Pentax has announced a Windows-only update to the PENTAX Digital Camera Utility 4 program. Version 4.11 adds support for the Pentax K-x digital SLR camera, corrects a few bugs, adds [Cross Processing], [Picture: Blue Sky] and [Picture: Sunset] to the Image data display, adds lens data for the smc Pentax DA L55-300mmF4-5.8 ED telezoom, and improves overall stability. The update can be downloaded by visiting the website below.

Website: Pentax Digital Camera Utility 4 Update for Windows

Nikon UK has announced a promotion: buy a new Nikon D300s until 17 January 2010, and get an SB-900 flash for free. The offer is limited to currently registered Nikon users, and is valid only on new Nikon D300s purchases. Also, the promotion strictly only applies to products which have been supplied and distributed by Nikon UK Ltd within the UK and Republic of Ireland. For more details, please refer to the Nikon Flashback terms and conditions.

Chronicle Books has just released a new rock and roll photograph book - Taking Aim: Unforgettable Rock & Roll Photographs Selected by Graham Nash. Spanning more than fifty years of music-making as seen through the eyes of 40 photographers, Taking Aim is Graham’s personal take, through photography, on the evolution of rock ‘n’ roll music. Some personalities, like Bob Marley and Emmylou Harris, are represented in a single, iconic image. Others, like Johnny Cash and The Beatles, are documented by multiple photographers and throughout various stages in their lives and careers. Accompanying the book is an audio CD with Nash’s insights and reflections on each photograph. The 128-page book, which has 80 duotone and full-colour photos, is priced at $50. The exhibition of Taking Aim, organized by Experience Music Project | Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (EMP | SFM) in Seattle, Washington, opens there in 2010 and will tour thereafter.

Website: Chronicle Books

We’ve just launched an exciting new addition to Photography Blog - you can now sort our camera reviews by manufacturer, rating and date.

Previously we’ve just had a big long list of all our reviews, with the newest at the top, but you can now alternatively choose to browse them by a particular manufacturer, either by date or by rating. Want to quickly find out which are the best Canon cameras? It’s now just a couple of clicks away.

This great new feature works with every camera review that we’ve published since we re-designed the site back in March - that’s a massive 77 of the latest cameras to choose from!

And remember, you can also check out the Best Cameras list to find out which products come with the official Photography Blog seal of approval.

The Sigma Corporation of America Scholarship will award a cash gift of $5,000 and $1,000 in Sigma products to one talented American high school senior to advance his or her education and goals toward obtaining a career in the photography industry. Applications will be accepted until February 15, 2010. Online voting will occur Feb. 16, 2010 to April 23, 2010, and the winner will be announced May 3, 2010. Applicants are required to submit an application, brief essay and three to five images that have a connecting theme in order to be considered for the Sigma Corporation of America Scholarship. The entire package will be judged based on creativity of subject selection, overall technique and, most importantly, image quality. Students are not required to use Sigma equipment to shoot the photo As always, make sure to read the rules before entering your work.

Website: Sigma Corporation of America Scholarship Application Form

Passers-by at London Waterloo station were greeted by a rather unusual sight: a 3.6m x 2m mock-up of the new Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZX1 digital compact camera. The giant snapper, which has appeared at London Waterloo station yesterday morning, is part of Panasonic’s unconventional marketing campaign that had earlier seen a giant pigeon “land” on the grass beside London’s City Hall. The heavily-promoted Lumix ZX1 is a new ultra-compact digital camera with an 8x optically-stabilised zoom lens that provides a 35mm equivalent focal range of 25-200mm in a body measuring just 2.6cm thick.

Review: Read our in-depth review of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZX1

Adobe has posted documentation for Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Beta. Help topics include a What’s New section, importing photos into a catalogue, exporting using Publish Services, creating a copyright watermark, simulating film grain, updating the process version, applying a post-crop vignette, exporting a video slide show and Custom print packages. To access the documentation, choose Help > Lightroom Help (F1) in Lightroom 3 Beta or go to Using Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Beta. Adobe warns that “just like the software, this documentation is prerelease”.

TweetPhoto and Eastman Kodak Company have announced that the two companies have entered into a collaborative agreement on initiatives focussed around real-time photo sharing. The companies have signed an agreement with the intention to work freely together to develop, test and release products and services that leverage the viral nature of the real-time web and social eco-systems. “Real-time photography is currently used across social networking sites to start a conversation or give context to a tweet,” says Sean Callahan, Co-Founder of TweetPhoto. “Photo sharing on the real time web is only going to continue to grow, and we are pleased with the opportunity to collaborate with Kodak, the world’s leading imaging innovator.”

Imation has announced availability of its next-generation Solid State Drive (SSD) Upgrade Kit, simplifying migration from a hard disk drive to SSD in just three easy steps. Simply transfer existing files from an HDD to the new SSD, then install the SSD and finally, repurpose the existing hard drive into an external USB drive for additional backup and storage using a specially designed case. The M-Class SSD Upgrade Kit is available in a 2.5-inch form factor in capacities of 64GB and 128GB. Products are available for a starting MSRP of $110.99 for the M-class drive and $194.99 for the M-Class Upgrade Kit through authorized Imation distributors, wholesalers, resellers and e-tailers in the US and Europe.

Website: Imation

GoPro has announced HD Hero Naked, a wearable 1080p HD camera for sports enthusiasts. The HD Hero Naked is the newest addition to the company’s line of wearable cameras, which already include vertical market specific HD Motorsports Hero,HD Helmet Hero (outdoor sports), and HD Surf Hero. These units come bundled with a variety of mounts ranging from suction cups to vented helmet straps, head straps and adhesive mounts for attaching the camera to cars, motorcycles, bikes and surfboards. The HD Hero Naked, which captures “professional quality” 1080p / 960p / 720p true HD video at 30 and 60 frames per second, differs from the aforementioned HERO cameras in that the HD Hero Naked comes with one mount for attaching the camera to a helmet or other curved surfaces, the camera, and the housing which protects the camera from bumps and keeps it waterproof to 180’/60m. Included are a removable rechargeable lithium-ion battery and cables for attaching the camera to an HDTV or computer, but aside from this the camera comes “naked,” sans the mounts included in the other models. In addition to shooting HD videos, the HD Hero Naked and related cameras also shoot 5MP photos and feature an optional auto-photo mode that captures photos every 2, 5, 10, 30, or 60 for the duration of a consumer’s sport or activity. The HD Hero Naked is available for $259.99.

Website: GoPro

Hoodman and Trek-Tech have introduced a new toolkit for macro photographers that makes positioning and stabilising cameras for close up, macro photography quick and easy. The toolkit combines the Hoodman Right Angle Viewer and a Trek-Tech T-Pod table top tripod. The right angle viewer with 360° rotation gives photographers the flexibility to position a camera to get down and up close to the subject matter. The table-top tripod supports cameras with “rock solid stability” for sharp focus. The Hoodman Right Angle viewer fits all Canon, Nikon, and Fuji Digital SLR cameras and comes with a compact, protective storage case included. The Trek-Tech T-Pod is very versatile and high quality table top tripod which comes complete with ball head, quick release system and travel pouch. The T-Pod with the upper tube attached adjusts from 10” to 13.5” in height. The ball head may also be connected directly to the legs creating a very stable platform which is 4” high. The Macro Photography Toolkit costs $129.99.

Website: Trek-Tech

SeenBy.com have announced the launch of their fine art photography website. SeenBy.com boasts a collection of more than 60,000 pieces in the online gallery, which is allegedly hand-picked by an editorial team with years of experience as journalists and photo editors. In addition to featuring artwork with an unusual and modern feel, SeenBy.com offers gallery-grade prints on a variety of materials that can hang frameless, emphasising the natural impression of the photos. Additionally, SeenBy’s photo lab allows customers to produce their personal images with the same technology and quality used by museums and galleries.

Website: SeenBy.com

Imation today announced the US availability of its Pro WX Wireless USB hard drive, billed as the “world’s first wireless USB external hard drive. With a fast Wireless USB data transfer rate of up to 15MBs/second, the product can back up a typical CD in under 50 seconds, and store up to 300,000 photos or 750 hours of video. Available in 1.5TB capacity, the Imation Pro WX will be demoed at the Pepcom Wine, Dine & Demo media event at the Hammerstein Ballroom at Manhattan Center Studios tonight from 6 to 9 p.m. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price is $449.99.

Website: Imacon

Akvis Software has released version 10 of AKVIS Sketch for Windows and Macintosh. The software converts photos to colour and black-and-white pencil drawings and watercolor paintings. Version 10.0 has a new tool – Stroke Direction, which makes the effect of a hand-drawn sketch yet more realistic thanks to the ultimate control over the hatch direction. New presets have been added, the Preview Window improved and other features made available. The program is now compatible with Windows 7 and Snow Leopard (Mac OS X 10.6). The plug-in version also works with Photoshop CS 4 64 bit and PhotoShop Elements 8. AKVIS Sketch Home Licence (plugin or standalone) sells for $72 or €55, downloadable from http://akvis.com. The upgrade for the users of version 9 is free

HP today announced at Paris Photo 2009, the European launch of ARTtrust, a system that allows photographers and artists to provide individual identity to any Digital Fine Art Collection Pigment Print, produced on HP Designjet Z series printers using HP Vivera pigment inks with any compatible media. ARTtrust is specifically designed to meet the needs of the art market including creators (photographers, designers, digital or traditional artists), printmakers (artists who print themselves, photolabs, specialized fine art printers, print service providers), retailers (galleries, auction houses) and private or public art collectors. The solution is comprised of BubbleTags, a translucent polymer containing random and self-generated air bubbles affixed to the artwork itself that references the certificate of authenticity filed by the artist. ARTtrust is available for existing and new prints and any Digital Fine Art Collection Pigment Print can be retrofitted on demand. Following its worldwide launch at PhotoPlus Expo 2009, ARTtrust has already received positive feedback from individual photographers, such as Joel Meyerowitz and international photo agencies including Magnum. Commercial availability is slated for January 2010.

Website: ARTtrust Online

Hasselblad have announced a Multi-Shot (MS) version of their H3DII-50 medium-format digital SLR camera, which completely eliminates the need for Bayer interpolation. In multi-shot mode, the Hasselblad H3DII-50MS captures a sequence of four shots, each offset by a one-pixel increment (pixel shifting), so that each sensor photosite records full colour information. Therefore no demosaicing is required, leading to higher resolution (especially of low-contrast fine detail), better colour rendition and a complete lack of colour moiré. Due to the nature of the process, multi-shot mode is suited to perfectly still subjects only - buildings, still life subjects, works of art etc. -, which is why the Hasselblad H3DII-50MS also retains the H3DII-50’s single-shot mode too. Users of other medium-format systems can trade in their gear (body + 16-39-megapixel digital back) and get the Hasselblad H3DII-50MS for €16.000. Current Hasselblad owners can trade up for €14.000, provided they trade in a Hasselblad digital system, or a Hasselblad body with a 16-39-megapixel digital back of another manufacturer, or another manufacturer’s camera body outfitted with a Hasselblad digital back. The list price is €22.995.

Website: Introducing the Hasselblad H3D-50 Multi-Shot (in German)

Via photoscala

Panasonic has announced that it is providing X Factor contestants with Lumix DMC-ZX1 cameras to use throughout the competition. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZX1 (also known as the DMC-ZR1) is a new ultra-compact digital camera with an astounding trick up its sleeve - the 8x optically-stabilised zoom lens that provides a focal range of 25-200mm in a body measuring just 2.6cms thick.

Review: Read our in-depth review of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZX1

Leica has today announced a limited edition Ever Ready Case for the Leica D-LUX 4. Made of premium calfskin leather in a rich, deep ‘mocha’ shade, the new case is designed to hold the D-LUX 4 with its accessories (hand grip and viewfinder). The camera can be securely mounted into the Ever Ready Case with a small screw, allowing the photographer to take spontaneous pictures by simply flipping the front cover – without the need to remove it from the case. The Leica D-LUX 4 Ever Ready Case in mocha will be available in the UK from the end of November 2009 for a limited period only, from authorised Leica dealers, at a suggested retail price of £160.