Canon, Nikon and Sony News for Apr 2011 Report News & Deals  ►

A Lens Distortion Tool is now available on the site.
 
Similar to the other Lens Comparison Tools, the Lens Distortion Tool allows lens & setting selection and mouseover comparison with other lenses. Hit the Lens Distortion Help ("?") button for more information.
 
Most of the current Canon lenses are currently loaded into the tool. Many more lenses will be added in the near future.
 
I have been considering the addition of optional grid lines overlaid on the checkerboard result image. If you feel strongly about this possible feature, send me an email with your ideas.
 
As always, thanks for your support!

B&H has changed the expected arrival date for the Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L USM Fisheye Lens from "Approx. Arrival May" to "New item - No arrival date known".

B&H is accepting Nikon D5100 preorders. When B&H accepts preorders, the product is usually expected to be in stock very soon.

ElcomSoft, the company that previously discovered a vulnerability in Canon's Original Data Security System, has now cracked Nikon's Image Authentication System. Details can be found on ElcomSoft's website.

Free upgrade to owners of Capture One 6
 
COPENHAGEN, April 28, 2011 — Phase One today released Capture One 6.2. An upgrade to the popular raw conversion and image editing software that supports both professional medium format systems and more than 170 different DSLR camera models, Capture One comprises a full digital workflow to produce beautifully detailed and richly rendered images.
 
Capture One 6.2 adds camera support for Samsung, Fuji, Ricoh, Panasonic, Canon, Sony and Nikon and for Phase One IQ180, IQ160 and IQ140, including tethered support.
 
Features and Enhancements
 
• Local Adjustments (Local adjustment of saturation and clarity; Invert local adjustments mask; Copy local adjustments mask from other layer)
• Auto sync of XMP metadata (sidecars only)
• Additional camera controls for Canon and Nikon
• Improved OpenCL and 64 bit performance
 
Camera Support
 
• Samsung NX5, NX10, NX11 and NX100
• Fuji X100
• Ricoh GR DIGITAL, GR DIGITAL II, GR DIGITAL III, GX100, GX200, GRX S10, GXR P10, GXR A12
• Phase One IQ180, IQ160, and IQ140
• Canon EOS-600D/Rebel T3i and EOS-1100D/Rebel T3 including tethered support
• Panasonic DMC-GH2 and DMC-GF2.
• Sony SLT-A55, SLT¬A33, NEX-3 and NEX-5
• Nikon D-7000 tethered support
 
Availability and Pricing
 
Capture One version 6.2 is available now; for details please see: www.phaseone.com/6
 
Capture One version 6.2 is a free upgrade to current owners of Capture One Express 6 and Capture one Pro 6. For the difference between Capture One Express and Capture One Pro, please see: www.phaseone.com/en/Software/Capture-One-Pro-6/Upgrade/Upgrade-Pro-6.aspx
 
For new customers, Capture One Pro 6.2 is available via download for 399 USD and 299 EUR through Phase One’s Online Store www.phaseone.com/store and through leading professional photography dealers worldwide. Capture One Express 6.2 is available for 129 USD and 99 EUR via www.phaseone.com/store.
 
Capture One Pro 6 and Express 6 are paid upgrades to previous versions of Capture One. Upgrade prices start at 69 USD and 49 EUR, respectively.
 
Capture Pilot™ is a free app from the Apple store for Capture One Pro. More information is available here: www.phaseone.com/en/software/capture-one-pro-6/about/capture%20pilot.aspx

- TOKYO, Japan, April 28, 2011 -
 
Seiko Epson Corporation ("Epson", TSE: 6724) today announced it would book extraordinary losses for the fourth quarter (January 1 to March 31, 2011) of the year ending March 31, 2011.
 
1. Details of extraordinary losses
 
(1) Loss on disaster
 
Epson will book on a consolidated base extraordinary losses of 4,755 million yen associated with the earthquake that struck the Tohoku area of Japan.
 
(2) Business structure improvement expenses
 
Epson will book on a consolidated base extraordinary losses of 4,566 million yen associated with the termination of the small- and medium-sized displays business.
 
2. Impact on business results
 
The aforementioned extraordinary losses have been reflected in the business results for the full year ended March 2011 announced today. For details, please read the "Consolidated Results for Year Ended March 31 2011."
 
Epson Consolidated Results for Year Ended March 31, 2011

Tamron has posted 1Q 2011 financial fesults.

With $25,000 worth of prizes on the line, the Foba Combitube Photo Competition is an eye-catcher.
 
If you do not already own the Combitube gear, cost of entry is not low. Check out the cool Foba Combitubes at B&H.

DxO Labs has added 53 new lens / camera combinations to the DxO Optics Modules library, providing supports for Canon, Samyang, Sigma, Sony, and Tamron lenses, for numerous Canon, Nikon, and Sony cameras.
 
Visit this page to see the new combinations.
 
DxO Optics Pro is available at B&H.

B&H has the new Canon Speedlite 320EX in stock.

Canon U.S.A.’s Live Learning events are in full swing for the Spring season, highlighted by the upcoming “Deconstructing the Story” workshops for professional and advanced cinematographers, photographers and videographers. These three day, hands-on sessions provide intensive learning opportunities designed to demonstrate improved techniques for shooting successful video projects with Canon EOS HD DSLR cameras. During the opening day, foundations of EOS cine-style production techniques are taught in intimate student breakout groups. That’s followed by a full day of student shooting in a 24-hour film festival style, topped off by a final day of editing; all provided from the experts of the renowned stillmotion™ team, a group of leading innovators in the use of EOS HD video products, along with Canon professional market representatives.
 
Designed for professional and advanced EOS HD DSLR users, participants of these workshops will receive instruction from stillmotion assisted by Canon team members. As part of the workshops, students will have the opportunity to work with an assortment of Canon camera bodies and lenses along with the supporting production accessories to make the experience as impactful as possible. Students will work in small groups immersing themselves in each aspect of video production with EOS while receiving guidance on the technical and creative aspects to ensure the final result is worthy of new client interest.
 
The 2011 schedule for the “Deconstructing the Story” workshops is as follows:
 
Orlando: May 24th to May 26th
Cincinnati: May 31st to June 2nd
New York: June 7th to June 9th
Austin: June 21st to June 23th
Seattle: June 28th to June 30th
 
For more information on these workshops please visit: www.usa.canon.com/story

Camera Raw 6.4 Update
 
This new version of the Camera Raw plug-in replaces the original one that was installed with Adobe Photoshop CS5, Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 and Adobe Premiere Elements 9 software. Visit the Camera Raw page for a complete list of supported cameras.
 
English: Windows | Macintosh
 
Lightroom 3.4 update
 
The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3.4 update includes these enhancements:
 
• Additional camera support for several new camera models including the Canon Rebel T3i, Nikon D5100 and Fuji FinePix X100
 
• Corrections for issues introduced in previous versions of Lightroom 3
 
English: Windows | Macintosh
 
 
Lightroom Journal has a list of fixes and new support found in the updates.

DNG Codec preview 3 — A codec that enables Windows Vista users to view DNG files in the Windows Explorer and Photo Gallery.
 
DNG Profile Editor preview 3 — A new color rendering package that contains the DNG 1.2 spec, camera profiles, and a utility to edit them.
 
Adobe Lens Profile Creator preview 3 — A utility that enables the easy creation of lens profiles for use in the Photoshop family of products.

The Nikon 50mm f/1.8G AF-S Nikkor Lens that previously made a brief appearance on Nikon USA's website has been formally announced.
 
This very reasonably-priced lens should be a big hit - preorder now at Adorama or Amazon.com.

iFixit.com has posted a Nikon D5100 Teardown. For those of you who still think everything needs to be taken apart, this page is for you. :)