Cameras Underwater has announced a new underwater housing for the Sony NEX-5 compact system camera. Depth rated to 300ft/90m, the Aquatica AN-5 housing has an anodised shell, powder coated to a smooth finish that will resist years of extensive use, the company says. All controls are double sealed and every shaft and push button has been manufactured to a mirror smooth. A quick access lever serves to bring the internal flash up and down for easy switching between strobe and ambient light photography. The Aquatica AN-5 waterproof housing is available to order now from Cameras Underwater. Price to be confirmed.

Nikon has announced the launch of the new Nikon Professional Services (NPS) global website. The NPS Global site has been developed to serve as a portal that distributes the latest information to assist NPS members working globally in their photographic activities, the company says. Among other things, it provides: links to regional NPS sites to find out about practical local information, local service facility list for photographers to visit when they face with equipment problems while they are on overseas assignment, and world-wide NPS service depot information.

Website: Nikon Professional Services

Akvis has released version 1.5 of Akvis Nature Art. Described by its developers as “an excellent tool for imitating the magnificence of natural phenomena”, AKVIS NatureArt lets photographers choose from six nature effects including rain, water, lightning, clouds, fire and Sun. Version 1.5 introduces the option of changing the colour of lightning bolts and coluds in the Lightning and Colours effects, respectively, and adds new languages to the program’s interface. The software is now available in seven languages including English, French, German, Russian, Italian, Portugese and Japanese. Available as a standalone program or as a plug-in to an image editor, Akvis NatureArt costs €55 / $72, with version 1.5 being a free update to existing users.

Apple has just released an update to Snow Leopard, which adds system-level raw support for ten new digital cameras. The additional cameras supported by MacOS X 10.6.5 include the Canon EOS 60D, Powershot S95, Hasselblad H4D-40, Nikon D3100, Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5, Sony DSLR-A290, A560, A580, A33 (pictured) and A55.

Website: Apple

On Monday 22 November, join Uzair Kharawala of SF Digital for a talk about photographing weddings in extreme conditions, from shooting at the world-famous ICEHOTEL in Sweden at -30° C to photographing in Borneo, Malaysia in temperatures over 30° C. Participants will learn about using Aperture 3 for a complete workflow, sorting through images to find the keepers, batch processing and more. The event will take place in the Apple Store at 235 Regent Street, London, starting at 7pm.

Recommended Reading: How to Take Photos in Extreme Cold by Uzair Kharawala

The new AutoStitch 3.1 brings significant improvements in panoramic photography to users of the iPhone 4 and the new iPod touch 4G. While AutoStitch has already been widely used on these new devices, Version 3.1 introduces some important new features, including multi-tasking to complete a stitsch while a user runs other apps, improved Facebook uploads and the option of entering a caption directly from the app. Many other small interface improvements and bug fixes are included. AutoStitch 3.1 is $2.99 and available through the App Store.

Application Gap has announced that its product, Easy Release 1.8 for iOS, is the first application approved by Getty Images, Inc for creating digital model and property releases. Getty announced its approval on 9th November via its creative contributor website. Note that Getty has only approved Easy Release for iOS version 1.8.100814 (the current version available in Apple’s App Store). Robert Giroux, founder of ApplicationGap, says “Since its release in March 2010, Easy Release has gained wide and enthusiastic acceptance from professional photographers.  While many stock agencies have for months been accepting model and property releases created with Easy Release, approval by Getty Images means far more professionals will be able to take advantage of our application to save time and money.”

Today marks the UK launch of the Sony Bloggie Touch Full HD pocket camcorder. The new Bloggie Touch has a 3-inch capacitive touch screen that automatically adjusts for vertical or horizontal shooting and viewing, enabling its users to shoot video right-handed, left-handed, right-side-up or even upside-down. Equipped with an f/2.8 wide-angle lens, 8GB of memory and a sensitive Exmor CMOS sensor, the Bloggie Touch has SteadyShot image stabilisation for smoother footage and a built-in USB arm for easy charging and uploading to a computer.

MediaPad Pro is a new app for the Apple iPad which, accordig to its developers, will “revolutionise” the presentation of professional portfolios. The app comes equipped with features such as a fully customisable interface, offering instant access to showcase a selection of work and even edit presentations on the spot. MediaPad Pro is available now on iTunes for $14.99.

The five winning young photographers of a global photography competition run by the World Photography Organisation and UNICEF have just returned from Ethiopia following a week of unique workshops. The five youngsters - aged 16-19 and from Brazil, Morocco, New Zealand, Romania and the United States - took part in the Eye See workshop themed around children’s rights alongside local Ethiopian children and was led by acclaimed photography and humanitarian Reza. The five young photographers were among thousands of young people from around the world who submitted photographs to a competition launched last year by David Beckham and Ewan McGregor asking for images that highlighted one of the five fundamental rights of a child.

The Lomographic Society has released three new members of the Diana camera family. The three new clones of the Diana Mini include a pink, a white and a black version. These 35mm “toy” cameras can shoot two different frame sizes including 24x24mm square and 18x24mm half-frame, and the photographer can switch from one to the other even mid-roll. The Diana Mini White is available at a price of £55 / €60 / $70, whereas the Diana Mini En Rose (pink) and Petite Noir (black) retail for £99 / €100 / €110.

Samsung has announced the release of the music video for indie band OK Go’s latest song, “Last Leaf”, filmed using the Samsung NX100 compact system camera. The “Last Leaf” video was made using thousands of photographs taken with the Samsung NX100, woven together to create a stop motion animation clip. The images were combined with hand-drawn animations created by the band, along with award-winning animator Geoff McFettridge. “Samsung’s been great because we had a creative idea and they had the tools to help us make it,” said Damian Kulash, lead singer of OK Go.

Website: Last Leaf

The Broadway show ‘Time Stands Still’, which follows a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent trying to find happiness in a world that seems to have gone crazy, is running a talk back series. The next event in the series will take place on 16th November at the Cort Theatre, 138 West 48th St, New York. Moderated by Newsweek senior international photo editor James Wellford, the talk back will feature Pulitzer Prize-winning Getty Images staff photographer John Moore, Getty news photographer Mario Tama, and Reportage by Getty Images photographer Shaul Schwarz. Past talk backs can be listened to online at the website below.

Website: Time Stands Still Talk Backs

James Clews has been named the Express Insurance photographer of the year. “My photograph was taken at Hawkstone Park in Shropshire for the British series and captures the renowned motocross rider Mike Brown,” James said. “The idea of the shot was to give the rider a better sense of speed and bring out the colours. I used a panning shot which is a great technique in photographing this sport.” James’ winning prize is £250 worth of KTM motorcycle gear plus an exclusive one-to-one photography lesson with professional photographer Ray Archer.

FX Photo Studio 3.0 for iPhone and iPod Touch is now available on the App Store. This update adds 31 new photo effects and filters, and further simplifies the editing and sharing of pictures, letting users mix and tune photo effects hundreds different ways. One can apply multiple effects to an image and use the multi-step undo option if not satisfied with the results. The app is priced at $2.99.

FotoWeek DC has announced a mobile phone photography competition called “Picture the Potomac”. The contest, which runs from now until midnight 12th November, aims to highlight awareness of Washington’s ever-changing waterway and to challenge the creativity of both professional and amateur photographers of all ages. Images must be captured on a mobile phone camera and submitted to the contest registration site at the cost of $3.99 per upload. The grand prize will consist of $500 in cash, plus a FolioLink Pro Account, and a professional portfolio website valued at $1500.

National Geographic is calling photographers from around the world to participate in their 2010 Photo Contest. The winner will have their picture published in worldwide editions of National Geographic magazine. They will also win a trip to Washington D.C. to participate in the annual National Geographic Seminar in January, as well as a cash prize of $10,000. Entries are accepted across three categories: People, Places, and Nature. Each entry has a fee of $15, but there is no limit on the number of entries per entrant. The competition ends on 30th November, and the winner will be announced in December.

Website: National Geographic Competition

Sixtyone North has announced its second photo tour for 2011. The tour, titled “Wild Lands & Wild Life: Cordova” will kick off on 18 June 2011 and end on the 24th. Participants will be staying in an adventure lodge tucked in a secluded coastline on the edge of the Prince William Sound. As the name of the tour suggests, the region around Cordova, Alaska will be the main focus of the tour, to include a wide variety of marine and land mammals, rainforest, mountains, glaciers and vast fields of wild flowers.  The cost per participant is $3575; which covers 6 nights of accommodation in the lodge, meals and transportation while on tour, and tuition. Transportation to Cordova is not included. The first $1000 is payable upon registration.

DivePhotoGuide.com and Wetpixel.com have announced the sixth Our World Underwater and DEEP Indonesia competitions. The series is held in association with two leading scuba diving expos on opposite sides of the world, simultaneously - Our World Underwater, one of the largest diving expos in the US, and DEEP Indonesia, the first and only scuba diving and watersports expo in Indonesia. Prizes include nearly 40 trips to some of the best dive resorts and live aboards in the world, underwater photo and video equipment, and scuba diving gear. In addition, this year the Best of Show winner will receive $1,000 cash to go along with his or her dive trip. The submission deadline is 17 January 2011. Entry fees apply.