Nik Software announced today Silver Efex Pro 2, a major upgrade to its black-and-white conversion software. Silver Efex Pro 2 includes new features such as the History Browser, Dynamic Brightness, Amplify Blacks, Amplify Whites, Soft Contrast, Fine Structure, Image Borders, and selective colourisation, as well as a variety of speed and quality improvements. Nik Software has worked closely with NVIDIA Corporation and has incorporated GPU-based image rendering to offer the fastest, most efficient processing on systems equipped with dedicated GPU processors, the company says. Silver Efex Pro 2 will be available in February at a price of $199.95. Note that Silver Efex Pro 2 installs as a 32-bit and 64-bit plug-in for Adobe Photoshop CS4, Lightroom 2.6 or Apple Aperture 2.1.4 or later.

SolarSpark Productions has introduced Professional Camera 1.0 for iPhone and iPod touch devices. Allowing “access to the low-level features of the iPhone/iPod camera hardware”, this app allows you to lock focus on one point within the frame with a single tap and set exposure for a different spot using a double tap. White balance adjustments, video resolution and quality settings are also possible and accessible using Professional Camera 1.0, which is available on iTunes for $1.99.

Kata has announced a Bag Trial story / photo competition. The company recently organised a Desert Trial in Jordan to test its bags for durability, capability and capacity - and is now asking users to put their own bags to the test. Two lucky winners who post their Bag Trial story or photo to Kata’s Facebook page will win a new bag. The contest ends on 31 January 2011.

The Sekonic DigiCineMate L-308DC digital exposure meter, which was announced in December, is now available. The meter can be used to measure ambient and flash light, and is capable of both reflected and incident light metering. Additionally, there are three different sets of data available. Users can pick the mode that displays only the specific information they need (e.g videographers ususally work with a fixed frame rate and shutter speed so they only need to know what f-stop to set on the lens, which the Sekonic DigiCineMate L-308DC displays with one-tenth of a stop accuracy). Lux and cande readout enables quick set up of lights for cinematographers. Photographers get all important information including EV. The suggested retail price of £239.99.

The Epson Stylus Photo R3000 is a new 13-inch / A3+ printer. Designed for professional photographers and fine artists, the Epson R3000 delivers gallery-quality black-and-white output and vivid color prints. The R3000 features high-capacity individual ink cartridges, advanced media handling to support a wide range of paper types, and Ethernet and wireless-N connectivity. The Epson Stylus Photo R3000 will be available in March for $849 / £699.99.

Pentax has released firmware updates for its K-x and K-7 digital SLR cameras. Versions 1.02 (K-x) and 1.11 (K-7) add support for SDXC (Secure Digital eXtended Capacity) memory cards, though Pentax remarks that the cameras’ maximum transfer rates are “not compatible with UHS speed class”. Meanwhile, Pentax Japan has added the Pentax K-7 to the list of discontinued cameras. The firmware updates can be downloaded from the websites below.

Website: Pentax K-x Firmware Update 1.02
Website: Pentax K-7 Firmware Update 1.11

Held in The Viewfinder Photography Gallery in Brixton, Constructs, Spectacle and Self is a group exhibition by London-based photographers Kerry Clark, Kelly Brown and Catlin Harrison. Running until 13 February, the exhibition features new work by the trio, including Harrison’s self-portraits created using a flatbed scanner, Clark’s photographs made using Victorian photographic processes, and Brown’s images of herself posing “as a range of real and imagined historical ancestors”. The Viewfinder Gallery is located inside Brixton Village Market, 52 Brixton Village, London.

Nik Software has released its webinar schedule for the first quarter of the year. The schedule includes more than 50 online trainings in English and German, which cover the whole range of the software developer’s plug-ins, such as HDR Efex Pro, Silver Efex Pro, Color Efex Pro, Viveza, Sharpener Pro and Dfine. Each webinar has space for up to 500 participants, who do not need more than one hour of their time and a computer with a stable Internet connection and audio function to follow the training and ask their questions. The webinars are usually held on weekdays at 6pm and 8pm (CET) and participation is completely free.

Aurora Expeditions are reminding interested photographers that there are limited places left on their specialist photography expedition to Antarctica. Accompanied by two professional photographers, David Burren and Martin Bailey. this 25-day trip begins on 20th March in Ushuaia at the Southern tip of Argentina and cruises south over the Drake Passage to spend a week on the Antarctic Peninsula. Prices start from $9350 USD and include ship accommodation, all meals on board, all shore excursions, lectures, medical services, port charges and taxes.

Kingston has announced its first SDHC memory cards that meet the SD Association standards for the UHS-I speed class. Featuring read speeds of up to 60MB/s and write speeds of up to 35MB/s, the Kingston UltimateXX memory cards are significantly faster than the more widespread Class 10 cards. The UltimateXX product line will offer capacities of 8GB (£81), 16GB (£163) and 32GB (£327).

SanDisk has launched its first SDHC memory card that conforms to the UHS-I specifications. The SanDisk Extreme Pro SDHC UHS-I card features Ultra High Speed technology and achieves up to 45MB/s read and write performance, based on SadDisk’s internal testing. The card is shipping to major retailers worldwide and is available immediately at SanDisk.com. The card comes in 8GB to 32GB capacities carrying suggested retail prices ranging from $109.99 to $349.99 in the US (£49.99 to £189.99 in the UK).

The Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011 competition is now open for entries. The competition offers photographers a chance to win a share of the £24,500 prize fund. The adult winner is awarded £10,000, while special award winners receive £1,000 and category winners £500 each. The overall winner of the Veolia Environnement Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year title receives £500 and a day’s masterclass with a leading light from the photographic world, while category winners receive £250. Interested photographers have until 18th March to enter their work. (Shown above is the winning entry from the 2010 competition, A marvel of ants by Bence Máté.)

Epson’s fine art papers, previously only available in cut sheet sizes, are now also available in roll form. The range of papers - linen and acid-free, and made of 100% cotton – are available in warm white and bright white, with either a smooth or textured finishes. The papers are fully compatible with Epson’s recently-launched large format fine-art printers, the 24inch Epson Stylus Pro 7890 and 44inch Epson Stylus Pro 9890 (pictured). The 50-foot rolls are priced from £88.15 to £258.52 + VAT depending on width.

PicStop has announced a photography contest with the theme, “Winter”. You have until 30th March to submit your best winter photos to the competition. A judging panel will decide on the winners. The first prize is a Canon EOS 550D camera complete with a 18-55mm IS kit lens, a Hama Rexton 150 camera bag and two 8GB Hama High Speed Gold SDHC memory cards. As always, we recommend that you read the rules before entering your work.

Website: PicStop Winter Photo Contest

On 19 January, Mick Rock will be hosting a live portrait master class at the Idea Generation Gallery in London. Celebrated as ‘The Man Who Shot the 70s’, Mick Rock launched his career in 1972 with his portrait of an unknown David Bowie and spent the next four decades capturing the most fascinating and exciting characters in rock music. His portrait master class will start at 6.30pm, with Rock showing attendees the tricks of the trade while shooting the portrait of one lucky winner (if you’d like to be the model, email your name to [email protected] for a chance to win). After the portrait shoot, a live auction will allow the highest bidder to get hold of a unique piece of Mick memorabilia as Mick auctions off 10 of his favourite prints. The Idea Generation Gallery is located at 11 Chance Street, London.

Axtremex Technology has launched a high-performance 128GB 600x CompactFlash card. Available now, the Axtremex UDMA 128GB memory card supports up to 90 megabytes per second read speed and up to 60 megabytes per second write speed. A 64GB variant is also available, and both cards are built using premium memory chips. Initially these cards are available from nanoFlash.net for $499.99 apiece.

True NightVision 1.5 is an iPhone app that brings advanced real-time low light-video enhancement to the Apple iPhone 4 and 3GS. When it’s way too dark for the iPhone camera, True NightVision can enhance the image using advanced light amplification technology so you can see what is out there. It works best in low light, such as a night with a full moon, but it will not work in very dark conditions. TrueNightVision is available now priced at $0.99.

Cameras Underwater has launched the SeaLife SL980 LED photo light in the UK. The new, powerful, 500 lumen SeaLife SL980 can be easily and quickly connected to your camera with its universal base and it has a flexible arm allowing for effortless aiming. Depth rated to 100m, the SeaLife SL980 is available now for £299.99.

Cameras Underwater has launched the new Aqua LED 800 video and focus light in the UK. The compact yet sturdy underwater light has four different power settings; 20, 180, 360 and 800 lumens offering the ideal light for many different shooting situations. Powered by two easily replaceable and rechargeable Lithium-Ion batteries; the Aqua LED 800 will run for two continuous days on its low power setting. Depth rated to 90m, the Aqua LED 800 is equipped with a soft flood type reflector that provides 90 degrees of beam coverage through its 12 Watts LED light source.

Blurb is attending FORMAT 11, the UK’s top international contemporary photography festival ,and is looking for 20 contemporary photography Blurb books to exhibit at the event. If you want to be considered, email [email protected] with a link to your Blurb book. The deadline for submissions is January 31st 2011.