Vanguard USA has announced mail-in rebates on two of its series of tripods and camera bags. Consumers who purchase any Alta Pro tripod between May 1, 2012, and June 30, 2012, will receive up to a $50 mail-in rebate—$50 for carbon-fibre models, $25 for aluminium—and those who purchase any The Heralder series messenger style camera bag will receive a rebate of $25. Rebates can be claimed by completing the official rebate form.

Redrock Micro has ultraCage DSLR and ultraBase hand-held support rigs for video-enabled digital SLR cameras. The ultraCage secures the camera body at three points: screws into the camera base, fastens to the top hot shoe and locks the camera in place with the anti-rotation pin. The cage surrounds the camera with 22 mounting holes and adds industry-standard 15mm bottom rails for accessories such as a mattebox, follow focus or lens support. The ultraCage DSLR and ultraBase are shipping starting mid-May, and are available from Redrock itdelf and from authorised Redrock Micro resellers worldwide. ultraBase starts at $299, ultraCage DSLR starts at $595.

Adobe has released the final version of Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) 6.7 for Photoshop CS5 users. This version adds support for 21 new digital cameras, including the Canon EOS 1D X, 5D Mark III, PowerShot G1 X and PowerShot S100V, the Fuji FinePix F505EXR, F605EXR, F770EXR, F775EXR, HS30EXR, HS33EXR and X-S1, the Nikon D4 and D800/D800E, the Olympus E-M5 (pictured), the Pentax K-01, the Samsung NX20, NX210 and NX1000, the Sony Alpha NEX-VG20 and A57. Note that ACR 6.7 is not compatible with versions of Photoshop older than CS5.

Website: Adobe Camera Raw 6.7 for Macintosh
Website: Adobe Camera Raw 6.7 for Windows

The Lomographic Society has launched a range of limited-edition La Sardina film cameras. Wrapped in ten various fabrics, the La Sardina Beach Edition comes in two flavours: the La Sardina St Tropez ships without a flash and is available for £59, whilst the La Sardina Capri comes bundled with a matching flash gun for £99.

The inaugural Eye International Photography Festival will take place from 29th June - 1st July at the Aberystwyth Arts Centre in Aberystwyth, Wales. A department of Aberystwyth University, it is situated at the heart of the University campus with stunning views over the coast of Cardigan Bay. Tickets are £50 per person for the whole weekend, £40 concessions (students, seniors) / Groups of 10 or more, £35/ £30 concessions Day Tickets for Saturday /Sunday. A limited number of self-catering rooms have been reserved in the University Residential blocks and are available at the discounted rate of £24.50 per person.

The winners of the April 2012 Photography Blog Competition have been announced. The theme for April was “Black and Blue” - you can view all of the entries in this gallery. Here are the 5 winners:

1st Place
The blue galaxy by czardases
Prize: X-Rite ColourChecker Passport
Kindly donated by X-Rite
http://www.xritephoto.com/

Verbatim has just launched its new Store ‘n’ Go V3 USB 3.0 Drive. Compatible with both Windows and Mac operating systems, the sleek USB drive works with all USB ports (including USB 2.0/1.1) and comes in storage capacities ranging from 8GB-64GB. Featuring a retractable USB connector, the Verbatim Store ‘n’ Go V3 USB 3.0 drive is fully backed by Verbatim’s Limited Lifetime Warranty and is now available from $19.99 in seven different colours.

The Association of Photographers (AOP) has announced the launch of Exposure 2012, a range of photography related events beginning on 17th May 2012. “Exposure will be taking place in a fantastic exhibition space nestled alongside the Students Awards exhibition and will run on Thursday 17th and Friday 18th May, whilst the Students Awards will run from Wednesday 16th May through to Saturday 19th May,” the organisers say. Hosted by the Hoxton Gallery, 12-18 Hoxton Street, N1 6NG, Exposure 2012 will see some of the most talented speakers in the industry giving talks, demonstrations and workshops on topics as varied as fashion photography, using Hasselblad cameras, self-publishing and disseminating your work online. Click through / scroll down for the detailed schedule.

Boston-based Litl has released version 1.3 of Woven, a free photo viewing app for iOS devices. “Woven weaves together all of a user’s photos,” the developers say. “After users link the app to their online photo-sharing sites, they can effortlessly glide through their photos in a single, consolidated photo album, whether on or offline. A built-in uploader additionally makes photos stored locally on the iPhone itself available for convenient viewing within the app.” Woven 1.3 for iOS is available through the iTunes App Store in the Photo & Video category. The app has also been released for Kindle, Nook and Android devices.

Later this month, Think Tank Photo will be releasing the Airport series, a new line of travel-specific, high-capacity camera backpacks. The three backpacks – the Airport Accelerator, Airport Commuter, and Airport Essentials— integrate quick access pockets for a laptop and tablet, a top pocket for boarding passes, and three robust handles to ensure easy placement and retrieval from overhead bins. The three sizes allow photographers to select the best fit for their needs. The largest of the three, the Airport Accelerator accommodates two pro-size SLRs, 6 to 8 standard zooms, a 500 f/4.0, a tablet, and up to a 17” laptop. The smaller Airport Commuter fits one pro-size SLR, 4-6 zooms, a tablet and a 15” notebook, while the even smaller Airport Essentials accommodates a standard DSLR, 4 to 6 standard zooms, a tablet, and up to a 13” laptop.

XPro Software has posted a release candidate of GeniuX Photo EFX 3. Boasting a 32 bit colour graphics engine, GeniuX Photo EFX 3 ensures smooth tonal gradations with no dithering artifacts, supports a number of camera raw formats as well as PSD files created with Adobe Photoshop, and offers real-time corrections and short processing times. You can download the release candidate free of charge by clicking on the link below.

Renowned photographer Alison Jackson has created a short film, putting her own modern take on iconic British films to encourage entrants to Virgin Media Shorts 2012, the UK’s biggest short film competition. Alison drew inspiration from Hitchcock’s Psycho and The King’s Speech, directing a short film to tell the story behind the process. Commenting on her involvement, Alison Jackson said: “When asked to create a short film to inspire the next generation of film makers, I wanted to juxtapose the old with the new and suggest how they may be interpreted today, fusing my style of work with the techniques of the greats like Hitchcock.” Film makers wishing to take part should upload their films to the website below for the chance to win a Grand Prize of up to £30,000 film funding, as well as mentoring opportunities with some of the UK’s top film experts. The winning films will be announced at an exclusive red carpet awards ceremony in central London, later this year.

DxO Optics Pro v7.2.3 offers support for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III and for the Pentax K-01. 70 DxO Optics Modules for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III and 26 Modules for the Pentax K-01 have been added.

OmegaBrandess Distribution has announced 4 new Lens Guards to fit lenses and hoods from 3 7/8 inches (10 cm) in diameter all the way to 8 1/8 inches (20.5 cm). The four new Lens Guards - the XL, 2XL, Jumbo and Giant - offer the same quality and protection as DeluxGear’s current Lens Guard line. Each is a padded cover that fits snugly over the end of the lens for protection. The shock-resistant inner core is made of 0.25” (6mm) thick closed-cell neoprene and is encased in a tough 0.08” (2mm) Santoprene outer cover.  Suggested list prices are $34.99 for the XL, $54.99 for the 2XL, $69.99 for the Jumbo, and $74.99 for the Giant.

Hasselblad has issued the call for entries for the next Masters Awards competition. “We’ve made some adjustments to the 2014 Masters Awards competition, which will allow more photographers to participate,” says Paul Waterworth, Hasselblad Global Photographer Relations Manager. “Since many photographers are using both medium format and 35mm-type DSLRs, image entries may be captured with either format - as well as film,” explains Waterworth, adding that DSLRs must have a minimum resolution of 16 megapixels. Other modifications include the addition of an underwater category for images captured using a professional housing and the transition of the Up & Coming category to Project//21. The latter is open to amateurs, students, assistants and young professionals who are 21 years old or younger. The deadline for entries is 31st August 2012.

Benro has just announced its A100EXU Compact Digital Travel Tripod Kit. Slightly shorter than the existing Benro A150EX Aluminum Digital Tripod, this new kit conveniently fits in virtually all 16” wide bags. It only weighs 1.9 lbs, but extends to 40,7” and can easily support cameras up to 4.4 lbs. Its reversible centre column also splits to permit shooting at 7.5”. Outfitted with a precision matched ball head, the Benro A100EXU is available for $66.

Akvis has released updates to three of its programs, including Akvis Enhancer, Noise Buster and Refocus. The new Akvis Enhancer 13.5, Akvis Noise Buster 8.5 and Akvis Refocus 2.0 incorporate a number of bug fixes, and add compatibility with the upcoming Adobe Photoshop CS6 and Photoshop Elements 11. Registered users of Enhancer v.10-13, Noise Buster v.1-8, Refocus v.1-1.5 can upgrade to the newest versions for free.