi-Shot DSLR Trigger, a new thumb-controlled trigger for video-enabled digital SLR cameras. Their ongoing Kickstarter campaign is aimed to help raise funds and get the trigger out into the market. The money raised during the 45-day campaign will be used to purchase machine time as well as the raw materials in quantity in order to mass produce the triggers. The Stedi-Shot DSLR trigger system consists of a bracket the camera sits on that holds a cable release perfectly aligned with the start/stop button on the back of the camera. By using the cable release to activate the start/stop button on the camera there is no shaky footage caused by pushing the button. Currently there are five different camera models that are supported by the Stedi-Shot: the Canon 5d MKII, the Canon 7D, the Canon T2i, the Canon 60D and also the Nikon D7000.

Sony Europe has leaked a picture of a new zoom lens. The Sony 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 SAM lens has been designed for digital SLR and SLT cameras with APS-C sized sensors, and features a metal-looking Sony Alpha bayonet mount, a Smooth Auto-focus Motor and a zoom lock switch. The other specifications, recommended retail price and release date have yet to be communicated.

Via Digicame-Info via PR

From 19 May 2012 The Photographers’ Gallery will present Burtynsky: Oil, a major solo exhibition of works by renowned Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky. Showcasing over thirty images the exhibition will be divided into three sections: Extraction and Refinement describes the process of distillation via aerial views of oil fields, drills and rigs spread across miles of land, networks of pipelines travelling through the countryside and factories constructed as mazes of metal tubes. Transportation and Motor Culture, as made possible through petrol, is depicted in complex images of highway interchanges and connections, panoramas of endless rows of vehicles lined-up in vast parking lots and of car enthusiasts gathered in masses to take part in related events and sporting competitions. The End of Oil displays the consequences of its use as considered by the artist. The Photographers’ Gallery is located at 16 – 18 Ramillies Street, London W1F 7LW.

German software developer Jürgen Habenstein has devised two new operating systems for digital cameras. Both AppCam OS-I and AppCam OS-II are aimed at making cameras more intuitive and easy to use, without the need to delve into complicated and long-winded menu systems. How viable the idea will prove in the marketplace remains to be seen. The implementation of AppCam OS-I would require manufacturers to adopt a new control layout comprising a large Home button, a capacitive touch-screen with gesture support and no less than six rear-mounted control wheels. This would allow advanced compact camera owners to get to their most often used settings quickly, and customise their cameras to their tastes. AppCam OS-II, on the other hand, has been developed for dSLRs, and is ready to be integrated into existing hardware configurations relying on established control layouts. Click through / scroll down for a video demonstrating the AppCam OS-I concept.

Zeiss has announced a brand new ultra-wideangle lens for Canon and Nikon SLR cameras. The Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 2,8/15 boasts an optical formula comprising 15 lens elements in 12 groups, a 0.25m close-focus point, an integrated hood and a huge 95mm filter thread. The company claims the lens features “extraordinary chromatic aberration correction” and nearly complete insensitivity to reflections and stray light. Zeiss also emphasises the “extremely well controlled” distortion that enables the lens to capture “naturally proportioned photographs which are not typical of many other super wide angle lenses”. When attached to a camera with an FX sized sensor, the Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 2,8/15 offers a diagonal angle of view of 110°. The lens will begin shipping in May 2012 at a recommended retail price of €2,148 or US$2,948 (excluding VAT).