The Pentax Optio H90 is a stylishly under-stated new compact digital camera. Developed under Pentax’s new “functional beauty” concept, the Optio H90 offers a functional, no-frills design. The Pentax H90 also features a 5X optical zoom lens (28-140mm), 12.1 megapixels, 2.7 inch LCD and HD movie recording.  The Pentax Optio H90 will be available in mid-February for £129.99.

The Pentax Optio E90 is a new entry-level digital compact camera. The Pentax E90 is a 10 megapixel camera with 3x optical zoom and 2.7inch LCD screen. The E90 also offers Automatic face detection with Smile Capture function, Auto Picture mode, double anti-shake protection and a range of digital filters. The Pentax Optio E90 will be available at the end of February for £79.99.

Sony and the World Photography Organisation (WPO) have announced that the city of Cannes will once again provide the location for the annual Sony World Photography Awards (SWPA) and World Photography Festival. Welcoming professional and amateur photographers, photography students and the general public, the Awards and Festival is a five day celebration of the craft of photography, running from 22-27 April 2010. At the heart of the week long event is the prestigious Sony World Photography Awards prize ceremony. Taking place on 22 April inside the Grand Lumier Theatre of the Palais des Festivals, it is here that winners of the professional, amateur and student categories receive their trophies and the overall winner of the 2010 L’Iris D’Or for Photographer of the Year will be announced. Tickets to the 2010 Sony World Photography Awards and World Photography Festival are priced from £15 and are available now at the website below.

Website: Sony World Photography Awards

The new f/stop range from Billingham has been designed for those occasions when you want to travel light, but without compromise. The f/stop bags provide you with the level of protection, style and craftsmanship you’d expect from a Billingham, but in compact form that allows you to adapt them – inside and out, to suit your specific needs. The f/stops come in two sizes; the f/2.8 and – in keeping with lens f/stop convention – the larger f/1.4. Both are available in Black FibreNyte with black leather trim and nickel plated brass fittings or their most recent combination; Khaki FibreNyte with chocolate leather trim (see picture above). The f/2.8 bag retails for £149.99, while the f/1.4 model can be had for £159.99. Both are available from JP Distribution in the UK.

HireACamera has announced the arrival of the new Canon EOS 1D Mark IV to their equipment portfolio. The 16-megapixel Canon EOS 1D Mark IV boasts a completely new 45-point autofocus system with AI Servo II AF mode. The camera’s “regular” ISO range stretches from ISO 100/21° to ISO 12,800/42°, but expansion settings push this all the way up to ISO 102,400/51°. The Canon EOS 1D Mark IV is also geared toward videographers, as it offers full manual exposure control and selectable frame rates when shooting 1080p HD video. Guy Thatcher, Managing Director of Hireacamera said, ”The new 1D Mark IV is a welcome addition to our stock and is already proving popular after its first outing at the SWPP Convention in January. We are sure this is going to be a great addition to the Canon family and are offering great hire prices on it at the moment so photographers can really try before they buy.” The Canon 1D Mark IV is available to hire now and can be booked by calling 01892 603440.

Annabel Williams Contemporary Photographic Training (CPT) invites you to an Open Day held in Staveley, the Lake District on 29 January. Attendees will have an opportunity to see the facilities that are now available to them at the new Annabel Williams CPT Studio as well as join in their free “Get in tune with your photographic destination” sessions. There will be two sessions, one from 9.30am till midday, and another one from 2pm to 4.30pm. Spaces are limited, and advance registration is necessary. To register your interest, drop a line to [email protected] stating your preference for either the morning or afternoon session.

Kingston has announced the release of the second-generation Kingston SSDNow V+ solid-state drive. The Kingston SSDNow V+ solid-state drive has Windows 7 TRIM support, is available up to 512GB and provides faster performance than the previous generation. The addition of TRIM support helps keep the Kingston SSDNow V+ maintain optimal write speed throughout its lifespan. The Kingston SSDNow V+ is available in 64GB, 128GB, 256GB and 512GB capacities. As part of Kingston’s goal to provide an easy upgrade path, the drive is also available with a bundle that includes cloning software, 2.5” USB enclosure, 2.5” to 3.5” mounting brackets and SATA data and power cables. The standalone drives are priced from £138.43 to £1018.37 depending on capacity, whereas the bundles retail for £146.39-£1026.32.

Adobe today announced the immediate availability of Photoshop.com Mobile for iPhone 1.1. This update adds a video playback feature for users who host videos on Photoshop.com, and a new Sharpen tool that makes refining details in photos as simple as dragging a finger across the image to increase or reduce sharpness. Also with just one touch, users have their choice of eight new artistic borders that add creative punch to their photos. The Adobe Photoshop.com Mobile for iPhone 1.1 application is available worldwide as a free download from Apple’s App Store on iPhone and iPod touch. Current Photoshop.com Mobile for iPhone users will have access to version 1.1 by checking for updates in Apple’s App Store.

Website: Photoshop.com Mobile for iPhone

Wedding Photography - A Guide to Posing is a new title from Oliver Cameron Publishing. Designed for professional and amateur photographers who cover weddings, this pocket-sized, 7x5”  book contains 300+ images over 200 pages from some of the world’s finest wedding photographers. Topics covered include basic poses, bride and groom formals, group shots inside and outside the church, posing the couple in the church after the service, cutting the cake, using off-camera flash, posing mistakes to avoid and more. The book is claimed to be especially useful for those who have “blanks” when posing brides and grooms or find themselves recreating the same pose at every wedding. Going on sale in April 2010, Wedding Photography - A Guide to Posing is priced (including shipping) at £10. Anyone who pre-orders from the UK will also receive a set of discount vouchers from some of the industry’s leading suppliers. Those pre-ordering the book from the USA or any other country outside the UK before 1 February will receive half price postage and packing. The discounted price is $18.95 in the USA and £12 in the rest of the world.

Website: Oliver Cameron Publishing

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the foundation of the People’s Republic of China, Leica is offering collectors a limited-edition Leica MP analogue rangefinder camera. The camera is coated in 24-carat gold and encased in Leica Red Box calf leather. Sold only in mainland China, the production run of the golden MP is limited to 60 bodies outfitted with gold-plated Summilux 50mm f1.4 lenses. The serial numbers start with 1949, the year Mao Zedong’s communists seized control of the country. Priced at $199,900 yuan, the golden camera and lens come in a luxury wooden box. Honestly, we have no idea of what Marx, Engels or Mao himself would have thought of something as blatantly bourgeois as a golden camera that costs hundreds of times more than what the average Chinese worker earns in a month, but we have the sinking feeling that they might not have approved of the idea…

Via Engadget

Panasonic Singapore is about to launch a new, English-language microsite dedicated to the Lumix G series of Micro Four Thirds cameras. The countdown has already started, and the site will go live on 31 January. If you happen to be in Singapore on that day, you might want to join Panasonic to celebrate the microsite launch in the Eugenia Ballroom of the Siloso Beach Resort. The launch event will kick off at 1pm local time. Advance registration is mandatory.

Website: Panasonic Lumix G

The Worldwide Community of Imaging Associations has created a fun, educational, and interactive experience for attendees of the first Southern California Photo Expo at the Anaheim Convention Center on Saturday, 20 February. The show’s underlying theme, “Discover, Create, Share,” describes the overall essence of what visitors can expect to experience throughout the day. Participation begins with submissions of their own photos to help create an enormous 8-by-16-foot photo mosaic to be displayed at the expo (see illustration above). In addition, U.S. military families will have an opportunity to have family and individual portraits taken and shared with loved ones overseas, free of charge.  Lastly, attendees will be able to learn how to take better photos through educational and inspirational presentations by some of the most respected photographers in the industry and get a hands-on look at the latest camera and imaging software technology. A single ticket for adults will cost $15, family admission for two adults and up to four children is $25, while seniors pay $10. Admission is free for active U.S. soldiers and their families.

To mark the re-launch of the Santander brand throughout the United Kingdom, Metro and Santander are asking you to take a photograph that sums up life in your home city. Simply use your camera, iPhone or mobile to snap anything you might see on your lunch break or even on your way home from a night out – whatever you feel represents and celebrates your city. After that, use the upload form below to submit your work. Uploading closes 2pm Monday 1st February. The shortlisted top ten photographs will be showcased on the gallery page. Readers can vote for their favourite image from 2pm Tuesday 2nd February until 5pm Monday 8th February. The overall winner receives £5,000 of holiday vouchers to visit any city in the world.

Website: “One Moment in My City” Competition Upload Form

The Leica Oskar Barnack Award and the Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award are open for entries. The Leica Oskar Barnack Award is announced for the 31st time, and accepts photo essays from professional photographers until 15 March. The award is given by an international jury “to photographers whose unerring powers of observation capture and express the relationship between man and the environment in the most graphic form in a sequence of a minimum of 10 up to a maximum of 12 images”. The winner of the Leica Oskar Barnack Award will receive 5,000 euros or, alternatively, Leica camera equipment to the same value. Also, a Newcomers Award will be incorporated in the competition, open to all (prospective) pros who are aged 25 years and under. The winner of the Newcomer Award will receive 2,500 euros.

Website: Leica Oskar Barnack Award

The online photo book site My Photo Plus has announced the addition of 2 HP Designjet Z6100ps large format 60 inch wide printers offering large canvas, posters and photo prints.My Photo Plus is based in Washington DC and provides many photo products from photo books, photo prints, calendars and many photo gift items. James Dempsey - My Photo Plus Division Manager - said “We now can offer our customers large photo prints, maps, fine art, photos on canvas, photo gloss/matte paper and even super large wall stickers and posters using their own pictures”  The HP Designjet Z6100 uses 8 sepearate colour cartridges, and also has an embedded spectrophotometer to ensure accurate colour output every time.

The winning images from the 2009 international Travel Photographer of the Year (TPOTY) awards go on display at Adventure Travel Live at London’s Royal Horticultural Halls from January 29th-31st. As well as enjoying over 70 stunning images, show visitors have the chance to win an Intrepid Travel 15-day Wild China trip, and can buy the latest TPOTY book, Journey Three. This publication contains the winning images from TPOTY 2009, 2008 and 2007. Priced at £25, Journey Three takes readers on a trip round the globe, through the eyes of award-winning photographers.Amateur and professional photographers from over 70 countries entered the 2009 Travel Photographer of the Year competition. The 2010 TPOTY awards open in the spring. For further information, visit the TPOTY website.

Website: TPOTY

Tamron has announced the launch of a new, innovative, interactive blog-style sharing site, called ShareItWithTamron.com. Participants are encouraged to respond by posting one or more photos and any length story about the photo, tip on how it was created, hotel recommendations for the place where it was shot and more. The rules are simple: All content (words and photos) must be appropriate. “This is a responsive and interactive site designed to motivate a spirited exchange of images and ideas,” notes Stacie Errera, Tamron’s Marketing Director. “Many people are used to reading and posting on blogs these days and we feel this blog-style sharing site will be comfortable for users. We want people to respond to our posted questions with comments in the form of their own images and words, comment on each other’s photos and stories, and have an entertaining and informative conversation. By posting frequent questions on a variety of topics, we hope to motivate people to come back frequently to see what’s happening on this dynamic new site, to converse with their peers, and to have fun sharing a broad range of images.”

Website: Share It With Tamron

Sigma UK have managed to slash the price of several of their specialist, professional lenses by securing lower cost prices from their parent company in Japan. The lenses in question include the Sigma 4.5mm f/2.8 EX DC HSM Circular Fisheye, the 8mm f/3.5 EX DG Circular Fisheye, the 10mm f/2.8 EX DC HSM Fisheye, the 15mm f/2.8 EX DG Fisheye, the 180mm f/3.5 EX DG HSM Macro, the 800mm f/5.6 APO EX DG (pictured), the 100-300mm f/4 EX IF DG HSM, 120-300mm f/2.8 APO EX DG HSM and the 300-800mm f/5.6 APO EX DG HSM. Click through / read on for the new SRPs.

Manfrotto Distribution has launched a new range of Kata camcorder bags designed exclusively for HD video users. The new range features four models, the CB-100 (pictured), CB-200, CB-300 and CB-400, to fit the full range of professional-choice HD video cameras. All four CB bags are 100% water resistant, with protective zippers to ensure tools are kept dry when stored throughout shoots in even the most inclement weather. In addition, they are roomy enough for a camera to be stored with mic assembled, keeping set-up time to a minimum. To select the best bag for you, visit the Kata bag chooser at www.kata-bags.com.