The Sony Handycam DCR-SR21E is an easy-to-use standard-definition digital video camera with 57x optical zoom and SteadyShot electronic image stabilisation. Distinguished from the also-new Sony DCR-SX21E through different looks and the use of an 80GB hard disk drive (rather than a memory card( as the recording medium, the Sony Handycam DCR-SR21E also boasts an Intelligent Auto mode that analyses the scene in front of the camcorder’s lens to choose the most appropriate of 18 scene modes ranging from Portrait and Landscape to Night View. Focus, exposure, colour and other settings are adjusted automatically, while menus and settings are accessed with a joystick located next to the articulated 2.7” monitor. The Sony Handycam DCR-SR21E will become available in September 2011, with pricing to be confirmed.

Photographer Tim Hans presents his new exhibition Camden Town Skateboarders at East London’s leading gallery, theprintspace. “Camden Town Skateboarders features local athletes and is the first exhibit of an on-going global project in which Hans brings a fresh and atypical style of photography to the skateboarding world through stripped-down portraits in place of flashy action shots,” the organisers aay. The opening reception is 4th August, 7-9:30pm at theprintspace gallery on 74 Kingsland Road, and the exhibition will run until 31st August 31st. Admission is free.

HandlePod is a hand-supported camera stabiliser featuring a 3-axis rotating camera mount attached to a comfortable handle backed by 4 rubber-tipped feet. The simplest way to use it is to hold the HandlePod against any solid surface, aim the camera and shoot. “Light hand pressure and the four high-friction rubber feet assure a stable, non-slip camera platform that eliminates motion blur just like a tripod,” says inventor Mike Kolito. “HandlePod also helps in situations where a support object isin’t available. Its handle provides a firm grip and improved leverage for hand-held photos in low light. The handle extends to the side of the camera for more steadying power and a solid, two-handed grip.” HandlePod is available for $39.95 plus S&H from the website below.

byMac Inventions have announced a range of remote releases designed for time-lapse photography. The company offers infra-red remotes for Canon, Nikon, Olympus, Pentax and Sony cameras with IR support at $69 + S&H each, and a mechanical intervalometer that is claimed to work with practically every camera, available at an introductory price of $149 + shipping. For more information, visit the website below.

Website: Tempus

Five years ago, New York based writer and musician Chris Kennedy discovered the lost, never-before-published colour photo collection of popular 1950s Cleveland radio DJ Tommy Edwards, and decided to write a book on the find. The richly illustrated book, published by the Kent State University Press, is now available for purchase. The 264-page hardback includes more than 200 colour photographs from the collection that consists of over 1,700 Ektachrome slides of rock-and-roll legends, country music superstars, Hollywood celebrities and “hopeful unknowns”.

Website: 1950s Radio in Colour on Amazon

“View” is an art photography magazine developed exclusively for the visual possibilities of the iPad. Curated by photographer Alon Koppel, View Magazine features little-known photographers from around the world, most of whose work was discovered online. View’s inaugural issue launched in March 2011 and the second issue has now been released. The magazine directly supports English, Bokmål, Norwegian, Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Ukrainian. View Magazine is currently free and available on iTunes.

Hasselblad has posted a major firmware update for its H4D-60 medium-format DSLR camera. The update includes many functional enhancements such as one-click focus check, a bi-directional (pitch and roll) electronic spirit level, the ability to display camera grip information on the rear monitor, Live Video for more efficient workflow and Schneider and Rollei support. For more information, visit the website below.

Vend.Love.Win is a new Facebook-based photo-video contest hosted by the National Automatic Merchandising Association. Entrants are asked to upload a photo or video of their favourite vending machine or vended product, along with a short description explaining why they love the given machine or product. On the last day of each month, the top 20 entries with the most votes will each win $200 for a charity of the photographer’s choice, or a $200 Visa gift card, or a $100 cash prize. You can only win once per month, but you can enter as many times as you want each month. The organisers are also giving away a $5,000 annual prize for the absolute best entry before 30 March 2012. The entry with the most votes overall will win the grand prize. As with every photo competition, we suggest that you read the rules before submitting your work. Do note that this contest is open to residents of the U.S.A. only.

Website: Vend.Love.Win.

UK based JPY Consulting has announced that GeoPhoto 2.0 has entered the top 10 free photography chart in the US, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Germany and many other countries. GeoPhoto 2.0 is an iPad app that lets users virtually travel around the world by finding geotagged pictures. It’s just a matter of selecting an area of the world map and clicking the search button. Shortly afterwards the screen will be filled with the best images found in that area. Version 2.0, which adds a brand new user interface and sharing options, is currently available on iTunes as a free download. Note that this is a limited-time offer - the app normally retails for $0.99.

Reallusion has announced that this year it is once again hosting an all-out Animation Competition for general and educational users. The contest is open to users of the company’s CrazyTalk Animator software, who can showcase their talents by uploading their videos to Youtube, Vimeo or any other free video sharing platforms to compete for over 10 award-winning categories including; Best Picture, Best Director, Most Popular, Campus Special, Best Original Character and others. To compete, simply fill-out the submission form with your video title, video description, credits, contact information and uploaded video URL. As always, we suggest that you read the rules before entering your work.

Panasonic Japan has announced that it is about to start shipping the Panasonic Lumix Phone P-05C, the world’s first camera phone featuring optical image stabilisation. Equipped with a multi-coated, bright f/2.8 wide-angle lens, the Panasonic Lumix Phone P-05C offers a so-called My Colour Mode with digital filters such as Miniature, Soft focus and Pinhole. In addition, the phone is also capable of shooting Full HD video. There is a dedicated website for the phone, but it’s available in Japanese only.

Via 1001 Noisy Cameras

Kenko-Tokina has acquired the famous French filter manufacturer Cokin SAS. Renowned for its square filter system, Cokin SAS will be renamed Cokin France S.A.S.U. but will remain an independent company keeping its own manufacturing, marketing and worldwide distribution network. Marc Heintz, Cokin’s Director of Sales, said: “Kenko brings to us a strong backing of finance and supply of raw materials, which will allow us to expand and bring new innovative products to the market once again.”

Sigma Japan has announced a new Sigma SD15 Twin Zoom Kit, available from 15th July. The bundle includes the Sigma SD15 digital SLR camera body, a 18-50mm f/2.8-4.5 DC OS HSM standard zoom and a 50-200mm f/4.5-5.6 DC OS HSM telezoom lens. Currently there is no word on the price of the kit or whether it will be available outside Japan.

FotoDC has launched its fourth annual International Awards Competition. The competition will feature 11 different categories of entry. For single images, contestants can enter under Photojournalism/Social Documentary, Commercial, Fine Art, Contemporary Life, Travel, Portrait, and/or The Natural World. If submitting a series, contestants can enter under Photojournalism/Social Documentary, Fine Art, and/or The Natural World. There will also be a Student Portfolio category (eligible for those 18 or older and enrolled in an accredited academic programme), a Multimedia category, and a Mobile Phone category focussed on the Spirit of Washington. The competition is open to all photographers, both amateurs and professionals, and there is an early bird discount for work submitted by 24th July. The final deadline for submissions before entries go to the panel of judges for review is 12th September. In addition to a total of $20,000 in cash prizes, the top winners in each category will be well rewarded, with the opportunity for their work to be shown and/or projected during FotoWeek DC, 5-12 November 2011.

Photojojo has announced what must be the craziest iPhone accessory yet: an adapter and case that allow you to attach a Canon or Nikon lens to the device. Turning your valued SLR optics into an add-on accessory for a smartphone does not sound like the greatest of ideas, especially given that you obviously lose auto focus (and aperture control too, at least with Canon lenses and most modern Nikkors), not to mention that if you’re willing to lug around a bulky SLR lens you might as well use it on a real camera - but we’re sure it’s crazy enough to ignite the imagination of many iPhone aficionados looking for some telephoto reach and shallow depth of field. If you’re one of them, Photojojo will be happy to sell you the case-adapter combo at $190 (for the iPhone 3) or $249 (for the iPhone 4).

Website: Photojojo’s iPhone SLR Mount

Windows Phone UK is running a photography competition on Facebook. Entrants are asked to upload their best summer photos to the competition’s Facebook page for a chance win one of three Windows Phones. The photographers submitting three most popular snaps, as determined by popular vote, will win the prizes. The final date to enter a photo is 30th July 2011 but given that it’s also when the votes - or ‘likes’, to be more precise - are totalled up to determine the winners, it’s probably a good idea to submit your photograph as early as possible. As always, we suggest that you read the rules before entering your work. Also note that this competition is open to adult residents of the United Kingdom only.

Website: Facebook - Windows Phone

Developed for compact, mirrorless and rangefinder cameras, the mini L-Bracket from Arca-Swiss is the newest addition to the manufacturer’s monoball Fix system, and is also compatible with the monoball Classic range. Even smaller digital SLR cameras like the Olympus E-450, Pentax K-r or Canon EOS 1100D could be outfitted with the new Arca-Swiss mini L-Bracket, which matches their small dimensions better than larger brackets. Pricing to be confirmed.

Phase One has released Media Pro 1.0.1, a service release, and the first update since Media Pro was introduced less than two months ago. Once known as Microsoft Expression Media, Media Pro is a professional photo manager for finding, organising, and sharing images and videos. This service release fixes several bugs and issues with stability, TIFF and thumbnail rendering, catalogues, XMP sidecars, file sorting, readability, colour management, and more. Media Pro 1.0.1 is free to existing Phase One Media Pro customers.