As the exclusive distributor for Phottix products in the United States, OmegaBrandess has launched a portrait / battery grip for the Nikon D600 digital SLR camera. Accommodating one EN-EL15 or six AA size batteries to offer double-length shooting time, the Phottix BG-D600 Premium Series Vertical Grip/Battery Holder is equipped with a vertical-grip shutter button, dual control dials, multi-function controller and an AE-L/AF-L button for convenient shooting with the camera in portrait orientation. The Phottix BG-D600 carries an MSRP of $139.99.

As the exclusive distributor for Phottix products in the United States, OmegaBrandess has launched the magnesium-alloy Phottix BG-800M multi-funcion battery grip for the Nikon D800 digital SLR camera. Capable of holding one EN-EL15 or eight AA size batteries to offer double-length shooting time, the Phottix BG-800M is equipped with a vertical-grip shutter button, dual control dials, multi-function controller and an AF-ON button. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price for the BG-D800M Multi Function Battery Grip is $199.99.

X-Rite has updated its i1Profiler colour management software to include scanner profiling. Additionally, version 1.4 adds compatibility with MacOS X 10.8x (with the latest updates installed) and Windows 8 32 or 64 bit (with the latest service pack installed), and several other improvements. i1Profiler 1.4 is available for immediate download from the xrite.com and xritephoto.com websites. Current i1Profiler users will receive this software update for free. Those who have the auto-update option activated will automatically receive the update next time they launch the software.

Olympus has scooped up tow iF product design awards - one for the Olympus Stylus XZ-2 premium compact (pictured) and one for the Olympus OM-D E-M5 compact system camera. Established in 1953, and sponsored throughout by the International Forum Design GmbH of Hanover Germany, the iF product design award is recognised all over the world as a symbol of outstanding design and innovation. This year, the jury picked the winners from 3011 products in 16 categories.

Review: Read our in-depth review of the Olympus Stylus XZ-2
Review: Read our in-depth review of the Olympus OM-D E-M5

Our sixth award is for Compact System Camera of the Year 2012, which goes to the Olympus OM-D E-M5.

“The OM-D E-M5 is the best Olympus compact system camera to date, and also a strong contender for best compact system camera full stop. It delivers a compelling mix of classic looks, excellent image quality, an extensive feature set and immediate responsiveness, with the camera so well designed that it rarely gets in the way of the creative process. The E-M5 may hark back to a bygone era, but it’s definitely bang-up-to-date in all the places that count.”

Read the Full Review

Congratulations to Olympus and the OM-D E-M5!

Mounting between a mirrorless camera and an SLR lens, the Speed Booster adapter from Metabones and Caldwell Photographic increases maximum aperture by a full stop (hence its name) and has a focal length multiplier of 0.71x. This essentially means that full-frame SLR lenses can be used on a compact system camera with an APS-C sized sensor with (almost) the same angle-of-view coverage as originally designed. For example, a 28mm lens becomes a 19.9mm with the Speed Booster - if you then mount it on a camera with a 1.5x “crop factor” you’ll end up with a 29.8mm equivalent solution. The first Speed Booster enables users to mount Canon EF lenses to Sony NEX bodies, with auto-aperture, image stablisation, EXIF and (slow) autofocus support for post-2006 Canon-brand lenses. It will be available in later this month from Metabones’ website and its worldwide dealer network for $599 plus shipping and applicable taxes and duties.

Photo Restoration and Retouching Using Corel PaintShop Pro X5, by Robert Correll is a new title from Course Technology PTR.  This completely new edition is a comprehensive guide to using the latest version of Paintshop Pro to improve your photographs. The 384-page paperbackincludes tips on solving color problems, removing specks and dust, retouching people, and more. Available from Amazon, the book retails for $44.99.

Sigma has announced a new promotion enabling anyone who purchases the Sigma 150-500mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM telephoto zoom lens to claim £50 cashback. This is a short-term offer running until 28th February and valid on lenses imported by Sigma Imaging UK only. You can download the application form from the Sigma website.

X-Rite’s redesigned i1Pro 2 spectrophotometer has received the 2013 iF Product Design Award. This device can be found in X-Rite’s i1Basic Pro 2, i1Photo Pro 2, and i1Publish Pro 2 products. “X-Rite is honored to be selected for this coveted iF product design award for our thoughtfully redesigned i1Pro 2 spectrophotometer,” said Frank Maeder, X-Rite Product Manager, i1 Solutions. “Recognized for its high quality design, the i1Pro 2 device helps deliver to color professionals around the world the workflow tools they need that incorporate ever important emerging color standards. Our highly talented product designers Guido Franzke and Detlef Fischer from formmodul have truly proven that they delivered world class industrial design with the i1Pro 2.”

The Lomography Smartphone Film Scanner offers a convenient option to digitise your 35mm film shots using your smartphone. Small and portable, the Lomography Smartphone Film Scanner comprises a light source, a simple manual film advance mechanism, a rectangular tube and an adjustable smartphone holder. Users can digitise their transparencies or negatives simply by turning on the back-light, positioning the film and taking a photo with their phone. Though obviously limited by the capabilities of the camera module built into your phone, the Lomograph Smartphone Film Scanner provides an easy and efficient way to “scan” and share your analogue pictures. The Lomoscanner app, available for Android and iOS, will allow users to convert negative scans into positives, stitch together scans into seamless panoramas and animate 35mm analogue movies shot using the Lomography LomoKino camera. The device is currently exclusively available on Kickstarter with expected delivery in March.

Phase One has released Capture One Pro 7.0.2 Available now, this update adds preliminary support for raw files generated by the Fujifilm X-Pro1, Fujifilm XE-1, Fujifilm XF1, Canon EOS 6D, Canon EOS M, Sony SLT-A57, Sony NEX-5R, Olympus XZ-2 iHS, Canon 1D X and 5D mark III (sRAW and mRAW); and incorporates a number of bug fixes and minor improvements.

Our fifth award is for Compact Camera of the Year 2012, which goes to the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100.

“Sony have not only blurred the lines between compact and compact system in terms of the RX100’s features, performance and image quality, but somewhat inevitably perhaps also in terms of its price. $650/£550 is more than many mirrorless cameras and even some DSLRs too, but on the other hand this is no humble compact. The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100 is the first truly pocketable camera to offer a DSLR experience, and in that regard it could almost be seen as something of a bargain - it’s certainly deserving of our highest Essential! accolade.”

Read the Full Review

Congratulations to Sony and the Cyber-shot DSC-RX100!

The Samsung WB2100 is a 16.3-megapixel bridge camera with 35x optical zoom. Featuring an optically stabilised 25-875mm equivalent superzoom lens with a maximum aperture of f/3.0 at the wide end and f/6.0 at full telephoto, the Samsung WB2100 is capable of recording moving pictures in full 1920 x 1080 / 60i resolution, in addition to capturing sixteen-megapixel stills. Other highlights include a sweep panorama mode, a 3-inch tilting screen and automatic scene recognition. Pricing to be confirmed.

Talenthouse has announced a new Creative Challenge for photographers. City Academy, a London-based performing and creative arts academy, is inviting aspiring photographers to submit their best images portraying the creative arts. One winner will be selected by the team at City Academy and will receive £500 along with a year’s worth of courses. They will also gain exposure on the academy’s website, blog and Facebook page. The deadline for entries is 5 February 2013.

Website: Talenthouse

Internationally renowned photographer Steve Bloom is set to visit seven regional venues across England and Wales between January and March as part of the Royal Geographical Society (with The Institute of British Geographers)’s regional theatres programme. In his talk, ‘Living Africa’, Steve will set out the challenges faced by Africa’s people and environment in the 21st century and in the bi-centenary year of explorer David Livingstone’s birth. The tour will call at theatres and art venues in Brecon, Darlington, Keswick, King’s Lynn, Southampton, Stamford and Taunton. Click through / scroll down for the detailed programme schedule.

BrainDistrict has released version 1.5 of its photo editor, PaintSupreme. The program features the seamless integration of filters and effects created in BrainDistrict’s IFX-Supreme product.  With v1.5, users can load new filters and effects created in IFX-Supreme directly into PaintSupreme and immediately drag-and-drop them onto their photos. Additionally, the editor has become significantly faster. Much of the increased speed comes from improvements in the way transformations such as rotation and scaling are done. Users will see faster performance when operating on an entire layer or on a selected area. PaintSupreme v1.5 is available from the Mac App Store at the special introductory price of $9.99 (regular price $19.99). Current registered users of PaintSupreme can download the new version for free at BrainDistrict.com.

The Rollei Powerflex 240 HD is a compact superzoom camera with a 16-megapixel sensor and 24x optical zoom. Featuring a 25-600mm equivalent f/3.0-6.9 lens with optical image stabilisation, the Rolle Powerflex 240 HD comes equipped with a 1/2.3” CCD made by Sony. In addition to capturing high-resolution stills, the camera can also record high-definition video clips at a resolution of 1280x720 pixels and 30fps. The Rollei Powerflex 240 HD will go on sale in mid-January at a recommended retail price of $149.95.

Giotto’s has launched a brand new range of tripods featuring a totally unique, patented design. The Giotto’s Silk Road YTL Series replaces the entire range of Giotto’s MTL tripods and comes with a new Y-shaped centre column (see cross-section above) allowing legs to be stowed in a much more compact fashion. The new Y-Tube column allows a 30% space saving versus the MTL range – while maintaining full strength, stability and weight capacity, the company claims. The Silk Road Series includes a range of tripods, which support up to 5kg, 8kg and 10kg of camera equipment. The new range also features graduated leg markings and new, patented Quick Easy Leg Lock adjustments for fast, accurate adjustment without taking your eye off the subject. On the models with 2 way centre column, there’s also a bubble spirit level built in and all models feature a swappable tripod thread. The aluminium models start at £100, while the carbon fibre versions are available from £220.