News

Smith-Victor introduces the new Black Diamond Series of carbon fiber tripods,
monopods and heads that complement the existing line of Smith-Victor aluminum
tripods.

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EZPnP announces the addition of direct camera-download capability to its line
of EZDigiMagic portable digital backup products. The EZDigiMagic DM220- U08
has the added convenience of a USB host function. In addition to the traditional
memory card-to-DVD/CD backup, users now have the ability to download pictures
and video directly from their cameras to a DVD or CD. And just like all previous
EZDigiMagic products, no computer is needed.

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Image Trends announces the release of the Fisheye-Hemi Plug-In for Aperture
2.1, Apple's groundbreaking photo editing and management software. The
Fisheye-Hemi Plug-In filter set provides correction for hemispheric fisheye
lens distortion, working seamlessly within Aperture's photo editing and management
environment. Photographers can now easily preserve a normal view of people by
not distorting their faces and bodies, as the plug-in straightens vertical lines.
Fisheye-Hemi Plug-In uses almost all of the pixel data in that view with no
loss of image resolution while displaying the intended composition and framing
better than other un-warping programs.

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The PT-E05 underwater case has been specially customized for the Olympus E-520
and is waterproof up to a water pressure equivalent to a depth of 130 feet. With
its durable, high quality polycarbonate construction, it protects the camera from
water while also cushioning it from knocks and bumps on land. The housing allows
underwater photographers to compose images using the large 2.7" Live View
LCD instead of the viewfinder. The flash connectors allow optional use of up to
two UFL-2 underwater flash units. Five interchangeable lens ports allow the optional
use of 14-42mm, 14-45mm, 11-22mm or 14-54mm, 7-14mm, 8mm Fisheye and the 35mm
as well as the 50mm Macro lens. An external flash is necessary. The PT-E05 will
become available in summer 2008.



UFL-2

The UFL-2 is an incredibly light and compact TTL underwater flash that is waterproof
up to a water pressure equivalent to a depth of 196 feet. It is specially designed
for use with Olympus digital cameras and compatible underwater cases.



www.olympusamerica.com...

Olympus, sponsor of the US Open and the Olympus US Open Series, announces its
second annual national sweepstakes that will send five winners and their guests
on the trip of a lifetime to the 2008 US Open Tennis Championships in Flushing
Meadows, New York. Winners will receive a weekend getaway August 29-31, 2008,
which will include hotel, airfare, spending money and two tickets to the Grand
Slam tennis tournament. They will also be granted exclusive access to locations
normally limited to professional photographers where they can capture the on-court
and behind-the-scenes drama.



Starting in the Olympus luxury suite located in Arthur Ashe Stadium at the USTA
Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, winners will be coached by an award-winning
photographer, an Olympus Visionary, on best techniques for shooting nonstop tennis
action. They will have access to the photographers' lounge and other elite
locations, to capture images from a vantage point only the pros typically have.
The winners' ultimate photo experience will be in the exclusive Olympus
photo pit, shooting elbow-to-elbow with professional photographers and capturing
amazing up-close images of the tournament action with Olympus E-System digital
single lens reflex (DSLR) cameras.



Consumers purchasing an Olympus camera between May 13 and July 18, 2008 may register
to win by completing a registration form at participating retail locations, entering
online at www.getolympus.com,
or mailing a postcard or letter containing their name, mailing address, email
address and telephone number to: emg3, Shoot With the Pros, 215 Commercial St.,
Portland, ME 04101. Registration for the sweepstakes runs through July 18, 2008
and complete rules are available at www.getolympus.com/register.

Adobe has released an update to the Adobe Digital Negative specification (DNG),
a publicly available archival format for the raw files generated by digital cameras.
This update provides new and expanded specifications that provide the digital
imaging industry with increased flexibility and improved workflow for their raw
images. A DNG Codec for Windows Vista has also been released on Adobe Labs, allowing
photographers utilizing the Windows Vista platform to work with raw files in a
more seamless manner.

onOne Software, Inc., announces that its new software plug-in for Adobe Photoshop
and Photoshop Elements -- FocalPoint 1.0 -- is now available for immediate
download. onOne Software's FocalPoint is a selective focus and vignetting
plug-in designed to help photographers easily blur and/or vignette areas of
an image.

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