ACDSee Pro has been reduced to $49.99 USD until August 10th, a saving of 60%. ACDSee Pro gives users full RAW support, RAW processing and lightning speed in every facet of digital photography management - from initial photo capture to final print. This software is quick, easy to learn and gives users the power to view, organize, edit, process, publish and archive image files.

Frank Gohlke’s black and white landscape photographs will be on show at PDNB Gallery in Dallas, Texas. Running from September 8 - October 13, 2007, photographs from Texas will be featured, including Gohlke’s famous Grain Elevator series.

Four Thirds User is a new website aimed at anyone interested in the Four Thirds digital SLR camera system. Launched by the team behind DPNow, Four Thirds User features news, in-depth reviews, tutorials, a wiki-style interactive knowledge base and an integrated discussion forum and user photo gallery. There’s also the chance to win an Olympus E-510 to help celebrate the launch of Four Thirds User.

AKVIS Frame Suite 2 applies artistic frames and edge effects to your photos. Frame Suite 2 now works on both PPC- and Intel-Macs, offers two more edge effects (Frost and Artistic Crop) and has improved color profile handling. AKVIS Frame Suite costs $49 USD, and there’s a free 10 day trial version.

Olympus have released a new firmware update, version 1.1, for the E-510 DSLR camera. This update improves the reliability of writing to high-speed Compact Flash cards.

Website: Olympus E-510 v1.1 Firmware Update

Olympus have released a new firmware update, version 1.2, for the E-410 DSLR camera. This update improves the reliability of writing to high-speed Compact Flash cards. It also improves the preview of the white balance settings when in Live-View mode, and addresses the issue of file names being reset after images are deleted.

Website: Olympus E-410 v1.2 Firmware Update

The Kodak C513 is an entry level digital camera that uniquely uses a 5 megapixel CMOS sensor. Costing less than US $99 and available in August 2007, the Kodak C513 beats the likes of Canon and Sony to the gun by incorporating its KAC-05011 CMOS image sensor. “Traditionally, CMOS has allowed for lower cost camera design but was not able to provide top image quality.  Kodak has changed that dynamic with the introduction of a digital camera at a remarkably affordable price without compromising image quality or camera function.” said John Blake, General Manager, KODAK Digital Capture and Devices.

The Panasonic DMC-FZ18 digital camera features a 18x optical zoom lens, equivalent to 28-504mm on a 35mm film camera. The 8.1 megapixel Panasonic FZ18 features the new and unique Intelligent Auto Mode, which automatically selects the most appropriate setting according to the situation. An Optical Image Stabiliser, face detection mode, ISO 6400, a joystick for manual adjustment of focusing and exposure setting and RAW mode complete the headline specs.

We’ve published a selection of sample photos from a pre-production version of the new Panasonic DMC-FZ18 digital camera, taken at the European press event in Dublin, Ireland. Note that these images are resized and are not indicative of the final quality of the Panasonic FZ18.

Panasonic DMC-FZ18 Photos

The 8 megapixel Panasonic DMC-FX55 and Panasonic DMC-FX33 digital cameras both offer a 28mm wide-angle LEICA DC lens (28-100mm), optical image stabiliser, face detection and intelligent scene selection. The FX55 has a large 3 inch LCD screen, whilst the FX33 offers a smaller 2.5 inch monitor. Intelligent Auto Mode automatically selects the most appropriate setting according to the situation.

A new firmware download for the Leica M8 camera will be made available on July 27th. The minor changes within the firmware version accomplish via modification of internal procedures an optimisation of the general image reproduction and the functional features of the LEICA M8.

The new Kingston 4GB miniSDHC card is available in Class 2, 4 and 6 speed ratings. The 4Gb miniSDHC card can store more than 2,000 images, 750 digital music tracks or 4.5 hours of MPEG4 video. “As sleeker, more sophisticated mobile phones, PDAs and MP3 players offer digital imaging, music, video, mobile TV and games, the need for higher data transfer rates, increased storage and smaller form factor expansion memory becomes greater,” said Jean Wong, Flash memory product manager, Kingston. The Kingston 4GB miniSDHC card costs from $62 to $66 (depending on the class).

The Hey, Hot Shot! competition is now accepting entries for the Summer 2007 Edition. Run by the Jen Bekman Gallery in New York, the work of 10 winners will be exhibited from from September 5th - 9th, 2007. The deadline for entry is Tuesday, August 7th, 2007.

The One City, Many Destinations photography competition asks you to pick one image that best captures the essence of a city. The grand-prize winner will receive CITY Magazine’s cover shot, a Leica M8 and other prizes. The deadline for entry is 11:59 p.m. EST on July 31, 2007.

Tim Grey, Senior Technology Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation joins IDPB host Scott Sheppard for an inside look at the recent Microsoft Pro Photo Summit. Tim’s background in photography and digital imaging give him insight to helping lead Microsoft’s efforts to bring together the photo industry and discuss their key issues. The summit included some keynotes, photo shoots hosted by their “Icons of Imaging” photographers, and technology showcases. The majority of the summit, however, was focused on panel discussions, open Q&A, and solving the workflow concerns of the participants. One of the hottest topics of the sessions were copyright concerns to help manage the digital rights of photos and the photographers who took them. Other topics included training and education, and using video to capture digital still images.

TrustedReviews have reviewed the Olympus E-510 DSLR camera, which features a built-in image stabiliser in the camera body. The E510 also has a new image processing engine that offers excellent noise performance and 3fps with a seven image RAW buffer in burst mode.

“Despite the lousy weather the E-510 turned in some fantastic shots, thanks in no small part to the outstanding kit lens, which produced pin-sharp detail from corner to corner at all focal lengths. As usual the Olympus metering system was flawless, coping with every lighting condition I tried. Noise control was also superb, with virtually no difference between shots taken at 100, 200 or 400 ISO, and minimal noise at 800. There was some noise visible at 1600 ISO, but even at the default low noise filtering it wasn’t too bad, and did not affect colour balance at all.”

Website: TrustedReviews - Olympus E-510 Review

Website: Read our Olympus E-510 Review

Kingston has increased the write speed of its CompactFlash Ultimate memory cards to 266X. “Kingston’s new CompactFlash Ultimate 266X memory cards maximize a digital camera’s performance, delivering the speed and capacity necessary to complete even the most challenging assignments.” said Mark Akoubian, Flash memory product manager, Kingston. Pricing starts from $83 / £34.60 for the 2Gb card, up to $280 / £116.55 for the 8Gb.

Casio has announced a special edition of its EX-Z75 camera in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The special-edition camera bundle features a pink EX-Z75, camera case embossed with the pink ribbon and a pink ribbon-clad lanyard. “The National Breast Cancer Foundation was founded to give help, support and hope to those facing breast cancer,” said Janelle Hail, Founder and President of the National Breast Cancer Foundation. “We thank Casio, Inc. for joining us in helping save lives through education and early detection.” The special-edition pink Casio EX-Z75 will be available beginning October 2007 costing $179.99.

Leica have released a firmware update, version 1.3, for the Leica Digital Modul R digital back.

The following optimisations were accomplished by the new firmware version:

  * Improved colour rendering on the Digital Modul R display
  * Adjustment of exposure
  * Improved compatibility of SD cards with FAT 32 system /4 GB cards (not SDHC)
  * Numerous internal procedures were implemented that optimise the general image reproduction and functional features of the Digital Modul R

Website: Leica Digital Modul R Firmware v1.3

DigitalCameraInfo have reviewed the Panasonic DMC-TZ3 camera, which fits a 10x optical zoom, 7.2 megapixels and 3 inch LCD screen into a compact, stylish body.

“With a price tag of $349, the Panasonic TZ3 is a good value for a select niche market of consumers looking for a small point-and-shoot with a longer, stabilized zoom lens. There are plenty of image-stabilized, 10x optical zoom cameras out there, but none retain the point-and-shoot simplicity and basic design of the TZ3.  It competes with tiny, itsy-bitsy point-and-shoots that don’t offer the high zoom, and heavier, SLR-styled compacts; however, no other camera currently offers its feature set in a point-and-shoot design. “

Website: DigitalCameraInfo - Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3 Review

Website: Read our Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3 Review