Among my 10 top list for sure….Koudelka, HCB, Larrain, Sebastião Salgado and a few more…good to see real photography (as a subject) in this website

Nik Software has released Color Efex Pro 4, the latest version of its photographic filters plugin. Color Efex Pro 4 includes up to 55 filters and gains the ability to combine filters for the first time, amongst other upgrades. Color Efex is available in ‘Complete’ or ‘Select’ editions with 55 or 26 filters respectively, as 32- or 64-bit plugins for Photoshop (CS4 or newer), Lightroom (v2.6 onwards) or Aperture (v2.1.4 or later).

Press Release:

Next generation product delivers top requested features including stackable filters,
visual presets, history browser, new filters and much more

Hamburg, September 7, 2011 — Nik Software (www.niksoftware.com) announces today its
much-anticipated Color Efex Pro 4, the company’s latest version of its popular digital
photographic filters for retouching and creative enhancements. Recognized for over a decade as
the professional’s choice in photographic filters, the 55 total filters of Color Efex Pro 4 offers a
new generation of technologies and features for creating stunning effects. Color Efex Pro 4
introduces stackable filter combinations, visual presets, filter recipes, and new filters such as
Detail Extractor, Vintage Film Efex, and Image Borders. The release also includes a new History
Browser, improvements to imaging algorithms, greater performance, and enhanced usability.

“Creating a new generation of features and technologies for Color Efex Pro 4 was inspired by the
professionals who use it,” said Michael J. Slater, President and CEO of Nik Software. “Over 400
professional photographers test and inspire our team through a lively beta group process that
ultimately helps us deliver extraordinary products like Color Efex Pro 4.”

“The freedom and power to take control of my images is part of the passion I have for
photography,” said Frank Salas, Master Wedding Photographer and Instructor. “Color Efex Pro 4
fuels that passion with a stunning variety of photographic enhancements and incredible new
filters that are perfect for my style of photography—it has really taken my images to new
heights!”

The latest evolution of Nik Software’s U Point technology in Color Efex Pro 4 provides easy-to-use
tools for photographers to fine-tune and stylize their images with precise selective adjustments
without complicated selections and layer masks. Filter effects can be added or subtracted from
images with incredible precision, using a few clicks of the mouse. Enhancements are
automatically blended throughout an image for natural results. Color Efex Pro 4 also takes full
advantage of the latest graphics processing units (GPUs) and multi-core processors for
responsiveness and fast processing.

Key new features:

• NEW: Filter Combinations—Add multiple filters at once, adjust opacity, and make
  selective adjustments to get the desired look
• NEW: Brand New Filters—Detail Extractor, Dark Contrast, Vintage Film Efex, Natural
  Image Borders, and much more
• NEW: Visual Presets—Each filter contains single-click starting points making it possible
  to explore creative options quickly
• NEW: Style Recipes—Customize and share filter combinations with others, using recipes
• NEW: History Browser— Facilitates intuitive comparison of previous edits and different
  looks
• NEW: GPU Processing and Multi-Core Optimization—GPU Processing takes full
  advantage of the processors found on advanced display adapters providing even faster
  performance
• NEW: Interface, Interaction, and Workflow—Benefit from interface and interaction
  improvements to filters, zoom controls, shortcut keys, and much more

To watch videos and join special live online preview sessions, visit
www.niksoftware.com/colorefexpro.

Pricing and Availability

Color Efex Pro 4 will be available directly from Nik Software (www.niksoftware.com) and through
resellers in October 2011. A list of Nik Software resellers may be found at www.niksoftware.com/resellers.

Two versions of the software will be available: The Color Efex Pro 4 Complete Edition contains 55
filters with a suggested retail price of €199,95, $199.95. The Color Efex Pro 4 Select Edition
contains 26 filters with a suggested retail price of € 99,95, $99.95. Upgrades to the Complete
Edition from any edition of versions 2.0 or 3.0 are € 99,95, $99.95.
Customers who purchased Color Efex Pro Complete, Select or a Complete Collection bundle on or
after August 7, 2011 are eligible for a free upgrade and may find all instructions for accessing
their free software at www.niksoftware.com/freeupgrade.

Color Efex Pro 4 is Windows and Mac compatible and installs as a 32-bit and 64-bit plug-in for
Adobe® Photoshop® CS4 or later, Adobe Photoshop Lightroom® 2.6 or later, Adobe Photoshop
Elements 8 or later, Apple® Aperture® 2.1.4 or later and is available in English, German, French,
Italian and Spanish language. For more information about Color Efex Pro 4, including video
tutorials, feature lists, and special live online preview sessions, please visit:
www.niksoftware.com/colorefexpro.

Corel has launched the latest version of its PaintShop Pro image processing software. PaintShop Pro X4 has been updated in response to user feedback and adds a series of photography-targeted tools including HDR tools, a ‘selective focus’ processing tool and the ability to add vignetting to images. The speed and accessibility of the product have also been addressed, along with the addition of tools for sending images to social networking sites. PaintShop Pro X4 will be available for $79 or $99 for the ‘Ultimate’ version that includes Nik Color Efex 3.0 filters and other extras.

Press Release:

New Release Offers Over 75 New and Enhanced Features

Ottawa, ON – September 07, 2011

Corel today announced the release of Corel® PaintShop™ Pro X4 the latest version of its award-winning photo editing software. The trusted choice of millions of photographers worldwide, PaintShop™ Pro delivers ‘DSLR’ power at a ‘point-and-shoot’ price while offering an uncompromising depth and selection of pro-quality tools to expertly manage, adjust, edit and share your entire photo collection.

New Release Delivers Faster Performance, More Photo Editing Power and Exciting New Creative Effects

PaintShop Pro X4 includes over 75 new and enhanced features designed explicitly to meet the needs of today’s photographers. With new photo editing features, dramatic improvements in speed and performance, enhancements to the user interface and convenient ways to share through social media, PaintShop Pro X4 delivers the depth of professional features and range of creative possibilities that our community was asking for at a lower price point than other professional editing software.

“We worked closely with our user community throughout the development process for PaintShop Pro X4,” said Craig Copley, Senior Product Manager for PaintShop Pro. “Our users are diverse, engaged and incredibly passionate about photography. While they use PaintShop Pro for a variety of creative purposes, all of them share a desire for artistic freedom and the ability to achieve their vision quickly, with tools that are intuitive, powerful and efficient. With the community’s input and support, we believe we have a release that delivers the depth and range of features that makes this a fantastic upgrade for our users.”

Corel PaintShop Pro X4 Includes Over 75 New and Enhanced Features:

Corel PaintShop Pro X4 offers major advancements in professional editing power, performance, usability and sharing. Feedback from the PaintShop Pro community helped isolate the development priorities for this release and directly influenced the impressive set of new features and enhancements within the following four categories:

Professional Editing Power

• New! HDR Tools – Completely redesigned to bring you the latest technology in high dynamic range photo production, the new HDR module provides tools to merge photos and create picture-perfect exposures with stunning contrast. With built-in presets to get you started, images look their best in no time. This module also saves you time with the option to process large batches of HDR exposure brackets quickly.
• New! Photo Blend – Create the perfect composition by easily selecting people, objects or areas from a series of images. The Photo Blend tool is a new and powerful option for photographers who want to produce compelling group shots or creative scenes where one person appears in multiple poses.
• New! Fill Light and Clarity – The Fill Light tool lets you work quickly to bring out underexposed areas without affecting the overall brightness of your image, while the Clarity tool makes it easy to enhance subtle yet important details.
• New! Selective Focus – Enhance the depth of field in any image or easily create the look of miniatures and small-scale models with the new Selective Focus tool.
• New! Vignette Tools –Often used in wedding and portrait photography, the Vignette tool provides a classic portraiture style by applying a soft, faded border around the outer edge of photos.

Performance

• Enhanced! Performance – With new performance updates and optimizations, Corel PaintShop Pro X4 is faster than ever before with speed increases of over 50% on launch and accelerated performance on popular effects such as Vibrancy, Noise Removal and Depth of Field compared to past versions.
• Enhanced! Full Screen Preview – Fast, full-screen preview allows you to efficiently review your photos and use the entire screen to quickly view, rate, and rotate your images and discard those that don’t make the cut.

Usability

• Enhanced! Workspace– A redesign featuring new tabbed workspaces allows you to move easily between photo workflows. The Manage workspace gives you all the power to review, tag, rate and organize your photos. The new Adjust workspace puts commonly-used editing tools at your fingertips, while the Edit workspace provides you with a full range of professional-level editing tools.
• Enhanced! User Interface Updates– Corel PaintShop Pro X4 offers numerous UI updates throughout the product designed to help photographers and graphic enthusiasts alike be as productive as possible. These include the Adjust workspace for quick and powerful edits; the ability to access the organizer in all workspaces; dual monitor support for enhanced efficiency; additional Adjustment layers; an updated Curves dialog; easy-to-read Histogram tools; and enhanced metadata support.

Sharing

• Enhanced! Built-in social media sharing– For when your shots are picture-perfect, tools integrated into the organizer allow you to quicklyshare your images on Facebook, Flickr and resize “on the fly” for emailing.

“When inspiration hits, I won’t waste time waiting for my software to catch up. The enhancements to the overall stability and speed of PaintShop Pro X4 are obvious from the moment I open and run the program. The updates to the user interface allow for a brighter, cleaner workspace, while the dual monitor support gives me the real estate I need when I am working on an image. PaintShop Pro X4 gives me more opportunities to be creative, while helping me accomplish what I want to do faster than before.” – Gene Salois, PaintShop Pro X4 Beta Tester (PaintShop Pro user since 1994)

Pricing and Availability

Corel PaintShop Pro X4 is available now in markets worldwide in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Dutch, Traditional Chinese and Polish with additional languages to follow. North American pricing is $79 (US and CDN) for the full version and $59 (US and CDN) for upgrade customers. Commercial and education volume licenses are also available.

To download a free fully-functional trial version or for more information about Corel PaintShop Pro X4, please visit www.corel.com/paintshop.

Corel PaintShop Pro X4 Ultimate

Launching simultaneously with the latest release of PaintShop Pro X4 is the Ultimate version of the product. Offering additional pro-level tools including Nik® Color Efex Pro™ 3.0 Filters, royalty-free images from Fotolia (7-day subscription period), a custom photo book from Blurb® and a premium collection of Picture Tubes™, Corel PaintShop Pro X4 Ultimate provides exceptional value and countless creative possibilities.

Corel PaintShop Pro X4 Ultimate is available now in English, German, French, Italian, Dutch and Traditional Chinese with additional languages to follow. North American pricing is $99 (US and CDN) for full and $79 (US and CDN) for upgrade customers.

Join the PaintShop Pro Community

• Connect with PaintShop Pro users on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/corelpaintshop
• Follow our Twitter updates at @CPaintShopPro

I think the more people shoot with their phones, the more interest they will have in photography and growing the market. The only thing that limited the amount of people in the SLR market was intimidation, and the amount of technical know-how that was perceived to be essential to success. There seems to be too much you need to know… Phones may increase interest in PS cameras, and even mirrorless. But one thing is certain to me, mirrorless cameras seem easier to use than DSLRs, so more people will buy them. many of those customers will move up the chain. Every new technology grows the entire market. Anyone who uses their eyes to see the world has a potential interest in photography.

Macro using AF and doing hand held is much more fun like in the links below but then this AF thing is mostly possible with PS setup. Did some with DSLR and still doable but I have no processed ones in my site. Other than fun, being patient is another attitude I treasure for macro shooting.

http://art4less.smugmug.com/2010-Images-3/Panasonic-FZ35-Test-Shots/12116476_JNDWGf#861291861_S3zKm

The conclusions – one can take – are quite different, IMO:
1 – Of course, the updated (from an early version) firmware is supposed to do better, specially in what the “jpg engine” is concerned; this can be clearly seen…
2 – Regarding “sensor IQ quality” – RAW files territory – the “gain” is more marginal from version 0.2 to 1.0; again, this is obvious from the pictures…

So, definitively firmware 1.0 produces better IQ, but the improvements are not night-and-day, in other words, firmware updates (can) make a difference, but miracles can’t be expected…

Best regards,
Pedro

Nice, concise article, as the way it should be on a blog. Sure, the images may not be up to every reader’s snuff, but they effectively communicate the lesson. Thanks!

“Dpreview was great when they actually did reviews of any camera category.”

To be fair, there was a time when the compact camera market was pretty diverse; Fuji had their SuperCCD technology, Kodak had their unusual twin-lens design, and there was still a fair amount of differentiation between compact models.

Nowadays compact cameras are a commodity, not aimed at the kind of people likely to pore over full-sized samples. People buy them because they’re on offer in the local Argos, or they like the colour. They’re broadly the same in terms of performance, often using the same sensors and lens units, which puts DPReview in the awkward position of either repeating itself, or becoming ever-more obsessed with tiny trivial differences. The group tests are a good solution in this respect.

Adobe has announced a cloud-based storage, editing and browsing service based around a series of apps called Carousel. Initially available for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch and Mac OS, the apps allow users to import their photo libraries, which are then available from any other device running Carousel. Any edits or deletions will also automatically be reflected on the other devices, avoiding storage limitations of the device being used. A series of image enhancement tools and pre-defined ‘looks’ can be applied. Access to the apps will initially cost $59.99/year or $5.99/month, rising to $99.99/year after an introductory period. Support for Windows and other devices, including Android, will follow in early 2012.

Jump to:

• Press Release
• Additional images

Press Release:

Adobe Imaging Magic Delivers All-New Way to Browse, Enhance and Share Photos Across Devices

LAS VEGAS, Photoshop World 2011 – Sept. 7, 2011 – During the Photoshop World 2011 keynote, Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) announced Adobe(r) Carousel(tm) for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch and Mac OS. Adobe Carousel is designed for anyone who loves photographs, takes a lot of them, and needs a simple way to view, browse, adjust and share them without worrying about manual syncing or storage. Adobe Carousel uses the powerful photo-processing technology that is used in Adobe Photoshop(r) Lightroom(r), so customers get the finest photo-editing results delivered consistently no matter what the device. Photos look great and are easy to share directly with family and friends.

Adobe Carousel is comprised of a set of client apps for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and Mac OS desktops (versions for Windows and other devices are expected in the first half of 2012). When customers import their photo library into Adobe Carousel, or take new photos using Adobe Carousel on an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch, those photos are automatically accessible on any supported device through the cloud-based smart mesh technology incorporated in Adobe Carousel. Once imported, any edits, deletions or additions to the library made on one device are automatically updated across all devices linked with the account. With Adobe Carousel, manual syncing and device storage limitations are a thing of the past.

Setting up Adobe Carousel is easy. Customers will just download the apps, set up a subscription plan on their iPhone and iPad, and they are ready to go. Subscribers can import a virtually unlimited number of JPEG files, and install Adobe Carousel apps on as many of their compatible devices as they want.

“With Adobe Carousel we are extending the power of Adobe’s imaging expertise beyond the desktop and onto tablets and smartphones, delivering instant access to your complete photo library and the freedom to edit and share photos anywhere, any time,” said Winston Hendrickson, vice president of Digital Imaging Products, Adobe. “Thanks to Adobe Carousel, users never need to worry about wasting time syncing, remembering if a photo was saved to a particular device, or worrying about maxing out storage on their iPhone or iPad.”

Familiar multi-touch gestures provide a fun and interactive experience to explore tens of thousands of photos quickly and easily, and Adobe’s powerful photo-processing engine lets users adjust exposure, shadows, highlights, white balance, vibrance, clarity and contrast. There are also over a dozen “Looks” that allow customers to quickly experiment with the appearance of a photo. Adobe Carousel simplifies and enhances photo sharing by allowing subscribers to invite friends and family members to collaborate on a photo library free of charge – so anyone with a Carousel capable device can view existing photos and contribute new ones, apply adjustments and Looks to images, and easily grab and flag favorite photos. Users can also share photos by sending them directly to Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr or via email.

Pricing and Availability

The Adobe Carousel apps will be available through the iTunes App Store and for Mac later this month. Through Jan. 31, 2012, Adobe plans to offer Adobe Carousel for a special introductory price of US$59.99/year or US$5.99/month. Anyone subscribing at that price will be able to renew at that same price for an additional two years. At the conclusion of the introductory offer, Adobe Carousel will be US$99.99/year or US$9.99/month. By subscribing, customers automatically receive any enhancements and updates to Adobe Carousel at no additional charge. Customers receive a complimentary subscription for up to 30 days and can purchase a monthly or yearly subscription at any time from their iPad or iPhone.

Customers can download and install the Adobe Carousel apps as many times and across as many devices as they want as a part of their subscription (no additional fees apply). For more information, including system requirements, visit www.photoshop.com/carousel.

Additional images

The ‘Looks’ tab of the Carousel interface, on the iPhone

The ‘Adjustments’ tab of the Carousel interface, on the iPad

The ‘Crop Rotate’ tab of the Carousel interface, on the Mac OS

Wildlife photographer Uwe Skrzypczak tells us about the working conditions in his favorite part of the world – East Africa, and gives us some insight into the equipment he uses to capture his images.

Click here to read the article.