Yes, those rumors that have been running rampant in the blogs for weeks are true -- Pentax has released two new digital SLRs ahead of the big PMA 2008 show in Las Vegas next week. As predicted, the two cameras will be a new "flagship" digital SLR for Pentax, the 14.2-megapixel K20D; and the more consumer oriented 10.2-megapixel K200D.  read more »

GOLDEN, CO. (January 23, 2008)PENTAX Imaging Company announced today two new digital SLR camera models including the PENTAX K20D digital SLR camera with 14.6 megapixels and the PENTAX K200D digital SLR with 10.2 megapixels. Both cameras are equipped with advanced features including dust-proof and weather-resistant bodies, an improved PRIME image processor, and PENTAX developed Shake Reduction that works with any of the 24 million PENTAX lenses ever manufactured. PENTAX K20D Digital SLR Improving on the technology of the award winning K10D, the flagship PENTAX K20D is the highest resolution camera in the advanced photo enthusiast category and allows more experienced photographers, who demand complete control, to fully customize the camera.  read more »

La Hulpe, Belgium, March 26, 2008 Leaf, the developer of the worlds fastest medium-format digital camera solutions, was awarded The Best of Show prize at the UKs main professional photography show, Focus On Imaging 2008. For Leaf, the show was the launch pad for the Leaf AFi camera system, as well as showcasing the Leaf Aptus family of digital camera backs, and presenting the latest developments with the Leaf Capture workflow software. Award-winning advertising photographer, Kelvin Murray, attracted attention as the Leaf guest photographer, shooting fashion, beauty and still-life with the Leaf AFi medium format camera system. According to Mary Walker, Exhibition Director of Focus on Imaging: The standard of exhibitor presentation rises year on year at Focus but there are always stands which push the boundaries of excellence. The Leaf stand at Focus 08 met all our criteria for a highly commended stand. Good looks, wow factor, colour scheme, graphics, use of space, visitor friendliness, state of the art lighting, on-stand presentation, oh, and theyre also just a thoroughly nice bunch of people were very fond of!  read more »

Collaboration with The Princes Rainforests Project Environment is central theme of this years awards Student programme to span six continents A major new initiative, in association with The Princes Rainforests Project (PRP), was announced on Monday 22 September, at the launch of the second annual Sony World Photography Awards 2009 - a truly global competition which honours both professional and amateur photographers. Speakers at the launch at the Seippel Gallery in Cologne included Scott Gray, Managing Director of the Sony World Photography Awards, James Kennedy, General Manager of Marketing Communications at Sony Europe, Vanessa Winship, winner of the 2008 Iiris dor and Briony Mathieson from The Princes Rainforest Project.  read more »

Nikon has just unveiled the new SB-900 speedlight. From what I can see, it is fairly similar to nothing like the '800, except that it will zoom out to a 200mm beam spread. That would be will be so cool, as it basically will give you a built-in Better Beamer , which can concentrate the light for better reach (or higher f/stop) and/or to create a nice grid spot effect. Highlights: More power. (Argh, argh, argh) Up to GN 48/157 max Faster recycling - 4 secs w/Alkaline, 2.3 secs w/NiMH batts Tighter beam spread - up to 200mm throw Beam shaping - custom light patterns within the beam Faster CLS adjustments - physical dials. Upgradable firmware One second recycle w/new SD-9 Battery pack. and... Five hundred smackers. I am probably not gonna get one -- I am probably gonna get a couple . Kinda silly that way. And yes, this is probably the only photo site that cares more about the new strobe than the new D-700... Hit the jump for the full text of the Nikon press release, and more photos.  read more »

Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today announced Adobe Photoshop Express public beta, a free Rich Internet Application (RIA) available to anyone who wants to store, sort and show off digital photos with eye-catching effects. During the public beta period, Adobe will solicit Photoshop Express user feedback on product features and functionality, which will continue to evolve over time. As the newest addition to the Photoshop family line, Photoshop Express has taken much of Adobes best image editing technology and made it simple and accessible to a new online audience.  read more »

But while inkjet is poised to become a mainstream technology for commercial printing, one form of the technology piezoelectric drop-on-demand (Piezo DOD) is superbly positioned to dominate industrial applications that are well within and far beyond the world of print production. Piezo DOD is a proven industrial technology thats been used in wide-format printing and industrial marking and coding since the late 1980s. Over many years, FUJIFILM Dimatix, Inc. (originally known as Spectra, Inc.) has improved the technologys speed, accuracy, consistency and reliability making piezo DOD suitable for a broad range of applications.  read more »

New image processing system to feature outstanding image quality, fast processing times, and low power consumption- Tokyo and Cologne, Germany, September 24, 2008 Leica Camera AG (Leica) and Fujitsu Microelectronics Limited (FML) announced today the co-development of an image processing system solution for high-end digital single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras, to be featured in Leicas next-generation cameras. A digital SLR camera prototype, the LEICA S2, featuring the new image processing system will be exhibited by Leica (Stand 02.1 Hall A001) at the Photokina exhibition, to be held in Cologne, Germany from September 23 to 28.  read more »

It's good to know we weren't the only ones taken by surprise by today's sudden "announcement" that Hasselblad would be releasing a new 50MP camera system called the H3DII-50 in October. Apparently it was news to Hasselblad's public relations people as well. After seeing info on the H3DII-50 on several websites early Tuesday morning, we testily pinged our contact at Hasselblad about why we weren't given a heads up that this camera was coming. Usually, courteous PR people will give us at least a few hours notice before a major camera is about to launch so we can get working on our stories ahead of time.  read more »

"We're overwhelmed by the positive response to the Photoshop Express beta and all the people who are actively editing and showing off their photos," said Doug Mack, vice president of Consumer and Hosted Solutions at Adobe. "Photoshop Express will continue to evolve over time as we listen to user feedback and build a complete hosted solution that gives people the right balance of performance, convenience and that 'wow-factor' that makes their photos stand out from the rest.  read more »