Ilford Photo’s traditional black and white processing service has a new online presence and new identity. The Ilford Lab Direct printing service draws on 130 years of Ilford Photo expertise, producing the finest quality black and white prints; achieved using traditional Ilford black and white chemistry and genuine Ilford silver gelatin photographic paper, Ilford says. The new online resource at www.ilfordlab.com not only provides secure payment and digital file upload, but customers can also create an account with Ilford Lab Direct and go through the digital upload tutorial. For customers who prefer the traditional approach, Ilford Photo continues to sell process paid films and mailers through popular photographic dealers. Further still, order forms for 35mm and 120 film processing can be downloaded from the website for the direct mail order service. Ilford Lab Direct normally operates up-to a maximum of 5 working days in the lab for UK distribution. The service is available for UK and European customers.

Website: Ilford Lab Direct

Canon has issued a firmware upgrade for the Canon EOS 50D digital SLR camera. Version 1.0.7 corrects a phenomenon where captured images may tend to appear somewhat magenta depending on the shooting scene. Plus, it also fixes incorrect indications on the Arabic, Romanian, Spanish, and Ukrainian menu screens.

Website: Canon EOS 50D Firmware Update
Review: Read our in-depth review of the Canon EOS 50D

5.11 Tactical, a leader in high endurance tactical clothing and gear, has a range of bags that are perfect for photographers. The DC Roller Travel Bag (pictured) is just the right size to fit in an overhead compartment when traveling on a airplane and is easy to transport even when fully loaded and is designed to allow quick access. The Side Trip Briefcase is a multi-functional, medium sized gear bag that can hold a laptop and accommodate a lot of your day-to-day gear. The Practical Utility Shoulder Hold Pack, is a rugged yet modern version of the traditional belt pack. This versatile bag is great for on location photo shoots where photographers need to be as mobile as possible. Read on / click through for the details.

Leica is joining many other premium brands and launching its own UK store in September 2009. The Leica facility will comprise a ground floor retail store showcasing and selling the full Leica range of products, first floor offices, a ‘Leica Akademie’ training and demonstration centre and a Leica S-System studio. The location will be in Bruton Place, Mayfair, situated between Old Bond Street and Berkeley Square, London W1. Opening hours of the store will be 10.00 to 18.00 Monday to Friday, and 10.00 to 15.00 on Saturdays. Office, training facilities and studio will be by appointment only.

The UK pricing and availability of the Leica S2 and a number of S system lenses have been unveiled! OK, sit down if you are not seated yet, take a deep breath… here we go: the body-only price is £15,996! And if you want a sapphire glass screen plus Platinum Service (whose details are to be announced), then expect to pay £19,092. The suggested retail prices of four Summarit-S lenses and their Central Shutter versions - which enable flash synchronisation at higher shutter speeds - have also been announced: they range from £3,096 to £5,160; with availability slated for October 2009. Read all the details after the break.

Website: Click here for our brief hands-on report and exclusive shots of the Leica S2

The Nikon D300S is a new 12.3 megapixel DSLR camera that can record HD movies. Based upon the D300, the D300S also adds a continuous shooting speed of 7fps and dual CF and SD memory card slots. The D300S also features a Quiet release mode for discrete photography, the same multi-selector to that used on the D3 series and D700, and built-in pop-up flash that covers 16mm wide-angle field of view. It incorporates the same DX-format 12.3 megapixel CMOS sensor, 51-point autofocus system, 3 inch 920K dot LCD screen and EXPEED image processing of the D300. The Nikon D300S will cost £1499.99 / €1821.00 / $1799.95 body only, available from 28th August 2009.

The Nikon D3000 is a new entry-level DSLR camera designed to be simple and accessible. Based on the D5000, the D3000 is designed for anyone who wants to take pictures without worrying about settings. The new intelligent Guide mode recommends the appropriate settings for the current subject or scene. The D3000 also features a 10.2 megapixel sensor, EXPEED processing system, 3-inch LCD screen, 3 fps continuous shooting and 11-point autofocus system. The Nikon D3000 will be available on 28th August 2009 for £429.99 / €522.00 body-only or £499.99 / €607.00 / $599.95 with the 18-55mm VR lens.

The AF-S NIKKOR 70-200MM F/2.8G ED VR II is a new professional telephoto lens. Featuring a brand new optical design and extended Vibration Reduction capability, the Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 lens implements Nikon’s anti-reflection Nano Crystal coat and seven ED glass elements. Three focus modes are incorporated, A/M; M/A and M, and two Vibration Reduction modes. The AF-S NIKKOR 70-200MM F/2.8G ED VR II will cost £1999.99 / €2430.00 / $2399.95 when it launches in November 2009.

The AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR II is a new superzoom lens. Offering 11.1x zoom, the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 improves functionality and image quality.It features a new zoom lock switch, improved Super Integrated Coating and Vibration Reduction II system to shoot at shutter speeds up to four stops slower than would otherwise be possible. The AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200MM F/3.5-5.6G ED VR II will cost £729.99 / €887.00 / $849.95 and be available from 4th September 2009.

Bogen Imaging has announced that Litepanels will be awarded a Technology & Engineering Emmy Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for its proprietary lighting systems. Litepanels fixtures are used on a variety of network television productions including high profile programs such as Desperate Housewives, Fox’s 24, and Without a Trace. The Emmy award is the first in the Academy’s 61 year history to be awarded for television lighting technology, and will be presented on Saturday, 22 August, at the Renaissance Hotel in Los Angeles.

Eye-Fi Inc. today unveiled the Eye-Fi Geo card, a new wireless SD memory card exclusive to Apple that allows users to automatically upload photos from a digital camera to a computer and offers lifetime geotagging service. The Eye-Fi Geo wirelessly uploads photos straight to a folder on your computer or Apple’s iPhoto gallery where they arrive automatically geotagged with location information about where the image was captured. The 2GB Eye-Fi Geo card is available exclusively at Apple stores and Apple.com for $59.99.

Jessops have announced their latest line in camera accessories – the 2AM range of camera bags, sleeves and pouches by Acme Made. These include the Bowler, a feminine alternative to the standard DSLR camera bag, the Sexy Little Pouch (pictured), a sleek way to protect your digital compact camera, the Sexy Little Protective Sleeve, the slimmest form of protection for your DSLR and the Sleek Case featuring a molded clamshell design. The Acme Made range of accessories are available online at www.jessops.com and are available in selected Jessops stores.

Pentax have released a firmware update for their Pentax K-7 digital SLR. Version 1.01 improves the overall operational stability of the camera, and allows users to give priority to auto-focus selection by way of the four-way controller.

Website: Latest K-7 Firmware Update
Review: Read our in-depth review of the Pentax K-7

Kodak is launching a new Décor (D) series of digital photo frames. These digital frames have an interchangeable faceplate design, and can be customised with virtually any traditional frame, Kodak says. There are currently two frames in the D series, called the EasyShare D830 and the EasyShare D1030. The two frames differ from each other in their size; with the D830 being an 8” model, and the D1030 featuring a 10” display. Both will be available as of September, for £119.99 and £169.99, respectively.

Kodak has introduced the twelve-megapixel Kodak EasyShare M381 digital compact camera with a 35-175mm equivalent zoom lens and HD video capture. The Kodak M381 also features a 3” LCD screen, face detection, “blur reduction technology” - which appears not to mean optical image stabilisation -, and easy upload to Facebook, YouTube and the Kodak Gallery. The Kodak EasyShare M391 will become available from September for £129.99.

Kodak has unveiled the 12-megapixel Kodak EasyShare Z950 digital compact camera with a stabilised 10x zoom lens made by Schneider-Kreuznach. The Z950 also incorporates Kodak’s innovative Smart Capture feature, which automatically adjusts focus, flash, and exposure, much like the iAuto mode of other manufacturers’ recent cameras. Kodak also claims a full-autofocus shutter lag - “click-to-capture speed” - of less than 0.3 seconds. Available as of September 2009, the Kodak EasyShare Z950 will cost £199.99.

Kodak has just announced the compact Kodak Zi8 high-definition digital video camera. The Kodak Zi8 boasts full 1080p HD video capture in a compact body. It also features electronic image stabilisation, a 2.5” colour LCD screen and a swing-out USB arm for fast sharing and charging. In addition to recording HD video, it can also take 5-megapixel stills in widescreen format (16:9 aspect ratio). The Kodak Zi8 digital video camera will be available from September for £149.99.

The winner of the Bing Summer Travel Photo Contest has been announced. The winning photo of a lighning strike over Sydney, Australia, has been chosen from over 9,400 accepted entries. A total of 13,206 people rated the photos through the Bing Photo Sharing Facebook application. The winning photograph will be featured on the Bing homepage on 3 August for one day, exposing the talented photographer and winning photo to the millions of Bing.com daily visitors, Microsoft says.

Website: Bing Photo Contest on Facebook

Spürsinn, a German online retailer, is now offering an orthochromatic black-and-white sheet film in a historic 6.5x9cm format. It has a nominal sensitivity of 24 Scheiner°, which translates into roughly ISO 25/15°. This film contains 4 times as much silver as modern black-and-white emulsions, which is why it comes bundled with its own developer and fixer. The complete kit includes 50 sheets of film, 2 bottles of developer and one bottle of fixer; and costs €47.90.

Website: Spürsinn