Interflora has launched a photography contest to find the UK’s best rose photos. The submission deadline is 13 November 2009, and all photos must be submitted to [email protected]. Interflora will then add your photo to their blog and leave it up to the readers to vote for the photo they think should win. The competition will close at 2pm on Monday 14th December, all votes will be counted and winners will be announced and notified within 7 days of this deadline. The first prize is an 8GB iPod Nano. Copyright of all images submitted for this competition remains with the respective entrants, but by entering this competition you are giving Interflora the permission to use your image on their blog.

Website: Interflora Blog

Pentax has launched a European-wide cashback promotion valid on the whole range of Pentax products. The amount of the cashback depends on the value of the purchase - it is £50 on purchases of £650; £100 on purchases of £1,000; £150 on purchases of £1,500 and £250 on purchases of £2,000. To download the claim form, head to the website below. N.B.: All claims must be received by 31st January 2010 at the latest.

Website: Pentax Cashback

Canon UK today launched the free “Easy-PhotoPrint for iPhone” application (Canon iEPP) that prints photos from the iPhone or iPod touch wirelessly to Canon PIXMA MP990, PIXMA MP640 and PIXMA MP560 printers. The application is compatible with iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS and iPod touch (OS 2.2.1 or later) devices and produces prints in three steps: from opening the application, to image selection and printing. Furthermore the Canon iEPP application incorporates the ‘camera’ button so new shots can be seamlessly captured and printed. The Canon iEPP application, which has already been available to US citizens from the App Store, will be available to UK citizens from early November.

Canon has announced instant rebates on a range of Canon EOS DSLR kits. According to Photography Bay, you can save $100 on the Canon Rebel XS double-lens kit including the 18-55mm IS and 75-300mm III lenses. Those buying either the Canon 50D with the 28-135mm IS USM + 70-300mm IS USM lenses, or the Canon Rebel T1i with the 18-55mm IS + EF-S 55-250mm IS, or the Canon Rebel XSi with the 18-55mm IS + EF-S 55-250mm IS are entitled to an instant rebate of $200. These offers are valid through 21 November 2009.

Via Photography Bay

Carl Zeiss today announced the Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 2/35 ZE manual-focus wide-angle lens for the Canon EF mount.  The high-speed, moderate wide-angle Distagon T* 2/35 ZE fits all analogue and digital EOS cameras. On full-frame digital and film SLRs, the lens offers an angle of view of 53 degrees, whereas on DSLRs with APS-H sized sensor - such as the new Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, it works as a fast “normal” prime.  With an initial aperture of 1:2, the Distagon T* 2/35 easily handles low light , making perfect pictures possible even under difficult lighting conditions. The relatively short angle of rotation of the precision focusing mechanism enables fast but precise focusing when required. The Distagon T* 2/35 ZE will be available from October 2009 at a recommended retail price of € 755.50 (excluding VAT).

The Brtish Heart Foundation has just launched its first annual digital photography competition. “The theme is Red for Heart and the winning images will be showcased as part of our annual campaign, National Heart Month, in February,” says National Campaigns Executive Julia Scodie. “The competition is open to all ages and there are some fantastic prizes to be won, including the opportunity to shadow a Getty Photographer for the winner of the Student category.” There will also be an exhibition of the finalists as part of the National Heart Month launch outside the London Eye, and a selection of the winners also be published in the Independent on Sunday Newspaper. To find out more head to the website below.

Website: Red for Heart Photography Competition

Moblog and The Leeds Guide have announced a photography competition,and are inviting people to submit their favourite images of Leeds to their blog. The competition is running until December the 2nd and The Leeds Guide will be printing selected images over the next few weeks until then. An overall winner will be chosen in December who will win a Polaroid PoGo (pictured), a 6-month subscription to the magazine and a Moblog T-shirt. To learn more, and to enter your images in the competition, visit the website below.

Website: The Leeds Guide

Akvis Software has released Noise Buster 7.0 for Windows and Macintosh. Akvis Noise Buster reduces both luminance and colour noise in digital images without blurring the edges of objects. Soe of the improvements in the newest version of the program include a redesigned interface, support for 64-bit files, compatiblity with Adobe Photoshop Elements 8, Windows 7 and Mac OS X 10.6, more intuitive working with the Preview Window and the Before/After tabs, and more. Akvis Noise Buster sells for $49. Registered users can upgrade the software for free.

As we wrote earlier this week, Jessops.com is celebrating its 10-year anniversary with a series of special offers - here are their weekend deals. Today, you can make a saving of £75 off the Camlink Spotting Scope, or a more modest £20 off the Nikon Coolpix P90 digital superzoom camera, plus you can design your very own mug with your favourite image for half price. On Saturday you can pick up the Camlink TPPRO24A Pro Tripod for just £40, down from £70 when you order yours online, or buy a Nikon D3000 kit at a £30 discount. On Sunday, Jessops.com visitors can get the Fuji J30 for £99 instead of £129, or the Jessops 8-inch digital photo frame for £49 instead of £99. Finally you can upload your favourite image onto a professionally finished canvas for half the price when you order yours online this Sunday.

Online photo service Snapfish by HP today announced it is partnering with Walmart and Duane Reade, the “uniquely New York” drug store chain. The partnership makes Snapfish the largest print-to-store web destination in the USA. Customers can now pick up “lab-quality” photo prints or photo cards ordered on Snapfish.com in one hour from any of the 3,350 participating Walmart stores - and beginning 14 November,Snapfish customers also will be able to pick up prints from any of the 200 Duane Reade locations in the greater New York City area.

Epson today announced four new fine art papers, including Hot Press Bright, Hot Press Natural, Cold Press Bright and Cold Press Natural. All of the new fine art inkjet papers are optimised for use with Epson UltraChrome ink technology. Hot Press Natural is a 330gsm paper that provides a smooth surface, whereas Cold Press Natural is a 340gsm product offering a textured surface. Both feature a warm white point that will produce a museum grade finish. Hot Press Bright and Cold Press Bright papers offer a bright white point. The papers will become available in a wide range of sizes through Epson resellers in November. Cut sheets (A3+ and A2) will be available at launch, with rolls available early 2010.

Kodak have reported grim third-quarter 2009 results, including a 35% revenue drop at its Consumer Digital Imaging Group.. The group’s third-quarter sales totalled a mere $535 million, leading to a $89 million loss for the quarter, compared with a profit of $24 million a year ago. The year-over-year variance was driven by lower intellectual property licensing royalties of $157 million. Excluding the impact of intellectual property royalties, segment earnings improved. This was driven by improved profitability in consumer inkjet systems, including a 128% revenue increase in consumer inkjet printer hardware and ink and lower costs as a result of the company’s move to a more efficient product platform; improved operating performance in Digital Capture & Devices; and reduced research-and-development expenses across the segment. Kodak’s total losses from continuing operations amounted to $111 million, compared with earnings of $101 million in the year-ago period.

Nikon has released a new free iPhone app called Learn & Explore. You can scroll through galleries of photos and view educational videos, learn about photography techniques and browse a glossary of photographic terms. Nikon’s Learn & Explore iPhone app can be downloaded from the Apple iTunes App Store.

Scrapblog has announced QuickMix, a service that helps users create quick, easy, personalised scrapbooks in minutes. Users simply select a pre-built “kit”, provide their photos, and QuickMix instantly produces a unique digital scrapbook tailored to the photos themselves. Users can select photos directly from their Facebook, Flickr, Photobucket, Picasa, Smugmug, MySpace and Webshots accounts through one-click integration to these sites, or upload photos directly from their computer. QuickMix users have full access to all the capabilities of the complete Scrapblog application as well. Through Scrapblog, users can tweak their scrapbook using the application’s online design tools, or add new elements including stickers, backgrounds, music, video, and more. When trying QuickMix for the first time, users will earn 150 free credits to use in the Scrapblog Marketplace where they can choose from recommended premium sticker packs and background packs specifically designed to match their QuickMix scrapbook kit.

Website: Scrapblog

Joby, the company known for its Gorillapod range of products, has announced a photography contest. You may submit up to three photographs by sending an e-mail to [email protected] and either attaching the files or linking to the images if stored on the Web. The longer dimension of each photo must be at least 1000 pixels. Some processing with Photoshop is OK, but heavily processed or completely fabricated images are not eligible. The entry deadline is 31 December 2009, 11:59pm PST. The grand prize winner will receive Joby’s entire Gorillapod line, and will have his/her photo published in Popular Photography magazine. N.B.: by submitting an image, you retain ownership of the image, but grant Joby an unrestricted licence to publish, promote and reuse the image in perpetuity.

Website: Joby Photo Contest

Gitzo have unveiled the company’s revamped Basalt Collection which features innovations in both the construction and design of the line. The new Gitzo Basalt Collection, which comprises six tripods, three quick-release (QR) centre ball heads, one monopod and boom, utilises the fibres of basalt rock to produce high?performance, lightweight tubes which are 20% lighter than aluminium. Additionally, the basalt tubes of the new collection are up to 22% stronger than before. Basalt tripods are available in Series 1, 2 and 3 in standard and compact height. The new Basalt Collection center ball heads are available in Series 1, 2 and 3 and each incorporates a QR plate. Gitzo’s revamped Basalt Collection is available from Bogen Imaging.

Lastolite has announced the addition of the TriGrip bracket to its TriGrip line of reflectors. The TriGrip bracket is an innovative bracket that allows photographers to work alone and support the TriGrip reflector on a handle, lighting stand, tripod, or any other type of fixing bracket. Photographers simply place the moulded TriGrip handle into the bracket and secure it in place with the strap. The ball joint connector enables photographers to then position the TriGrip exactly where they want it, leaving their hands free to operate the camera. The TriGrip bracket is available now for $120.

Colour Confidence has announced the addition of four new Moab papers to its expanding range of top quality consumables. These include the speciality Moenkopi Kozo and Unryu options which offer unique tactility, finish and depth. The Moab Moenkopi Kozo is a 110gsm paper yielding the sharpest image quality with the tactile feel of a Japanese Washi paper. The Moab Moenkopi Unryu 55gsm adds depth and intricate detail to your prints, while the Moab Kayenta Photo Matte 205gsm is a high quality, bright white paper, ideal for fine art printing. Finally, the Somerset 225gsm is claimed to offer “exceptional” depth of colour and a velvet texture. The full Moab range is available through the extensive Confident Reseller network or direct from www.colourconfidence.com

From Camera to Computer: How to Make Fine Photographs Through Examples, Tips, and Techniques is a new book written by fine art photographer George Barr. Topics covered include finding photographic subjects, working the scene, practical issues in composition, what to change in a captured image and how to edit your images. Go along with George as he searches for subjects, sorts out scenes, refines his composition, and then moves as he edits his images, not only correcting flaws, but making the images match his vision. The 296-page book is published by Rocky Nook, and retails for $39.95.

The Annenberg Foundation has announced the third exhibit in the Annenberg Space for Photography, entitled “SPORT: IOOSS & LEIFER”. This exhibit will feature the work of Walter Iooss and Neil Leifer, two of the world’s most preeminent sports photographers. Spanning the careers of both men, over 80 photographic prints will be seen in the exhibit which includes iconic images such as Muhammed Ali’s victory over Sonny Liston (by Neil Leifer, 25 May 1965, see above) and Michael Jordan in full glory. “SPORT: IOOSS & LEIFER” will open to the public on November 12, 2009 and run through March 7, 2010.