Hasselblad has announced the formation of a new Special Applications Department. With an initial focus on aerial photography, this new department represents a new initiative by Hasselblad to go further in developing products and solutions to meet the needs of photographers working in special fields. As Benny Buchtrup, Global Special Applications Manager, explains, “We at Hasselblad take pride in manufacturing solutions for our customer’s needs and with the Special Applications Department, we are counting on ideas from Hasselblad users to move beyond our current product line-up into specialised photographic fields.”

Photography for Kids is a new title from Rocky Nook. This fun guidebook introduces children between the ages of 8 and 14 to the world of digital photography. Readers will learn how to choose interesting subjects, compose strong, creative images, operate a digital camera, transfer image files to a computer and print their favourite photos. The 160-page hardback is available now for pre-order, priced at $24.95. There is an electronic version too, which is available now as a PDF download, for $11.95.

Magix has just released PhotoStory on CD & DVD 10, a slideshow editor for Windows. This program allows you to import photos and videos, transform them into multimedia slideshows, and automatically burn them to disc with a DVD menu. ou can enhance and correct poor-quality snapshots in a non-destructive manner, and add suitable background music, effects and personal text. New features in version 10 include a range of new decorative elements and animations, simplified use with a new user interface, a new export assistant for all common presentation purposes, advanced options for individual zooms and camera pans and more. Magix PhotoStory on CD & DVD 10 is available now from Amazon for £39.99.

iStockphoto is partnering with the World Photography Organisation (WPO) as a major sponsor of The London Festival & Sony World Photography Awards. With daily photo shoots, portfolio reviews by iStockphoto inspectors, and educational seminars and workshops, iStockphoto is helping the WPO bring the art and business of photography to the audience of festival-goers. In addition, iStockphoto will host the official awards after-party at Somerset House. From 2-6 May, an event called iStockalypse London will take place, featuring by-invitation-only street and studio workshops and one-to-one photo editing and review. Morning seminars will be followed by shooting assignments, where “iStockers” will head to the studio, or into the streets, to apply new learnings. Canon will also be in attendance to showcase equipment and run education sessions.

Rawstudio 2 is an open-source program that reads and manipulates RAW images. After three years in development, Rawstudio 2 includes full DNG Color Profile support, better image quality, and a new image decoder. Rawstudio is currently tested and available for multiple Linux based platforms, with Windows, MacOS X and FreeBSD versions to be available in the future.

From 5-19 May 2011, the Londonewcastle Exhibition Space will present the first major solo show from photographer Shaniqwa Jarvis. ‘This Charming Man’ is a selection of intimate portraits inspired by men who have interested and affected the artist. Shot in London, LA, and New York, these images explore how these “Charming Men” have shaped their creative and living environments within the various confines of dwelling spaces. The Londonewcastle Exhibition Space is located at 28 Redchurch Street, London..

The Art of Photography Show, an international photo exhibition which will take place 13 August through 16 October 2011, is now open for entries. According to the rules, anyone in the world may submit images for consideration. You may submit photographs taken digitally or on film, as well as montages, photograms and mixed media, as long as they are in JPEG format and are at least 1500 pixels wide (but no larger than 3000 pixels on the longer side). The deadline for entries is 11:59pm PDT on 17th May. Note that entry fees apply. A total of $10,000.00 in awards will be provided to the top-rung artists, with the overall winner receiving $2,000. Interested readers can register at the website below.

In celebration of 50 years of conservation history, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has announced its first-ever photo contest. Starting on Earth Day, 22 April 2011, the competition allows you to enter up to 15 photos of wildlife, wild places and people connecting with nature for a chance to win a trip for two on Natural Habitat Adventures’ Classic Polar Bear Photo Adventure and have your photo published by WWF. The submission deadline is 17 June 2011. Note that this competition is open to adult residents of the US only. As always we recommend that you read the rules before entering your work.

Polish photographer Dariusz Majgier has embarked upon an interesting project called Street Portraits of Strangers. He regularly walks up to complete strangers on the streets of Warsaw, and asks for permission to take their portraits in order to create a unique gallery, a photographic record of urban fashion in the 2010s. “Street portraits are intoxicating,” Majgier says. “This time roles reverse and instead of being hired by clients, this is me who has the privilege of picking those who just have that something and would agree to be photographed.” To learn more, visit the project’s website via the link below.

Website: Street Portraits of Strangers

Blurb has just announced that the 2011 Photography Book Now (PBN) competition is open for entries. Now in its fourth year and featuring a $25,000 grand prize, this international-juried competition celebrates the very best in self-published photography books and the photographers behind them. There are 3 main categories, including Documentary, Fine Art and Travel, plus a Student category for up-and-coming photographers. Entries will be accepted through 3pm PDT (10pm GMT) on 14 July 2011, at the website below.

The World Photography Festival, London, opens at Somerset House on 26 April 2011. Following stops in San Francisco, Sao Paulo and Shanghai, the World Photography Festival comes to London for the first time and will run until 1 May. At the heart of the festival is The Sony World Photography Awards 2011 which is also taking place in London for the first time. Formerly held in Cannes at the prestigious Palais des Festivals, the 2011 Awards winners will be announced at Odeon Leicester Square, 27 April 2011. The Sony World Photography Awards Winners’ Showcase and Bruce Davidson exhibitions will be on display until 22 May. To view the full programme, visit the website below.

Lexar UK is now shipping the Lexar Professional SDXC 133x memory card in capacities of 128GB and 64GB. Offering a Class 10 speed rating with a minimum guaranteed speed of 20MB per second, these high-capacity memory cards come bundled with the latest version of Image Rescue, a program designed to help recover lost or deleted photo and video files. The 64GB and 128GB Lexar Professional SDXC memory cards are available now at Amazon UK and MyMemory with MSRPs of £179.99 and £299.99, respectively.

Medl Mobile have released version 1.3 of Mediapad Pro, an Apple iPad app intended for the presentation of professional portfolios. The new version features enhanced content management and peripheral capabilities as well as an optimised Guestbook function. Also, you can now hide certain categories, and enjoy improved viewing and zooming features versus the previous versions. MediaPad Pro 1.3 is available now on iTunes for $14.99.

iFunia has released version 2.0 of its flagship product, MagicShow for MacOS. MagicShow is an “intuitive yet powerful flash gallery making software that offers a perfect way for users to present their photos,” the developers say. The software, which comes with 25 ready-to-use gallery templates, allows users to create a flash photo gallery in three easy steps. Compatible with MacOS X 10.6.6 or later, MagicShow 2.0 is currently available for $9.99 through the Mac App Store. Note that this is a limited-time offer - normally, the program retails at $39.95.

Akvis has released version 12.5 of Akvis Sketch, a program which converts digital or digitised photos into pencil sketches, charcoal/pastel drawings or watercolours. Available as a standalone application as well as a plug-in to a photo editor, version 12.5 adds raw image support and batch processing capabilities to the standalone mode (previously, this was only available using the plug-in as a Photoshop action). Users of versions 9 through 12 of Sketch can upgrade to version 12.5 for free, but those who have an older version must pay for the upgrade.

Stagsden, Bedfordshire based 3 Legged Thing has unveiled the X1 Brian carbon fibre tripod. Part of the manufacturer’s ‘Rock Legend Range’, the X1 Brian tripod is named after Brian May, and features a detachable and removable triple section central column. With a folded height of 40 cm, ‘Brian’ is the smallest of the range, and yet extends to over 1.9m. Other tripods in the line-up include the 1.3kg X2 Eddie (van Halen), and the 1.6kg X3 Jimmy (Page) featuring a maximum load capacity of 15kg. 3 Legged Thing’s magnesium alloy tripod range comprises the X1a Adrian (Smith) and the X3a Kirk (Hammett), the latter of which will hold 12kg of photographic equipment (with a suitable head attached, of course). A carbon-fibre monopod called Bob (named after Bob Dylan) completes the product range. The monopod and all the tripods are available to purchase online at the website below, priced from £109.

The Romano Archives have published an amazing collection of rare colour footage showing Allied war photographers and cameramen at work during World War II. Founded by Italian historian Vincent Romano, the Romano Archives are dedicated to the digitisation and online distribution of historical documents and records, as well as WW2 newsreels filmed on colour material such as Kodachrome. This compilation features mainly US war photographers and cameramen in action in various theatres of the war, including places like Paris, Iwo Jima and Torgau, Germany, where US Army forces first met with Red Army units coming from the East. The footage shows the varied equipment used by members of the US Army Signal Corps and other Allied war photographers, including 35mm rangefinders and large-format press cameras, as well as a range of motion-picture cameras and accessories.

Click through / scroll down to view the compilation.

Living Apart is a Magnum Photos touring exhibition that showcases the work of top photographer Ian Berry who has captured some of the most important moments of South Africa’s history over a 40-year period. Currently on show at the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool, the exhibition features about 90 evocative images documenting the collapse of apartheid, the historic appointment of Nelson Mandela and its remarkable aftermath. The International Slavery Museum is located at Albert Dock, Liverpool, L3 4AQ, and is open daily from 10am to 5pm. The Ian Berry exhibition runs until 6 November 2011; entry is free.