Akvis has updated its ArtSuite effects collection to version 6.6. The new version includes some bug fixes and a new Christmas Pack of decorative photo frames. This pack includes 50 hand painted frames suited to holiday photos. In addition to frames, Akvis ArtSuite also contains various photo effects such as black-and-white conversion, selective colouring and colour replacement etc. Akvis ArtSuite Plugin sells for $49; Akvis ArtSuite Standalone for $ 69.

G-Technology by Hitachi has officially announced the overall winner of its ‘Driven Creativity’ Competition. Iain Weir’s entry, titled “The Henley Swim”, convinced the jury with its theme - a misty, early morning gathering of swimmers set to embark on a journey down the Henley-on-Thames river - as well as its composition and the power of its creativity. The winner was revealed at the launch of an exciting gallery exhibition of all shortlisted competition entrants - held on November 16th at The Brick Lane Gallery, East London. The guest list-only evening launch bought together shortlisted and winning entrants, jury panel members, the audio, music, film and technology press, G-Technology representatives and its customers, to network and to admire all of the showcased creativity. The public can now visit the exhibition for free (open from 1pm-6pm everyday, until November 22nd, 2010).

Pentax has issued a firmware update for the Pentax K-5 dSLR camera. Version 1.01 increases the number of frames that can be captured in raw format when shooting in burst mode, from 8 to 20. The update also improves overall stability and general performance. The firmware update can be downloaded from the website below.

Website: Pentax K-5 Firmware Update 1.01

Global Delight has released Photo Delight 1.0, an iPad application that has a beautifully designed virtual canvas to place your color photographs on and get going. You can also add colour to any part of the automatically converted black-and-white photograph with simple swipes of your finger and see the effect. Photo Delight also comes with a smart integration with Facebook allowing you to import pictures from your own or your friends’ account. Photo Delight 1.0 is $1.99 and available through the App Store in the Photography category.

Sony announced today that it is developing a new type of E-mount interchangeable lens camcorder for professional use that is equipped with a Super-35mm equivalent large format CMOS sensor. The recording format for this new HD camcorder will be AVCHD, and there is also a plan to implement Full HD capture with MPEG4-AVC/H.264 compression and 60/30/24fps as well as 50/25fps.. This new addition to Sony’s professional “NXCAM” line will be available in the middle of 2011, price to be confirmed.

Colour Confidence has just launched its new Jargon Buster, offering simple, understandable and accessible explanations of all the jargon you may encounter in photography, digital imaging and colour management.  Set out in a clear A-Z format, users are able to easily navigate and find a particular term that is confusing them, or browse more generally to help improve their all round knowledge. “I have been working in this industry for more than 20 years and even I encounter terms and acronyms that I haven’t seen before. Sometimes I think I could even be guilty of using jargon too, because who wants to say Raster Image Processors when RIP will do!” Commented Simon Prais, Technical Director of Color Confidence “That is why we have launched our Jagon Buster.” You can freely access Jargon Buster at the website below.

Cooliris today announced Liveshare 1.1, a new mobile application that allows people to post photos taken with their mobile phones to a live, real-time stream and share them with their friends using the Cooliris 3D Wall. Available today for Android and on the web at liveshare.com, the new version of Liveshare by Cooliris for iOS will also be available soon.

Website: Liveshare

Nikon has posted a firmware update for the Nikon Coolpix S6000 digital compact camera. Version 1.1 resolves the following issue: when the self-timer, flash mode or macro mode setting was accessed but then closed without adjusting the setting after applying exposure compensation, the exposure compensation setting was reset to 0.0. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Website: Nikon Coolpix S6000 Firmware Update

Nikon has issued a firmware update for the Nikon Coolpix S8000 digital compact camera. Version 1.1 resolves the following issue: when the self-timer, flash mode or macro mode setting was accessed but then closed without adjusting the setting after applying exposure compensation, the exposure compensation setting was reset to 0.0. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Website: Nikon S8000 Firmware Update

Pixel Genius has announced Photokit Sharpener 2.0, a new update slated to ship by the end of the year. In addition to improving the sharpening effect routines, Photokit Sharpener 2.0 adds all new functionality and new effects. The PixelGenius Toolbox dialogue simplifies the processing, provides a thumbnail and 1:1 previews and offers integrated batching capability. Also new to Photokit Sharpener 2.0 is the ability to have multi-layered effects reduced to a single layer for file size savings. Upgrade pricing for current Photokit Sharpener 1.x users provides a 70% discount for an upgrade price of $29.99. Users who purchased Photokit Sharpener 1.x on or after 1st October 2010 are eligible to receive a free upgrade to Photokit Sharpener 2.0.

Photoshop Elements 9: The Missing Manual is now available in the UK. The book premiered last month in the US. “Elements 9 has some major new features, like Layer Masks, and the Organizer for Mac, that are very powerful but not easy to figure out, as well as some fun new features that you may well overlook if you don’t know where to find them,” says author Barbara Brundage. The 640-page “manual” can be yours for £34.50.

The results of Burrard Lucas Photography’s wildlife photography contest have been announced. The winner is the above photograph, entitled “Last Run of the Day”, by Stephen Powles. Runners-up include “Hidden” by Gilbert Woolley and “Spider with Newly Hatched Babies” by Bhabani Prosad Mondal. You can view these entries and a number of highly recommended images at the website below.

Website: Burrard Lucas Blog

Nik Software has updated Sharpener Pro 3.0 and Dfine 2.0 to support 64-bit applications. These two plug-ins are the last to receive this update, meaning that Nik Software’s entire range is compatible with 64-bit environments now. For registered users of Sharpener Pro 3.0 and Dfine 2.0, the updates are available as free downloads at the website below.

Olympus Japan has announced the Olympus E-PL1s compact system camera and the M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 II silent-focus lens. The Olympus E-PL1s, which is a Japan-only model, is mostly a cosmetic update of the E-PL1, having the silver band on top and sides changed to the body colour, which can be red, white or black (although it does add one functional upgrade - a new top sensitivity setting of ISO 6400/39° - as well). The new kit lens is more interesting, inasmuch as it provides high-speed and near-silent focusing for both stills and video, and weighs in at only 112 grams, a 25% reduction versus the older version. Unlike the E-PL1s, the new kit lens will apparently be available worldwide. A new battery called BLS-5 and a new charger named BCS-5 have also been announced - both of these have been developed to conform to new regulations, Olympus says.

Kingston today announced the release of the new Kingston DataTraveler R500, a stylish, fast and rugged USB Flash drive. The Kingston DataTraveler R500 provides high data transfer rates of up to 30MB/s read and 20MB/s write. A durable rubberised casing protects the drive from scratches and general wear. Available in capacities of 16-, 32- and 64GB, the Kingston DataTraveler R500 is backed by a five-year warranty and 24/7 tech support.

The US National Park Service (NPS) has announced the winners of its 2010 National Historic Landmark (NHL) Photo Contest. The winning photograph, entitled “Mount Rainier in the Morning”, has been captured by Matthew Bell of Lost Delta Photography, Olympia, Washington. “The selection of this year’s winner took some exciting outside-the-box thinking,” said NPS Director Jonathan Jarvis. “When we look at the winning image, we see the natural world instead of one of the many historic buildings on the list of NHLs. Managed—not made—by humans, Mount Rainier National Park represents a landmark in conservation history.”