New Suburbia by Bill Owens is the follow-up to his famous 1970’s book and photography series, Suburbia. On show at the PDNB Gallery in Dallas, USA from November 22, 2008 - January 3, 2009, New Suburbia is in color rather than black and white, but again focuses on how we live. There will be an artist reception and book signing on Saturday, November 22, 2008 from 5 - 8 PM.

To celebrate their first anniversary, Eye-Fi are releasing a 4GB Eye-Fi Anniversary Edition wireless SD memory card. The Eye-Fi Anniversary Edition doubles storage capacity to 4GB and also features faster memory speeds. Like the Eye-Fi Share, the Anniversary Edition wirelessly sends photos from a digital camera to a computer and to one of more than 25 online photo sharing sites. The new card is available only at Costco.com for $99 to club members, or on www.eye.fi for $129, while supplies last.

30-day try-out versions of all the new Adobe CS4 applications are now available. Not sure if Photoshop CS4 is worth upgrading to? Then just register for a free Adobe account to try it out. The trial period lasts for 30 days after you first launch the application.

Website: Adobe Downloads

The new Flip MinoHD from Pure Digital is the world’s smallest high definition camcorder. The Mino HD can record up to 60 minutes of 720p HD video on 4GB of internal memory and features Flip Video’s new FlipShare software. “Consumers have embraced Flip Video because it delivers on the promise of making video simple, affordable, and fun,” said Jonathan Kaplan, Pure Digital’s chairperson and CEO. “Flip MinoHD, along with our new FlipShare software, now make it easy for anyone to capture and share their stories in stunning HD quality.” The Flip MinoHD is available now for $229.99.

The theme for the 2009 Tamron User Photo Contest is “Americana - Photographs That Define American Culture”. The Grand Prize Winner will receive a Tamron AF18-270mm zoom lens worth $599. Pictures submitted must be original, the property of the photographer, and photographed using a Tamron lens. The 2009 Tamron User Photo Contest is open to Tamron users residing in the United States and all entries must be received no later than October 31, 2009.

Think Tank Photo have updated four of their best-selling photo backpacks. Version 2.0 models of the Airport Addicted, Airport Acceleration, Airport Antidote and Airport Ultralight backpacks are now available, priced from $169. In addition, until the end of December, order one or more of these backpacks and get a free Chimp Cage worth $40.

Experience the all-new Adobe Creative Suite 4 at a UK event near you. Adobe invites you to attend a local CS4 Tour event where you will experience new groundbreaking work in print, on the web, in rich media, on video and on mobile. With four different sessions to choose from, Adobe will be revealing hundreds of enhancements and new capabilities to help you develop engaging work across all media.

Sharpener Pro 3 is a brand new version of Nik Software’s application for sharpening your photos. Effectively replacing Photoshop’s Unsharp Mask, version 3 of Sharpener Pro now features U Point technology for selectively sharpening objects, removing the need to create complicated selections and layer masks. Other new features offered by Sharpener Pro 3 include soft-proofing and compatibility with Adobe Photoshop’s Smart Objects. Jon Canfield discovers if it’s really worth spending $199.95 on Sharpener Pro 3.

Website: Sharpener Pro 3 Review

Sigma has bought the image sensor company Foeveon, who supply the sensors for Sigma’s DSLR and compact cameras. Sigma has acquired 100% of the stock of Foveon, which developed the original three-layer image sensor. Foveon and Sigma will “continuously evolve and improve the X3 sensor technology”, with Foveon’s sensor development operations continuing in San Jose, CA, USA.

A new range of Rollei compact cameras is being launched in the UK. The Rollei Compactline 80 and the Rollei X-8 Compact sell for £59.99 and £69.99 respectively, offering 8.0 megapixels, movie mode, 3x optical and 4x digital zooms, plus smile/face and shake detection. Mid-range models cost from £79.99 to £109.99, and the top-of-the-range Rollei XS-10 inTOUCH with 10.0 megapixels and 3.0” touch control screen costs £139.99. The all-action Rollei X-8 Sports is crash proof, frost proof, waterproof (up to 10 meters), available for £149.99. The new Rollei compacts are distributed exclusively by Sonic UK Ltd.

US retailer Dale Photo & Digital is holding an online webinar with Justin Stailey, technical product specialist for Leica. Justin will present in-depth information on all the new Leica products, including the 37 megapixel Leica S2 (pictured). The New Leica Products Webinar takes place on Saturday, November 15th, 2008 at 2:00 PM - 3:00 PM EST.

Website: Dale Photo & Digital - New Leica Products Webinar

The Coral E-Current Photo Contest invites photographers to submit their underwater images for a chance to win a copy of the photography book Reef. Winning photos and photographers will also be spotlighted in an issue of E-Current Photo, Coral’s free electronic newsletter. The contest will run on an ongoing basis with a new winner announced every other month. The deadline for the January 2009 contest is December 15, 2008.

The Ultimate Guide to Travel Photography is a new book from Nikon UK and Intrepid Travel. Written by acclaimed author and photographer of ‘Unforgettable Places to see Before you Die’ Steve Davey, it covers everything that you need to know about travel photography. As well as taking pictures, the Ultimate Guide to Travel Photography will inspire you to head out and see the world. When you buy the book, you also get exclusive access to a dedicated website.

ViewSonic has introduced two 8-inch digital photo frames to its product line, starting at $129. The catchily-named DPG801BK and DPG807BK both feature touch-screen technology with hidden control buttons that illuminate to show your menu selections only when needed. Both frames feature 512MB of internal memory, 800x600 resolution, 4:3 aspect ratio and 500:1 contrast ratio. The DPG801BK and DPG807BK are available now at estimated street prices of $129.

Nikon have released a new firmware update for the Coolpix P6000 compact camera. The following improvements have been made in version 1.1.

- When pictures were taken with the Wide Converter WC-E76, with the Wide-angle converter and Distortion control items in the shooting menu set to On, the effects of distortion control were weak. This issue has been resolved.
- When Autofocus mode in the shooting menu was added to My Menu and autofocus mode set to Full-time AF, the setting was displayed as Single AF in My Menu. This issue has been resolved.

Website: Nikon Coolpix P6000 Firmware Update 1.1 (Windows)

Website: Nikon Coolpix P6000 Firmware Update 1.1 (Mac)

Samsung has announced plans to spin-off its camera division, according to a report by Reuters. A new company called Samsung Digital Imaging will be formed by February 2009, taking 0.31 of the capital from parent company Samsung Techwin (itself partly owned by Samsung Electronics). Price competition, the global credit crunch and heavy research and marketing expenses are to blame for the camera division’s poor performance.

Website: Reuters - Samsung Techwin to spin off camera business

Following recent rumours that Panasonic were preparing to buy Sanyo, the two companies have now started discussions about a possible alliance. Panasonic and Sanyo are starting an “intensive discussion on the capital and business alliance between both companies based on the premise of making SANYO a subsidiary of Panasonic, keeping a variety of options in mind” with a target date of the end of December 2008.

Canon has released a new version of its RAW codec, which lets you view Canon RAW files within Windows. Version 1.5.0 now supports the EOS 50D, EOS 5D Mark II, and PowerShot G10 (pictured) cameras.

Website: Canon RAW Codec 1.4.0

Phase One have released a new version of their RAW workflow software, Capture One 4 Pro. Version 4.5.1 for Windows adds support for Canon EOS 50D and 5D Mark II RAW files, and enhances the general performance of the software.

Website: Capture One 4.5.1

Sony Ericsson have launched a new photo competition where you can become an official Sony Ericsson Photographer. The winner will go behind the scenes at key red-carpet events in 2009 and also get an 8 megapixel C905 camera phone. To enter, you must be based in the UK, submit a ‘never before published online’ portrait shot, and rally votes for your entry.