The official UK launch of the Sony NEX-5 and NEX-3 took place at The Vinyl Factory in London, where collections from up-and-coming designers Bodyamr and Edward Finney were unveiled giving celebrity guests the chance to try out the latest kit. Pop starlet Keisha Buchanan took to the runway in a figure hugging creation from Bodyamr (see picture above), and onlookers were able to capture the moment with the new Sony NEX cameras. Rachel Banin, Category Head – Digital Imaging, at Sony UK said: “The exciting new NEX-3 and NEX-5 cameras from Sony are the first to offer interchangeable lenses, outstanding D-SLR quality images and HD movie recording in a body the size of a compact camera. It was great to be able to launch these cameras with the help of some fantastic up and coming fashion talent and unique circus performers – creating the perfect setting to really put these cameras to the test.”

Pentax has added a vibrant-orange version of the Pentax Optio W90 waterproof camera to its digital compact line-up. Named the Pentax Optio W90 Shiny Orange, this new model has an orange-colour aluminium-alloy front panel that features a fine hairline finish. The 12-megapixel camera, which is equipped with a 5x zoom lens, is sand- and dustproof, waterproof down to a depth of 6 metres and shockproof to approximately 1.5 metres. The recommended retail price of the Pentax Optio W90 Shiny Orange is £269.99 in the UK, and $329.95 in the USA. Availability is slated for July.

Some of the most famous photographs published in LIFE magazine are to going on auction. The photographs are offered for sale in partnership with Lelands.com, where they can be viewed until the auction closing date of 9 July. Interested bidders must submit initial bids by 9 p.m. that day, after registering on the website. The auction continues until bidding has ceased for at least 10 minutes. Photos are shipped to auction winners immediately after funds have cleared.

Stealth Gear is set to launch what they describe as “the very first UK camouflage pattern designed by photographers for photographers”. Craig Derbyshire, managing director of Stealth Gear, said, “the current marketplace is saturated with camouflage patterns specifically for hunting, but these are not UK patterns and most of them are designed in the USA for their countryside”. Developed over a twelve month period, the new pattern that mimics the colours of the UK countryside will be officially launched in July 2010, with gloves and camera covers being the very first products available online.

Website: Stealth Gear

LensFolder.com is a brand new websitethat enables you to join photos of the same event that were taken by different people together into the same folder. Founder Tristan Thomas says the site will hopefully solve “the problem of lots of people taking photos at an event or on holiday and you never seeing or getting any of those photos”. It works like this: one of the people that were present at the event sets up a folder and tells everyone else who has taken photos there to upload their shots to the folder by clicking the “I have the details for a folder somebody else has set up” button. The service is free.

Website: LensFolder

Think Tank Photo has released the free Multimedia DSLR Buyers Guide to aid first time buyers of video enabled DSLR cameras. This online guide compiles information about cameras, lenses, microphones, recording equipment, bags, and accessories. Within each section is a short description of the gear, the price range, and links to more detailed product information. The buyers’ guide is available at the website below.

Website: Think Tank Photo Multimiedia DSLR Buyers Guide

Guardian News & Media is to host a new exhibition by photographer Sally Soames. Soames, who started out as a freelancer for The Observer and the Guardian, and later joined the Sunday Times, donated her photographic archive to the Scott Trust Foundation in 2008. The exhibition takes place in the foyer of Guardian News and Media from Friday 18 June 2010 until Friday 20 August 2010.

Addonics has announced a family of CFast adapters which instantly connects a CFast media to any SATA port inside a desktop PC, rack mounted system or notebook computer. The new adapters include a CFast HDD adapter and a SATA CFast adapter. Additionally, Addonics has also launched its own brand of CFast cards, available in 8GB and 32GB capacities.

Sigma UK has issued a service notice to owners of certain Sigma telezoom lenses. Some of its APO 50-500mm F4.5-6.3 DG OS HSM, APO 120-400mm F4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM (pictured) and APO 150-500mm F5-6.3 DG OS HSM lenses, produced recently, may suffer from this autofocus defect, the company says. Sigma has listed the serial numbers of the potentially affected lenses, which you can find in the press release below. If you own one of these lenses, you should contact Sigma on 01707 376 795, and they will arrange to collect your lens at no cost for inspection and modification where necessary. Your lens will be returned to you free of charge.

Half a year after NASA placed an order for eleven Nikon D3S cameras and seven lenses, the general contractor of the Russian Federal Space Agency also ordered top-end Nikon gear for use aboard the International Space Station. The Nikon D3S and Nikon D3X digital-SLR cameras and four long telephoto lenses will be used along with Nikon F5 film SLRs and Nikon D2X DSLRs already employed by Russian cosmonauts working in the Russian segment of the space station.

Lexar has launched a new microsite designed to be a resource for customers and professional photographers. The microsite includes educational videos, customer testimonials, information on how Lexar tests its cards, and other content. Lexar will be adding new videos, testimonials and information to the site, which you can visit by clicking on the link below.

Website: When Memory Matters

RED’s founder, Jim Jannard, has recently made an announcement about a major problem with their Scarlet and EPIC cameras that has been hindering their launch, and will likely continue to do so. “It has held us up now for two months,” Jannard said in the statement made on the REDuser forum. “The fix could be tomorrow. Or not.” Scarlet and EPIC - the two “brains” of the modular RED camera system - were first announced almost two years ago, and Scarlet got a price tag at the end of last year. However, the company that was going to manufacture Scarlet turned out to have “significant issues”, and RED are now trying to find a new partner.

Via 1001 Noisy Cameras

Project AWARE Foundation and SeaWeb’s Marine Photobank are calling for entries for the third “Ocean in Focus” Conservation Photography Contest that feature species in need of protection, the human impacts upon them and their environments, and the importance of conserving biodiversity. The Grand Prize package includes US$500 cash as well as many marine-conservation related gifts. Four additional prize packages will be available: three for honourable mentions and a “Biodiversity Award” package that will be bestowed upon a submission that particularly highlights the need for biodiversity or biodiversity protection. Entrants are asked to submit their most captivating contest photos at the website below before August 31.

Website: Marine Photobank

Jessops is offering its customers the first chance to snap up the Sony NEX-5 in the UK. Currently the smallest mirrorless interchangeable-lens digital camera in the world, the Sony NEX-5 features a 14.2-megapixel Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor, 25-point contrast-detect autofocus system, 49-segment exposure meter and a 3-inch tilting LCD panel with 921,000-dot resolution. Offering a capture rate of 7 frames per second for stills, the Sony NEX-5 can also shoot Full HD (1920 x1080i) video in AVCHD format. Encased in a magnesium alloy body, the Sony NEX-5 (shown above with 18-200mm lens) can be had for £589 including a 18-55mm lens with Optical Steady Shot image stabilisation.

Apple has just unveiled a completely redesigned Mac mini, featuring up to twice the graphics performance, a new HDMI port, and a new SD card slot. The new Mac mini features a compact aluminium enclosure just 7.7-inches square and 1.4-inches thin. A removable panel provides quick access for memory expansion, while the new HDMI output connects the Mac mini to an HDTV and the new SD card slot enables easy transfer of photos and videos from a digital camera. The Mac mini comes standard with a 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 320GB hard drive, 2GB of RAM, Snow Leopard and iLife for £649. A more powerful version boasting 4GB of RAM and two 500GB Serial ATA hard drives can be yours for £929. Prices include VAT.

HP has launched a new category of Web-enabled printing solutions that will allow people to print from any email device to any new ePrint-enabled printer from anywhere in the world through the new HP ePrint technology. The HP ePrint platform enables people to send the files they want to print from their mobile devices to HP printers that have their own e-mail addresses. This new line of ePrint enabled HP printers include the HP Photosmart Premium e-All-in-One, the HP Photosmart Plus e-All-in-One and the HP Photosmart Premium Fax e-All-in-One, which are priced at £179.99, £149.99 and £99.99, respectively. Finally, the HP Photosmart Premium Fax e-All-in-One (£229.99, pictured) allows users to fax, scan and copy, using the automatic two-sided document feeder; plus print photos and web content easily.

HP will present an event called Think Big, bringing together large format printing specialists and featuring renowned photographer Robin Preston, on 22 June in London. Taking place in the Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, the Think Big event comprises three sessions, with the first one starting at 10:30am. Interested readers can register for the event by calling Warren Burns on 0845 867 8108, or online via the website below.

Website: HP Think Big