Luxipics is an affordable, subscription-based service that allows photographers to present and sell their photos online. No web skills are needed and photographers can be selling their work as digital downloads or prints within minutes of signing up, the company says. The latest version is now available on a monthly subscription model, with the pro service starting at £7.99 per month. Luxipics software even provides a built-in shopping cart allowing customers to buy photos, downloads or even book studio time using all major credit cards securely via PayPal.

Website: Luxipics

app4cam has released version 6 of its gps4cam app for the Apple iPhone. This program allows iPhone users to geotag pictures taken with any digital camera. The app doesn’t need to connect to a network to be used, and doesn’t require the user to manually synchronise the time and date between his iPhone and his camera, thanks to the use of a QR-Code generated by the app itself. This last version brings ease-of.use improvements such as the addition of an on-board guided tour and an integrated FAQ. gps4cam is now available for $2.99 on iTunes.

Lowepro has launched a new series of camera cases. The first product in the Quick Case series is a classically styled, fitted case that provides streamlined protection and instant access to your camera. The Quick Case series takes its design inspiration from retro-style, fitted leather cases, but is designed with a modern feel. A hybrid nylon and genuine leather shell provides a tough impact-resistant, stylish exterior that helps safeguard gear from moisture, dust and sand. It’s lined with soft padding to protect the fragile lens and LCD screen from scratches and abrasion. The Quick Case series is available in two sizes: Quick Case 120 for DSLRs with kit zoom (pictured) and Quick Case 100 for bridge and ultrazooms and compact system cameras.

The brand new Brighton Photo Festival is taking place on 14th and 15th May as part of the Brighton Fringe Festival. Set in Brighton Marina Square, this will be an open-air event bringing together manufacturers, retailers, service providers as well as photographic exhibition stands. There is also a live stage with entertainment, live talks and demonstrations, whilst over in Eclectia Gallery and studio you can see great local photographers and a few extra special studio lighting and retouching demonstrations throughout the weekend. For more information, visit the webiste below.

From 20th May to 3rd June, 100 images of Japan taken over a period of 13 years by award-winning photographer Jason Hindley, will be exhibited at theprintspace gallery in Shoreditch, London. ‘Familiar and Distant’ is a compilation of Hindley’s personal photographs taken during his various trips to Japan. ” Seemingly familiar views of backstreets, public spaces, and people going about their daily life reveal subtle details in an intimate and yet reserved manner,” the organisers say. Admission is free, and there is an opportunity to purchase the exhibited prints at an affordable charity price, with all proceeds from the print sales going British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal. The gallery is located at 74 Kingsland Road, London E2 8DL, and is open Monday-Friday from 9am till 7pm.

Nikon Japan has announced the discontinuance of the recently released Nikon Coolpix S4100 digital compact camera. The company says that in the wake of the devastating March earthquake, it encountered problems with parts procurement that prevent it from being able to maintain stable production and guarantee a steady supply. At this point in time, it’s unclear if the camera will ever be re-launched.

Source: Nikon Japan via NR

Update: Nikon Imaging Asia Pacific has issued a notice saying both the Nikon Coolpix S4100 and the Nikon Coolpix S6100 have been discontinued in Asia, but this may not apply to other markets.

Update 2: PDN Pulse is reporting that the cameras are - and will remain - available in the Americas.

Fujifilm has released a firmware update for its FinePix Real 3D W3 digital compact camera. Version 1.20 enables the camera to play back MP-format image files created with certain unspecified third-party devices. You can download the firmware upgrade and the transfer program for Windows and Mac OS from the website below.

Website: Fujifilm FinePix Real 3D W3 Firmware Update

Phase One today released Media Pro, a new version of the digital asset management program once known as Microsoft Expression Media. Phase One acquired this software product a year ago. This new release brings seamless integration with Capture One, meaning photos and adjustments made in Capture One are updated in Media Pro and the two applications offer integrated exchange of the metadata that describe images, and convey ownership and licensing information. Media Pro is available now via download for €139 / $199 through Phase One’s Online Store. Current Expression Media 2 customers can upgrade to Media Pro for €39 / $59.

The three Adobe Photoshop Touch iPad apps announced a few weeks ago – Adobe Colour Lava, Adobe Eazel and Adobe Nav – are now available on iTunes. These apps enable users to create custom colour swatches, paint directly onscreen and drive popular Photoshop tools from tablet devices. Pricing for the applications is £2.99 for Adobe Eazel, £1.79 for Adobe Colour Lava and £1.19 for Adobe Nav.

Five UK politicians have been announced as winners of the ninth annual Jessops All-Party Parliamentary Photographic Competition. Over 450 entries were received from MPs and Lords from across the country who were invited to submit up to ten images each. This year’s winning MPs are Peter Luff MP with “Cretan Sea”, Tim Loughton MP with “Isfahan Market” and Nick Raynesford with “Leather Seller”. Winners from the House of Lords are Lord Allenby with “Foraging” and Lord Crathorne with “Bridesmaids Bus”. The winning entries will be available for public viewing from 16th May to 20th May at the Jessops All-Party Parliamentary Photographic Exhibition in The Robing Room.

Foto8 and Host Gallery have announced that the deadline for entries to the 4th Foto8 Summershow, a photographic award, exhibition and print fair, has been pushed to 31st May. The organisers have also unveiled the names of the judges - the panel comprises Charlotte Cotton, Creative Director National Media Museum Bradford, Emma Morris, Director of Photoworks, James Reid, Director of Photography: Wallpaper, and photographer Richard Billingham. Additionally, Foto8 have confirmed that the winner of the ‘Best in Show’ prize will be awarded £2000 rather than the £1500 mentioned in their original call for entries. Note that there is an administration fee of £20 for entries submitted before 5pm on 15 May 2011, while entries submitted after that date will incur a higher fee of £30. As always, we suggest that you read the rules before entering your work.

Website: 4th Foto8 Summershow

Travelshooters is a new UK-based travel photography holiday company offering photo holidays and workshops in India. Ladakh Monks & Mountains (September 2011) is a two-week photo tour which will take shooters to remote Himalayan high places in the Jammu & Kashmir region of India, combining landscapes, social documentary, wildlife and more. Pushkar Camel Fair, Diwali in Rajasthan and the Golden Triangle (October-November 2011, 15 days) centres on the annual Pushkar Camel Fair, and includes shooting from a hot-air balloon. More tours are under preparation right now, in India and in other countries, the company says.

Website Travelshooters

Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery 4.0 is a program that helps recover your lost photos from memory cards & hard drives. Sunil Chandna, CEO of Stellar Data Recovery, comments, “Our brand new version of Stellar Phoenix Photo Recovery is specially designed for home users and brings back lost picture memories in 3-simple steps. The new version is vastly improved to support all consumer & professional cameras and recovers over 50 different image, video & music file formats.” The software is available in English, German, Spanish, French & Italian language editions and works on Windows and Mac computers. The price is €31/$39, and the company is offering a 30-day money-back guarantee on the product.

GigaPan Time Machine is a system that enables viewers to explore gigapixel-scale, high-resolution time-lapse videos. Created by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute, GigaPan Time Machine allows you to pan or zoom in and out of high-resolution panoramas while simultaneously “moving back and forth through time”. Viewers, for instance, can use the system to focus in on the details of a booth within a panorama of a carnival midway, but also reverse time to see how the booth was constructed. Or they can watch a group of plants sprout, grow and flower, shifting perspective to watch some plants move wildly as they grow while others get eaten by caterpillars. And so forth. You can view a few examples created with this system at the website below. Do note that you need Google Chrome or Apple Safari to take advantage of this technology.

The Toshiba Camileo BW10, recently launched in the USA, is a water- and dustproof pocket camcorder that records 1080p Full HD video. The BW10 comes in silver and yellow and features a rubberised coating for waterproofing down to a depth of six and a half feet. Featuring a 2” monitor, electronic image stabilisation and easy YouTube uploading, the Camileo BW10 weighs in at 3.5 ounces, and is available at an MSRP of $149.99 in the USA. (In the UK, the camcorder sells for around £100-110.)

Gigapan has issued a firmware update for its Epic Pro robotic camera mount. The latest update adds support for exposure bracketing for HDR capture, a dedicated mirror lock-up setting, additional aspect ratios and a new time display that shows the time it will take the Epic Pro to capture a panorama, based on your settings. It also allows you to capture a sequence of panoramas over a set period of time with a new timer, for time-lapse panoramic photography.You can learn more about the update bv visiting the website below.

Website: Gigapan Epic Pro Firmware Upgrade

There is a firmware update available for the Fujfilm FinePix HS20EXR (read review) digital superzoom camera. Version 1.02 fixes a bug related to temperature warning. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Website: Fujifilm Finepix HS20EXR Firmware Upgrade

Adobe has released a document intended to help Adobe Photoshop CS5 and Adobe Photoshop CS5 Extended users make the most of the program. The eleven-page PDF is divided into two sections, Essential Hardware and Key Steps to Optimise Photoshop CS5 Performance. The paper discusses topics like scratch disk allocation, hard disk defragmentation, setting the RAM percentage used by Photoshop, and more. The document can be downloaded from the Adobe website.

Website: Adobe