CNET have reviewed the Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LZ1, which has a 6x optical zoom lenses and an Optical Image Stabilizer to combat camera shake.

“Priced about $50 less than its 5-megapixel Lumix DMC-LZ2 sibling, this affordable point-and-shoot offers the same 6X zoom lens with a 37mm-to-222mm reach (35mm-camera equivalent) and the same highly desirable optical image stabilization to counter shaky hands at slow shutter speeds or high magnifications. Panasonic trimmed about a million pixels to create this 4-megapixel version, but its image quality is almost as good as the higher-res model’s. The only key feature missing is a microphone to record video sound clips.”

Website: CNET - Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ1 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ1

Write a Review of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LZ1

Casio have released a new firmware update for the 7 megapixel Casio EX-Z750 digital camera.

Improvements Provided by This Update
V1.00-V1.01
Zooming of portrait orientation images (without changing to landscape orientation).

Website: Download the Casio EX-Z750 v1.01 Firmware

SD Card Association Press Release

SD Card Association Announces Final Approval of the microSD Specification—World’s Smallest Removable Storage Card

SAN RAMON, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—July 13, 2005—The SD Card Association (SDA) today announced the final approval of the microSD specification that is now available for immediate use. The microSD card, the world’s smallest removable storage card provides full compatibility and interoperability with current SD devices. The card is fully compatible with SanDisk’s TransFlash(TM) cards, over 5 million of which have shipped to date and is supported in 40+ handsets announced by manufacturers such as Motorola, Samsung, LG, Kyocera, and Sagem.

SanDisk Press Release

SanDisk First to Offer 512-Megabyte microSD Card—Now Officially Adopted by SD Card Association

SUNNYVALE, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—July 13, 2005—SanDisk(R) Corporation (NASDAQ:SNDK) today announced that the microSD specification, which is based on SanDisk’s TransFlash(TM) card, has been officially adopted by the SD Card Association (SDA). The new microSD card is fully compatible with the TransFlash card and is designed as a small, flash memory storage card for mobile phones and devices. SanDisk also announced a 512-megabyte (MB) SanDisk microSD card, the largest capacity available in this form factor. The company expects to have a 1-gigabyte (GB) microSD card by the end of the year and a 2GB card in 2006.(a)

5 names have been randomly selected from the list of PhotographyBLOG Newsletter subscribers. If you are one of the winners, you will already have received an email from me ([email protected]). In order to protect the winners’ email addresses, I’m not going to publish them here.

- Two people have each won Paint Shop Pro 9 from Corel (2 copies, worth £99.99 each) (pictured)
Kindly donated by Corel - http://www.corel.co.uk

- Three people have each won Pixfer from Glass Lantern (3 copies, worth $34.95 each)
Kindly donated by Glass Lantern - http://www.glasslantern.com

If you haven’t won anything, then don’t worry, as a brand new contest for August will start soon!

To have any chance of winning, you must subscribe to the PhotographyBLOG Newsletter.

The winners of the June 2005 PhotographyBLOG Competition have now been decided. The theme for June was “Macro” - you can view all of the entries in this gallery. Here are the 3 winners:

1st Place
“Rose Dew” by SDR
View this entry

Prize: 1 copy of Powerretouche Full Pro Pack
Kindly donated by Powerretouche.
http://powerretouche.com

2nd Place
“Metamorphosis” by Maculatus
View this entry

Prize: 1 copy of Digital Photography Pocket Guide by Derrick Story
Kindly donated by O’Reilly.
http://www.oreilly.com

3rd Place
“BUGS OF BORNEO” by Tootsie
View this entry

Prize: Photobird.com one-year subscription with 100 megabytes of storage space
Kindly donated by Photobird.com.
http://www.photobird.com

Congratulations to the 3 winners and thanks to everyone who took part!

The July 2005 Competition is now open for entries. This is a monthly photography competition with a specific theme and prizes for the top 3 photos. The winning entries will be decided by a panel of judges. You just have to submit one photograph to the Competition Gallery that best interprets July’s theme, which is “Portraits”.

Photoxels have just interviewed Gregory Flasch, National Manager Advertising & Communications for Nikon Canada:

“The new NIKON D2Hs dSLR features only 4.1 megapixel resolution. How do you explain a 4.1 MP image sensor in a professional grade dSLR?

GF: The 4.1 MP LBCAST sensor in the Nikon D2Hs was designed to meet the needs of the target audience, action and sports photographers, while delivering the speed and performance control required by these working professionals. Focusing on the D2Hs primary ability to offer a blazingly fast 8fps continuous shooting for up to 50 images, our designers realized that the most effective sensor resolution would be 4.1 MP, which would properly meet the file size requirements of the target user while still maintaining the ultimate speed and performance critical to capturing the right shot.”

Website: Photoxels: Interview with Gregory Flasch, Nikon

In his latest “Sunday Morning Photographer” columns Mike Johnston explains why he has recently purchased the Konica-Minolta 7D digital SLR camera.

“I’ve also been impressed by the deep, rich, meaty colors of the Olympus E-1’s sensor. What finally removed that as a major shopping consideration for me is that…well, I like black & white better. Not “best” and not “only,” but better. So I figured that while a color photographer might be more swayed by the E-1, it wasn’t a primary consideration for me. In light of this, I was wholly unprepared for the KM 7D’s superb color rendition. Set on “Natural” sRGB, the colors are beautifully accurate. Flesh tones are outstanding, reds are well controlled and detailed, and all colors are in balance, with nothing over- or under-emphasized. And the camera renders complex hues really well, maintaining color delicacy and accuracy into the deep shadows and bright highlights. This is a real strength of this camera.”

Website: The Sunday Morning Photographer: Catch the Rave!

Website: The Sunday Morning Photographer: The Tale Told by Two Pictures

Website: The Sunday Morning Photographer: Ring Out the Old, Ring In the New

HP Press Release

Point, Click, Dock and Print -  HP Launches a Complete Portable Camera/Printer Solution

New HP Portable Photo Studio allows for ultimate photo simplicity, anywhere, any time

TENERIFE, June 27, 2005 – HP today announced the launch of the HP Photosmart 428 Portable Photo Studio, a three-in-one solution offering the ultimate photo simplicity with printer, docking station and camera. Featuring a high quality HP 5.2 megapixel (MP) camera and compact photo printer with built in camera dock, this package is the perfect travelling companion – enabling users to print their photos on the go or at home.

This integrated three-in-one system makes taking and printing photos simpler than ever before. The HP Photosmart 428 Portable Photo Studio, offers users a simple photography solution, in which every component is designed to work together perfectly, providing everything needed to create beautiful photos almost anywhere.

Luminous Landscape have published a brief review of the new Tamron SP AF11-18mm F/4.5-5.6 Di-II LD Aspherical (IF), a new high performance ultra wideangle zoom lens designed exclusively for digital SLR cameras using APS-C size image sensors.

“If you’re looking for an ultra-wide zoom for your 1.5x or 1.6x lens factor DSLR then I can recommend the Tamron SP 11-18 f/4.5-5.6 Di II LD to you. The price is attractive and the lens is capable of producing high quality images. If you are the owner of a Canon D30, D60 or 10D, and therefore unable to use the Canon 10-22mm lens without performing warranty destroying surgery, the new Tamron provides an attraction option.”

Website: Luminous Landscape - Tamron SP AF11-18mm F/4.5-5.6 Di-II LD Aspherical (IF) Review.

The Hungarian website Index Digicam have reviewed the 5 megapixel, 8x zoom Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z20.

Website: Index Digicam - Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z20 Review

Website: Read my Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z20 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z20 Review

Write a Review of the Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z20 Review

Imaging Resource have published the first online review of the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T7, a 5 megapixel digital camera with a 2.5 inch LCD screen and a 3x optical zoom lens.

“The Sony DSC-T7 is equipped with a Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar 3x, 6.33-19.0mm lens, equivalent to a 38-114mm lens on a 35mm camera. (A fairly standard zoom range, going from an average wide angle to a good telephoto.) Normal focus ranges from approximately 1.64 feet (0.5 meters) to infinity, with a Macro setting that lets you get within 3.1 inches (8 centimeters) when the lens is zoomed to its wide angle position, and 9.8 inches (25 centimeters) at its telephoto setting. A Magnifying Glass scene mode (described below) gets even closer, focusing as close as one centimeter (though it also uses digital zoom to enlarge detail). Tiny lenses like this often have poor optical performance, but our testing showed the lens on the Sony T7 to better than average relative to other members of its subcompact class.”

Website: Imaging Resource - Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T7 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T7X

Write a Review of the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T7

DIWA member and Czech website FotoAparat.cz have published their review of the Nikon D50, a new affordable 6.1 megapixel digital SLR.

Website: FotoAparat.cz - Nikon D50 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Nikon D50

Write a Review of the Nikon D50

DIWA member and Czech website FotoAparat.cz have reviewed the 5 megapixel Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LZ2, which features a 6x optical zoom lens and an Optical Image Stabilizer to combat camera shake.

Website: FotoAparat.cz - Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LZ2 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LZ2

Write a Review of the Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LZ2

CNET have published their review of the new Sony DSC-H1 digital camera. The DSC-H1 has a 12x optical zoom lens (equivalent to 36-432 millimeters), 5 megapixel CCD and 2.5 inch LCD screen.

“With its 12X-zoom Cyber Shot DSC-H1, Sony joins the megazoom competition. Although slightly larger and heavier than its competitors, the H1 holds its own thanks to a broad feature set, speedy performance, and a generally well-thought-out design. We have a few quibbles and wish that the photos were sharper, but overall, the H1 may please enthusiasts hankering for a camera with an extended focal range.”

Website: CNET - Sony DSC-H1 Review

Check the Latest Prices for the Sony DSC-H1

Write a Review of the Sony DSC-H1

Canon have launched a simple and easy to use website that teaches you about the finer points of the digital SLR camera. Despite using Canon cameras as examples (obviously), it’s still a good guide for anyone that is considering the upgrade to a digital SLR, as they become ever more affordable.

Website: Canon - Enjoy! Digital SLR Camera

Canon USA Press Release

CANON INTRODUCES NEW BENCHMARK FOR INKJET PHOTO-PRINTING SPEED AND LAUNCHES ChromaLife100 SYSTEM

LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., July 11, 2005—Canon, a leader in photographic and imaging technology, today announced a fundamental shift in focus for communicating printer speed performance to reflect the rapidly growing trend in personal photo printing. Leveraging the advantage of the company’s patented FINE (Full-photolithography Inkjet Nozzle Engineering) print technology, Canon will use print times when producing photo lab-quality prints as a new print-speed performance benchmark for all new PIXMA desktop and all-in-one photo printers. As a further indication of Canon’s commitment to the photo printer market, the company also introduced the new ChromaLife100 system for photo longevity, making possible a level of fade-resistance rivaling many traditional film-based prints.

Microsoft Press Release

Getting in Touch with PC Entertainment is Now Easier, More Convenient and More Fun

REDMOND, Wash., July 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/—Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) today announced that it will unveil two new hardware devices with innovative, easy-to-use features and sophisticated designs that will make accessing PC entertainment more enjoyable. The devices are an expression of Microsoft’s continuing commitment to enhancing consumers’ digital experiences
anywhere.

Microsoft Hardware has developed the first three-in-one control center for a Windows(R) XP-based Media Center PC with remote, keyboard and mouse capabilities in one sleek device, designed exclusively for the living room. For digital camera owners, Microsoft will also introduce a mouse, keyboard and digital image software suite for everyday use that turns any desktop into a virtual darkroom.

Mobile Action Press Release

Mobile Action’s Releases MA-800 25-in-1 Memory Card Reader with Multimedia Software for Cellular Phone Playback

WALNUT, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—July 11, 2005—Mobile Action, the world’s leading mobile management software developer for cellular handsets, today announced the North American release of the MA-800, a super 25-in-1 memory card reader that can exchange data between 25 different types of memory cards used in digital cameras, PDAs and mobile phones. Mobile Action’s new MA-800 card reader also comes bundled with Mediaphone Expert, a multimedia editing software package for mobile phones that lets users combine and edit content from different memory card sources and load the results on the handset memory card for playback on a cellular phone.

Simple Star Press Release

PhotoShow Lets PENTAX Customers Make Fun, Multimedia Photo and Video Clip Albums in as Little as Five Clicks

SAN FRANCISCO , July 6, 2005 – Simple Star, the leading developer of easy-to-use consumer photo software, announced today that PENTAX will bundle Simple Star’s PhotoShow software suite into its new line of PENTAX Optio digital cameras.

With PhotoShow, people simply plug their cameras or insert media cards into their computers - PhotoShow automatically opens and imports the photos and can automatically create a multimedia album containing digital photos and video clips, titles, music and other fun features in as little as five mouse clicks. Users can then select from more than 300 songs that come with PhotoShow Deluxe, import their own .mp3’s, change transitions, drop in clip art, add captions and titles, and more.