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Welcome... This is the place where all of you interested in photography can come to find out the latest hot news and gossip in the photographic world.  Please check this page regularly to keep in the know.

May 2001 News (UPDATED!!!)
(NB: The most recent news stories appear first, old news stories will be kept for a period of 5 months)
ALSO: Please Note That The News Stories Found On This Page Are Not Written By Me. They are Created By The News Sources Found Under Each Item.. I Only Display Them Here In Order to Promote Them And The News They Supply Me.. Please Visit Their Sites For More In-Depth News. Thank You
 
Newton slams 'monotonous' pictures
Helmut Newton, who has himself attracted strong criticism in the past,
expressed disappointment at some of today's photographers when he
visited London last week to celebrate the arrival from Berlin of a major
exhibition of his work. Dismissing the term 'retrospective' with the
response 'you can do that when I'm dead', Newton conceded that his
latest show would have been impossible in the same venue just a few
years ago. 'The world has changed,' he observed, 'but whether I have had
an influence is not for me to say.' He went on to dismiss some
contemporary workers, including Cindy Sherman, as artists who use
photography rather than photographers proper, and described fashion's
obsession with see-through clothes in magazines and on the catwalk as
'monotonous'.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

 Testa cheats death in Macedonia
A photographer working for The Guardian narrowly escaped with his life
after he and a group of British journalists came under direct fire from
Macedonian troops. Freelancer Andrew Testa, along with one of The
Guardian's journalists and several BBC reporters, travelled to the
village of Slupcane on the Kosovo border last week to report on the
ongoing conflict between government soldiers and the rebel ethnic
Albanian National Liberation Army. They had been assured by the
government's Ministry of Information that a ceasefire was in effect. As
they approached a checkpoint, however, government troops opened fire.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

February 2001 News
Competition Winner's Web Site Is Now On-Line!
As you may know JN Photographics held a competition for all photographers to send us 2 photographs, the best images would be picked and the photographer would have the chance to have their photographic skills published on this web-site.  We had over 40 entries into this competition and they were all excellent in photographic skill. Unfortunately though we had to pick one person for the winner, and we chose William Miller. He sent us some images taken during one of his underwater dives and the images are amazing. His web-site is now online and you can see just what i mean by looking at his photography, including the 2 images that won the competition.  So, please CLICK HERE to go to William Millers Page.
(News Source: JN Photographics.)

Countdown to Fuji's final judgement
Fujifilm is announcing the fourth quarter results for its Wedding and
Portrait Awards in the penultimate judging before the competition's
format is revised.

Winners in the four categories will now be asked to present portfolios
for a final judging, when the overall Fujifilm Wedding and Portrait
Photographer of the Year titles will be chosen and announced at a
ceremony in London on 10 May. After 16 years the competition will then
be terminated, to be replaced in part by a new competition just for
wedding photographers, 7 Brides (BJP, 06 December, 2000).

In the judging for the fourth quarter round, six distinctions were
handed out it in all, but none in the Digital Wedding category. Judge
Antje Khahil explained: 'Some of the images would have been better left
untouched. It was obvious that too many of the pictures had been
overworked, and this distracted from their impact and spontaneity.'
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

RPS move to Devizes thwarted
The RPS has suffered a major blow in its plans to secure its future.
The Society gave the go-ahead for controversial plans last December
(BJP, 06 December, 2000), for a move which would see the RPS sharing a
purpose-built heritage facility with the Wiltshire and Swindon Record
Office in Devizes, costing nearly £12 million.

The Society had previously given notice on its prestigious premises in
Bath, which was running at a loss. The plan was not widely welcomed,
with critics condemning the Devizes site, which has no rail links, as a
'canal side backwater'.

However, a joint bid for £7.63 million to the National Lottery Fund has
been rejected leaving the Society's plans in tatters and its future
uncertain. RPS secretary Stuart Blake told BJP: 'I still do not know why
the application was refused in detail. All I know at this stage is that
it was rejected outright. Whether there is any form of appeal, I do not
know. It would appear in black and white that it is the end. We will now
consider the other options that were put to the Society, albeit not in a
very firm manner. Nothing is definite at the moment.'
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)
 

January 2001 News
Channel 4 Photography Competition
Channel 4 have launched a full scale photographic competition.
Please CLICK HERE to find out more.
(News Source: Channel 4, www.channel4.com )

The Competition is Closed! Are you The Winner??
The Jn Photographic competition has now closed and a winner has been drawn.
Are you the Winner? CLICK HERE to find out.  Can you handle the suspense?
(News Source: JN Photographics. Hey, dont you go running off! :-) )

World's fastest SLR camera announced
Canon announced the new EOS-1V claiming it to be the world's fastest SLR
camera.
The new camera replaces the market leading SLR, the EOS-1N, and boasted
of a shooting speed of up to 10 frames per second in one-shot autofocus
mode.
The highest shooting speeds are made possible with the PB-E2 power drive
booster and nickel metal-hydride battery pack available as an optional
extra. Without the power drive, the EOS-1V maintains a shooting speed of
3.5 frames per second, employing a new active mirror control system with
a shorter mirror blackout time.
Canon claims the camera is their most robust yet, featuring a magnesium
alloy shell with a rubber grip and silicone rubber seals. Improvements
have also been made to the wide area focus system, which boasts 45
focusing points. Customer feedback led to the introduction of a 'home'
position, a one touch operation taking users back to their most often
used focusing point.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

World's biggest portrait studio goes bust
Cover Shots International, which once claimed to be one of the largest
and busiest portrait studios in the world, went bust leaving many people
in the photographic trade out of pocket and hundreds of employees out of
work.
The company, led by photo marketing guru Mike Freedman and members of
the Kaye family, went into receivership earlier this year owing over 8
million pounds - despite the fact that the company's assets amounted to
a similar figure.
The Cover Shots concept - offering clients a glamorous magazine-style
make-over and photo shoot - was initially an enormous success. Kendal
photographer Annabel Williams, together with partner Peter Thornton,
began promoting the idea 10 years ago and it really caught the public
imagination following an appearance on the BBC's Clothes Show after
which they started getting calls from all round the country.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

Photography exam survives the axe
A-level photography survived the threat of examination extinction after
a year-long campaign.
The Government's exam quango, the Qualifications and Curriculum
Authority (QCA) had planned to phase out photography as a stand-alone
subject, instead offering it as an option within A-level Art and Design.
Campaigners claimed that the new option was effectively a down-grading
of the subject and would lead to fewer students taking up photography
and the closure of school photography departments. The QCA, which is
attempting to rationalise the number of school syllabuses and awarding
bodies, phased out GCSE photography in a similar way in 1998.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

Airport X-ray Effects on Film - The Latest
After 18 months of exhaustive efforts, the British Photographers'
Liaison Committee (BPLC) issued its latest assessment of the effect on
photographic films of X-ray baggage screening equipment installed at
British Airports Authority (BAA) airports.

Tests reveal that most routine films that are exposed by average users
can safely be X-rayed by current BAA hand baggage inspection equipment.
Conversely, the report finds that all film types can be severely
degraded by hold-baggage inspection systems, and that the damage caused
will be obvious even to the least discerning users. BPLC therefore
recommends that unprocessed film, whether exposed or not, should never
be stored in hold-baggage.

The BPLC adds that its data showed that the situation is more complex in
detail, and that some films may exhibit a very slight, but detectable,
change after realistic levels of hand-baggage X-ray inspection. In view
of this, BPLC and BAA have agreed that professional photographers
travelling abroad on assignment will be granted hand-searches of their
unprocessed film.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

Photography Competition
As of the 1st of January the JN Photographic Competition will be closed.  So far over fourty people have competed and the work submitted has been varied in both skill and subject.  It will be a tough choice picking out the best entry, but this will be done by 2nd January and the lucky winner will be notified for the chance of having their work displayed on this website for three months.. I would just like to say Thank You to all who have entered into the competition and Good Luck! Please CLICK HERE to see the latest information and winners in the competition.
(News Source: JN Photographics. You are already here! No need to go anywhere! :-)

Photography Vote
At the British Journal of Photograpy's website visitors get a chance to vote on all kinds of photography related subjects.  So, why not pay them a visit and register your opinion on this weeks vote? CLICK HERE!
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

Firm takes over bag makers
Bristol-based Camera Care Systems has acquired the Heritage range of
canvas and leather bags from Teamwork.
The British-made Heritage range combines modern materials with
traditional styling and workmanship, and includes six models from the
Proteus Zoom Pouch, suitable for a small SLR with a standard zoom, to
the top-of-the-range Stuart Holdall, designed for large SLR and Medium
Format outfits, and featuring a padded sitter/kneeler pocket.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

New storage devices announced
LaCie has announced two new peripheral storage devices. The first is a
miniature CD rewriter and the second claims to be the industry's highest
capacity Firewire hard drive.

The U&I PocketDrive CD-RW provides both Firewire and USB connectivity,
measures only 158x152mm, and is designed to fit into laptop carry cases.
Depending in the interface used, LaCie claims the device can back-up
data on less than 10 minutes.

The CD-RW has a grooved, shock-absorbing casing for protection, and
works across both Mac and Windows platforms. It also features two
Firewire ports, enabling it to be daisy-chained with other Firewire
devices. Power can be taken directly from the bus on Apple's G3 and G4
Macs, and in addition the device is supplied with an international power
supply unit.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

November 2000 News
Win a Test Session with the Fujifilm S1 Pro

A second (and last) chance for BJP magazine readers to win a first-hand
test of the Fujifilm S1 Pro digital SLR while admiring the capital from
on high aboard the British Airways London Eye. This unique opportunity
is provided by Calumet as part of its two-day Digital Insight event in
early December.
To be in with a chance of winning a spectacular view of the capital
while at the same time testing Fujifilm's top digital camera, just
answer one simple question: what is the name of Fujifilm's imaging chip
used in the S1 Pro? Entries must be made on a postcard or the back of a
sealed envelope, addressed to BJP/Calumet Competition, 39 Earlham
Street, London WC2H 9LT, and received no later than Tuesday 28 November.
Winners must be free to attend in plenty of time for the designated
'flight' as London Eye allocates rides strictly by schedule: prizes are
not transferable.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

 October 2000 News
New Bronica rangefinder
Like photokina itself, Tamron is 50 this year - and is marking its
anniversary with the launch of a new Bronica rangefinder camera. Tamron
acquired the medium format manufacturer in 1996, and immediately started
adding to Bronica's lens ranges. The new camera combines the technology
of both companies in an completely fresh guise - the Bronica RF645,
complete with three dedicated lenses.
Tamron observes that 'manual rangefinder cameras have staged a come-back
as a new generation of users begin to explore the potential of this type
of camera for creating images with a more personalised touch.' The
Bronica RF645 is therefore expected to appeal to enthusiast and
professional photographers alike, with its high-precision rangefinder
mechanism, full viewfinder data, choice of manual and automatic exposure
modes (the latter with aperture priority or fully programmed), and an
electronically timed lens shutter. Film advance can be either by a
single stroke or multiple 'nudges'.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

September 2000 News
Canon Applies Diffraction
The world's first lens using a diffractive element has been announced,
and will be shown by Canon in prototype form at photokina, reports Jon
Tarrant. The primary requirement for any lens element is an ability to
'bend' light: normally this is achieved using refraction - the deviation
of light rays from their original path when crossing boundaries between
materials in which they have different velocities of propagation.

Sadly, a by-product of bending white light is its separation into a
spectrum of colours, caused by the fact that different wavelengths are
bent by different amounts during refraction. Much of past efforts in
lens design have focused on finding materials that have a high bending
power (refractive index) with a low tendency to separate different
colours of light (dispersion coefficient).

Canon's new lens adopts an alternative approach, using diffraction
instead of refraction to bend the light. Diffraction is the bending that
is seen whenever a ray of light encounters an edge, and is most commonly
met in lens design in respect of its limiting effect on resolution
caused by the finite size of the lens aperture. Diffraction is also
employed as a means of focusing via zone plates, which can be used in
place of pinholes for lensless cameras. Production lenses using
diffractive optical elements are not expected until next year.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

Chat to Robert Scott, Editor of EOS magazine, Courtesy of Photoshot.
This internet chat session takes place on Tuesday 12 September from 7 to
8pm (British Summer Time/GMT +01.00h) at the www.photoshot.com website.
You will be able to ask questions and receive immediate replies - or you
can just eavesdrop on the session.
If you have never been involved in a chat session before, don't worry -
just go to the www.photoshot.com site and follow the links for 'Chat and
Forums'. You need to register before gaining entry to the chat area. We
recommend you register at least a day or so in advance of the session,
so that there are no delays when the chat session starts.
(News Source: EOS Magazine - For more Information please go to their web-site: http://www.EOS-magazine.co.uk)

Five New Lenses
There is a range of new Canon EF lenses for the autumn.
The EF 28-90mm f4-5.6 replaces the current EF 28-80mm lens and will
feature in some of the EOS camera kits. It comes in two versions - with
and without USM (ultrasonic motor). The USM lens is finished in black;
the non-USM lens in silver.

The EF 28-200mm f3.5-5.6 is a high-ratio zoom with the highest macro
magnification in its class. It will also be available in USM and non-USM
versions.

Finally, the EF 28-105mm f3.5-4.5 II USM is a successor to the current
EF 28-105mm lens, which was first sold in 1992.

Recommended retail prices in the UK will be:
EF 28-90mm f4-5.6 - £149.99
EF 28-90mm f4-5.6 USM - £199.99
EF 28-105mm f3.5-4.5 II USM - £299.99
EF 28-200mm f3.5-5.6 - £399.99
EF 28-200mm f3.5-5.6 USM - £449.99
Availablilty for all these lenses is September 2000
(News Source: EOS Magazine - For more Information please go to their web-site: http://www.EOS-magazine.co.uk)

EOS 30 UPDATE
Following news of the EOS 30 camera (eos-mail 24 August), here is some
further information.

The camera is the EOS 30 in Europe and Japan, but the EOS ELAN 7E in the
USA. There is also a version without Eye-control focus. This will be
called the EOS 33 in Europe (but will probably not be imported into the
UK). In the USA, this version will be the EOS ELAN 7.

Here are recommended retail prices from Canon UK.

EOS 30 - £449.99
EOS 30 QD - £479.99
EOS 30 kit (includes EF 28-90mm USM lens) - £579.99
Speedlite 420EX - £199.99
Battery Pack BP-30 - £69.99

Incidentally, EOS Magazine has had messages from several people who have confused
the EOS 30 (a film camera) with the EOS D30 (a digital camera). Both
should be available in the UK in October, which will only increase the
confusion.
(News Source: EOS Magazine - For more Information please go to their web-site: http://www.EOS-magazine.co.uk)
 

Compact and SLR Digital Models from Pentax
Arriving in the UK under Pentax's banner over the coming few weeks will
be a 500 pounds 2.11 million pixel digital compact and a 700 pounds 2.24
million pixel digital SLR.
The EI-200 compact has a 3x Pentax lens (equivalent to 34-108mm on
full-frame 135 film) with a maximum aperture of f/2. Its 1/2.7 inch CCD
yields 1600x1200 pixel images via a 10-bit analogue-to-digital converter
and Hewlett Packard image processing technology, which  ensures accurate
colour rendition.
The EI-2000 SLR meanwhile offers both sophisticated automation and full
manual control. Once again the lens is a 3x zoom, but with TTL viewing
in Minolta Vectis S1 style (with a low profile top plate thanks to a
laterally, rather than vertically, displaced reflex viewfinder system).
The CCD is a 2/3 inch type, supported by HP imaging technology.  The
lens has a maximum aperture of f/2.5 and covers the equivalent of
34-107mm. Maximum resolution is 1600x1280 pixels.
Both cameras come with an 8MB CompactFlash card, USB driver, AA cells
and strap. The EI-200 will arrive later this month, with the EI-2000 SLR
due early in October.
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)

Wedding Site Clicks On
Online photography resource Click-Photography.com has announced the
launch of its new website dedicated purely to wedding photography.
Click-Weddings.com claims to be the largest website devoted to wedding
photography in the UK and is designed to be used by both professional
photographers and bridal couples.
Alongside advice for bridal couples on choosing and using a wedding
photographer, and an image of the month competition with an annual cash
prize of 1,000 pounds, the site includes a searchable database of UK
wedding photographers with viewable portfolios and links to studio
websites. Visitors can search for any of the 3,635 photographers
presently listed by surname, town/city or county. Owner of the site is
Trevor Yerbury.
In more wedding news, Press Gazette has revealed that 'consolidation of
wedding websites is beginning to happen with Wedding Guide
(www.weddingguide.co.uk) merging with Web Weddings (www.webweddings.
co.uk).' The combination of the two sites with their respective content
and service is aimed to take on market leader Confetti
(www.confetti.co.uk).
(News Source: British Journal of Photography For More Info On this Story Please Visit Their Website.)
 

Thank you to EOS Magazine, British Journal of Photography and The Royal Photographic Society for supplying us with news on a regular basis.