Earlier this month, Fotospeed were back with Foto Fest 2017, their celebration of photography and printing. Print enthusiasts from around the country joined Fotospeed and four leading photographers at The Edge at The University of Bath on the 10th of September, for a series of talks which gave insight into the stories behind their most famous shots. Attendees were also joined by leading photography brands such as Kaiser, Canon, Panasonic, and Lee Filters. Toby Herlinger, Sales and Marketing Director at Fotospeed, said ‘We’re delighted that Foto Fest 2017 has once again been a success after our first event in 2016. We feel it’s very important that we take every opportunity to promote the importance of printing and to help bring together and inspire photographers who share this passion. We’re already really looking forward to 2018 and seeing how far we can take Foto Fest and inspire more people to print their photography”.

Tenba have launched their new Air Case Attaché cases, which provide the strength and rigidity of a hard case at a fraction of the weight.Air Cases are shippable and airline checkable, so they deliver the same safety as a hard case, but with smoother, steadier performance and better usability and when travelling. They also solve many of the common issues with plastic hard cases by having stronger, smoother rolling wheels, more customisable interior layouts with softer padding, rolling luggage handles that extend to a more comfortable walking height, zippered interior pockets to organise cables and smaller accessories, and much more.

Gary Fong has introduced the new SnootSkin, which instantly converts the Lightsphere Collapsible light shaper into a snoot. The black lining of the SnootSkin blocks light from spilling through the sides of the flash, allowing light to be isolated and directed precisely. For more precise spot lighting, a grid insert is included for an even tighter beam. The system is designed to hold colour inserts inside a built-in slot that holds up to five colours. These can be combined to create a wide palette of colour choices. The current available colours are Red, Green, Blue, and Warming Filters in full CTO and half CTO.  The optional colour kit also includes an 18% grey tab for precise custom white balance. Prices start at $59.95.

The new OWC Thunderbolt 3 Dock, which features no less than 13 connection ports, is shipping now. The dock

takes full advantage of the cutting-edge performance of Thunderbolt 3 technology with throughput up to 40Gb/s of bandwidth and allows users to realize the maximum utility of Thunderbolt 3 equipped Macs. The 13 ports offer the capability to charge mobile devices, connect one 5K or two 4K displays, add external storage (including legacy devices such as FireWire drives), import photos and videos from SD cards, access wired networks via Gigabit Ethernet, and enjoy audio – all through a single Thunderbolt 3 cable. The OWC Thunderbolt 3 Dock can be the foundation of a perfect custom display setup, providing the ability to drive the latest- generation 5K displays, two 4K displays or a combination of 4K, HD and other displays with the Mini DisplayPort (mDP) with DisplayPort++ support, and additional Thunderbolt 3 port.

The Zoner Photo Studio X autumn update offers a unique retouching brush whose abilities highly surpass other editors´ similar tools. This brush is the first in the World to enable combining multiple masks as well as multiple strokes within one mask. Each individual stroke, meanwhile can be edited or deleted at any time without reducing the image’s quality. The Editor module has also gained new features. Users can now apply basic edits to colours, overall exposure, and exposure levels and curves within separate adjustment layers that they can then edit at any time. The autumn update also adds a new Video tool plus pressure support for graphics tablets.

ImageRights is launching a dedicated copyright registration service. For the first time, any photographer or agency can register their images with the United States Copyright Office through ImageRights. (Previously, only members had access to the service.) The application is quick, taking only a couple of minutes, simple with a high-tech software that automatically fills out the form, and most importantly accurate. With error checking technology, users can be assured their applications were filled out with all necessary information to protect images if an infringement claim is ever needed to be pursued. “We strongly believe in photographers and agencies registering their images with the US Copyright Office and wanted to make our service readily available to all,” said Joe G. Naylor, President and CEO of ImageRights. “If the USCO form is not submitted the right way or the correct documentation of your work is not kept on file, photographers can be left vulnerable when pursuing an infringement claim. With our services they are 100% protected.”

Photographers and agencies can register their images with the US Copyright Office for $99 plus the Copyright Office filing fee.

Tamron today announced the new, moisture resistant Tamron 100-400mm f/4.5-6.3 Di VC USD lens for Canon and Nikon dSLRs. This image-stabilised, full-frame telephoto zoom lens features an ultrasonic AF motor, wide and ribbed zoom and focus rings, an AF/MF switch, a distance scale sheltered behind a clear plastic window, and a zoom lock switch that prevents zoom creep during transport. The optical design includes 3 LD (Low Dispersion) lens elements for greater aberration reduction and Tamron’s original eBAND Coating for superior anti-reflection performance. The 100-400mm is fully compatible with Tamron’s 1.4X tele converter that multiplies the lens’s focal length, and the Tamron TAP-in Consolewhich enables lens customisations for focus adjustments, VC mechanism adjustments and more. Additionally, an Arca Swiss compatible tripod mount is available as an optional accessory. Availability and pricing will be communicated at a later date.

The 8th Lishui Photography Festival will take place from 15 to 19 November 2017 in the city of Lishui, China. Created in 2004 by the Lishui City Council and the China Photographers Association, the Lishui Photography Festival has become a biennial event from its second edition, in 2005, and has continued to grow over the years. Designed as a unique platform in China, the Lishui Photography Festival seeks to bring together all of the actors from the photography community: photographers, exhibition curators, editors, collectors, suppliers of photography equipment, etc. This year’s ambitious programme includes about forty exhibitions, an international seminar, screenings, debates, conferences, portfolio evaluations, workshops and a photography supplies fair, as well as an exhibition and auction of vintage cameras from the 19th and 20th centuries, an auction of photographic artworks and a photo books fair. Click through / read on for the details.

Adobe has revealed advancements to its industry-leading Adobe Creative Cloud video tools and services to be showcased at IBC 2017. 

The company will highlight the latest innovations in virtual reality, animation, motion graphics, editing, collaboration and Adobe Stock - all available later this year. The new capabilities coming later this year to Adobe Creative Cloud for video include motion graphics templates, Character Animator, VR video creation, Team Projects and Adobe Audition. Many of these features are powered by Adobe Sensei, the company’s artificial intelligence and machine learning framework. Adobe will preview these advancements at Stand 7.G27 in the RAI Amsterdam Convention Center and at 140 partner booths from September 15-19 at IBC.

Western Digital today announced  the new G-Technology G-DRIVE Mobile SSD R-Series  device, the fastest G-Technology portable SSD to date. Offering the latest-generation USB-C connectivity and transfer speeds up to 560MB/s, the G-DRIVE mobile SSD R-Series device is built using hand-picked components to withstand tough conditions in the field and provides a rugged solution you can trust. In addition, it will have an International Protection Rating of 67 (IP67) for water and dust resistance and has been tested to withstand up to a 3-metre drop on a carpeted concrete floor and 1000 lbs of pressure. The G-DRIVE mobile SSD R-Series device offers a 5-year limited warranty and will be available at select G-technology resellers around the world this year with up to 2TB capacities. The U.S. MSRP will be $699.95 for 2TB, $379.95 1TB, and $199.95 500GB, USD, respectively.

Magix has released an updated version of Movie Edit Pro, which promises up to 5x faster video editing, smoother display for up to 4K resolution and a comprehensive range of effects. Additionally, users can now work with 4 of the most-requested plug-ins: NewBlue ColorFast 2, NewBlue Elements Overlay, iZotope RX Elements & HitFilm Movie Essentials. The latest effect plug-ins are included in the Premium version and are available in the two other versions at a special price. Also included are picture-in-picture effects, split screens, high-quality sound optimisation and original film effects. Movie Edit Pro is now available online and in stores worldwide, priced from £59.99.

Innova Art – the first UK-based inkjet media specialist founded this century – is relaunching its brand in China. The move reintroduces to the Chinese print market a range of digital fine art and photo media originally introduced to the market via Innova’s private label service more than ten years ago. At the forefront of the Innova Art relaunch is the Editions range, comprising two category-busting photo papers and four cotton rag papers, including two produced in partnership with the famous Italian paper mill, Fabriano. Additionally, the Fine Art and Photo Art ranges will also be introduced to the Chinese market. Interested photographers can visit the Innova Art stand at the Pingyao International Photography Festival 2017, September 19-25.

Today marks the launch of Polaroid Originals – a new brand dedicated to analogue instant photography. The first product in this new range is a new analogue instant camera called named the Polaroid OneStep 2. Successor to the original Polaroid OneStep, the One Step 2 offers a built-in flash, easy USB charging, long-lasting battery and a self-timer. The camera is available for pre-order, pricedat £109.99.

Polaroid Originals simultaneously introduces a new generation of original format instant film, with colour, black & white, and a range of special editions to choose from. It is available for modern analogue instant cameras like the OneStep 2, as well as for key vintage Polaroid camera formats. New I-type film for the OneStep 2 is priced at £14.99 with eight pictures per pack. Film for vintage formats – the Polaroid SX-70, 600 and Spectra – is priced from £17.99.

Alien Skin Software have announced the upcoming release of Exposure X3, the latest version of their non-destructive raw photo editor and organiser. This edition will bring new colour and B&W toning enhancements that give photographers greater control over their image adjustments. Powerful new organising tools include virtual copies for editing multiple variations of a single photo, without taking up additional disk space. Exposure’s intuitive keywords interface enables photographers to add descriptive metadata to their photo, making it easy to organize photos around themes and to create keyword sets. The advanced collections tools help them quickly and easily group their images, no matter where they appear on their computer. Exposure X3 will be released in Q3 of 2017, priced at $149.

Western Digital has expanded its WD Gold hard drive lineup to include a 12TB capacity model, designed to address demanding Big Data workloads. The new drives have a reliability rating (2.5 million hours MTBF) that is among the highest in WD’s hard drive portfolio. The drives utilise Western Digital’s 4^th generation HelioSeal technology, which seals helium in the drive to help provide exceptional capacity, reliability and power efficiency. The new WD Gold 12TB hard drives feature a five-year limited warranty, and are available now through select distributors, priced at $521.99.