Just in time for Christmas…another new memory card format. Sandisk and Sony are working on a faster, larger capacity version of the Memory Stick PRO format, called Memory Stick PRO-HG, which is 3 times as fast and has a maximum size of 32GB.

Sony Press Release

Sunnyvale / Tokyo, December 11, 2006 - SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK) and Sony Corporation today announced the development of the “Memory Stick PRO-HG” format expanded from the “Memory Stick PRO” format. The continuing increase in the capacity of IC recording media has broadened its usage as a practical way to store high-resolution digital photos, music and video content (from the Internet or TV programs) on portable devices that are designed to handle digital entertainment content. The demand for real-time recording and transfer of multiple gigabytes of data using IC recording media is expected to increase rapidly, due to the growing popularity of high resolution video and digital still image applications.

This week’s Gary’s Parries topics are:

1. Gary’s Parries Is Currently In The Process Of Moving
2. Animal Cruelty (Revisited)

Introducing this week’s Gary’s Parries column. Everything you always wanted to know about digital cameras, but were afraid to ask. No question too difficult, or too easy. As a Senior Principal Software Engineer, and a former Assistant Professor of Computer Information Systems, as well as a recording studio owner/operator, inventor, and now, a digital camera enthusiast, GARY has more digital camera knowledge in his entire brain than most people have in their little finger. In the unlikely event that GARY would not know the answer to your question, he will answer it anyway, true to the spirit of the word “Parries”, a fencing term which, in this context, implies “cleverly evasive answers”. So let your imagination run wild. Email all your nagging digital camera questions to: [email protected] , and then, En Garde!

You may also attach to your email an ORIGINAL PHOTO of your choosing. A preview of the photo will be displayed with your question, and a full-sized version will be just a click away. No personal information will be published with your question unless you specifically include it in the text or attached photo of your email, which may be further edited for grammar, content, or other reasons.

Olympus Press Release

CENTER VALLEY, Pa – Olympus Visionary Gary Crallé has been awarded two of the Society of American Travel Writers’ (SATW) coveted Bill Muster Photo Showcase Awards.  A Canadian travel photographer and journalist, Gary Crallé has had work published in newspapers, magazines and advertisements in more than 35 countries. “Capturing the spirit of the environment and excitement of travel have long been strengths in Gary’s photography,” said John Knaur, senior marketing manager DSLR, Olympus Imaging America Inc.  “Gary embodies the true idea of a visionary photographer, and Olympus is proud to be affiliated with such an energetic and passionate photographer, and congratulates him on this well deserved award.”

Center for Jazz Arts Press Release

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif./EWORLDWIRE/Dec. 9, 2006—- One of the most beloved photographers in the world, William Claxton transcends the ordinary to the extraordinary as he captures the essence of life with emotion - a feeling that is universally understood - via an unprecedented event to benefit the Center for Jazz Arts (CJA), an organization dedicated to growing global understanding of and appreciation for American values. On December 15, the virtual gavel will go down on five separate auctions, each featuring a distinct opportunity to accompany Claxton on a photo shoot with a celebrity - from Star Trek to stardom, each lays claim to fame and recognition in the creative arts industry, along with a long list of distinguished awards and accolades. To commemorate the occasion of the time spent with Claxton and the illustrious personality, the winning bidder will receive a limited edition print selected from the shoot.

Society for Imaging Science & Technology Press Release

Springfield, Va., December 6, 2006 — Las Vegas is the venue for the first International Symposium on Technologies for Digital Fulfillment, sponsored by the Society for Imaging Science and Technology (www.imaging.org). An evolution of the highly-acclaimed biennial
International Symposia on Photofinishing Technology, the 2007 conference will be held March 3-5, 2007—just prior to PMA2007—at the Westin Casuarina Hotel and Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada. As the industry undergoes an epic transformation, this technical conference (the only one offered in conjunction with PMA/DIMA) will address issues associated with generating photos from capture devices—such as camera phones, digital still cameras, and conventional color negative film—to image processing and various modes and methods of output. The conference features 26 talks, two of which will include working demonstrations of the new technology advances being described.

As the holiday season approaches, and with Thanksgiving just gone, there is more incentive to print out your photos and share them with your family and friends. What could be a better way than in the comfort of your own home, using one of the new generation of compact photo printers? Which leads us nicely onto our grand plan of reviewing the best printers over the next couple of weeks. First up is the new Lexmark P350, which boasts up to 200 year print life-span, support for 11 memory card formats, a 2.4 inch colour LCD screen and compact dimensions.

Website: Lexmark P350 Review

Good news for MAC users. Apple have released a 30-day trial version of Apple Aperture. The trial version provides a fully-functional version of Aperture 1.5 with all the features that are available in a licensed copy. The trial version will expire 30 days after you launch it for the first time.

http://www.apple.com/aperture/trial/

Festival Voies Off Press Release

Festival Voies Off Prize 2007 - Tender for application - The Festival Voies Off will take place from 2rd July through 7th July 2007. Voies Off promotes emergent photography and visual arts, by offering an alternative proposal to the official programme of the Rencontres d’Arles. Many authors were bring to light thanks to the Festival Voies Off Prize since 1996, such as Antoine d’Agata, Vincent Debanne, Charles Fréger, Olivier Metzger,... who are internationally well-known today. Every year, the Fringe Festival Prize awards one photographer for his contemporary artwork (1525 Euros grant - approx. $ 1900). Photographers, as well as artists using photography, communities, schools and organizations are invited to show their work.

onOne Software Press Release

New offering includes all four onOne Photoshop® plug-ins and iView MediaPro 3 at a reduced price

Portland, OR - December 8, 2006 - onOne Software, Inc., announces today availability of the new “Pro Photo Essentials” software package featuring onOne Software’s Genuine Fractals 4.1, Mask Pro 4, Intellihance Pro 4.1 and PhotoFrame Pro 3 Photoshop plug-ins and iView MediaPro 3* digital asset management software. “At onOne Software we strive to provide products to our customers that will get them out from behind their computer and back behind their cameras taking pictures,” said Craig Keudell, president of onOne Software. “This new software offering was created with the busy professional photographer in mind. By making all of these software applications available in one reduced-price package, photographers will be able to tackle any digital imaging task from asset management to workflow enhancements affordably and most importantly with ease.”

Scoopt Press Release

Scoopt (www.scoopt.com), the leading citizen journalism picture agency, seeks to release the untapped value of pictures on Flickr (www.flickr.com). Scoopt is inviting Flickr members to tag their images with keyword ‘scoopt’. This enables Scoopt to push tagged images to buyers in direct response to demand. Scoopt will also encourage buyers to use Flickr as a commercial image resource.

LaserSoft Imaging Press Release

The new SilverFast 6.5 now makes imaging even easier! The extensive selection of editing tools has been enhanced with several new features, allowing users to produce optimum quality images with ease. The new Auto Frame Detection automatically creates frames for all images in the prescan. Multi-Exposure (Please check whether your scanner is supported!) increases the hardware’s capability to capture the full dynamic range, bringing out extensive image detail in both highlights and shadows. This is high dynamic range at its best!

Imaging Resource have just reviewed the new A3 Canon PIXMA Pro9000 printer.

“We had a very large scan, plenty of detail, and printed it with and without the Grayscale option checked on Canon’s premium matte uncoated but smooth paper (which must be fed through the front). Without the option, the image printed using all the inks to render black and white image very quickly but with a slight warm color cast. With grayscale checked, the printer used only the black cartridge, printing much more slowly but with no noticeably cast. Detail was superb. With sharpening, we even surpassed the silver halide print. Only under a 10x loupe were we able to detect the droplets and, frankly, they were finer than the grain on our 16x20 print.”

Website: Imaging Resource - Canon PIXMA Pro9000 Review

Latest Prices / User Reviews

Steves Digicams have just reviewed the new Canon SD40 digital camera (also known as the Canon Digital IXUS i7 zoom).

“The PowerShot SD40 Digital ELPH is the successor to last year’s popular SD30, and is this year’s stylish and durable “pocket-rocket” from Canon. It includes many of the same features, like the 2.4x optical zoom lens, 1.8-inch LCD, and 9-point AF system. This new model features higher resolution at 7-megapixels, Canon’s Face Detection AF/AE technology, increased ISO capabilities (up to ISO 1600) as well as the new DiGiC III image processor. This is a simple point-n-shoot model that offers various fully automatic exposure modes as well as a Manual mode that gives access to more advanced settings.”

Website: Steves Digicams - Canon SD40 Review

Latest Prices / User Reviews

Imaging Resource have reviewed the Nikon Coolpix S9, which offers 6 megapixels, 2.5 inch LCD screen and a 3x zoom lens.

“The Nikon Coolpix S9 keeps the attractive ultraslim design of the S-series while shaving off a fraction of an inch in length to make it 3.6 x 2.3 x 0.8 inches (91 x 58 x 20 mm). As I said in my review of the Nikon Coolpix S5, I like the flowing “wave-like” design of these latest S-series cameras because along with being wafer thin, the slight curve in the camera’s beautiful silver chassis to accommodate the folded 3x zoom, makes it easier to hold. The Nikon S9 is also slightly lighter than the S5 at just 4.6 ounces (133 grams) with the proprietary lithium battery and SD Card installed. Because the camera uses folded optics, the lens does not extend even when zoomed out to 3x, which maintains its slender profile.”

Website: Imaging Resource - Nikon Coolpix S9 Review

Website: Read our Nikon Coolpix S9 Review

Latest Prices / User Reviews

Imaging Resource have reviewed the new Nikon Coolpix S7c, which offers 7 megapixels, a 35-105mm lens and electronic Vibration Reduction.

“Hot on the heels of its S6, Nikon announced the Coolpix S7c. The new model has more resolution at 7.1 megapixels and a Hi ISO shooting mode for available light photography. But even more exciting, the Nikon Coolpix S7c can email images wirelessly through Nikon’s new Coolpix Connect server. And you can do it from any T-Mobile HotSpot with a complimentary one-year subscription, too.”

Website: Imaging Resource - Nikon Coolpix S7c Review

Website: Read our Nikon Coolpix S7c Review

Latest Prices / User Reviews

Fujifilm USA Press Release

Fujifilm FinePix S5 Pro Introduced to Market - Full Specifications, Availability and Pricing Also Determined

VALHALLA, N.Y.—FUJIFILM U.S.A., Inc. today announced the full specifications, availability and retail price for the highly anticipated FinePix S5 Pro. Announced in development at Photokina 2006, the FinePix S5 Pro is scheduled for nationwide market availability February 2007 at a price of $1,999. Confirming Fujifilm’s commitment to professional photographers, the FinePix S5 Pro carries a number of features that appeal to wedding, portrait and studio photographers. One is an expanded dynamic range from the double pixel technology (6.17 million S-pixels and 6.17 million R-pixels) of the camera’s Super CCD SR Pro sensor that is approximately 400% wider than that of a CCD working on a single-pixel design. In addition, the FinePix S5 Pro goes a step further by coupling the new Super CCD SR Pro sensor with Fujifilm’s new RP Processor Pro for smoother tonality from brightest light to the darkest shadows. An ISO equivalent sensitivity of 3200 is also available on the FinePix S5 Pro, thanks to the RP Processor Pro technology.

Bad news for anyone interested in Sigma’s new DSLR, the SD14, as the release date is pushed back to late Feb / early March next year.

Sigma Press Release

To our valued customers, The Sigma Corporation of Japan is postponing the launch date of the Sigma SD14 Digital SLR camera, which was announced at Photokina 2006. The Sigma SD14 had originally been scheduled to launch between the end of November and the middle of December. However, during final preparations, an unexpected hardware problem caused us to change the release date of the camera. Due to this design change, the release date is now expected to be towards the end of February and the beginning of March 2007*.

Refocus Imaging, Inc. Press Release

Every photographer is familiar with the frustration of losing a shot because the camera focused too slowly, or focused on the wrong thing. Recent camera technology innovations at Stanford University provide a new solution to this old problem. The idea is to capture extra information at the sensor, which is missing in conventional cameras. Special processing enables physical functions of the lens to be implemented in software. This approach provides unprecedented photographic features, such as the ability to refocus photographs after the image is taken. The underlying technology also enables dramatic improvements in lighting and sensitivity. For the novice, this means a more reliable camera that makes it easier to take great-looking pictures. For aficionados and professionals, this technology means unprecedented control over the quality of each image pixel.

Elliot Landy Press Release

The legendary photographer and his son exhibit together for the first time. “This is the first exhibition we have made together. My music photos were taken during the 60’s and his in the 90’s. Mine include Bob Dylan, The Band, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Van Morrison, Frank Zappa and others from that generation of musicians. Bo’s photos include Aerosmith, Motley Crue, Billy Idol, Kiss, Metallica, Whitesnake, Alice Cooper and others. He’s made some wonderful unique prints on metallic silver paper, keeping to the spirit of the times he photographed. The exhibition will be on display from December 5 thru January 23, 2007. I hope you will come and see it. I am excited about it.”

OnAsia Press Release

Bangkok , THAILAND -  December 7th, 2006 - A group of OnAsia photographers has contributed training services to young people affected by the Asian tsunami as part of the inSIGHT Out project (www.insightout-project.org). OnAsia member photographers Masaru Goto from Japan, Suthep Kritsanavarin from Thailand and Patrick de Noirmont from France took part in a series of workshops where tsunami affected children were given the opportunity to explore their communities, their culture and their own personal vision through photography. The photographers offered professional support to these workshops, sharing their skills and encouraging the young participants to discover the possibilities of creativity and visual expression through photography.