Camera Bits has announced the launch of its new camerabits.com website, the introduction of its improved Photo Mechanic user manual and the October 22, 2009 general availability of Photo Mechanic version 4.6.2.  The launch of Photo Mechanic 4.6.2 will coincide with PhotoPlus Expo in New York City from 22 to 24 October. The new camerabits.com will have a library of video tutorials, helpful for both beginners and professionals alike, detailed feature / function descriptions and screen captures. It will also serve as the home of the improved Photo Mechanic user manual, which incorporates several new sets of instructions, tips and techniques.

Billed as “the largest documentary project of all time”, Week of Life is a Czech-American initiative that aims to build a “photo archive of humanity”. The basic building block of the project is the period of one week in the life of an individual, who captures each day of the week in nine photographs taken throughout the day. The idea was inspired by the book One Year of My Life in 3285 Pictures by photographer Adolf Zika, published in cooperation with Leica. Zika set a goal of documenting one year of his everyday life in nine photographs a day. Three years after the publication of the book, the idea evolved into the Week of Life project. Every participant who contributes with his or her week thereby becomes an original piece in a neverending mosaic of human originality and uniqueness and a co-author of the whole documentary project, a gigantic photographic library of humankind in the 21st century. To learn more, visit the website below.

Website: Week of Life

From October 9-12, Nikon will sponsor 100 promising young photojournalists in upstate New York for the 22nd Eddie Adams Workshop, also known as “Barnstorm.” At the workshop, students will have the opportunity to use Nikon’s professional digital SLR camera system, as well as the new D300s (pictured above, and recently reviewed here on PhotographyBLOG). Nikon technical experts will also be available onsite to offer advice and guidance. Barnstorm participants will benefit from the experience and advice of legendary professional mentors such as Bill Eppridge, Stacy Pearsall and Tim Rasmussen. In addition to sponsoring the Barnstorm, this is the sixth year that Nikon will award a $10,000 scholarship to the top student from the Barnstorm XXII Workshop. A panel of judges selects a student based on the work he or she presents during the workshop. The scholarship money must be used by the winning student to further his or her education in the photographic arts field, and will be applied towards their tuition and/or housing at the college of his or her attendance.

The Yashica EZ F521 is a new, retro-styled digital camera featuring a 43mm equivalent prime lens. The pared-down Yashica EZ F521 has a 1/2.5” type 5-megapixel CMOS sensor, a 2.4” TFT LCD screen, a 43mm equivalent f/3 lens with two focus settings, 1.5m to infinity and a “macro” setting for subjects between 20-40cm from the sensor plane. The electronic shutter offers shutter speeds ranging from 1/2 second to 1/500 second, while the ISO range is unknown and not user controllable. The camera runs on 3 AAA type batteries and records images (as well as VGA-resolution videos) on SD and SDHC cards. The price is 7980 yen in Japan.

Via Engadget | 1001noisycameras

Induro have just announced a new line of tripods, monopods and heads, claiming that their design team came up with “new designs from top to bottom”. The redesigned spider has a wider stance, reinforced cross braces and is machined out of high-strength magnesium alloy. Changes in the leg lock make locking and unlocking the legs fast and easy. And, each leg angle has allegedly been selected for maximum performance. The new Induro Carbon Fibre 8X CT-Series tripods are claimed to be the “strongest, most stable tripods ever offered”, while the Induro AT-Series aluminium alloy tripods promise uncompromising quality, strength and durability at a reasonable price. Plus, Induro also offers new carbon fibre and aluminium alloy monopods that have up to twice the load capacity of earlier models. Finally, Induro have also announced new heads, including the BHD-Series dual-action ballheads with an Arca-Swiss style quick release plate system, and the all-new Induro Gimbal Head, designed for long and heavy telephoto lenses.

Website: Induro

Professional photographer John Freeman has announced the launch of John Freeman Photours, a comprehensive range of educational photographic tours and workshops that offer the chance to benefit from the knowledge and success he has gained during his 40-year career. Starting in January 2010, John Freeman Photours will offer photographers of all levels unique, educational photographic tours in the UK and abroad. A diverse range of London-based studio workshops will also be available from January 2010 for those wanting to discover more about the professional approach to studio working methods. Anyone that requires further information or would like to make a booking should call 0800 298 8190.

Fashion and portrait photographer Irving Penn died yesterday at the age of 92. Originally schooled in drawing and painting, he became famous for post World War II glamour photography and portraiture. One of his most famous shots is a tightly-cropped portrait of Pablo Picasso but, as The New York Times notes, “his subjects were usually shown whole, apparently enjoying a splendid isolation from the real world”. Superior compositional skills, a penchant for clarity and creative use of light were the cornerstones of his style. In 1950, he married one of his models, Lisa Fonssagrives, and the two remained faithful to each other until Lisa’s death in 1992.

Website: Obituary in The New York Times

The Eye-Fi wireless SDHC memory cards will soon be available in the United Kingdom. The launch date is 19 October 2009.  Eye-Fi cards allow users to take photos and videos anywhere (like their existing memory card) and automatically upload their photos and videos as soon as the camera is within range of the user’s Wi-Fi network. Three Eye-Fi cards will be available in the UK: the Eye-Fi Home Video, the Eye-Fi Share Video and the Eye-Fi Pro. These Eye-Fi cards will range in price from £49.99-£119.00 depending on model.

Sigma has just issued a firmware update for the Sigma DP2 large-sensor digital compact camera. Version 1.03 addresses the issue of intermittent camera freeze-ups, and improves the accuracy of auto white balance (AWB). The firmware update can be downloaded from the website below.

Website: Sigma DP2 Firmware Update Page

Rocky Nook has just released a new title, ‘Mastering Digital Panoramic Photography’ by Harald Woeste, who takes the reader on a tour from the basics of capturing panoramas, all the way through stitching, editing, and printing panoramic images. Topics covered include a history of panoramas and panoramic cameras, shooting technique and equipment, stitching methods and software, output methods and case studies of indoor and outdoor panoramas. The 160-page book, ‘Mastering Digital Panoramic Photography’, is available for $34.95 / £26.99.

Minox has just announced the ultra-compact Minox DC 1044, a ten-megapixel digital camera featuring a 35-105mm equivalent Minoctar zoom lens and a large, 3-inch rear screen. Other features include electronic image stabilisation, face recognition and smile detection. Photos are stored on SD cards or in the 32MB internal memory. The Minox DC1044 draws power from a removable Li-ion battery and comes bundled with an ever-ready case. The camera will become available this month at a recommended retail price of €119.

Germany’s largest-circulation women’s magazine, Brigitte, has decided to use amateur models only for its photo spreads and features, as of 2 January 2010. Under the initiative “Wihtout Models”, the magazine is encouraging its own readers to sign up for a photo shoot. “We want to illustrate fashion and beauty by showing women who are not subject to the often perverse laws of the modelling business,” the magazine’s editors said. Interested readers should send a self-portrait and a full-length photo of themselves via the form below (the form is in German, but applications are accepted from other countries too).

Website: Brigitte Amateur Model Application Form

To celebrate his 10th anniversary as a professional photographer, Andy Rouse will give an inspirational talk in Wadhurst, East Sussex on the evening of Saturday December 5th 2009. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Aspira Fund, set up between Andy and Páramo to provide funds for conservation and research projects. The Wadhurst event is one of a series of 10th anniversary talks around the country when Andy will look back over the last decade of his action career as a wildlife photographer with a display of photos, video shots and accompanying music – sharing tales of drunken gorillas, playful penguins and sitting in the path of bull elephants to achieve that perfect shot. Doors open at 6pm for a 7pm start. Tickets are on sale from Páramo for £12 in advance (£15 on the door), or £10 each for groups of 10 or more.

Web-based photo editor and pioneer web 2.0 application Phixr has just been relaunched. Phixr now features a re-worked interface and more server power to handle user demand. Phixr, which was founded three years ago, offers a full palette of interactive tools to manipulate photo files online. The power of site also lies in its tight integration of popular photo-sharing and social-networking sites, such as Facebook, Flickr and Twitter.

Gleedo has unveiled Gleedo 1.0 Beta, billed as “the first and only application” to offer secure, real-time personal video, music, picture and document sharing over the Internet. Gleedo is liveshare software that allows users to share both Internet-based and personal content (including personal videos, documents, pictures and music) in real time, in a private online media room. The combination of social networking, synchronized streaming, chat and talk features allegedly make users feel as if they are all in the same room. Gleedo is available for download at www.gleedo.com.

The And/or Book Awards, the UK’s leading prizes for books published in the fields of photography and the moving image, are inviting publishers to submit titles for the 2010 awards. Publishers can submit up to six photography or film/television related books released this year. The awards are given by the Kraszna-Krausz Foundation, established in 1985 by Andor Kraszna-Krausz, the Hungarian founder of the influential publishing house Focal Press. 2010 marks the 25th anniversary of the Foundation and the awards, so it is an important celebratory year. The initial deadline for entries is Monday 2 November 2009, but any book published by 31 December is eligible and can be submitted up to this date.

PicScout today announced a strategic shift from a single source product company to a services company based upon the PicScout Image IRC. Image IRC serves as a fingerprinting index, metadata registry and API connection platform for agencies and image license holders. This means that soon we can look for online images marked with the small “i”, the internationally used icon for information. Pointing to it will reveal much about the image - who owns it, where you can buy it, even more information about the image, and a click-through to use the image legitimately. This is allegedly the first time web-viewed images are getting the attribution of their rightful owners or licensors and enabled with an easy connection to buy and use legitimately.

The Panasonic HDC-TM350 is a limited-edition Full-HD camcorder, a sister model to the HDC-TM300 featuring a larger capacity flash memory, new Advanced Optical Image Stabiliser and improved low light performance. Belying its small and compact size, the semi professional TM350 offers a multitude of technical features, including a manual focus ring, 12x optical zoom, electronic viewfinder, hot shoe and mic terminal. Furthermore, the Panasonic HDC-TM350 has three separate colour sensors, and offers 1.6 lux low light recording. The TM350 also records still images with a resolution of up to10.6 megapixels. Additionally, the TM350 allows simultaneous recording of motion images and still images with 8.3 megapixels. In addition to the ability to record stills and movies on SD cards, the TM350 also a generous 64GB of internal memory. The Panasonic HDC-TM350 will become available from mid-October, in very limited quantities (that means only 200 pieces in the UK).

Following Canon USA’s decision to skip PMA 2010, there was a brief period of uncertainty about Canon Europe’s attendance at next year’s photokina trade show held in Cologne, Germany; but now we know the answer. According to PDN Gear Guide, a spokesperson for Canon Europe has confirmed that the company will attend the world’s largest fair for photography and imaging, which is set to open its gates on 21 September 2010.

Via PDN Gear Guide