Scarab Labs has released the Mac version of its Star Filter plug-in for Photoshop. Requiring an Intel based Mac and Photoshop CS3, CS4 or CS5, Star Filter for Mac simulates star filters (also known as cross screen filters) in an opically realistic way, and shows the results in real-time..Compatible with 64-bit versions of Photoshop, Star Filter for Mac is available now, priced at $49.95. Version 2.0 of the Windows variant is also out, also selling for $49.95. Existing owners of Star Filter for Windows can upgrade to version 2.0 for $10.

Website: Scarab Labs

Canon has just added a third service support center to be located at the company’s Canon Virginia Incorporated facility in Newport News, VA supporting the Canon Professional Services (CPS) programme. Along with enhancing service, Canon USA will extend its CPS hotline service to provide 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week technical support to all CPS members. A separate international customer support number will also be made available to US-based professionals travelling and working abroad.

Bibble Labs have just posted an update to Bibble 5.1 Pro and Bibble 5.1 Lite.Version 5.1e resolves a licensing issue with Bibble 5 Lite, and fixes a number of other issues as well. See Bibble’s note below for details.

X-Rite has announced its upcoming schedule of free webinars that have been developed to address specific color management topics. On July 7th at 11am EDT, you can learn more about the ColorChecker Passport, a powerful “capture to edit” colour solution for any photographer looking for more accurate, consistent color and creative flexibility. On the 12th, you can participate at a webinar on ColorMunki Photo, a completely integrated colour control solution to calibrate displays, projectors and printers. Finally, on the 13th your can learn about “raw colour power” with Adobe Lightroom and the ColorChecker Passport.

Website: X-Rite

AKVIS has released updates for five photo editing programs. These include Enhancer 11.5, Noise Buster 7.5, Coloriage 7.5, ArtSuite 6.5, and Magnifier 3.5. AKVIS Enhancer is image enhancing software which improves image detail, corrects the tone of areas, and sharpens borders. AKVIS Noise Buster suppresses noise in digital photos and scanned images. AKVIS Coloriage adds color to black and photos and replaces colors in color images. AKVIS ArtSuite is a program that adds artistic effects to photos, while AKVIS Magnifier allows you to resize an image without losing quality. The updates, which are free for registered users, fix bugs and add 64-bit support to the plug-in versions.

Fujifilm Professional has announced the winner of its 2010 Student Awards. The winner is Anne-Marie Atkinson from Leeds College of Art. Her photo, which was taken on Fujicolor Superia Reala 100, will feature on the cover of the next edition of Flann O’Brien’s novel, At Swim-Two-Birds. She will also receive £250 worth of Fujifilm Professional film and 25 Penguin Classics titles of her choice. Additionally, exhibition sponsors Genesis Imaging are providing Anne-Marie with a professional quality portfolio. The portfolio prize will contain up to fifteen 20"x16” prints together with a 20"x16” Clamshell Portfolio box.

The 2010 FEP European Professional Photographer of the Year Awards are open for entries. The main competition - which is broken down to six categories including commercial, reportage, portraits, wedding, landscape and illustrative - is open to European photographers only, but non-Europeans can participate in a special international section. Category winners will be awarded a “Golden Camera Award” – and the overall winner will be named FEP European Professional Photographer of the Year 2010. The competition will close for entries on 15th July 2010. Entry fees apply.

Website: Federation of European Photographers

Adobe has posted the first update to Photoshop CS5, dubbing it Adobe Photoshop 12.0.1. This update addresses a number of high priority bugs with 64-bit Mac, Performance, User Interface, Type, Content-Aware Fill, HDR, 3D, Painting, GPU and Liquify implemented after Adobe Photoshop CS5 and Photoshop CS5 Extended (also called Adobe Photoshop 12.0.0) were released. Click through / read on for the most important bug fixes.

Red Bull Reporter is looking for an aspiring writer and photographer to head to T in the Park from 9th to 11th July to go behind the scenes at Scotland’s biggest music festival. From its beginnings at StrathClyde Country Park in 1994, T in the Park has grown in size and influence to become one of the most important and critically acclaimed music events on the international festival circuit. The festival is now attracting over 80,000 music fans from all over the globe each day. Red Bull Reporter is a nationwide search to find the best young music, culture and sports writers, filmmakers, presenters and photographers to send them off to report from behind the scenes at events and interview Red Bull athletes all over the UK and beyond.

Website: Red Bull Reporter

Panasonic has released firmware updates for the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FP3 (pictured) and FS33 (also known as the FH22) cameras. Version 1.1 improves the responsiveness of the touch operation and reduces the time it takes to display an image in playback mode. N.B.: the latter enhancement has a slight negative effect on the total number of shots that can be stored on the memory card, as the speed boost is achieved by saving a smaller resolution copy alongside the original, for display purposes.

Website: Panasonic Firmware Update

The winners of the June 2010 Photography Blog Competition have been announced. The theme for June was “Football” - you can view all of the entries in this gallery. Here are the 5 winners:

1st Place
Amazon men (Indigenous) by gechaves

Prize: X-Rite ColourChecker Passport
Kindly donated by X-Rite
http://www.xritephoto.com/

Olympus has released a behind-the-scenes video about the making of the PEN Giant stop-motion movie. Additionally, the creators of the video have launched a microsite where you can watch an interview with director Takeuchi Taijin, see some of his earlier projects and download the song from the PEN Giant video. Click through to watch the behind-the-scenes documentary.

DxO Labs have announced he availability of more than 60 new DxO Optics modules for a large selection of Canon, Nikon, Olympus, and Sony cameras. Most of the new additions are available in both the Standard and the Elite versions of DxO Optics Pro, except for nine modules that are for the Elite edition only. To view a list of the newly added DxO Optics modules, visit the website below.

Website: More than 60 new DxO Optics Correction Modules

ImageRights is now offering a free version of its online image recognition and recovery service to photographers and illustrators. With this new offering, the company’s advanced visual search and crawler technology will continuously scan websites and blogs to protect its clients. Customers who take advantage of ImageRights’ free service may also participate in the company’s new, optional Recovery Programme, which will launch next month to help photographers and illustrators obtain compensation for the unauthorized use of their images. Customers who select a paid package and opt into the Recovery Program will share 35 percent of their recovered fees with ImageRights; those who select the free service will share 50 percent of their compensation.

Website: ImageRights

Transcend today announced the StoreJet 25D2-W, a portable hard drive designed to complement Mac computers. The StoreJet 25D2-W offers a capacity of 500 gigabytes for synchronisation and backup using software such as Mac OS X Time Machine or Transcend’s StoreJet Elite software for Windows. Under its seemingly delicate case is an internal hard drive suspension system that helps prevent damage caused by accidental slips or falls during travel. For further piece of mind, the drive features anti-slip rubber feet. Backed by a 3-year warranty, the Transcend StoreJet 25D2-W is available now.

iDubai is a new coffee table book by Joel Sternfeld, which contains dozens of images made exclusively with the iPhone camera. The vast majority of the photos in this book were taken inside Dubai’s malls, with only a few showing the outside world. As Jonathan Crary, who wrote an essay to accompany the pictures, puts it, “what is important and affecting about his images is their disclosure of how human beings inhabit and experience” shopping malls and similar spaces. Published by Steidl, the 160-page hardcover is priced at £24.00 | €28.00 | $38.00.

Sony has posted a firmware update that enables the Sony NEX-5 and NEX-3 mirrorless interchangeable-lens cameras to use their Sweep Panorama technology to capture 3D panoramic images. Other enhancements include improved 2D Sweep Panoramas, reduced power drain when the camera is switched off and quicker start-up in low-light conditions. Registered Sony NEX-3/NEX-5 owners will be advised of the update via email.

Website: Sony Europe Support

Photography for the Web by photographer Paul Duncanson is a new book that promises to guide readers through “the processes taught in top-quality digital photography schools at a fraction of the cost”. With a large portion of the book dedicated to composition and lighting, the author “wanted to do something a little different,” says publisher Luke Cuthbertson. “So many people take photos with little knowledge of how to do it properly. This book will teach the fundamentals of using an everyday camera to take great images.” Photography for the Web also includes chapters on editing and sharing photographs in the Web 2.0 era. The 200-page book is available from O’Reilly priced at $34.95.