Schneider-Kreuznach, best known for its photographic lenses, has joined the Micro Four Thirds System Standard Group. “This standard has great potential. It simplifies and improves the options for compact digital cameras and offers an excellent opportunity for the industry as a whole, as well as for us as a lens manufacturer. We are working intensively on a corresponding series of lenses,” commented Dr. Josef Staub, CEO of the Schneider Group. There’s no further details yet on what the first Schneider-Kreuznach branded Micro Four Thirds lenses will be, or when they will be released.

Phototraining.co offers a new breed of real-world photography courses. Award-winning pros Adam Duckworth and John Owen Prices present informal, easy-to-follow courses without the jargon. Prices start at £99, and courses kick off on February 25 in London with a Dramatic Lighting course.

American Girl is an exhibition featuring the work of three American photographers who have turned their focus on female subjects from their homeland. Running from 17 February - 27 February 2011 at the Viewfinder Photography Gallery in Brixton, London, American Girl subverts the notion of the classic female nude, showing us the inner struggle women face in achieving beauty and perfection. The exhibition is free.

Far Too Close is a new book by Martina Hoogland Ivanow which meditates on the closeness to a subject and remoteness from a place. Martina Hoogland Ivanow interweaves family portraits and interiors of home with landscapes of some of the most remote and far flung locations at the very ends of the Earth. Far Too Close costs £29.00 / €34.00 / $46.00 and is available in March 2011.

Zoner Photo Studio is now available in German, French, Italian and Russian, in addition to the existing English and Czech versions. “This wide availability enables our customers to work natively in their language,” says Managing Director Pavel Minar. Zoner Photo Studio 13 brings a significant increase in speed versus the previous version of the software, and includes an improved catalogue.

MoviePlus X5, an easy-to-use video editor from Serif, will be launched on Monday. Compatible with Windows 7/Vista/XP, the program offers 200+ video and audio effects, and users can burn their finished films onto DVDs and Blu-ray disks. The latest version provides adanced support for HD videos, an improved user interface and a range of usability enhancements, new tools and effects. Compatible with Windows 7/Vista/XP, MoviePlus X5 retails at £59.99.

JPM (Jumper Photo Magazine) is a new iPad digital magazine for professional photographers. Edited by a small team in Italy, JPM is a bilingual publication containing articles in English and Italian. The written content is complemented by animations and videos. The first issue features an exclusive interview with Michael Ryan, an essay about the evolution of microstock agencies, and much more. Jumper Photo Magazine is available on iTunes for $2.99/€2.39.

proDAD has released Adorage Effects Package 12 – Worldwide Effects. First Introduced in 1999, Adorage has been a favourite among ambitious hobby editors for digital video editing. The new Adorage Effects Package 12 delivers 2,000 new effects and transitions in HD-quality specifically to enhance travel videos. Combining sights from all over the globe with skylines of many large cities and many universally applicable effects, this new 64-bit version complements its predecessor “HD Global Travel & Flags FX”. Priced at $99, Adorage Effects Package 12 is available for immediate purchase.

Website: proDAD

Photo Synesi is a new online service, which connects amateur photographers with professionals. Aspiring new talents can receive individualised feedback on their work from veteran pros including Bobbi Lane, Juan Pons, Bob KRist, Eli Reed and Martha Rial. An elegant and efficient interface allows customers to select a professional reviewer and have their pictures critiqued. Likewise, professionals have a single place to review images and provide critical feedback on the work of students, for example. The service offers three levels of review, from an introductory quick review of ten images, to an extensive 100-image portfolio assessment. Customers can obtain multiple reviews from a single photographer, or instead choose to submit images to multiple professionals to find consistent strengths and weaknesses in their work.

Website: Photo Synesi

Kenko are showcasing an interchangeable lens compact camera system based around the C-mount standard. Originally designed for movie camera lenses, the C-mount measures 1 inch in diameter. Mockups of no less than 14 lenses and a camera body are currently on display at the Tokyo International Gift Show in Japan (Kenko’s stand pictured above). The Kenko C-Mount Camera System will be priced at around 30,000 Yen with release in Japan planned for Summer 2011.

Website: Kenko-Tokina

The JVC GC-PX1 is a new digital camera that can shoot at 60 frames per second. Launching in Japan at the end of this month, the JVC PX1 has a 10x 38.5-385mm Konica Minolta lens, 10 megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor, a tilting, touchscreen 3 inch LCD, full 1080p HD video, over 6Gb of internal memory, ISO 6400 and full manual controls. Initial production is limited to 1,000 units per month, suggesting that the JVC GC-PX1 will, initially at least, only be available in Japan.

The new Hasselblad USA Webstore provides fast turn-around times and a simple and straight forward buying experience for Hasselblad photography solutions and support. “After hearing feedback from the photography community, we came up with the webstore initiative in order to provide photographers with the best products, services, and support,” said Tom Olesen, President, Hasselblad USA. Visit the new Hasselblad USA Webstore at www.hasselbladusastore.com .

Photo Synesi connects aspiring photographers with professional photographers to get personalized feedback on their images. The service offers three levels of review, from an introductory quick review of ten images, to an extensive 100-image portfolio assessment.

Voting is now open for the Hasselblad Masters 2010 competition. For the second year in a row, the public is encouraged to vote for their favourite image from the 110 finalists. The images will be online from February 1 through October 31, 2011. Eleven winners will be chosen, one from each category, and will be provided with high-end Hasselblad equipment and software to work on their Masters project.

Harrys Filters is a free Photoshop-compatible plugin offering 69 image effects. Harrys Filters 4 includes a 64-bit version, which can be used in Photoshop CS4/CS5 and Photoline. The window of Harrys Filters uses visual styles and is finally resizable, which means you can make the effect preview as large as you want. Six effects received speed improvements which range from 1.25 to 2.5 times faster.

VintageScene is an award winning retro photography app for iOS devices. Featuring over 60 built in presets, users can easily take total control over the age, fade, distress, weathering, and tint of their photos, creating an infinite number of combinations. VintageScene 2.21 is now available on the iTunes store for the iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

Camera Bits has announced a special promotion to celebrate its 15th anniversary. The company is now offering single-user licences for Photo Mechanic 4.6 at a deeply discounted price of $60. The anniversary pricing is for a limited time only, and does not include the standard one-year free upgrade period that is offered for new or upgrade licences.

Review: Photo Mechanic

The MPA Wedding & Portrait Awards, formerly known as the Kodak Wedding & Portrait Awards, are now sponsored by Fujifilm. The Awards are open to all professional photographers in the UK and Republic of Ireland and you don’t need to be a member of the MPA (Master Photographers Association) to submit entries. There are two categories - Wedding Photography and Portrait Photography - and the winner of each wins £1000 cash prize. Note that all entries must now be submitted on Fujifilm paper and if the image is originated on film, it must be Fujifilm stock. There will be two rounds of judging, one in May and one in September. The closing dates are 3 May and 30 August 2011. Photographs must have been taken between 29 August 2010 and 29 August 2011 to be eligible.

Website: MPA Wedding & Portrait Awards

Exploring North American Landscapes is a new title from Rocky Nook. Author Marc Muench, a third generation landscape photographer, tells his readers his stories as well as those of his father and grandfather, discusses the technical aspects of landscape photography, and shares his own stunning images of various iconic locations throughout North America. The 228-page volume sells for $39.95.