AVA Publishing has re-published Basics - Photography 01: Composition by David Präkel. The 184-page volume leads the reader, step-by-step, through the essential elements to consider when composing an image, including viewpoint, perspective, symmetry, scale and balance. Illustrated throughout with 200 classic images from the masters of photography and creative work by contemporary practitioners, including Harry Callahan, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Dorothea Lange, Marc Riboud, David Hockney, Martin Parr, Lu Guang, Claire Martin and Claudia Rogge, the book is available for £23.50/$34.50.

onOne Software has released DSLR Camera Remote 1.4.3, an update that allows photographers to remotely fire and control Nikon’s new D800/D800E and D4 dSLR cameras from their iOS devices. “DSLR Camera Remote has been well received by professional and hobbyist photographers, so we are pleased to offer this update and support for these powerful new cameras,” said Craig Keudell, president of onOne Software. DSLR Camera Remote 1.4.3 is a free update to owners of DSLR Camera Remote Free, Professional and HD versions. Note that this update requires both the iOS app and the desktop server application be updated.

Canon today announced its support for the inaugural UK National Photography Month. The company has been particularly involved in supporting the “My School in Focus” competition which runs until November 2012. My School in Focus is an opportunity for secondary schools to get involved in National Photography Month by using photography to engage with key concepts in geography, especially during fieldwork.  The My School in Focus project is part of Colliers Green Focus, an innovative educational programme and photography competition which supports Geography at Key Stage 3 (S1-3 in Scotland).

The UK’s first ever National Photography Month (NPM) – a nationwide initiative that celebrates the importance of photography in our daily lives - has just been launched. “The campaign, based around the theme ‘Capture and Keep’, will provide a range of workshops, tools and ideas that will help the nation create and safeguard better pictures that people are proud to share with future generations,” the organisers say. Furthermore, in celebration of the launch of NPM and to coincide with the Diamond Jubilee, Photo & Digital Specialists Snappy Snaps will invite the public to take a ‘Snap with the Queen-’ The Snappy Snaps photo advisors will hit the streets of London at 30 of the most photographed sights in and around the capital, where they will be on hand to give photography tips and take photos of the public with a range of props including a life-size cardboard cut-out of the Queen, creating fun and memorable photographs. The team will be handing out branded ‘Snap’ cards featuring a QR code link to a uploaded these pictures to Snappy Snaps social media and give participants a chance to win prizes incorporating their photos.

Following the success of last year’s competition, creative software developer Serif has announced it is running another digital photography contest. The 2012 PhotoPlus Competition launches today – in conjunction with National Photography Month – and photography enthusiasts across the world are invited to submit photographs they have captured and improved using Serif’s photo editing software, PhotoPlus. The categories for the competition are: HDR, Action, Nature & Wildlife, Portrait, and Landscape & Architecture. The submission deadline is 31 July 2012. To take part, visit the website below.

The 2013 Sony World Photography Awards, organised by the World Photography Organisation (WPO), are now open for entries. Widely recognised as the leading global photographic awards programme, the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards include a professional competition for serious photographers, an open competition for amateurs and enthusiasts, a Student Focus for higher education photography students aged 18-28, a youth competition for photographers under 20, a 3D Award for anyone using 3D technology in photography or video and a Moving Image Award for those experimenting with film and narrative formats. The submission deadline is 4 January 2013, with the exception of the Professional competition which will close on 9 January 2013.

CENTER has announced the 12th Annual Review Santa Fe, a juried portfolio review event and conference for photographers. Participants travel from all over the world, representing 23 U.S. states and 12 countries including Hungary, Argentina, Norway, South Korea, and Japan, to attend the prestigious event. There are several events free and open to the public surrounding Review Santa Fe including a portfolio review, exhibits and tours as well as a panel dsicussion on photography and its cultural impact. Click through / scroll down for the details.

Tamron has launched a free smartphone app called “Tamron Lenses & How-To”. Available for Android and iOS platforms, the app is designed to be a handy how-to and product reference guide. With much focus on the How-To aspect, this app will be especially useful for photographers who are out in the field shooting and would like a quick tip on how to create a better shot through the many articles and videos tailored to specific situations and photographic environments. “Tamron Lenses & How-To” is available to download from iTunes and Google Play.

Nikon UK has launched a new promotion offering £50/€60 cashback on Nikon 1 J1 and V1 kits purchased before 31st August 2012. All claims must be received by the 30th September 2012 in order to qualify. For more information on the promotion, and how to submit your claim, visit the website below.

The Master Photographers Association (MPA) has announced that it will be accepting submissions from 6th June 2012 to its Master Photography Diamond Jubilee Awards. The Awards are open to all qualified members of the MPA, plus there are also several open categories this year that are available to other professional photographers from the UK and around the world. Additionally, two new categories are launched for this year’s Awards; the Young Photographer Award (Under 16s) which is free to enter, and the Jubilee Award, a category created especially for images of the 2012 ‘Jubilee’ events, which has a reduced fee of £2.50 to mark the special occasion. For other categories, the cost per image/print entry is set at £6, with entries into the Mario Acerboni Creative Wedding Award fixed at £6 per-three prints. The category of ‘Wedding Album’ requires a £12 fee. The submission deadline is 3rd August 2012.

Create Your Own Photo Book by Petra Vogt is a new title from Rocky Nook. Guiding readers through the process of creating a printed and bound collection of photos, this volume covers every step of the process, from selecting a book publishing service all the way through designing and proofing their photo book. You’ll get practical advice on how to work with software provided by services such as Blurb and Picaboo, and will learn about relevant concepts of book design, colour management, and digital printing. Published as an e-book ($16.95) and in printed form ($39.95), Create Your Own Photo Book will be available later this month.

Revolution Mosaic, a free iOS photography app that allows iPhone users from around the world to submit their photos to create a gigantic photo mosaic, is now available to download. “With the Revolution Mosaic app, 360,000 iPhone photos will come together to form 1 iconic image that will symbolize our mobile generation,” says developer Ian Tuason. Once the 360,000 photographs are submitted, one of the photos will be chosen to form the final mosaic image. This image will be chosen based on its depiction of the mobile generation. The final mosaic will then be turned into a 48” by 72” mural poster that can be viewed and purchased through the app, the website, or in commercial art galleries.

Website: Revolution Mosaic on iTunes

Lomography Manchester has been invited by CityCo – Manchester’s city centre management company – to erect a LomoWall to celebrate the start of the 2012 Canal Festival. A LomoWall is an actual physical wall covered in thousands of snap shot-sized analogue photographs. “Close up, visitors will be able to enjoy each photo individually, but when viewed from afar the LomoWall resembles a fascinating mosaic artwork in its own right,” the organisers say. The wall will inhabit a 30 meter by 3 meter space and will be made up of over 14’000 individual photographs. Submission will be accepted until 3 June 2012. For more details, visit the website below.

In addition to the LomoWall Manchester, Lomography UK is also planning to erect an Olympic themed LomoWall at the Museum of London this summer. An actual physical wall covered in thousands of snap shot-sized analogue photographs, the LomoWall will span the Museum of London’s foyer and rotunda. “The LomoWall is likely to be the largest collection of analogue photographs and contributing is a fun way to get into the spirit if the London 2012 Games,” says Linda Scott, Marketing Manager at Lomography UK. “For the display Lomography has photographed over 30 judo, equestrian, archery and tennis Team GB athletes training for the London 2012 Paralympic Games. You can also submit your film-based snapshots until 10 June 2012. For more information, visit the website below.

Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) 7.1, Photoshop Lightroom 4.1 and Adobe DNG Converter 7.1 are now available to download. “Camera Raw 7.1 adds new Defringe controls to help address chromatic aberration,” says Sharad Mangalick, Adobe’s product manager for Lightroom. “Camera Raw can also now read 16-bit, 24-bit, and 32-bit HDR files.” Note that ACR 7.1 is only compatible with Photoshop CS6. Additionally, Lightroom 4.1 is now available as a final release on Adobe.com and through the update mechanism in Lightroom 4.

Lynda.com has released its 500th course on Adobe software. ”With Adobe Creative Suite 6 and Adobe Creative Cloud, we created products that work at lightning-fast speed, deliver new Adobe magic to maximise user creativity as well as a new modern user interfaces in key applications to enhance productivity, and new capabilities for responsive HTML5 experiences for mobile devices,” said Scott Morris, senior director of product marketing at Adobe. “We congratulate lynda.com for their 500th course on Adobe software and applaud their efforts to give users the opportunity to receive quality education on the new CS6 and Creative Cloud capabilities in an easy and accessible format, so soon after their release.”

X-Rite has announced its schedule of June webinars that have been developed to address specific colour management topics. Designed to appeal to both professional and serious amateur photographers, the schedule comprises three webinars including “Beyond Monitor Calibration - Get Prints That Match Your Display!” on the 7th, “Get to Know X-Rite, Wacom, and OnOne Software Part II” on the 14th and “The New i1Photo Pro 2 | A New Standard for Colour Management” on the 20th of June. Click through / read on for the details.

Nikon has issued a firmware update for the Nikon D4 professional DSLR camera. As with the Nikon D800/D800E, firmware version 1.01 resolves an issue that, on rare occasions, caused the camera to lock up; and addresses a couple of bugs related to network functions and Custom Setting F15. You can download the firmware update from the website below.

Website: Nikon D4 Firmware Update 1.01

Nikon has posted a firmware update for the Nikon D800 digital SLR camera. Version B 1.01 resolves an issue that, in some rare cases, caused the camera to “lock up”, i.e. become completely unresponsive to all controls including the power switch (while reviewing the camera, we ran into this issue once - then and there, removing and reinserting the battery solved the problem). Additionally, the firmware update offers a fix for two minor bugs related to I) using the Nikon D800 with the optional WT-4 wireless transmitter and II) shooting in 5:4 crop mode with Active D-Lighting turned on. You can download the firmware upgrade from the website below,

Website: Nikon D800 Firmware Update B 1.01 | Nikon D800E Firmware Update B 1.01