Ocean Leisure Cameras have just launched their website. A new photographic venture of Ocean Leisure, the UK’s premier marine and water sports superstore, Ocean Cameras offers a broad portfolio of underwater photo gear ranging from camera housings to accessories including filters, flashes and lenses. The new website also features a compilation of amazing underwater images and video footage taken on a mixture of compacts and DSLRs.

iStockphoto today announced the first Italian iStockalypse, a five-day photography event. Held from 28 September - 2 October in Milan and surrounding villages, iStockalypse Milan is organised in partnership with Canon. Artists and photographers from the international iStock contributor community will come together to collaborate, share knowledge, and exchange tricks of the stock photography trade. Each day iStock sets the stage for participants to launch into high-end photo-shoots — carefully planning and selecting locations, models, wardrobe and fashion designers, hair and make-up professionals, props, professional equipment and mentorship. Click through / read on for details including a brief shooting schedule.

ACD Ssytems International has released ACDSee Pro 5 and ACDSee 14. ACDSee Pro 5 is billed as the most complete solution for the post-processing of digital photos, with functionality ranging from raw image development to editing features like dodging and burning, split toning and advanced sharpening. The standard version, ACDSee, gains extra features like geotagging support, custom metadata views and the ability to conveniently upload local files using Sync to Web folders in version 14. The company also announced today that its online photo sharing and storage site, ACDSeeOnline.com, is now free. ACDSee 14 is available now for $79.99, while ACDSee Pro 5 costs $239.99.

Ambarella announced availability of the A7L system-on-chip (SoC), enabling the development of a new generation of HD video enabled digital still cameras. The A7L supports full 1080p HD H.264 video at 60 frames per second and can capture up to thirty (!) 16-megapixel still images per second. “The A7L offers a unique combination of outstanding still image quality and full 1080p60 HD video for the next generation of hybrid digital still cameras,” said Fermi Wang, Ambarella CEO. “We believe the chip’s incredibly low power consumption will not only extend battery life but inspire innovation in new camera form factors.”

The Redrock Micro LiveLens MFT is the first active lens mount to allow Canon EF lenses to be used with any Micro Four-Thirds camera body. With the LiveLens MFT’s control touchpad, the EF lens’ aperture can be opened and closed in increments as small as 1/3 stop. The LiveLens MFT works with virtually every EF lens available today, including variable aperture zoom lenses, prime lenses, consumer-level lenses, professional L-series lenses and most third party EF-compatible lenses. Introductory pricing for the LiveLens MFT is $442.50. The adapter can be purchased now at the website below.

Nikon has released Capture NX 2.2.8 for MacOS and Windows. This update adds support for raw image files produced by the new Nikon 1 J1, V1 and Coolpix P7100 cameras. Additionally information for lenses used with the Auto Distortion correction function under Camera & Lens Corrections in the Develop section of the Edit List has been updated. To download Capture NX 2.2.8, visit the website below.

Website: Nikon

Olympus has released a firmware update for the Olympus Tough TG-310 camera. Version 1.1 improves on the exposure compensation algorithm. To update your camera’s firmware, install the Olympus Digital Camera Updater program on a computer with Internet connectivity, connect the camera, and start the program.

The Honestech Film Scan&Save is a 35mm film scanner with a 5-megapixel area-array sensor. Featuring 32 megabytes of internal memory, an SD card slot and a built-in preview screen, the Honestech Film Scan&Save can be used as a standalone device, but can also be hooked up to a computer via USB. The scanner is available at £79.99 from PC World and Amazon.

Sony has issued a service notice to owners of the Sony NEX-5N compact system camera. The company says it has received reports of a “clicking” sound in videos recorded by the NEX-5N, and claims this phenomenon “occurs if the camera undergoes sudden motion while recording”. Sony says it has developed a fix for this problem, and will offer a performance improvement to NEX-5N end users during the period of its limited warranty accompanying the product.

DxO Labs have released their detailed findings on the Sony A77’s 24-megapixel sensor. The overall DxOMark Sensor Score is 78, which is significantly higher than the Canon EOS 7D’s 66 points, and only marginally lower than the Nikon D7000’s 80. The company puts the sensor’s raw dynamic range at 13.2EV (at base sensitivity). The Sony A77’s Low-Light ISO score is 801, which is comparable to the A55’s 818, but lower than the D7000’s 1167.

Website: DxOMark

Having already posted a number of hands-on photos of the Nikon 1 V1 and Nikon 1 J1 cameras and their accessories, it’s now time to share with you our first impressions of the system, based on our limited but intensive use of both cameras and a couple of lenses at the launch event.

The LaCie Little Big Disk Thunderbolt Series is now available for purchase. Featuring a pair of 2.5” drives in a Mac OS RAID configuration, the Little Big Disk delivers read speeds of more than 480MB/s in SSD and up to 190MB/s in HDD. Users can daisy chain several Little Big Disks to maximize the interface’s capabilities and reach transfer rates around 800MB/s in a portable solution.The LaCie Little Big Disk Thunderbolt Series HDD models are available through Apple retail stores worldwide and Apple.com. The SSD model will be shipping this October.

Corbis Images have announced a new online Portfolio that highlights the extensive inventory of its nine signature collections. The Corbis Portfolio collections feature a broad range of commercial, editorial and historical images; including studio portraits of celebrities, realistic and expressive images capturing today’s youth and their everyday experiences, conceptual photography, authentic shots showcasing people in everyday business and lifestyle situations, stock compositions in contemporary, casual and elegant settings,  wildlife images, photographs showing nature’s great wonders, microscopic images and a historical photo album with more than 11 million irreplaceable images of key world events. The new online Portfolio is available at the website below.

PhotoShelter’s Lauren Margolis has posted a fascinating article about the 14 most dangerous locations for photojournalists. Available on the PhotoShelter blog, the article includes a number of short interviews with PhotoShelter members who have worked in Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Colombia, Nepal, Mexico, Russia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Brazil, India and the Philippines. Among the interviewees is American photojournalist Jack Kurtz, who took the above photograph in Nogales, Mexico in 2005. For more great images and insights, head to the PhotoShelter blog where you can read the article in its entirety.

Elgato Video Capture, a popular solution for transferring analogue home video to a computer, is now available for Windows as well as MacOS. The software guides you through every step, from connecting an analogue video source to capturing video as a high quality H.264 file. With just one click, you can add your video to iTunes or to your Windows Media Player library; play back the video on your computer or sync it with your iPad or iPhone; upload your video directly to YouTube; and edit it right away in Windows Live Movie Maker. Elgato Video Capture is available immediately at a price of $99.95.

World Photography Organisation (WPO), an acclaimed London-based initiative that provides a global platform for photography, is coming to New York to engage the city’s vibrant photography community with exhibitions, workshops, and talks led by world renowned practitioners in the photographic field. WPO has partnered with the Chelsea Art Museum who will serve as the host venue for all activities from October 13 through November 12, 2011. The New York events will kick off with an opening night on Thursday, October 13 at 6:00 p.m. featuring the 2011 Sony World Photography Awards Winners’ Exhibition curated by Elisabeth Biondi, former Visuals Editor of the New Yorker and a chair of the Honorary Judging committee of the 2011 awards. Click through / read on for further information on the programme.

WD has just introduced its newest generation of My Passport portable hard drives specifically designed for use with Mac computers and Apple Time Machine. Boasting an all-metal design and offering up to 1TB capacity, the My Passport Studio also provides multiple connectivity options with two FireWire 800 ports and a USB 2.0 interface. The My Passport for Mac, also available in capacities up to 1TB, is designed for Mac users who need high capacity storage in an ultra-compact and lightweight design. WD’s My Passport Studio and My Passport for Mac are available on the WD store at the website below.