Iconic Britain is a photographic competition that aims to find 100 images that define Britain. Powered by Microsoft Live Search, a new image sourcing network, you can win prizes both by submitting a photo and voting on other people’s entries, with Nikon Coolpix and D60 DSLR cameras on offer. The Iconic Britain competition is open to residents of the United Kingdom, and it runs from 19th June to 14th August 2008. A panel of experts will choose the category winners and their favourite British icon. You can enter and vote in the contest at http://www.iconicbritain.com

Adobe are offering 50% off Photoshop CS3 to all licensed users of Photoshop Elements. This special offer begins on 1 July, 2008 and ends at 11:59 p.m. 31 July, 2008. It’s available only to licensed users of Photoshop Elements 1.0 - 6.0 and Adobe Photoshop Elements plus Adobe Premiere Elements bundle who purchase the full version of Photoshop CS3 directly from Adobe. the discount is available from the Adobe.com store and by calling 0800 0280148 (press Option 1 and mention the promotion code: 3HAE) and is valid in the United Kingdom only.

The four winners of Canon’s The Assignment photo contest have just been announced. The final four winners are the UK’s Ivan Hoo (Portrait), David Bernard of the Czech Republic, (Sport) France’s Alan Laboile (Macro) and Dave Derbis from Germany (Landscape). A total of 43,404 images were submitted, and voted for by 192,127 registrants on the competition website. The winners will now have the chance to plan and follow their own personal ‘dream assignment’ – each of which will be filmed for broadcast across Europe later in the year.

The new Super High Grade Digital Filters fro Marumi are specifically designed for digital photography. Each filter uses the Digital Super Coating, an ultra-low reflection coating to minimize internal reflection off the camera’s built-in CCD and CMOS Sensors. The Super High Grade Digital Filters are available as either Lens Protection - which are colourless, so there is no degradation of image - and also Polarising. They are available in the following sizes: 49mm, 52mm, 55mm, 58mm, 62mm, 67mm, 72mm, 77mm and 82mm. Kenro is the official UK distributors for the range of Marumi photographic accessories.

Steves Digicams have reviewed the Casio EX-Z80, a new 8 megapixel digital camera that’s designed to be “easier” and “more fun”.

“Most of the exposures outdoors were good, however, as we have seen in our Sample Pics taken with both the S10 and the Z80 the sky in the sample shots of the canon the clouds seem to be slightly overexposed. This is a problem as it causes the area to lose detail otherwise the colors look vivid and lifelike. The 3x optical zoom, with a 35mm equivalent of 38-114mm, it is very good for landscapes and portrait photography. The zoom is great for framing or singling out an individual from a group but is not enough to bring a distant object much closer. At the wide end of the zoom you will see some barrel distortion and slight edge softness as well as some chromatic aberrations throughout.”

Website: Steves Digicams - Casio EX-Z80 Review

The UK’s Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, has given the go-ahead for photography to be restricted in the UK. In a very worrying sign of the times, Smith wrote in a letter to the National Union of Journalists that “Decisions may be made locally to restrict or monitor photography in reasonable circumstances. That is an operational decision for the officers involved based on the individual circumstances of each situation.” No clarification was given of what might constitute “reasonable circumstances”. The Home Secretary went on to say “‘It is for the local Chief Constable, in the case of your letter the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Force, to decide how his or her Officers and employees should best balance the rights to freedom of the press, freedom of expression and the need for public protection.” Considering that the Metropolitan Police force have already targeted photographers in a prominent poster campaign earlier this year, this isn’t particularly good news…

Website: BJP - Home Secretary green lights restrictions on photography

Repeat digital camera buyers are driving the digital camera market, according to a new report by Infotrends. In 2007, 3 out of 4 digital camera buyers purchased a replacement or additional camera, and in 2008 almost 9 out of 10 digital camera buyers are expected to fall into that category. Repeat buyers also spend more, because they are likely to be hobbyists that own multiple cameras, and their purchases are triggered by new technology or simply the desire to own a new camera.

The Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 Digital Field Guide is a full-color portable guide to the Sony Alpha A700 digital SLR camera. This new book guides you through the essential controls, features, and functions of the Sony A700 using step-by-step instructions and full-color images of each menu screen. The Sony Alpha DSLR A700 Digital Field Guide also goes beyond camera settings to offer you a refresher guide to the principles of digital photography. The Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 Digital Field Guide is available now for 16.00 EUR.

Ricoh have released a new firmware update for the Ricoh R8, a 10 megapixel digital camera with a 7.1 wide-angle zoom lens. The new firmware update, version 1.22, improves the accuracy of the white balance.

Website: Ricoh R8 Firmware Update 1.22

TrustedReviews have reviewed the Olympus E-420, a compact new entry-level 10 megapixel DSLR camera.

“There’s very little to criticise the overall specification and performance of the E-420. I like it’s size - it’s ideal for travelling and is reminiscent of my old OM4 in some aspects of its handling. Images are generally good too, with excellent sharpness and detail. Colour is crisp and hough exposures are slightly underexposed to my taste, they do maintain good tonality throughout the range.”

Website: TrustedReviews - Olympus E-420 Review

Website: Read our Olympus E-420 Review

Leica are offering up to $800 off the price of a Leica M8 digital camera. From July 1, 2008 to September 30, 2008, customers can save $500 with the purchase of a brand new LEICA M8 or $800 for a brand new LEICA M8 and a new and current M lens. This promotion is valid for residents of the US, Canada, Central and South America. The mail-in rebate is not applicable to special edition lenses and cannot be combined with any other offer or promotion.

Nikon UK is offering up to £90 off a D60 kit and £60 off a D40 kit. From the 1st July, customers will be to claim up to £60 cashback for a twin lens D40 kit and £90 cash back on the D60 kit, which has now been extended to include the SB-400 and SB-600 flashguns. Full terms and conditions and information about how to claim the cashback can be found at http://www.nikon.co.uk/cashback . This promotion ends on 31st August 2008, and all claims have to be made by 30th September 2008.

Nikon have released a new firmware update, version 2.00, for the D3 DSLR camera. The most notable changes are improvements to the autofocus and auto white balance performance, and the resolution of an issue that caused the battery indicator to blink, regardless of the actual battery charge.

Nikon have released a firmware update, v1.03, for the D300 DSLR camera. This firmware update resolves an issue which, in rare cases, causes the battery indicator to blink whilst shooting regardless of the level of charge in the battery.

Sydney Opera House and HP are running a global photography competition called House in Focus. The lucky winner will have their best shot exhibited at Sydney Opera House, where thousands of visitors will see it every week, and also win a HP TouchSmart PC. Two runners up will each receive a large scale canvas of their image, a roof tile from Sydney Opera House (collected during the original construction) and a book, Building a masterpiece: the Sydney Opera House. You just need to upload your image of Sydney Opera House to enter the contest. Voting of the images is open to the public who can vote until midnight on July 30, when three winners will be selected by the judging panel.

Fujifilm have unveiled 3 fashionable, fitted cases for the Z-series compact digital camera range. “We’ve found that today’s stylish camera owners in tune with our Z-Series lineup want their cameras to be as fashionably dressed as they are,” said Melanie McNichol, product manager, Electronic Imaging Division, Fujifilm U.S.A., Inc. “With these new cases, Fujifilm customers will be able to accessorize and protect their camera according to their own personal style.” The Z camera cases will retail for $14.99 each and be available in August 2008.

UK-based Experience Seminars are offering Canon digital SLR training packages for £99. The program, promoted by Canon, covers the Canon digital EOS system in depth along with how to get the very best out of your camera for specific photographic subjects. Experience Seminars have just moved into a new enlarged training centre at Wennington near Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire. The company has over 600 events covering 32 different seminars and training courses scheduled for 2008.

Get £400 off the new Spyder3Elite / Spyder3Studio when you trade-in your old calibration device. Between 1st July and 1st September 2008, simply hand in your old calibration device to your dealer or send it to Datacolor along with a completed order form to obtain the discount. All monitor calibration devices, including all previous Datacolor Spyder models (and ColorPlus) as well as units from other manufacturers, are valid.

The Transcend T.photo 720 is a new 7-inch digital photo frame with 2GB of internal memory. Featuring a refreshingly modern design, the T.photo 720 offers 800x480 pixel resolution and also functions as a full-featured MP3 player and an FM radio. The T.photo 720 is also equipped with a special new MobileCard slot for direct input of microSD and M2 cards. Transcend’s T.photo 720 digital photo frame is now available in either black or white.

Buy-n-Shoot have reviewed the 10 megapixel Olympus E-3 DSLR camera.

“A personal favourite feature is the 270-degree swivel screen. All DSLRs should have them in my opinion. It expands the user’s shooting possibilities by providing the option to shoot above your head, at your hip or by your feet - which you can do with any camera - but with the E-3 swivel screen you can correctly compose; there’s no guesswork involved. It also gives you the option to turn the screen toward your subject so they can see the shots as they are taken and is a great feature too to help protect your screen from scratches as it can be ‘closed’ to face in towards the camera body and out of harm’s way.”

Website: Buy-n-Shoot - Olympus E-3 Review

Website: Read our Olympus E-3 Review