New Canon EOS 60D launched

Canon has expanded its EOS digital SLR (DSLR) range with the launch of the new EOS 60D.

Canon claim the EOS 60D is the perfect camera for aspiring photographers looking to expand their photographic skills.

The EOS 60D boasts a range of new features with an 18 Megapixel sensor, 5.3frames per second (fps) shooting, in-camera image editing and a brand-new Vari-angle LCD that enables the shooting of stills and HD movies from almost any angle.

It offers a mix of full manual controls and new creative shooting modes, and is fully compatible with Canon’s range of EOS accessories, including EF lenses and external speedlites.

Canon EOS 60D features:

• Capture exquisite detail with 18 Megapixels
• Easily take creative control with Basic +
• Shoot at unusual angles on the Vari-angle LCD
• Great in low light with DIGIC 4 processing
• Customize your images with creative filters
• Shoot movies your way with variable frame rates

Want to learn how to use the manual settings on your camera? Come to a photography weekend with top photographer Philip Dunn.

BBC Radio 4: photography and the law

A BBC Radio 4 magazine programme about the law has taken a look at the legal issues facing photographers.

Veteran presenter Joshua Rozenberg launched the new series of BBC Radio 4′s Law in Action with an investigation on the changing law about photography in public places.

In a BBC blog post about the programme Joshua Rozenberg describes the hostile reaction he, his producer and a photographer received when trying to take pictures of a London building.

Joshua Rozenberg says he eventually stopped recording the reaction of the ‘building manager’ when threats were made to call the police, who could have searched him under section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

However, the police later confirmed that he had not been breaking the law.

Read Joshua Rozenberg’s BBC blog post.

Top prize on offer for RSPCA Young Photographer Awards winner

One of the world’s best wildlife photographers has teamed up with the RSPCA to offer the winner of this year’s Young Photographer Awards (YPA10) the prize of a lifetime.

Danny Green, a two-time category winner in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards, is offering the overall RSCPA YPA10 winner the chance to join him for a three-day photography break.

Danny will pass on some expert photography tips as well as share his inside knowledge during the annual deer rut in Bradgate Park, in Leicestershire.

Danny will also be joining the judging panel again for the RSPCA YPA10, sponsored by Olympus and Warner Midlands, which has established itself as one of the premier competitions for the best of Britain’s young photographers.

“I am really looking forward to seeing this year’s entries because if the quality of last year’s finalists was anything to go by there are going to be some outstanding photographs in contention,” said Danny.

The overall winner will also get £1,000 worth of Olympus kit of their choice.

The winners of the under 12s and 12-18 categories will meanwhile get to join RSPCA chief photographer Andrew Forsyth on their own exclusive shoot, as well as an Olympus camera each.

RSPCA YPA10 entries

The RSPCA YPA10 is now open for entries on the official website www.rspca.org.uk/ypa until the closing date of midnight on Monday, 6 September.

Entries can also be submitted in the post, to arrive no later than 5pm on 23 August.

Information and postal entry forms are available from the website, by emailing publications@rspca.org.uk or writing to YPA/RSPCA Publications, Wilberforce Way, Southwater, West Sussex, RH13 9RS.

The shortlisted photographers will then be invited to HM Tower of London for an exclusive awards ceremony where Matt Baker will announce the winners on 10 December.

Travel Photographer of the Year 2010 opens

The 2010 international Travel Photographer of the Year awards (TPOTY) are now open for entry.

Open to amateur and professional photographers from across the globe, TPOTY 2010 sees new categories, new sponsors and new judges, a great range of photographic and travel prizes, and a special focus on young and emerging talent.

Organisers say the 2010 categories have been designed to challenge entrants’ creativity and to offer something for all levels of photographic experience.

Sponsors and partners including Genesis Imaging and Young Photographers Alliance (YPA), have joined Adobe, Intrepid Travel, LEE Filters, Lexar Media, Photo Iconic, Plastic Sandwich and Wacom in supporting the awards, which last year received entries from over 70 countries.

TOPTY 2010 prizes

The 2010 prize package includes trips to South East Asia, Botswana, India and Nepal with Intrepid Travel, TPOTY cash bursaries, Adobe Photoshop CS5 and Lightroom software, a Wacom Cintiq 12WX interactive pen display and Intuos4 and Bamboo Fun pen tablets, the latest Lexar® Professional CompactFlash® memory cards and card readers, LEE filters, customised leather portfolio books from Plastic Sandwich, fine art Giclée exhibition prints from Genesis Imaging and copies of the latest TPOTY book, Journey Three.

Prizes for new and emerging photographers include Young Photographers Alliance portfolio reviews and places on the YPA mentoring programme, the chance of representation from Axiom Photographic Agency, and Photo Iconic photography tuition and image critiques.

TPOTY 2010 judges

Judges TPOTY 2010 will be judged by a panel of imaging experts from the UK, USA, Germany, Sri Lanka and New Zealand, including travel and wildlife photographer Steve Bloom; Caroline Metcalfe, Director of Photography for Conde Nast Traveller; Sophie Batterbury, Picture Editor of Independent on Sunday and Foto8: Mary Robert, Head of Photography for American International University; Simon Bainbridge, Editor of British Journal of Photography; Andrew James, Editor of Practical Photography; Manfred Zollner, Editor of Fotomagazin (Germany); Debbie Ireland, former head of the AA Photo Library; Erin Moroney, head of Axiom Photographic Agency; Marni Brownlees, Art Buyer for interactive marketing agency Dare Digital; travel photographer and publisher Juliet Coombe; photographer and TV cameraman Jeremy Hoare; landscape and panoramic photographer Nick Meers; wildlife photographer Chris Weston, and TPOTY founder, travel photographer Chris Coe.

TPOTY 2010 awards and categories

Awards and categories TPOTY 2010 features three portfolio categories for amateur and professional photographers aged 19 and over.

The category titles are Encounters, Amazing Places and World in Motion.

In addition to portfolio winners, awards will be given for the best individual images in each of these categories.

The overall winner of TPOTY 2010 – the Travel Photographer of the Year 2010 – will be the entrant who is judged to have submitted the strongest two portfolios.

There are two single image categories – One Shot (theme: Adventures), which is for experienced amateurs and professional photographers, and First Shot (theme: Festival of Colour), which is aimed at adult beginners.

The New Talent award (theme: Sell It!) is for aspiring professional photographers, and the Young Travel Photographer of the Year is divided into two age groups for the first time – 14 and under and 15-18.

Entrants in New Talent and Young TPOTY will also be eligible for the YPA Emerging Talent award. Deadlines and entry fees Print entries are now being accepted for the 2010 awards, and online image submissions can be made from July 1.

Each portfolio category costs £15 per entry, One Shot and First Shot cost £10 to enter, and New Talent £20.

Young TPOTY is free to enter. Entries close on October 9th 2010 and the results will be announced in December.

For more information visit the Travel Photographer of the Year website.

>> If you want to improve your travel photography make sure you sign up to a photography course or photography holiday with former Sunday Times travel photographer Philip Dunn.

Nikon sponsors Hollyoaks TV soap

Nikon UK has announced a new TV sponsorship deal with daily Channel 4 TV show, Hollyoaks, as part of its wider TV advertising campaign.

The sponsorship of the modern soap supports Nikon’s COOLPIX compact camera range and airs from 3rd May – 30th September 2010.

The COOLPIX sponsorship will be featured on the daily show on Channel 4 and E4, as well as the weekly Saturday omnibus on E4.

The focus of the sponsorship is the Nikon COOLPIX S3000, a 12.0 megapixel stylish, feature packed compact camera that Nikon claims is “affordable and universal in its appeal.”

The sponsorship adverts feature a behind the scenes look at a lively party scene, typical of those featured on Hollyoaks, and a snapshot of a moment that is summarised with the I AM: A PARTY ANIMAL message.

Jeremy Gilbert, group marketing manager at Nikon UK says: “Hollyoaks provides the perfect demographic to which we are able to communicate the strengths of the COOLPIX S3000 camera.

“We are excited to be engaging with this new audience and look forward to seeing how viewers respond to the COOLPIX S3000 as a fun, easy to use, individual camera.”

He added: “The sponsorship is an ideal platform on which to communicate Nikon’s I AM messaging, in that we are able to visually demonstrate the emotional side of photography and how it fits into your lifestyle.”

Set in the city of Chester, Hollyoaks is one of the only long running dramas to attract and sustain a lucrative 16-24 audience, thanks – arguably – to its cast of beautiful people.

Polaroid launch new instant film camera

Polaroid have launched a new camera which instantly prints business card-sized photographs.

The Polaroid  300 has four scene settings and features an automatic flash.

Polaroid, who recently appointed popstar Lady Gaga as their creative director said: “The new Polaroid 300 Instant Camera has everything you loved about instant photography back in a fun and one-of-a-kind Polaroid way.

“With four lighting settings and an auto-flash, your photos will be perfect every time.”

“Take the 300 Instant Camera with you to capture the fun instantly,” Polaroid added.

Follow the link for more information on the Polaroid 300 Instant Camera.

>> Whatever your camera, learn how to take better pictures on a photography holiday with Philip Dunn

Adobe Lightroom 2.7, ACR 5.7 & DNG Converter 5.7 released

Adobe has released Lightroom 2.7, ACR 5.7 and DNG Converter 5.7 for download at Adobe.com

Adobe’s Lightroom 2.7 is now available as a free download for Lightroom 2 customers, and Photoshop Camera Raw 5.7 is available as a free download for Photoshop CS4, Photoshop Elements 8 (Win/Mac) and Premiere Elements 8 customers.

The DNG Converter 5.7 is also available as a free download for all customers.

These are final versions of updates that were originally posted on the Adobe Labs site.

The latest versions provide final RAW support for the following nine recent cameras:
– Canon EOS 550D (Digital Rebel T2i/ EOS Kiss X4 Digital)
– Kodak Z981
– Leaf Aptus-II 8
– Leaf Aptus-II 10R
– Mamiya DM40
– Olympus E-PL1
– Panasonic G2
– Panasonic G10
– Sony A450

Follow the link for more information on the Adobe updates.

Better camera and flash on ‘new iPhone’

Apple’s next iPhone will feature a bigger and better camera with an in-built flash plus a front-facing camera for video-chat.

That’s according to the latest rumours from some of the most respected gadget and Apple-watching websites.

Gizmodo.com have reported that a prototype of Apple’s next iPhone was discovered at a bar in Redwood City in America.

The new iPhone includes a host of improvements to Apple’s hugely popular iPhone 3GS, including a front-facing video-chat camera and an improved regular back-camera, which has a ‘noticeably’ larger lens.

There is also an in-built flash, a clearer screen and second microphone.

Read more details on the ‘new iPhone’ at Gizmodo.com.

>> Learn how to take better pictures whatever you’re camera on a photography holiday with Philip Dunn.

Brits take photographs of smells, says Nikon

Brits are so in tune with their senses that they can recall the smell associated with a scene or location – just by looking at a photo of it.

That’s according to research released by Nikon to celebrate the launch of its new range of COOLPIX compact cameras.

The study, which was conducted across 23 countries, revealed that 47 percent of Brits can remember the scent associated with a photograph, while just under a quarter said they would actively take a picture of something based purely on the way it smells.

The results also show that British women are more likely to pay attention to the scent of their surroundings when taking a picture than men, with over a quarter stating they would capture a photograph of something that smells appealing – for example a rose garden.

Commenting on the research, Dr Rachel Herz, a leading world expert in the psychological science of scent and Professor at Brown University, said: “This research shows just how powerful the link between our memories and the sense of smell really is.

“While a photograph can visually remind us of a particular moment in time, if it is accompanied by scent it will elicit even more emotional and evocative memories – more than any other memory trigger.”

When asked to rate a list of scents that were most likely to trigger a memory, over 53 percent of Brits named the smell of freshly cut grass as their top ‘memory scent’.

The research of 11,500 people was conducted to mark the launch of the new range of Nikon COOLPIX compact cameras, including the S8000, the S4000, P100, L110, L21 and L22.

Britain’s top 5 scents of a memory:

1. Freshly cut grass – childhood sports days and playing football

2. Sunscreen – the beach and summer holidays

3. Baby talc – newborn baby

4. Candy Floss – carnivals / fairgrounds

5. Farmyard – time spent on a farm or in the countryside

‘Tennis Girl’ poster photographer dies

Martin Elliot, the photographer who took the iconic ‘Tennis Girl’ poster has died of cancer, aged 63.

The photograph, taken in 1976, shows a young woman lifting up her white tennis dress and touching her bare bottom.

Mr Elliot sold the image to the poster chain Athena and it became one of the world’s most famous pictures, selling millions of photography prints.

The model in the picture was Mr Elliot’s 18-year-old girlfriend at the time, Fiona Butler, who borrowed the white tennis dress, racket and balls for the shot.

Mr Elliot was a student at Birmingham School of Photography when he took the picture at the university’s tennis courts in Edgbaston.

Retaining the copyright of the ‘Tennis Girl’ photography print, Mr Elliot went on to make a fortune from the poster sales.

He died at his home in Cornwall following a 10-year battle with cancer, aged 63.

>> Buy photography prints by former Sunday Times travel photographer Philip Dunn

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