Phase One and Profoto today announced that photographers can now link their Profoto studio light to the aperture or ISO settings of their DSLR or medium format camera system. While shooting tethered in Capture One Pro, any changes to the aperture on the camera will cause the light intensity of the studio light to automatically compensate an equivalent f-stop. For example, if the photographer switches from f/8 to f/5.6, the light will drop one f-stop, so that the image is not overexposed. The solution lets photographers easily define which groups of lights should be included in the linking. The Profoto Studio plugin download is available at the website below.

Canon has posted a firmware update for its EOS 650D digital SLR camera. Version 1.0.4 incorporates the following fixes:

1. Fixes the following phenomena which may occur when the camera is used in combination with certain lens models equipped with a stepping motor.
2. Affected lenses: EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM / EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM
3. The camera may freeze in rare instances if you try to shoot with a lens cap attached or meter a subject in  low contrast in Live View (or Movie) shooting.
4. Fine focus adjustment may not be possible in Remote Live View on the EOS Utility software.
5. Fixes a phenomenon in which some SD card products are not recognized by the camera.
6. Corrects some misspellings displayed on the menu screen.

Website: Canon EOS 650D Firmware Version 1.0.4

SIgma UK have teamed up with landscape photographer Lea Tippett and are giving away to one lucky winner a shiny new Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM lens and a two-day photo workshop in Dartmoor National Park. To enter this competition simply email your best landscape photo to [email protected] along with up to 80 words telling Sigma how you would benefit from a 2 day landscape photography workshop. Closing date for entries is 31st July 2013. The winner will be notified by email/phone by Friday 16th August 2013.  This competition is open to adult UK residents only. The workshop will take place on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th September 2013 and accommodation and meals on the nights of Friday 27th and Saturday 28th September will be included

Manfrotto Lighting is expanding the Lastolite RayD8 c5600 Continuous Lighting range. The Lastolite RayD8 c5600 range provides an entry-level studio lighting system for product and portrait photography. Featuring a high output compact fluorescent bulb (equivalent to 400W), this continuous light system offers colour corrected light at 5600 °K. Adding to the existing range of RayD8 c5600 products, Lastolite are now offering the product option of a single light head, extension tube, power cable and reflector (bulb not included) for£139.20.

Manfrotto Lighting has launched the new Lastolite Ezybox II Fabric Grids. The Lastolite Ezybox II Fabric Grids allow photographer to control light spill from a softbox, providig a controlled directional pool of light which can be positioned directly onto the subject without having to worry about light spilling on the background. The Fabric Grids are available in various sizes for the Ezybox II Square, Ezybox II Octa and Ezyboz II Switch. Pricing ranges from £44.10 to £130.00.

Digital Film Tools have released version 1.5 of Film Stocks, a film simulation plugin for Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, After Effects, Premiere Pro, Apple Aperture and Final Cut Pro. "We have been working hard over the last several months to produce a GPU accelerated version of Film Stocks and are finally ready to release it," the company says. "In most cases, you should see dramatic speed increases while rendering." Film Stocks offers users simulations of 288 different colour and black-and-white photographic film stocks, motion picture film stocks, and historical photographic processes. The Film Stocks photo plugin is available now for $95. The Film Stocks video/film plugin sells for $195.

Exposure 5 is now available to purchase. Developed by Alien Skin Software, Exposure 5 enables digital photographers to achieve accurate film simulation, using a wide range of creative effects. “With Exposure 5, a photographer’s vision is the only element separating an ordinary image from an extraordinary one. Creative control and increased productivity were essential design objectives,” said Terence Tay, designer of the new Exposure 5 software. “It’s now much easier and faster for photographers of all levels to find the right look for their photographs.” Exposure 5 is now available for $199.

Nikon has posted firmware updates for all Nikon 1 system cameras plus the GP-N100 GPS unit and the FT1 lens adapter. The camera firmware updates add full support for the Nikon 1 Nikkor 32mm f/1.2 lens, new features for the Playback mode, support for continuous auto focus when an AF-S lens is attached to the camera via the FT1 adapter (when the adapter's firmware is updated to version 1.10). Also, the precision of time synchronization when the GPS Unit GP-N100 is attached to the camera and the Use GPS to set clock option is set to Yes has been increased. Note that the GP-N100's own firmware also needs to be updated to version 1.02. Click through / read on for the details.

Sigma has released firmware updates for the Sigma DP1 Merrill,DP2 Merrill and DP3 Merrill large-sensor digital compact cameras. In addition to fixing bugs, these updates incorporate a number of enhancements and improvements. Click through / scroll down for the complete list.

Epson today launched a series of videos celebrating the black-and-white print. Looking back to the traditional Black-and-White darkroom for inspiration, the new tutorials offer unique insight into the latest digital black-and-white printing workflows for both novice and more experienced photographers. These movie clips are now available on Epson's website.

Olympus has issued firmware updates fora range of cameras that adds support for the new, high-resolution VF-4 electronic viewfinder. Affected models include the Olympus XZ-2, OM-D E-M5, E-P2, E-P3, E-PL1, E-PL2, E-PL3, E-PL5, E-PM1 and E-PM2. If you own one of these cameras, you can update its firmware using the free Digital Camera Updater utility.

Sigma has announced pricing and availability details for its 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art lens. Billed as the first zoom lens ever to achieve a maximum aperture of f1.8 throughout the zoom range, the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM is designed for digital SLR cameras with APS-C size sensors, and offers a focal range equivalent to 27-52.5mm in the 35mm format. The lens will arrive in the United States early July for the street price of $799. The UK RRP will be £799.99 including VAT. This new lens will be available in Canon and Sigma mount in early July with Nikon mount following towards the end of July. Availability for Sony and Pentax mount is to be announced at a later date.

Independent iOS developer Jeffrey Sun has released version 1.6 of his Modern Photo Editor app. "The key differentiating feature of Modern is that it allows users to save their edited photo at three resolution options: 1 Mpx, 3 Mpx, or 8 Mpx (full)," Jeff says. "In addition, every edit is recorded in a history log, and selecting a previous edit will revert the image to that point in time. Undo/Redo buttons facilitate this as well. As a safety measure, the history log is saved to the device's hard drive so that the app can recover in case of a crash." Modern Photo Editor 1.6 is 

The Konstruktor is a new, do-it-yourself film camera from Lomography. Priced at £29, the Lomography Konstruktor takes about 1-2 hours to build. "This innovative, self-crafted SLR camera will reward you with impressively sharp and typically Lomographic shots on regular 35mm film," the company claims. The Konstruktor takes interchangeable optics, and the kit includes a 50mm f/10 lens.

Wilkinson Cameras are opening a brand new flagship store in Liverpool. Taking on the premises of the failed high street retailer, Jessops, the new shop is located at 51 Lord Street, in the heart of the city centre. "The new Wilkinson Cameras store in Liverpool is a great step for us – for a long time we’ve looked at having a presence in the city – and the demise of Jessops has only increased the importance of having an experienced photo retailer in town to support the photographic community," said Wilkinson's managing director David Parkinson (pictured). This latest store opening will mean Wilkinson Cameras takes its number of shops to 10 in the North West – making it the largest independent photo retailer in the region.

Akvis has released a new frame pack for its ArtSuite, with 55 hand-painted designs. "These admirable designs will take you into the world of magic," the company says. The so-called Akvis Fantasy Pack is available for $15. The program itself sells for $69.

LPA Design has announced a major update to its ControlTL formware for the PocketWizard MiniTT1, FlexTT5, PowerMC2 and PowerST4 devices and minor updates for the Plus III and MultiMAX radios. The new ControlTL firmware, available as a free download using the Pocket Wizard Utility, provides compatibility with several new Canon and Nikon cameras, greatly improves the performance of PocketWizard’s exclusive HyperSync feature and resolves bugs in previous versions. The new firmware for the Plus III resolves some minor bugs.  The MultiMAX firmware, which has been available for a while in beta, adds two new features. Do note that PocketWizard Utility version 1.54 or newer is required before installing these updates.

The Samyang 300mm f/6.3 ED UMC CS is a small-size, manual focus, reflex lens for compact system cameras. The optical structure features 9 elements arranged in 6 groups, including one ED-type lens ensuring high contrast and effectively preventing chromatic aberration. Available from July for Sony E, Fujifilm X, MFT and Canon M mounts, the Samyang 300mm f/6.3 ED UMC CS has a suggested retail price of £289.99. In addition, the company has re-announced the Samyang 16mm f/2 ED AS UMC CS lens, which will be offered for £419.99 (or £459.99 for the Nikon version).