Imaging Resource have reviewed the Canon A720 IS digital camera, which offers 8 megapixels and optical image stabilization.

“The Canon A720 IS is a capable all-around camera with high-end features that are more useful than exotic. High ISO is usable and image stabilization so useful you almost always want it enabled. Digital zoom was a bit of a disappointment on this 8.0-megapixel camera, but otherwise the DIGIC III image processor provided above-average performance yielding some wonderfully natural shots in a variety of settings.”

Website: Imaging Resource - Canon A720 IS Review

Think Tank Photo are giving away a free AI Low Divider Set worth $49 with all purchases of the Airport International roller bag. With the AI Low Divider Set, your laptop case (such as our Artificial Intelligence 15), Cable Management 50 case, or other vulnerable equipment is recessed within the safe confines of the roller. The Airport International is a rolling carry-on backpack designed specifically for the overhead lockers of international carriers and smaller regional aircraft. It can hold 300mm f/2.8, 400mm f/2.8, or 500mm f/4 lenses with hoods, multiple DSLR bodies, and other photography accessories.

The PhotoVu PV1765w is a new 17” widescreen wireless digital picture frame. Equipped with a 1280 x 800 LCD display and a fully customizable picture frame and mat, the 17” Widescreen PhotoVu display is a great way to display and enjoy your photos. “This is clearly a premium digital picture frame at a very affordable price, making a PhotoVu the perfect gift for the 2007 holiday season” said Mark Van Buskirk, Partner, PhotoVu. All PhotoVu digital picture frames include features such as WiFi support, built-in software, and Internet photo sharing. The PhotoVu PV1765w is available now from $699.

Canon’s “Try My Photo” invites you to have an image printed on a select Canon printer to test out its quality. “This program will give consumers a sample print of their own image and provide first-hand knowledge of the quality prints a Canon printer is capable of creating while at the same time giving the consumer the power to make an educated choice on what printer to purchase.” said Yuichi Ishizuka, senior vice president and general manager, Consumer Imaging Group, Canon U.S.A. The first printer featured in the program is the SELPHY ES2 compact photo printer.

DPNow have tested the latest UDMA high-speed compact flash memory cards to find out if you really need to use them with your DSLR camera.
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“Both the Sony Alpha A700 and Olympus E-3 we tested are UDMA-compatible, but it was the Canon EOS-40D that impressed the most, despite not being UDMA compatible. Instead, the Canon relies on a more efficient onboard JPEG compression and buffer management system. The 40D does eventually choke during a lengthy continuous JPEG shooting burst, and the shooting rate drops dramatically, but it’s capable of many more more high speed shots before this happens. Only when shooting for long stretches in RAW mode, over 15-16 continuous shots, do the UDMA DSLRs show better performance.”

Website: DPNow - Ultra high-speed Compact Flash - do you need it?

Phase One and Mamiya have announced a strategic alliance to develop medium format digital camera systems and solutions for professional photographers. The agreement includes technology-sharing and intellectual property assets as well as sales and marketing co-operation. “With this alliance, Mamiya and Phase One together are ushering in a new chapter for photographers,” said Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, CEO of Mamiya Digital Imaging. “As a team, we have access to all the software and hardware competences which are needed to further develop unique digital camera solutions in the coming years, including new feature combinations not in the market today.” The first new camera system will be introduced in the first quarter of 2008.

Update: Luminous Landscape have a short interview with Henrik Håkonsson, Phase One’s CEO, which casts more light on the new system. “The new camera system will be based on the Mamiya lens mount. Previous lenses will be able to be fitted. A new line of AF lenses will be made available. Some will be made by Mamiya, some by other lens manufacturers, including some from Europe. There will be leaf shutter lenses available as well for high flash sync speeds.”

Website: Luminous Landscape - Phase One and Mamiya Get Hitched

Imaging Resource have reviewed the Sony DSC-H3, the smallest ever Cyber-shot camera featuring a Carl Zeiss 10x zoom lens.

“The Sony H3 has a lot of what most folks a looking for in a digital camera. It’s relatively small, has a long zoom bolstered by image stabilization, has the options of Manual, Auto, or several full-auto modes, and is pretty simple to use. Our most important measure these days is how well the images print, and the Sony H3 gets a very high score, with the ability to capture ISO 100 images that print very well at 13x19 inches. Even ISO 3,200 images shot in daylight balanced light are usable at 4x6; otherwise, we recommend you stick to ISO 1,600.”

Website: Imaging Resource - Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H3 Review

PopPhoto have reviewed the Panasonic Lumix DMC-L10, a new 10.1 megapixel DSLR camera with a unique 2.5 inch free angle LCD screen complete with full time live view.

“Panasonic is clearly banking on Leicas name and the quality of the lens—made by Panasonic in Japan—to attract photo enthusiasts. Because the L10 has a higher-resolution sensor than its predecessor, the advantages of the sharp Leica glass are more apparent. Indeed, the L10 hit the highest resolution scores (average 2350 lines at ISO 100) of all the circa-10MP DSLRs weve tested. It scored more than 15 percent higher than the Olympus Evolt E-510 with its nearly identical Live MOS sensor and respectable 14-42mm f/3.5-5.6 Zuiko kit lens. It even out-resolves the 12.2MP Sony Alpha 700. Wow!”

Website: PopPhoto - Panasonic Lumix DMC-L10 Review

Website: Read our Panasonic Lumix DMC-L10 Review

Megapixel.net have reviewed the new 12 megapixel Sony A700 DSLR camera.

“While the Alpha 100 was Sony’s first dSLR camera and the result of its acquisition of Konica Minolta’s camera division, the A700 is much more stamped as a Sony camera, and probably indicates the company’s intention to anchor itself solidly in the dSLR market segment. Still, although Sony products tend to command a premium, the A700’s price point places it in direct competition with very well established dSLR systems and lacks the Live View function adopted by most others, things that could hinder its success.”

Website: Megapixel.net - Sony A700 Review

The winners of the October 2007 Prize Giveaway have been randomly selected from the current list of PhotographyBLOG Newsletter subscribers.

Vincent Caruso, Pete Crundwell and Glyn Blackburn have each won a copy of Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo X2, the ideal digital photography software for aspiring photographers and business communicators who want to transform their digital pictures into professional-looking photos fast.

The Ricoh Caplio R7 is an 8 megapixel digital camera with a 7x zoom lens equivalent to 28-200mm on a 35mm camera, yet it’s only 23mm thick and weighs just 135g. A mere 6 months on from the previous R6 model, the Ricoh R7 adds more megapixels and a slightly tweaked user interface, whilst retaining the optical image stabilizer and 1cm macro mode of the R6. Does the new Ricoh R7 offer a better all-round package than the R6, and is it still our point-and-shoot camera of choice? Read our Ricoh R7 review to find out.

Website: Ricoh Caplio R7 Review

The Nokia N82 is a 5 megapixel camera, navigation device and multimedia computer in one. With a 5 megapixel camera, powerful Xenon flash and Carl Zeiss optics, the Nokia N82 delivers remarkably vivid photographs, even in low-light conditions. “The evolution of camera capabilities in mobile devices has been extremely fast over the past years. With the Nokia N82 we have reached such a superior level in image quality, speed and ease of use that not only does it outperform any other cameraphone on the market, but it’s also a very credible alternative for single purpose digital still cameras,” says Satu Ehrnrooth, head of Nokia Nseries Cameras Category, Multimedia, Nokia. The Nokia N82 is available now with an estimated, pre-tax, unsubsidized sales price of approximately 450 euros.

The Sigma 4.5mm F2.8 EX DC HSM is the first 180 degree circular fisheye lens for digital SLR cameras with an APS-C size image sensor. When used in conjunction with digital SLRs with APS-C size image sensors, it produces circular image within the frame. This lens is ideal for photographers using computer stitching software which requires circular fisheye images to be input, resulting in stitched panoramas. The minimum focusing distance of 13.5cm and maximum magnification of 1:6 also makes it particularly useful for close-up photography. The Sigma 4.5mm F2.8 EX DC HSM lens is available in Sigma AF, Canon AF and Nikon AF mounts, price is £599.99, available in December 2007.

The Sigma 10mm F2.8 EX DC HSM is a diagonal fisheye lens for use with APS-C size digital SLR cameras. The Nikon version produces a diagonal angle of view of 180° ?154° for Sigma, 167° for Canon?. The minimum focusing distance of 13.5cm, and maximum magnification 1:3.3 allows subjects to be as close as 1.8cm from the lens’ front element. This lens is supplied with a gelatin filter holder at the rear, allowing the use of gelatin filters. The Sigma 10mm F2.8 EX DC HSM is available in Sigma AF, Canon AF and Nikon AF mounts, price is £449.99, available in January 2008.

LightZone 3.2 photo editing software is fully compatible with the new Apple OS X Leopard operating system. The LightZone update also adds support for a number of new digital cameras, including the Sony DSLR-A700 and Canon 40D. “Light Crafts is pleased to offer support for both the new Apple Mac OS X Leopard operating system and numerous digital cameras recently introduced from leading digital camera manufacturers,” said Fabio Riccardi, CEO, Light Crafts. “Many of our customers are early adopters of leading edge technology and new products. They can continue to count on Light Crafts to provide support for new products that are continuously introduced into the fast moving digital photography market.” LightZone 3.2 costs $249.95 for the Full version and $149.95 for the Basic version.

The new Transcend 250GB StoreJet is a 2.5 inch SATA external hard drive that supports transfer rates of up to 1.5Gb/s. With a stylishly designed, polished aluminum case, the StoreJet 2.5 has a USB 2.0 interface and a convenient “OneTouch Auto-Backup” button. The Transcend StoreJet 2.5 SATA is available in a colorful assortment of eye-catching, polished aluminum cases including: Titanium (120GB), Blue (160GB) and Silver (250GB).

Ilford Office and Ilford Create are new products in Ilford’s Inkjet Photo Paper Range aimed at the consumer retail market. The Ilford Create range includes 100% Rag Fine Art Matt Paper and a selection of pre-creased greetings cards with printable envelopes. “This range means we can provide the photo enthusiast with a complete product line for a variety of creative applications. The combination of our quality photo media with the consumer’s artistic skills is the recipe for stunning results!” said Andrew Stewart, Sales and Marketing Director, Ilford. Ilford Office and Create are compatible with all good quality, including borderless, inkjet printers, and are now available in retail outlets across the UK.

The Lite-On DH-4O1S is an internal BD-ROM (Blu-ray Disc Reader) drive that supports Blu-ray Disc, DVD and CD discs. “With the increasing availability of Blu-ray Disc movies and other video content, consumers now have an affordable way to view the brilliant picture quality Blu-ray technology offers right on their personal computers,” says Christine Hsing, Marketing Manager at PLDS. The Lite-On DH-4O1S Blu-ray BD-ROM drive will be available in late November for $199.99.

ProShow Producer 3.2 slide show software for professional photographers now supports direct uploads to YouTube. “With the new version of Producer photos, slide shows and videos can be easily uploaded to any device allowing photographers to carry around a portfolio slide show or client proof in the palm of their hands, anywhere they go.” said Paul Schmidt, President of Photodex Corporation. ProShow Producer 3.2 is available immediately for $249.95. A free 15-day trial version of the software is available for download.

The winners of Tamron’s “Make Your Mark: Landmarks—Natural or Manmade” 2007 Photo Contest have been announced. The contest was open to U.S. residents submitting any original photograph prominently including a natural or manmade landmark that was taken with a Tamron lens. Tracy Arcari of Wheatogue, Connecticut took top honors for her breathtaking picture of The Mittens (pictured), a justly renowned rock formation in Monument Valley, Arizona. The theme for Tamron’s big 2008 Photo Contest is “Wet & Wild,”.