Akvis has released version 3.5 of Refocus, a program for improving the sharpness of out of focus images and adding lens blur effects to your photos. Version 3.5 offers an advanced algorithm with improved image processing speed for the program's "Tilt-Shift" (miniature) and Iris Blur modes. The improvement is especially noticeable when using the larger values of the Blur parameter, the company says. Registered users of Refocus can upgrade to version 3.5 for free by downloading and installing the new version.

Unified Color has announced the call for entries for its latest HDR imaging contest. To enter, participants choose their favorite HDR image(s) and resize them to 72 ppi with a width no wider than 900 pixels and email the entries to Unified Color at [email protected] The contest will last for 43 days, and submissions can be made until midnight on Tuesday, June 18th. The body of the entry email must state “I have read and accept the contest rules” and include the entrant’s name, email, and phone number.  The entry must have been edited in HDR Expose 2, HDR Express 2 or 32 Float v2 at some point in its creation. The winners will be announced on the company website and blog on June 12th. As always we suggest that you read the rules before entering your work.

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based photographer Derek Schoffstall has started a petition urging Adobe to "restart development for Adobe Creative Suite 7," following the company's announcement that it had "no plans for future releases of Creative Suite or other CS products." Adobe has already decided that the newest iteration of Photoshop - called Adobe Photoshop CC - will be available exclusively to Creative Cloud members (although it did add that "Creative Suite 6 products will continue to be supported and available for purchase"). The petition, which has already been signed by more than 1500 photographers from around the world, argues that customers ought to "have a choice between either CC or the creative suite."

Fuji has issued a firmware update for the Fujifilm Finepix HS50EXR super-zoom camera. According to the company, Version 1.01 incorporates the following enhancements:

1. "Operability with Eye-Fi card is improved."
2. "Disconnection of objects shown in Motion Panorama images by vertical direction shooting is improved."

Website: Fujifilm Finepix HS50EXR Firmware Update

PhotoStitcher is a new easy-to-use tool for the combining of multiple overlapping pictures into a single ideally fitting panoramic image. Recently released by TeoreX. PhotoStitcher automatically addresses the entire scope of technical issues that can hinder the creation of stitched panoramics, including the proper alignment of images, distortion compensation and varying perspective. The program supports creation of horizontal, vertical and combined panoramic photos without any user input. PhotoStitcher is available for Windows XP or higher and for Mac OS X 10.6 or higher, priced at $19.99.

Adobe has unveiled the latest version of Photoshop, now dubbed "Adobe Photoshop CC." Adobe’s desktop apps, including Photoshop, were previously known as Creative Suite (CS), and will now be branded CC to reflect that they are an integral part of Creative Cloud. New features in Adobe Photoshop CC include a range of new tools offering "the most advanced deblurring and sharpening technologies to date," including Camera Shake Reduction and a reinvented Smart Sharpen tool, intelligent upsampling, Adobe Camera Raw 8, advanced 3D image editing capabilities, and much more. Adobe Photoshop CC will be available exclusively to Adobe Creative Cloud members, beginning June 2013. Creative Cloud membership for individuals is £38.12 (ex-VAT) per month based on annual membership; existing customers who own CS3 to CS5.5 get their first year of Creative Cloud at the discounted rate of £22.22 (ex-VAT) per month. Students and teachers can get Creative Cloud for £22.22 (ex-VAT) per month.

At Adobe MAX, Adobe announced a significant update to its Creative Cloud service. From June, Adobe Creative Cloud will be expanded with a set of CC desktop applications -- including Photoshop CC, InDesign CC, Illustrator CC, Dreamweaver CC and Premiere Pro CC -- and sophisticated cross-device collaboration and publishing capabilities. Adobe’s desktop tools, previously known as Creative Suite (CS), are now branded CC to reflect that they are an integral part of Creative Cloud and have been "reinvented to support a more intuitive, connected way of creating," the company says.

Adobe has no plans for future releases of Creative Suite or other CS products, the company has said in a statement. While Adobe Creative Suite 6 products will continue to be supported and available for purchase, Adobe says it will focus creative software development efforts on its Creative Cloud offering moving forward. “We launched Creative Cloud a year ago and it has been a runaway success,” said David Wadhwani, senior vice president and general manager, Digital Media, Adobe. “By focusing our energy -- and our talented engineers -- on Creative Cloud, we’re able to put innovation in our members’ hands at a much faster pace.” The company has already announced that the newest iteration of Photoshop - called Adobe Photoshop CC - will be available exclusively to Creative Cloud members.

The Photographic Museum of Humanity has announced a new online exhibition entitled “Around the War.” Featuring the works of Rodrigo Abd (2013 Pulitzer Prize winner), Fabio Bucciarelli (2013 Robert Capa Gold Medal winner) and Alessio Romenzi (2013 World Press Photo winner) among others, Around the War is an "intimate and social view" on the effects of war, depicted without a hint of the explicitness typical of conflict zone photography. The exhibition consists of five online galleries, which will be accessible until 9 June 2013 at the website below.

The second edition of the New Wave Photography exhibition was shown 19 - 27 April at the Crypt Gallery in London. The exhibition presented over fifty works by photographers from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, attracting a large number of visitors, including Londoners and tourists, art enthusiasts, collectors, businessmen and students. Over 2,000 people have seen the show, many of whom have left with a piece by their favourite artist. The photographers whose works were on display included five Hungarians (Réka Kóti, Sarolta Bán, Benedek Bognár, Zoltán Békefy and Miroslav Zselinsky), three Polish artists (Maciej Boksa, Przemysław Kuciński and Pawel Piotrowski), three Czechs (Martin Hruška, Lucie Jestrabikova and Karel Vojkovský) and Veronika Otepková from Slovakia.

Fuji has released a firmware update for the Fujifilm FinePix F900EXR digital compact camera. According to the company, version 1.01 incorporates the following fixes:

1. "The phenomenon is fixed that the brightness of objects in live view could change momentarily during repeating zoom-in and zoom-out."
2. "Disconnection of objects shown in Motion Panorama images taken in the vertical direction is improved."

Website: Fujifilm FinePix F900EXR Firmware Update Ver.1.01

Tenba has introduced a new bag to their popular Roadie collection. The Roadie Executive Backpack was designed to be the ultimate briefcase backpack for the traveling professional. Built with three cascading storage sections: first for laptop, notebook and documents; second for tech accessories; and third for core business tools like pens and business cards; the Tenba Roadie Executive Backpack was built for the person who occasionally spends days on the road, and the only bag they will have with them most days is their briefcase backpack. The exterior of the new Roadie Executive Backpack is made from water-repellant 1680 denier black ballistic nylon, and includes matte black YKK zippers with molded zipper pulls. There is a padded and ventilated shoulder harness at the rear, along with a built-in trolley strap to slide over the extending handle of rolling luggage, and a padded, reinforced handle at the top that is comfortable to carry even when the bag is fully loaded. The interior is made with ripstop nylon, with zippered window mesh pockets to carry loose items, and neoprene pockets for gadgets and larger accessories. The Roadie Executive Backpack is available immediately at a suggested retail price of $169.95.

Vanguard scooped up two accolades at this year's TIPA awards ceremony. The Technical Image Press Association's 'Best Tripod 2013' award went to the Vanguard Abeo Pro 283CGH tripod - which also received a Red Dot Design Award recently -, while the Quovio 41 shoulder bag (pictured) was named 2013's 'Best Photo Bag.' These are the seventh and eighth TIPA awards presented to Vanguard in the course of the last five years.

The Ilford Galerie Prestige Gold Mono Silk inkjet photo paper has won a TIPA award. Named 2013's 'Best Inkjet Photo Paper' by the judging panel of the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA), and available in various sheet and roll dimensions; the Ilford Galerie Prestige Gold Mono Silk is a 270gsm paper that is fully compatible with both pigment and dye-based printers. In addition to recognition by the TIPA, it has already picked up a Photokina Star Award on its debut in Germany and more recently a Digital Camera Grand Prix Gold Award from Japan.

The Olympus E-PL5 PEN Lite has just received a TIPA award in the Entry-Level Compact System Camera category. The jury of the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) praised the camera's in-body image stabilisation, tiltable 3-inch touchscreen, 8fps burst mode, full range of manual controls, Full HD movie recording capability and speedy AF system. The E-PL5 follows in the footsteps of its predecessor the Olympus E-PL3 PEN Lite, which won the same category last year.

Pentax Ricoh UK has just launched a cashback promotion across its range of digital SLRs, mirrorless and compact cameras. The cashback campaign will run from 4 May – 27 July 2013. Click through / scroll down for the list of eligible products and the amount of cashback you can claim on your purchases.

The Sony Handycam HDR-GW66VE is a waterproof Full HD pocket camcorder that’s ready for anything life throws your way. Waterproof to a depth of 10 metres, the slim new Handycam HDR-GW66VE also shrugs off dust, dirt, freezing temperatures (to -10 °C) and accidental knocks or drops (from heights of up to 1.5m). Other highlights include a 30-298mm (eq.) f/1.8-3.4 lens bearing the prestigious 'G' designation, Optical SteadyShot image stabilisation with Active Mode and a 3" LCD screen with a resolution of 460,000 dots. The Handycam HDR-GW66VE Full HD pocket camcorder by Sony will be available in the UK from June 2013. Pricing to be confirmed.

The New Forest National Park Authority has teamed up with the New Forest Centre in Lyndhurst to launch a joint open art competition. If you are a budding artist, photographer or craftsperson who takes inspiration from the New Forest, the organisers would like to hear from you. The competition is sponsored by ExxonMobil at the Fawley Refinery and local magazine Park Culture. The overall winner will receive £500, the second-prize winner will be awarded with a cash prize of £300, while the third-place winner and the People's Prize awardee wins £100 each, with the latter also receiving a feature in Park Culture magazine. The submission dates are 5 and 6 July 2013. Do note that there is a fee of £5 - or £3 for full-time students - per piece of artwork. To download the application form, visit the website below.