The newest project of Toby Smith, a contemporary reportage photographer concentrating on landscape and the energy sector, is focussed on renewable energy production. Working in Scotland, he is using his vehicle as a production base, home and office immersing himself in the surrounding environment. Using large-format traditional negative enables him to work in very low light using exposures lasting many hours resulting in incredibly detailed prints. Above ground he has captured dramatic panoramas, vast arctic-like scenery and alluring night images lit by the moon and stars. Being supported by Scottish and Southern Energy has allowed Smith privileged access to hidden corners including turbine halls, underground passages and engineering marvels. You can follow the project at the website below.

Website: The Renewables Project

Canon has just launched the XF300 (pictured) and XF305 digital video cameras that are the first models to use the new MPEG-2 Full HD (4:2:2) recording codec recently adopted by the manufacturer. Equipped with a Canon L-series HD Video Lens combining a 29.3mm equivalent wide angle with fast maximum aperture (f/1.6) and 18x zoom, 3CMOS sensor system and a DIGIC DV III processing engine, these cameras record videos industry-standard MXF (Material eXchange Format) files to Compact Flash memory cards, using data transfer rates of up to 50Mbps and rich 4:2:2 colour sampling. The Canon XF300 and XF305 also feature a 1.55-million-dot EVF with 100% coverage plus a 4” LCD screen with a resolution of 1.23 million dots. Slow and fast motion video recording also expands creative possibilities, with a total of 20 different frame rates on offer. In addition, thes XF305 model features industry-standard HD-SDI output, genlock, and SMPTE time code (in/out) terminals for multi-camera or 3-D productions.These are not found on the XF300.The Canon XF305 is scheduled to be available in late June for an estimated retail price of $7,999.The XF300is expected to cost $6,799.

Hosted by The Photographers’ Gallery in London, The Family and the Land: Sally Mann is the American photographer Sally Mann’s first solo exhibition in the UK. The ‘family’ element of the title will comprise Mann’s early series Immediate Family and the newer series Faces, both of which depict her children at various ages. The two series Motherland: Virginia and Deep South represent the landscape, portraying images made across the south of the United States. The exhibition opens on 18th June and runs until 19th September 2010. The Photographers’ Gallery is located at 16 – 18 Ramillies Street, W1, London. Admission is free.

Nikon is bringing its Learn & Explore photography application to iPhone customers in Europe. The ‘Learn & Explore’ application offers quick, easy on-the-go access to a world of photography information and editorial content, including images, video lectures, audio commentary and a glossary of photography terms. If you are on holiday and want advice on getting the most from your travel pictures, you can instantly access an article from a Nikon expert, watch a tutorial video, listen to audio tips, or flick through examples of stunning travel photography. The Nikon ‘Learn & Explore’ iPhone application is now available in Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom. It is also available in Canada and the United States.

Nikon has released a firmware update for the new Nikon Coolpix S4000 digital compact camera. Version 1.1 changes the frame rate for HD 720p in the movie option menu from 24fps to 30fps. You can download the firmware update using one of the links below.

Website: Nikon Coolpix S4000 Firmware 1.1 for Windows Users
Website: Nikon Coolpix S4000 Firmware 1.1 for Mac Users

Nikon has issued a firmware update for the Nikon Coolpix S640 digital compact camera. Version 1.2 resolves an issue that, in some very rare cases, prevented accurate recording of photos taken with digital zoom enabled. You can download the firmware update using the links below.

Website: Nikon Coolpix S640 Firmware 1.2 for Windows Users
Website: Nikon Coolpix S640 Firmware 1.2 for Mac Users

Transcend’s new 4GB JetFlash 620 is a USB falsh drive featuring read speeds of up to 32MB/sec and write speeds of up to 10 MB/sec. Offering a password-protected “Private Zone”, the Transcend JetFlash 620 comes bundled with Transcend’s exclusive JetFlash SecureDrive software. Other features include a compact, streamlined design, plug-and-play installation, full compatibility with the USB 2.0 specification, and dual-channel technology. Apart from the newly released 4GB variant, the Transcend JetFlash 620 USB flash drive is also available in 8GB, 16GB and 32GB capacities.

Website: Transcend

ZAGG has just released PhotoPad, its first app designed for the Apple iPad. PhotoPad features drawing and adjustment tools such as cropping, colour swapping, threshold levels, contrast, and saturation. PhotoPad by ZAGG can be found in the iPad App Store. An iPhone/iPod touch version is under development and will be available soon.

Website: PhotoPad for iPad

Burrard-Lucas Photography has launched a “Pet Portraits” photo contest. This competition is open to participants worldwide, aged 18 or over on the closing date of 22nd May 2010. There is no entry fee, and each entrant can submit a maximum of three images. Entrants will retain copyright of their entries at all times and will always be credited alongside their pictures. Prizes to win include a Canon EOS 7D digital SLR camera, a Lensbaby Composer and SmugMug accounts.

Website: Pet Portraits Competition

This month we are giving away 13 great prizes, including Clickfree hard drives, Blurb vouchers and Henri Cartier-Bresson DVDs*, in our Spring 2010 Newsletter Contest.

On Monday 3rd May 2010, 13 names will be randomly selected from the list of PhotographyBLOG Newsletter subscribers and will each one of the following great prizes:

Five people will each win a Clickfree Transformer SE worth $79.99.
Five people will each win a Blurb voucher worth £30.
Three people will each win a copy of the Henri Cartier-Bresson: Collector’s Edition DVD worth $49.95 each (*US and Canadian subscribers only)

To have a chance of winning these great prizes, simply subscribe to the PhotographyBLOG Newsletter.

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

1st Place
New Life by farsad

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

Canon has announced the 2010 schedule of Canon Live Learning educational events. In addition to the successful EOS Immersion Seminars and Workshops, Canon has two new intensive workshops for the professional EOS HD video user, EOS Moving Image Workshop and Canon Cinema Caravan.The EOS Moving Image Workshop provides hands-on instruction from industry leaders who currently use Canon EOS cameras in professional film and video productions, while the Canon Cinema Caravan workshops will provide expert instruction on mastering the cinematic capabilities of Canon’s HD video-enabled EOS products for professionals. The six-city workshop tour kicks-off July 7th and 8th in New York followed by stops in Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Portland. The final city will be selected via voting on the Cinema Caravan blog on the Canon Digital Learning Center.

Website: Canon Live Learning

Digital Foci has announced a major new firmware update for the Picture Porter 35 high-capacity portable photo manager. New features in version 1.2.1 include incremental photo backup, full screen preview and selection for convenient viewing, USB mode selection for secondary backup to external USB storage devices, and new professional DSLR extended camera support for RAW, EXIF data, IPTC and histograms. Picture Porter 35 features a 3.5-inch color LCD screen for easy viewing; built-in hard drive with 250GB and 500GB capacities, priced at $399 and $499, respectively; fast copy speeds of 1GB of data under 90 seconds; and a multi-format memory card reader for CF, MMC, SD/HC Card, miniSD, Memory Stick, MS PRO, MS Duo, and xD-Picture card.

Website: Picture Porter 35 Firmware 1.2.1 Release Notes

f-eleven has released the f-eleven vol. 2 photography book. The coffee table quality photography book, edited by internationally published photographer and art director Wolf189, features the work of 19 talented photographers of multiple genres. All sale proceeds from this book are going towards autism research and Fragile X Syndrome awareness.“We hope that this book would help raise awareness and provide some financial assistance for this worthy cause,” said Leo Lam, a fashion photographer in Seattle, and one of the contributors of f-eleven vol. 2.

Website: f-eleven Books

Adobe has announced release candidates for Photoshop Lightroom, Camera Raw and DNG Converter. The updates add raw file support for the Canon EOS 550D, Sony Alpha A450, the Olympus E-PL1, the Panasonic Lumix G2 and G10, the Kodak Z981, and several medium-format digital cameras and backs, including the Leaf Aptus-II 8, the Leaf Aptus-II 10R and the Mamiya DM40. The Lightroom 2.7 Release Candidate is available as a free download for Lightroom 2 users, and the Camera Raw 5.7 Release Candidate is available as a free download for Photoshop CS4 customers. The DNG Converter 5.7 Release Candidate is also available as a free download for all.

The Guardian, in association with Canon, has announced that its Guardian Eyewitness photography app for iPad is now available on the App Store. The app offers some of the world’s most distinctive and provocative photographs, providing a daily, visual re?ection of global events in an interface optimised for iPad. The app showcases the most recent 100 Eyewitness images, enabling users to save their favourites, and share images with their contacts via email or Facebook. Each image is also accompanied by a “pro tip”, to give professional insights into the composition or technical specification of a particular image. The Guardian Eyewitness photography app for iPad is currently available in the US for free from the App Store.

Website: Guardian Eyewitness for iPad

In a departure from his usual genre, British fashion / portrait photographer Rankin is launching his new book and exhibition RANKINJOZI - an insight into South Africa today. Exploring the genres of documentary, social portraiture, fine art photography and reportage, RANKINJOZI is the virtual record of Rankin’s journey to Johannesburg for the filming of South Africa in Pictures, his one-hour documentary for BBC Four. The documentary is airing in Spring as part of Wonderful Africa, BBC Four’s Southern Africa Season. Venturing out onto the city streets and into homes and communities, Rankin’s portrait of Jozi (i.e. Johannesburg) not only documents his own personal journey, but provides an insight into the land and its people. The exhibition will run from 7th May to 6th June at Annroy Gallery, Rankin’s own Kentish Town gallery space. The book is available via www.turnaround-uk.com, RRP £20.

South Africa in Pictures is a one-hour documentary in which British Photographer Rankin discovers contemporary South Africa. Airing in Spring as part of Wonderful Africa, BBC Four’s Southern Africa Season, the film follows Rankin through a series of encounters with some of South Africa’s most significant photographers from a range of photographic disciplines, including David Goldblatt and Alf Kumalo. Kumalo shares his experiences as one of the first black professional photojournalists for Drum Magazine, while Goldblatt - a documentary photographer with a career spanning more than five decades - talks about creating intimate and insightful portraits of South African communities.