Adobe releases Lightroom 5.7, Camera Raw 8.7, and DNG Converter 8.7

Adobe has released new versions Lightroom and Adobe Camera Raw with bug fixes, new features, and support for additional cameras (a.o. the new Nikon D750 & Canon EOS 7D Mark II) & lenses.

You can update each using their respective update mechanisms, for Lightroom and the DNG converter a direct download is (also) available:

• Lightroom 5.7: Mac / Win
• DNG Converter 8.7: Mac / Win

Note: updates to Camera Raw 8 for Photoshop CS6 only include new camera support, lens profile support, and bug fixes. The new features listed in the release notes are only available in Photoshop CC.

See below for a full list of changes.

New: Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

Canon just announced a new incarnation of its compact 100-400 super tele-zoom, the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM. The lens is scheduled to be available in December 2014 for an estimated retail price of $2,199.00/€2,199.00.

Features

• Compact, high performance L-series super-telephoto zoom makes it ideal for sports and wildlife photography.
• One fluorite and one super UD lens element provides excellent correction of chromatic aberration throughout the entire zoom range, helping to deliver high-quality images with high resolution and contrast.
• Rotation-type zoom ring allows for more precise composition and excellent balance when handholding.
• Inner focusing, ring USM, a high-speed CPU and optimized AF algorithms for fast and accurate autofocusing.
• Optical Image Stabilizer provides up to four shutter speed steps of correction*.
• Three image stabilization modes (standard, panning, and during exposure only) provide outstanding results for a wide range of shooting situations.
• Improved zoom torque adjustment ring allows easy setting of zoom tension.
• New Air Sphere Coating (ASC) helps to significantly reduce backlit flaring and ghosting.
• Highly resistant to dust and water, and amazing durability enabling shooting even in harsh conditions.
• Circular aperture (9 blades) helps deliver beautiful, soft backgrounds.
• Fluorine coating on front and rear lens surfaces helps reduce smears and fingerprints.
• Lens hood with side window permits specialty filters to be adjusted with hood in place.
• Newly designed tripod mount can be attached or detached without removing the lens from the camera.
• Minimum focusing distance of 3.2 ft. / 0.98 m with 0.31x maximum magnification.

Specifications

Focal Length & Maximum Aperture	100-400mm 1:4.5-5.6
Lens Construction	21 elements in 16 groups
Diagonal Angle of View	24°-6°10'
Focus Adjustment	Inner focus system / USM
Closest Focusing Distance	3.2 ft. / 0.98m
Zoom System	Rotation Type
Filter Size	77mm
Max. Diameter x Length, Weight	Approx: 3.7" x 7.6" / 94 x 193mm Approx. 3.46 lbs./1570g (without tripod mount) Approx. 3.62 lbs./1640g (with tripod mount)

Canon Digital Photo Professional (DPP) 4.1.1 released with 7D Mark II support

Canon released a new version of their Digital Photo Professional image editing software. This new version now officially supports the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. This is especially interesting since this is the first APS-C DSLR that is officially supported by DPP 4.x (previously it only supported the recent full frame cameras, EOS-1D X, EOS-1D C, EOS 5D Mark III, and EOS 6D. For all other Canon cameras you have to use the DPP 3.x release software (though with altering one field in the camera metadata, you can trick DPP 4.x into working for other Canon EOS cameras too!).

You can download the new version of DPP from the Canon support site.

New Sony G Series XQD v2 memory cards: extreme speeds

Sony has announced a new series of XQD memory cards (currently only in use by the Nikon D4/D4s DSLR cameras and a select number of Sony video cameras). This new series of cards promises amazing speeds of up to 400MB/s (read) and 350MB/s (write). More than twice as fast as the fasted Compact Flash Card. The new cards will be available from 3 November in sizes 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB. Each card will include a USB 3.0 adapter for easy transfer of images & video to your computer.

Nikon releases Capture NX-D 1.0.3 and ViewNX 2.10.2

Nikon has released an update to its image editing and browsing applications Capture NX-D and ViewNX2.

You can download the new versions from the Nikon support site:

• NX-D 1.0.3: EU / USA
• ViewNX 2.10.2: EU / USA

Enhancements/bug fixes for Capture NX-D 1.0.3

• When images were adjusted in any of the following ways using Edit palette functions, and Capture NX-D was then launched again, the results of adjustments were not reflected. This issue has been resolved.
  - When White Balance was fine-tuned after selecting Use Gray Point or using the Gray Point Sample Tool
  - When the Quick Adjust setting under Picture Control was changed
  - When the luminosity curve was adjusted by moving the black-point input slider to a setting other than "0" with Master Lightness selected for LCH
  - When the chroma curve was adjusted by moving the output slider to a setting other than "0" with Chroma selected for LCH
  - When the tone curve was adjusted by moving the Levels & Curves black-point input slider to a setting other than "0"
• When a settings file, with which the Quick Adjust setting under Picture Control had been changed, was saved, the value saved for Quick Adjust only was "0". This issue has been resolved.
• When RAW images captured with cameras that support the Better Quality 2013 option for Noise Reduction in the Edit palette were adjusted, and the Intensity setting under Luminance was once changed to "0", subsequent changes to the Intensity setting were not reflected. This issue has been resolved.
• When the output slider was moved to a setting other than "0" with Chroma selected for LCH in the Edit palette, anchor points could not be added to the chroma curve at the intended positions. This issue has been resolved.
• When multiple images were captured with a User Custom Curve modified using a camera that does not support Picture Controls applied, changes made to the User Custom Curve during shooting were not reflected in images captured after the User Custom Curve had been changed. This issue has been resolved.

Additional modifications to the Windows version

• When Capture NX-D was launched with a single-display system after having been used with a multi-display system, an error was displayed and the application could not be launched. This issue has been resolved.
• An issue that sometimes caused Capture NX-D to freeze when keyboard operations were performed while working with the Edit palette has been resolved. 

Additional modifications to the Macintosh version

• When the keyboard shortcut (SHIFT + 0) was used to delete ratings, labels rather than ratings were deleted. This issue has been resolved.

Enhancements/bug fixes for ViewNX 2.10.2

• Support for the COOLPIX S6900 has been added.
• When image files are moved, copied, or deleted in ViewNX 2, sidecar files associated with the image files are now also moved, copied, or deleted along with image files. However, when image files are moved or copied to destinations outside of ViewNX 2, such as the desktop, sidecar files associated with the images files will not be moved or copied accordingly.

Camera Raw 8.7RC and DNG Converter 8.7RC now available on Adobe Labs

Camera Raw 8.7 is now available as a release candidate on Adobe Labs for Photoshop CS6, Photoshop CC and Photoshop CC 2014. An update of DNG Converter is also available on Adobe Labs.

Note: updates to Camera Raw 8 for Photoshop CS6 only include new camera support, lens profile support, and bug fixes. The new features listed in the release notes are only available in Photoshop CC/CC 2014.

Note: Release candidates are not the final versions of the software, those will be made available through the regular update channels.

You can download the software from the Adobe Labs website:

• Camera Raw 8.7RC for CS6
• Camera Raw 8.7RC for CC and CC 2014
• DNG Converter 8.7RC

New Camera Support in Camera Raw 8.7 Release Candidate:

• Casio EX-100PRO
• Fujifilm X30
• Leaf Credo 50
• Leica V-Lux (Typ 114)
• Nikon D750
• Panasonic DMC-GM1S
• Sony ILCE-5100
• Sony ILCE-QX1

New Lens Profile Support in Camera Raw 8.7 Release Candidate

Mount	Lens
Canon	Tokina AT-X 116 PRO DX-II 11-16mm f/2.8
Fujifilm X	HandeVision IBELUX 40mm F0.85
Leica M	SLR Magic 50mm T0.95 Hyperprime Cine Lens
Leica S	Leica SUMMICRON-S 100 mm f/2 ASPH.
Nikon F (DX)	Tokina AT-X 116 PRO DX-II 11-16mm f/2.8
PENTAX 645	HD PENTAX-DA 645 28-45mm F4.5ED AW SR
Sony Alpha	Sony DT 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 SAM
Sony Alpha	Sony DT 18-70mm F3.5-5.6
Sony Alpha	Sony 75-300mm F4.5-5.6
Sony Alpha	Sony 300mm F2.8 G SSM
Sony Alpha	Sony 500mm F4 G SSM
Sony E	HandeVision IBELUX 40mm F0.85
Sony E	SLR Magic 50mm F0.95 Hyperprime Lens
Sony E	Sony FE 16-35mm F4 ZA OSS
Voigtlander VM	Voigtlander VM 12mm F5.6 Ultra Wide Heliar
Voigtlander VM	Voigtlander VM 75mm F1.8 Heliar

Release Notes

New features:

• Camera Raw 8.7 RC includes HiDPI support for Windows.
• When Photoshop CC 2014’s option to scale the UI 200% is enabled (Edit > Preferences > Experimental Features), the Camera Raw dialog will also be scaled.
• Known issues:
• Sometimes the Camera Raw dialog will not scale after the initial Photoshop relaunch to enable the feature. Workaround: relaunch Photoshop again.
• Some UI flashing/redrawing during interactive operations such as dragging a local adjustment gradient or toggling fullscreen mode.
• Improve performance on processors with AVX/AVX2 vector instruction support (Intel Sandy Bridge (2011) processors and later; AMD Bulldozer (2011) processors and later).

Bug Fixes:

• Fix crash when rapidly adding corrections with the Spot Removal tool.
• Fix bug that prevented the Filter Brush cursor from displaying while changing brush size when the Graduated and Radial Filter overlay is turned off.
• Improve quality of Camera Matching color profiles for the Nikon D810. Fixes visible banding issues with the Camera Standard, Camera Vivid, Camera Landscape, and Camera Monochrome profiles.

Canon updates DPP, EOS Utility, and Picture Style Editor

Canon has released new versions of its Digital Photo Professional (DPP), EOS Utility, and Picture Style Editor software.

You can download the updates from the Canon website.

Changes for Digital Photo Professional 3.14.41 Updater for Mac OS X & Windows

• Supports images taken with EOS 7D Mark II, PowerShot SX60 HS, PowerShot G7 X.
• Mac OS X 10.7 is no longer supported
• Windows Vista & Windows XP no longer supported
• A function to delete the shooting data when executing [Convert and save] has been added
• For EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM, EF-M22mm f/2 STM, EF-M18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM, the latest lens data can be used, of which Digital Lens Optimizer’s performance has been improved
• Fixed a phenomenon that a file may not be converted and saved if specific character is used in the file name’s first character
• Supports new lens (EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM, EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM, EF-M 55-200mm f/4.5-6.3 IS STM)

Changes for Digital Photo Professional 4.0.2 for Mac OS X & Windows

• Supports EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM

Changes for Picture Style Editor 1.14.20 Updater for Mac OS X & Windows

• Supports EOS 7D Mark II
• Mac OS X 10.7 is no longer supported
• Windows XP & Windows Vista no longer supported

Changes for EOS Utility 2.14.10 Updater for Mac OS X & Windows

• Supports EOS 7D Mark II
• Supports EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM, EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM
• Mac OS X 10.7 is no longer supported

Changes for EOS Utility 3.0.1 for Mac OS X & Windows

• Supports EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM

Nikon adds D750 support for ViewNX, Capture NX-D, and Picture Control Utility

Nikon has released an update to its ViewNX, Capture NX-D, and Picture Control Utility software. The new versions add support for the new D750 DSLR. For Capture NX-D, an issue converting images to TIFF or JPEG with the Resolution box under Output settings enabled, has been resolved.

You can download the updates from the Nikon support sites:

• ViewNX 2.10.1: EU / USA
• Capture NX-D 1.0.2: EU / USA
• Picture Control Utility 2.0.1: EU / USA

New Canon 7D Mk II DSLR and 3 new lenses

The rumour was there for a while now, but today Canon officially announced the new 7D Mark II DSLR. They also announced 3 new lenses.

Camera: 7D Mark II

The new Canon EOS 7D Mark II is a 20.2 megapixel APC-C (1.6x crop factor) digital camera. The specs look pretty awesome: It can shoot up to 10 frames per second at ISOs ranging from 100–16000 (expandable to 51200). It's AF system has 65 all cross-type (!) AF points and it has has a dual card slot for both CF and SD cards. GPS connectivity is also built in. For more specs and features, see below.
Price: ±$1,799 (body only)

Lens: EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM Pancake

This new 24mm pancake lens is incredibly lightweight and small. With a 35mm equivalent focal length of 38mm, it is quite a multi-purpose lens, handy for a variety of purposes. It's STM motor allows for silent and smooth focus tracking during video shooting (on EOS cameras with Movie Servo AF). For more specs and features, see below.
Price: ±$149

Lens: EF 24-105 f/3.5-5.6 IS STM

The new EF 24–105mm f/3.5–5.6 also boasts an STM motor for smooth and silent focus tracking during video shooting. A first for a Canon EF lens for full-frame sensor cameras. For more specs and features, see below.
Price: ±$599

Lens: EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II

This is Canon's new model of the popular 400 f/4 DO. It has a 3 mode Image Stabilization system, offering up to four stops of compensation. The design makes use of the more environmentally friendly lead-free glass. For more specs and features, see below.
Price: ±$6899

Specifications/Features

More specs and features of the new products are given below.

New Nikon D750 DSLR, SB-500 Speedlight, and 20mm f/1.8 lens

Nikon has just announced another new DSLR camera, the D750. Along with it, there is an all new MB-D16 battery grip, SB-500 speedlight, and a fast 20mm f/1.8 lens.
Given the flow of new (and indeed improved) products from Nikon, one wonders what's keeping Canon from bringing out competing products? Apart form some pretty definite rumours of an upcoming 7D Mark II, there doesn't seem to be anything new in the DSLR-pipeline from Canon…

D750/MB-D16

The new D750 DSLR is Nikon's first full-frame camera to feature a tilting Vari-angle display and built-in Wi-Fi® connectivity. The 24.3MP camera has the pro video features as inspired by the D810 and uses the same autofocus and metering systems as the D4S and D810. The price of the body will around $2,299.95 (available: mid-October).

For extended battery life and addition vertical controls, the D750 can be paired with the MB-D16 battery grip ($485.00).

SB-500 Speedlight

The new SB-500 is a compact, lightweight i-TTL Speedlight and LED video light (a first for Nikon Speedlights!). Price: $249.95 (available: late September).

AF-S Nikkor 20mm f/1.8G ED

With the new fast ultra-wide 20mm f/1.8, Nikon extends its range of fast fixed focal lenses, once again (we already have 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm f/1.8 counterparts). This new lens, of course, makes use of Nano coating to keep flare and chromatic aberration to a minimum. Price: $799.95 (available: late September).

Specifications

Below are the full specifications of the new products (from the Nikon website).

Firmware update C1.10 for the Nikon D4s

Nikon recently released a firware update for it flagship D4s camera.

You can download the update from the Nikon Support site: EU

The update is quite big and contains the following new features and fixes:

• When SPORT VR mode, built into the AF-S NIKKOR 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR, is selected, the same continuous shooting rate available when OFF is selected is now possible.
• When memory cards with capacities greater than 128 GB were formatted with the camera, they were formatted using the FAT32 file system.  They are now formatted using the exFAT file system.
• Operation has been changed so that when menus are displayed during movie live view and the movie-record button is pressed, the menu display disappears and display returns to movie live view. To begin movie recording, press the movie-record button again.
• The Zoom on/off option for playback mode with Custom Setting f1: Multi Selector Center Button can now be used to zoom-in on images with zoom display centered on the active focus point, even if they were captured with live view photography. However, the focus point will not be displayed.
• The Help explanation provided for the Preset focus point option under Custom Setting f19: Lens Focus Function Buttons has been revised.
• The following issues have been resolved.
  - When NEF (RAW) recording > Image size in the shooting menu was set to RAW S (Small), the number of shots possible with uninterrupted shooting (buffer capacity, C-REM) displayed by the camera differed depending upon the NEF (RAW) recording > NEF (RAW) bit depth setting selected.
  - When Camera Control Pro 2 was used to take pictures with Record to set to PC+CARD, and Secondary slot function in the camera's shooting menu set to Overflow, the shutter could not be released when the memory card in the primary slot became full.
  - When Image review in the playback menu was set to On, images were sometimes not displayed in the monitor when the shutter was released while exposure meters were off.
  - When images were output to an HDMI device, resolution seemed insufficient with display in full-frame playback mode (did not apply to playback zoom display).
  - When images, captured with Image review in the playback menu set to On, and Auto distortion control in the shooting menu set to On, were automatically displayed in the monitor immediately after capture, auto distortion control was sometimes not applied.
  - When the multiple exposure function was used to capture images with Image review in the playback menu set to On, and Auto distortion control in the shooting menu set to On, auto distortion control was not applied to the recorded images.
  - When an image to which an image comment had been added was copied to White balance > Preset manual, only the first 24 characters of the image comment were copied.
  - If log-in to the FTP server failed when network settings were applied with Wired LAN selected for Network > Choose hardware in the camera's setup menu, and FTP upload selected as the connection type and IP address acquisition set to Obtain automatically with the Connection Wizard, the IP address displayed when the camera tried again to obtain it automatically was "000.000.000.000".
  - When a movie recorded at a frame rate of 30p, 25p, or 24p was played back on a TV to which the camera was connected via HDMI with HDMI > Output resolution in the the camera's setup menu set to 1080p (progressive), display on the TV was distorted.
  - When a file containing an IPTC preset (IPTC information) that included double-byte characters in its profile was copied to the camera, the camera froze when attempting to view the contents of the IPTC preset.
  - When Add items was selected for My Menu, OK was displayed even for items that cannot be added.
  - When Language in the setup menu was set to Arabic, text and icons in some menu displays overlapped, and text was positioned too far to the right.

New Distortion Control Data for Nikon Cameras

Nikon has released a new version of its Distortion Control Data for correcting barrel and pincushion distortion during shooting and editing (on those cameras that support it).

The L2.000 version of the Distortion Control Data can be downloaded from the Nikon imaging website.

The following cameras and firmwares are supported:

Camera	Compatible firmware
D4S	C:1.00 or later
D4	A:1.10 or later, B:1.10 or later
D810	C:1.00 or later
D800E	A:1.10 or later, B:1.10 or later
D800	A:1.10 or later, B:1.10 or later
Df	C:1.00 or later
D610	C:1.01 or later*
D600	C:1.02 or later*
D7100	C:1.02 or later*
D7000	A:1.04 or later, B:1.05 or later*
D5300	C:1.00 or later
D5200	C:1.02 or later
D3300	C:1.00 or later
D3200	C:1.03 or later
D90	A:1.00 or later, B:1.01 or later*

^*Please note that the new L2.000 Distortion Control Data requires a just released firmware update for the following cameras:

• Nikon D90 Firmware Update A 1.00, B 1.01: EU
• Nikon D7000 Firmware Update A 1.04, B 1.05: EU
• Nikon D7100 Firmware Update C 1.02: EU
• Nikon D600 Firmware Update C 1.02: EU
• Nikon D610 Firmware Update C 1.01: EU

Lightroom 5.6 and Camera Raw 8.6 released today

Adobe today released a new version of its Lightroom and Camera Raw. A while back, we could already play with the release candidate of Camera Raw, but now Lightroom users can also benefit from the added features. Compared to the release candidate, the final version contains support for a number of additional (Sony) lenses as well as additional bug fixes.
Downloads available from Adobe:

• Adobe Camera Raw 8.6: Use the update mechanism of application (or: manual)
• Lightroom 5.6: Download Mac / Windows
• DNG Converter 8.6: Download Mac / Windows

Changes in Lightroom 5.6 and Camera Raw 8.6

• Improve performance when batch processing images (via the Save button in Camera Raw) and when converting images to DNG (via DNG Converter). This performance improvement is only available on 64-bit systems. (Camera Raw for Photoshop CC and CC 2014-only)

New Camera Support

• Nikon D810
• Panasonic LUMIX AG-GH4
• Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ1000

Added Camera Matching colour profiles

• Sony DSC-RX100 III
• Sony A7S (ILCE-7S)
• Sony Alpha SLT-A77 II (ILCA-77M2)

New Lens Profile Support

Lens Name	Lens Mount
Canon	Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM
Canon	Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM
Canon	Tamron 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD A010E
Canon	Tamron 18-200 f/3.5-6.3 DiIII VC B011EM
Nikon	Nikon 1 NIKKOR VR 70-300mm f/4.5 – 5.6
Nikon	Tamon 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD A010N
Pentax	Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM A013
Phase One A/S	Schneider Kreuznach LS 40-80mm f/4.0-5.6
Sony Alpha	Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM A013
Sony Alpha	Sony 28mm f/2.8
Sony Alpha	Sony 16mm f/2.8 Fisheye
Sony Alpha	Sony 100mm f/2.8 MACRO
Sony Alpha	Sony DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6
Sony Alpha	Sony DT 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3
Sony Alpha	Sony DT 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3
Sony Alpha	Sony 70-200mm f/2.8G
Sony Alpha	Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G SSM
Sony Alpha	Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 G SSM
Sony Alpha	Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 G SSM II
Sony Alpha	Sony 135mm f/2.8 [T4.5] STF
Sony Alpha	Sony 300mm f/2.8 G SSM II
Sony E	Zeiss Touit 2.8/50M

Please note – the profile for the newly added Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM lens is not automatically located when applying lens profile corrections. This is a bug and we will fix it in a future release. The workaround is to: Manually select the profile and choose “Save New Lens Profile Defaults” in the Setup menu on the Profile tab. From then on, the lens should automatically select when the profile is enabled.

Bugs fixed in Lightroom 5.6

• Collections with a custom sort order would sometimes not properly sync with Lightroom mobile.
• Updated the “Adobe Standard” color profile for the Nikon D810.  Please note that this only impacts customers who used Camera Raw 8.6 or DNG Converter 8.6 to convert NEF raw files from the D810 to DNG
• Star ratings set in Lightroom mobile did not properly sync to Lightroom desktop.  Please note that this only occurred on images that were added to Lightroom mobile from the camera roll
• Resolved the issues causing the persistent “Syncing … images” state that some of our customers have reported.”
• Star ratings would sometimes not sync from Lightroom desktop to Lightroom mobile.  Please note that this only occurred when attempting to sync a Collection that contained more than 100 photos that already contained star ratings.
• Added information to the “System Info” dialogue to help designate if the customer installed Lightroom from the Creative Cloud.
• Unable to open sRaw files from the Nikon D810.  Please note that this only impacted customers that converted D810 sRaw files to DNG in either Camera Raw 8.6 RC or DNG Converter 8.6 RC.
• Images with invalid GPS coordinates would not properly sync with Lightroom mobile
• Lightroom occasionally crashed when changing image selection on Windows. Please note that this only occurred on the Windows platform.
• JPEG files exported from Lightroom would not open or be available to edit within Canon Digital Photo Professional application software.
• Lightroom would run in reduced functionality mode when it should not.

Bugs fixed in Camera Raw 8.6

• Fixed crash on launch in some cases on Hi DPI (Retina) systems.
• Fixed crash when opening some Sigma SD9 raw files.
• Fixed issue with JPEG images saved by Camera Raw not readable in some external applications.
• Fixed automatic lens profile selection for Leica M (Typ 240) when using most recent firmware version.
• Fixed issue with some Hasselblad H5D-50c and H5D-60 3FR raw images appearing slightly too dark. Unfortunately, this fix may affect the appearance of existing images captured with this combination of settings. It is recommended that you (1) purge the Camera Raw cache via the Camera Raw Preferences dialog, and (2) review previously captured images for unexpected brightness changes.
• Fixed bug with converting Nikon D810 and Nikon D4S sRaw files to DNG.
• Tweaked and updated the Adobe Standard color profile for the Nikon D810.  Please note that this only impacts customers that used Camera Raw 8.6 RC with the Nikon D810.

New version of Canon Digital Photo Professional software

Canon has released a new version of its Digital Photo Professional (DPP) software. This new version contains quite a few radical changes and new features over its predecessors. Big disappointment for many will be this new 4.0 version is only compatible with the very latest Canon DSLRs; only the EOS-1D X, EOS-1D C, EOS 5D Mark III and EOS 6D are currently supported! For other models, an update of DPP (3.14) will be released (not yet available, though).

For the new camera's the software does offer some great improvements though. Designed and developed from the ground up, the new Digital Photo Professional 4.0 is much faster as it fully utilises the 64-bit architecture of the host system.

You can download DPP 4.0 (for free) from Canon Europe's support site. Select your camera - EOS-1D X, EOS-1D C, EOS 5D Mark III or EOS 6D – and select DPP 4.0 from the software options to download.
Please note that DPP 4.0 will be compatible only with 64-bit versions of Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 as well as Mac OS X 10.8 and 10.9.

New key features

• Faster, real-time adjustments.
• Improved RAW file workflow.
• Better, more approachable user interfaces.
• Compatible with 64-bit native environments.
• Colour adjustments for specific colour gamuts.
• Improved highlight recovery provides expanded tonality.
• Improved shadow recovery function.
• Support for movie playback.
• Auto Lighting Optimizer can be applied to JPEG images.
• Better integration with EOS Utility.

New colour adjustment palette

A new colour adjustment palette allows hue, saturation and luminance adjustment for eight individual colour gamuts, enabling the user to adjust one specific colour in isolation without affecting the image as a whole. This is particularly useful when adjusting background tones in portraits, where there might previously have been a risk of giving a colour cast to skin tones, for example.

Enhanced highlight function

Canon software developers have re-engineered the processing algorithms to increase the freedom in tonal rendering. By adjusting highlights, it is now possible to reproduce tones such as those in clouds and peoples’ faces that would previously have appeared washed out.

Dual display support

For those photographers with dual monitors, DPP 4.0 allows a secondary monitor to be used as the preview window on the primary display. While the main monitor can be used to perform delicate adjustments, a secondary image window for images can be used as a magnifier for closer inspection of part of an image.

Better EOS Utility integration

With the launch of DDP 4.0 comes an updated EOS Utility 3 and the two pieces of software now offer better integration. The introduction of EOS Utility 3 makes it is possible to trigger the camera direct from the DPP tool palette as well as access to all the rest of the EOS Utility remote shooting functions without the need to start a separate application, thus enabling a more streamlined and integrated workflow.

Adobe Camera Raw 8.6 (Release Candidate) available

Together with the availability of the new Nikon D810 camera, Adobe has released a release candidate for its Camera Raw (and DNG convertor) software. So if you are the lucky owner of a brand new D810 camera (or any of the other newly added cameras and lenses), you can start enjoying the full benefits of ACR.
Please note that as a release candidate, this is not yet the final version of the software and things may change/get added to the final release.

Downloads available from adobe labs:

• Adobe Camera Raw 8.6RC for Photoshop CS6
• Adobe Camera Raw 8.6RC for Photoshop CC and Photoshop CC 2014
• DNG Converter 8.6RC

Changes in Camera Raw 8.6RC

• Improve performance when batch processing images (via the Save button in Camera Raw) and when converting images to DNG (via DNG Converter). This performance improvement is only available on 64-bit systems. (CC and CC 2014-only)

New Camera Support

• Nikon D810
• Panasonic LUMIX AG-GH4
• Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ1000

Added Camera Matching colour profiles

• Sony DSC-RX100 III
• Sony A7S (ILCE-7S)
• Sony Alpha SLT-A77 II (ILCA-77M2)

New Lens Profile Support

Lens Name	Lens Mount
Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM	Canon
Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM	Canon
Nikon 1 NIKKOR VR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6	Nikon
Schneider Kreuznach LS 40-80mm f/4.0-5.6	Phase One A/S
Sony 28mm f/2.8	Sony Alpha
Sony 100mm F2.8 Macro	Sony Alpha
Sony DT 16-105mm f/3.5-5.6	Sony Alpha
Sony DT 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3	Sony Alpha
Sony 70-200mm f/2.8G	Sony Alpha
Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G SSM	Sony Alpha
Zeiss Touit 2.8/50M	Sony Alpha

Bug fixes

• Fix crash on launch in some cases on Hi DPI (Retina) systems.
• Fix crash when opening some Sigma SD9 raw files.
• Fix issue with JPEG images saved by Camera Raw not readable in some external applications.
• Fix automatic lens profile selection for Leica M (Typ 240) when using most recent firmware version.
• Fix issue with some Hasselblad H5D-50c and H5D-60 3FR raw images appearing slightly too dark. Unfortunately, this fix may affect the appearance of existing images captured with this combination of settings. It is recommended that you (1) purge the Camera Raw cache via the Camera Raw Preferences dialog, and (2) review previously captured images for unexpected brightness changes.

New versions of Nikon Camera Control Pro, Wireless Transmitter Utility and UT-1 firmware

Nikon released updates for its Camera Control Pro, Wireless Transmitter Utility software, and Communication Unit UT-1 firmware. Amongst others they now all support the new D810 camera (available as of today).

You can download these updates from the Nikon Support sites:

• Nikon Camera Control Pro v.2.18.0: EU / USA
• Nikon Wireless Transmitter Utility v.1.5.1: EU / USA
• Nikon Communication Unit UT-1 firmware update v.2.1: EU / USA

Changes in Nikon Camera Control Pro v.2.18.0

• Support for the D810 has been added.
• Highlight-weighted has been added to Metering options in the Exposure 2 tab (available only when the D810 is used).
• Metering options have been added to the Movie tab (available only when the D810 is used).
• Flat has been added to Picture Control options in the Image Processing tab. (available only when the D810 is used).
• A Clarity setting has been added to the adjustment dialog displayed when the Edit... button in the Image Processing tab is clicked. (available only when the D810 is used).
• A Show Capture NX-D option has been added to the Tools menu.

Additional modifications to the Windows version

• Windows XP is no longer supported.

Additional modifications to the Macintosh version

• Mac OS X version 10.6 is no longer supported.

Changes in Nikon Wireless Transmitter Utility v.1.5.1

• Support for the D810 has been added.
• Support for the Communication Unit UT-1 Firmware Ver. 2.1 has been added 

Additional modifications to the Windows version

• Windows XP is no longer supported.

Changes in Nikon Communication Unit UT-1 firmware update v.2.1

• Support for the D810 has been added.

Nikon Capture NX-D officially released

As announced recently, the official version of Capture NX-D, Nikon's new processing and adjustment application, is now available for free download from the Nikon imaging website.

Capture NX-D offers raw development of images captured in by Nikon digital SLR cameras, Nikon 1 advanced cameras with interchangeable lenses, and COOLPIX compact cameras that support this capability.

New versions of Nikon ViewNX2 and Picture Control Utility available

Despite the fact that, in my opinion, the new Capture NX-D (available from 15 July, see earlier article) should replace it, Nikon still released an update to it's Nikon ViewNX2 application.

They also released a new version of the (usually integrated with e.g., Capture NX2) Picture Control Utility.

Both applications now have added support for the new D810 camera.

You can download the new software from the Nikon support site:

• Nikon ViewNX2 v2.10.0: Nikon EU | Nikon USA
• Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 v2.0.0: Nikon EU | Nikon USA

Changes in Nikon View NX2 v2.10.0

• Support for the D810 has been added.
• Picture Control Utility has been replaced by Picture Control Utility 2 v2.0.0 (see below).

Changes in Picture Control Utility 2 v2.0.0

• The application be used from ViewNX 2 and Capture NX-D, and also as a separate, stand-alone application after installation.
• Support for the D810 has been added.
• Users can now choose to save Custom Picture Control files in "NP2" format, compatible with the new Picture Control System, or in "NCP" format for use with all cameras that support Custom Picture Controls.
• The following are possible when "NP2" is selected.
  - Flat can now be selected from the list of Stored Picture Controls.
  - When Manual Adjust is selected, each of the adjustment items can now be adjusted in units of 0.25 for more precise adjustment.
  - A new Clarity item has been added to adjustment items.
  - The adjustment range for Brightness has been expanded to −1.50 to +1.50.
• The Custom Curve is larger, making it easier to adjust tone curves.
• The size of the application window can now be adjusted, allowing the area in which the preview image is display to be enlarged.
• A new Adjustments for Preview function enables adjustment of Exposure Comp. and White Balance. However, adjustments to these settings are not reflected in the Custom Picture Control being created.
• A Reflect changes on preview check box has been added for before-and-after comparison of the Custom Picture Control on the preview image.

Nikon Capture NX-D available as free download from 15 July

On top of the new Nikon D810 camera, Nikon today also announced that it will release the official version of Capture NX-D, its new processing and adjustment software application for RAW images captured with a Nikon digital camera, for free download beginning 15 July.

Capture NX-D is the replacement of Nikon Capture NX2, albeit with limited functionality and a completely new approach (e.g., propriety sidecar files for storing your edits).

For me (and many many others), this was a reason to switch to another software solution (see my earlier blog on this). For others, it may, however, offer enough as a raw converter. It definitely offers much more than View NX2, so people using that application may certainly be thrilled by the new and free (!) Capture NX-D.

Capture NX-D offers raw development of images captured in by Nikon digital SLR cameras, Nikon 1 advanced cameras with interchangeable lenses, and COOLPIX compact cameras that support this capability. The application will be available for download, free of charge and it will already have support for the new Nikon D810 DSLR, also announced today.

The good thing is that Nikon has listened to the ideas and requests of users of the beta version, so the final version will have improvements to the user interface, and the ways in which adjustments are applied, for example, to white balance. Nikon plans to keep listening to user request and will continuously update the software and improve image processing and operation. One of the first things the plan to offer is the return of the automatic retouch brush. This was actually one of the tools I would have missed most in NX-D.

As of 15 July, you will be able to download Capture NX-D from the Nikon imaging website.

Just announced, the Nikon D810: The new high resolution photo and video king?

Nikon today announced the successor to its D800 high resolution DLSR: the D810. While the name may suggest only a minor update, the new D810 camera actually has an all new sensor and a host of new features both for photographers and videographers!

The Nikon D810 will be available in late July for the suggested retail price (SRP) of $3299.95

Some of the product highlights:

• 36.3-megapixel FX-format (7360 x 4912 resolution) sensor, no Optical Low Pass filter (similar to the D800E, though the D800E still had some sort of low pass filter).
• Faste EXPEED4 image processor
• Wide ISO range of 64-12,800, extendible to 32-51,200.
• Nikon’s Advanced Scene Recognition System with the 91,000-pixel 3D Color Matrix Meter II.
• 15 cross-type AF sensors, 11 cross-type sensors of which can be used up to f/8.
• Like the D4S is also boasts Group AF mode for enhanced accuracy, even while tracking subjects.
• 5 frames-per-second (fps) at full resolution and 5:4, 6 fps in DX or 1.2x modes,  (15.4-megapixel, 25.1-megapixel, respectively), and 7 fps in DX mode (15.4-megapixel), with battery pack.
• Full resolution 14-bit RAW files or the new RAW Size Small format (12-bit file at half the resolution, approximately 1/4 the file size of full RAW files).
• Picture Control enhancements: a new “Clarity” setting has which adjusts mid tones to enhance details within an image and a new “Flat” Picture Control Profile to help preserve the most amount of detail in shadows and highlights.
• Video specific enhancements
• Full HD 1920x1080 video up to 60fps (!)
• Uncompressed digital video out to an external recorder via HDMI, while simultaneously displaying the video on the rear LCD display and external LCD monitor. You can now also record both to the internal card (compressed) and to the external recorder (uncompressed) simultaneously.
• Like the Nikon D4S, the D810 uses an auto-exposure setting to help create super-smooth exposure and tonal transitions for professional results with time-lapse and interval-time shooting.
• Audio via built-in stereo microphone or an external microphone.
• Zebra stripes: A zebra pattern can be displayed during live view, making it easy to spot overexposed areas.
• Highlight weighted metering: This new setting helps to prevent blown-out highlights in video.
• The Live View AF has been improved, and now provides faster full-time AF (AF-F mode).

Specifications and comparison to D800/D800E

For a list of specifications and a comparison to the Nikon D800 and D800E, please see the pdf at the Nikon website.

New Tamron 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 full frame lens

Tamron announced a new 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD (A010) full frame lens. At $849, it is considerably cheaper than the brand alternatives.

Product Highlights

• Optical design
  The optical construction of this lens includes four elements of LD (Low Dispersion) glass, three Molded-Glass Aspherical elements, one Hybrid Aspherical element, one XR (Extra Refractive Index) glass element, and one element of UXR (Ultra-Extra Refractive Index) glass.

• Smaller and lighter
  The new optical design facilitated downsizing of the lens body, leading to a smaller overall lens when compared to the existing Tamron 28-300mm (Model A20).

• New anti-reflection coating
  The application of BBAR (Broad-Band Anti-Reflection) coatings for suppressing reflections on lens element surfaces minimizes unwanted flare and ghosting to deliver sharp, crisp, high-contrast images.

• PZD (Piezo Drive) for fast, quiet autofocus
  The PZD (Piezo Drive), a standing-wave ultrasonic motor system, delivers faster, quieter, more precise autofocus.

• VC (Vibration Compensation)
  The lens comes with Tamron’s version of image stabilisation: VC (Vibration Compensation).

• Moisture-resistant construction
  The construction of the lens helps to prevent moisture from penetrating the lens.

Lens specifications

Model	A010
Focal Length	28-300mm
Maximum Aperture	F/3.5-6.3
Angle of view (diagonal)	75°23’ - 8°15’ (for full-frame format) 52°58’ - 5°20’ (for APS-C format)
Lens Construction	19 elements in 15 groups
Minimum Focus Distance	19.3 in (0.49m)
Maximum Magnification Ratio	1:3.5 (at f=300mm: MFD 19.3in)
Filter Size	Ø67mm
Maximum Diameter	Ø74.4mm
Length 6	3.8in (96mm)
Weight	19oz (540g)
No. of Diaphragm Blades	7 (circular diaphragm)
Minimum Aperture	F/22-40
Standard Accessories	Flower-shaped Lens hood
Compatible Mounts	Canon, Nikon, Sony

Adobe releases Lightroom 5.5, Camera Raw 8.5, and DNG Converter 8.5

In my previous post on the new (Photoshop) CC 2014 I already briefly mentioned Camera Raw 8.5, but there is more: Adobe also released Lightroom 5.5 and the DNG Converter 8.5.

Additional cameras supported by these releases

• Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II
• Fujifilm FinePix S1
• Nikon 1 J4
• Nikon 1 S2
• Nikon 1 V3
• Olympus OM-D E-M10
• Panasonic DMC-GH4
• Pentax 645Z
• Samsung NX3000
• Sony DSC-RX100 III
• Sony A7S (ILCE-7S)
• Sony Alpha SLT-A77 II (ILCA-77M2)

Additional lens profiles in these releases

Mount	Name
Canon	Sigma 50m F1.4 DG HSM A014
Canon	Sigma 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC MACRO OS HSM C014
Canon	Tamron 16-300mm F3.5-6.3 Dill VC PZD MACRO B0163
Fujifilm	Fujifilm Tele Conversion Lens TCL-X100
Nikon	Nikon 1 NIKKOR VR 10-30mm f3.5-5.6 PD-ZOOM
Nikon	Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G ED VR
Nikon	Sigma 50mm F1.4 DG HSM A014
Nikon	Sigma 18-200 F3.5-6.3 DC MACRO OS HSM C014
Nikon	Tamron 16-300mm F3.5-6.3 Dill VC PZD MACRO B016N
Nikon	Tamron SP 150-600mm F5-6.3 Di VC USD A011N
Pentax	Sigma 30mm F.14 DC HSM A013
Sigma	Sigma 50mm F1.4 DG HSM A014
Sigma	Sigma 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC MACRO OS HSM C014
Sony Alpha	Sigma 30mm F1.4 DC HSM A013
Sony Alpha	Sony Alpha 28-75mm F2.8 SAM

Additional functionality in Adobe Camera Raw 8.5

Note: though Lightroom 5.5 uses ACR as its base, it is the policy of Adobe not to introduce new functionality into “dot releases”. For Photoshop CS6, which can also be updated to use ACR 8,5. none of the new functionality was ever made available so below functionality is only available in Photoshop CC or CC 2014!

• Modify Graduated and Radial Filter masks with a brush:
  After adding or selecting a Graduated or Radial Filter instance, click the new ‘Brush’ mode (next to existing ‘New’ and ‘Edit’ mode buttons) to reveal brush controls that allow you to modify the selected mask.
  Use the ‘Brush +’ and ‘Brush -’ icon buttons in the brush controls pane to add to or erase from the selected mask.
  Press the ‘Clear’ button to remove all brush modifications from the currently selected mask.
  When a Graduated or Radial Filter instance is selected, Shift-K can be used to enter and leave brush modification mode.
  Mask visualization is now available for the Graduated and Radial Filters. Use the Mask checkbox at the bottom of the Local Corrections pane or press ‘Y’ to toggle the mask overlay.
• Added Per-Panel Preview default toggle button
  If the current panel’s settings are not the ACR defaults, clicking the new Per-panel Toggle Button will reset the panel to the ACR defaults.
  Clicking the button again will restore the previous settings.
  This is a standalone feature, separate from the new Preview controls.
  The changes are applied to the main view; if you have both the Before and After panes visible, changes will appear in the After panel.

Bug fixes in Adobe Camera Raw 8.5 & Lightroom 5.5

Adobe releases Creative Cloud 2014

Adobe has just released a new version of its Creative Cloud suite of applications – available only as subscription. It hosts a number of great new additions for designers and photographers alike.

Some of the new features

• In Camera Raw the Radial and Graduated Filters have a new Brush option designed to selectively hide the filter in unwanted areas. Plus, Camera Raw 8.5 has new Per-Panel Preview toggle button.
  This latest version also (finally) fixes the problem with some Nikon lossless compressed raw files. You can actually honour me for this fix as it was my report and sample file that got it fixed!
  Support for the latest camera's and additional lenses has been added as well.
• Mobile apps, now all available for free! (may require CC subscription to be fully functional)
  
  • Adobe Sketch, a social sketching iPad app for free-form drawing.
  • Adobe Line, the world’s first iPad app for precision drawing and drafting.
  •  Adobe Photoshop Mix brings the some of the creative imaging tools only found in Photoshop to the iPad. This version implements the two most-used features: precise compositing and masking. PS Mix also includes Upright, Content Aware Fill and Camera Shake Reduction—and integrates back to Photoshop CC on the desktop.
  • Adobe Lightroom mobile for iPhone, extending Lightroom to your iPhone.
• Photoshop CC now has Blur Gallery motion effects for creating a sense of motion, and the recently introduced Perspective Warp for fluidly adjusting the perspective of a specific part of an image without affecting the surrounding area. Focus Mask makes portrait shots with shallow depth of field stand out, and new Content-Aware capabilities make one of the most popular features even better. Adobe also added more camera support to Lightroom (version 5.5) as well as a new Lightroom mobile app for iPhone.
• Amongst others, new in Adobe Illustrator are the Live Shapes to quickly and non-destructively transform rectangles into complex forms and then return to the original rectangle with just a few clicks.
• With InDesign CC layout artists can now move rows and columns around in tables by simply selecting, dragging and dropping, which will be a big time saver. The new EPUB Fixed Layout means you can create digital books effortlessly.
• Adobe Muse CC is being rebuilt as a native 64-bit application and it now includes HiDPI display support for sharper-looking images, objects, and text.
• Video apps now include Live Text Templates, Masking and Tracking plus new integrations that leverage the power of Adobe After Effects CC inside Adobe Premiere Pro CC.
• And finally with Dreamweaver CC you can now view your markup in an interactive tree using the new Element Quick View, to quickly navigate, and modify the HTML structure of pages.

For more details, please see the product pages at the Adobe website.

Important Note

Interestingly, instead of what you'd come to expect with CC, this new version installs as a complete new version, next to your existing CC (and earlier CS versions). You should be able to safely uninstall the previous version(s) of the software after migrating all your settings. Be aware though that not all old functionality/plugins may work with this new version so you may choose to keep them around still. A notable omission is the oil painter which not available in the new CC 2014.

New Canon EF 16-35 Lens

Canon has announced a new EF 16-35 f/4 L IS USM lens. This new wide angle zoom can be viewed as the successor of the EF 17-40 f/4 L USM and boasts up to 4 stop image stabilisation (a first for a professional grade Canon wide angle lens!). It is also going to be a welcome alternative to the EF 16-35 f/2.8 L II USM as it is likely going to be cheaper whilst still only losing one stop of light (it's not much lighter though; 615g compared to 640g).

Pricing and delivery dates are not yet announced. (but we have come to expect that from Canon…).

Lens specs:

Optical features/specifications
Angle of view (horizontal, vertical, diagonal)	98° - 54°, 74°10′ - 38°, 108°10′ - 63°
Lens construction (elements/groups)	16/12
No. of diaphragm blades	9
Minimum aperture	22
Closest focussing distance (m)	0.28
Maximum magnification (x)	0.23x (at 35mm)
Distance Information	Yes
Image stabilizer	4.0
AF actuator	Ring USM
Physical specifications
Dust/moisture resistance	Yes
Filter diameter (mm)	77
Max. diameter x length (mm)	82.6 x 112.8
Weight (g)	615
Accessories
Lens cap	E-77 II
Lens hood	EW-82
Lens case/pouch	LP1219
Rear cap	Lens Dust Cap E
Magnification w/ Extension Tube EF12 II	0.63-0.36
Magnification w/ Extension Tube EF25 II	1.12-0.80
Extender Compatiblity	Not Compatible
Other Accessories	Close-up lens 500D, tele only - 0.07 to 0.28x Gelatin Filter Holder IV for full telephoto only

New Nikkor AF-S 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR lens and Nikon AF-S TC-14E III teleconverter

Nikon recently announced a new version for its 400mm f/2.8 super tele. This new version is lighter and more rugged than its predecessor, and uses a fluorine coated front meniscus glass element to protect the optics. Optics that make use of two fluorite and two ED (extra-low dispersion) glass elements to ensure minimal chromatic aberration.

Next to the new AF-S 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR lens, Nikon also announced a new version of the 1.4 teleconverter. This new Nikon AF-S TC-14E III is slightly smaller and has improved optics when compared to the previous TC II version.

See below for a comparison of the old and new models of the lens and teleconverter.

While the new teleconverter will be available at basically the same price ($500/€550), the new 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR will be (much) more expensive than its predecessor (±$12,000/€12,500).

Old and new versions of the 400mm lens compared

Feature	New: AF-S 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR	Old: AF-S 400mm f/2.8G ED VR
Focal length	400 mm	400 mm
Maximum aperture	f/2.8	f/2.8
Minimum aperture	f/22	f/22
Lens construction	16 elements in 12 groups (Including 2 fluorite and 2 ED glass elements plus meniscus protective glass and Nano Crystal coat). 2 aspherical lens elements, and lens elements with a Nano Crystal Coat.	14 elements in 11 groups (with 3 ED glass elements and one Nano Crystal Coat) and one meniscus protective glass element
Angle of view	6°10' (4°00' with DX-format camera)	6°10' (4°00' with DX-format camera)
Minimum focus distance	2.6m from focal plane	2.9 (AF), 2.8 m (MF)
Maximum reproduction ratio	1/6.9	1/6.3
No. of diaphragm blades	9 (rounded)	9 (rounded)
Filter attachment size	40.5mm (drop-in)	52mm (drop-in)
Diameter x length (extension from lens mount)	Approx. 159.5 x 358 mm	Approx. 159.5 × 368 mm
Weight	Approx. 3800 g	Approx. 4620g
Supplied accessories	Slip-on front lens cap, LF-4 Rear Lens Cap, HK-38 Lens Hood, 40.5 mm screw-in NC filter, CT-405 Lens Case, LN-2 Strap, Monopod collar	Slip-on Lens Hood HK-33, Trunk Case CT-404, 52-mm screw-in filter, Strap LN-1, Monopod collar

Old and new versions of the TC1.4 compared

Feature	New: TC1.4E III	Old: TC1.4E II
Lens construction	7 elements in 4 groups	5 elements in 5 groups
Minimum focus distance	Same as that of a prime lens	Same as that of a prime lens
Maximum reproduction ratio	Approx. 1.4x that of a prime lens	Approx. 1.4x that of a prime lens
Diameter x length (distance from camera lens mount flange)	64 x 24.5mm	66 x 24.5mm
Weight	190g	200g

Firmware updates for the Nikon D800/D800E and UT-1 communication unit

Nikon just released a new firmware for their D800 and D800E digital cameras as well as an accompanying update for the Communication Unit UT-1. The list of changes is quite impressive though focus is mostly on small usability improvements.

You can download the new firmwares from the Nikon support sites:

• Nikon D800 Firmware A 1.10 & B 1.10: EU / USA
• Nikon D800E Firmware A 1.10 & B 1.10: EU / USA
• Nikon UT-1 Firmware 2.0: EU / USA

Complete list of changes for the D800/D800E:

TIPA awards 2014

The Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) just announced the winners of their annual awards. Each year TIPA chooses the best products of the last twelve months in 40 photography related categories.

Below is the list of the winners in each category. More information on the winning products can be found on the TIPA website.

TIPA awards 2014

Best Mobile Photo App	Photosmith 3
Best Imaging Innovation	Canon Dual Pixel CMOS AF
Best Professional DSLR Lens	Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4x
Best Digital SLR Advanced	Canon EOS 70D
Best Expert Compact Camera	Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II
Best CSC Prime Lens	ZEISS Touit series
Best Imaging Software	DxO ViewPoint 2
Best CSC Expert	FUJIFILM X-T1
Best CSC Expert Lens	FUJINON XF10-24mmF4 R OIS
Best Inkjet Photo Paper	Hahnemühle Photo Silk Baryta 310
Best Photo Monitor	LG 21:9 UltraWide 34UM95
Best Photo Tv	LG ULTRA HD TV (UB980 series)
Best Tripod	Manfrotto New 190 collection
Best Rugged Compact Camera	Nikon 1 AW1
Best Digital SLR Entry Level	Nikon D3300
Best Digital SLR Professional	Nikon D4S
Best Premium Camera	Nikon Df
Best Portable Lighting System	Nissin i40
Best CSC Entry Level Lens	Olympus M.ZUIKO Digital ED 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 EZ
Best CSC Entry Level	Olympus OM-D E-M10
Best Hybrid Photo/Video Camera	Panasonic LUMIX DMC-GH4
Best Superzoom Camera	Panasonic LUMIX DMC-TZ60 / ZS40
Best Medium Format Camera	Phase One IQ250
Best Professional Lighting System	Profoto B1 Off-Camera Flash
Best Digital SLR Expert	Pentax K-3
Best CSC Advanced	Samsung NX30
Best Easy Compact Camera	Samsung WB50F
Best Accessory	SanDisk Connect Wireless Flash Drive
Best Storage Media	SanDisk Extreme PRO SDHC/SDXC UHS-II Memory Card
Best Photo Projector	Epson EH-TW7200
Best Photo Printer	Epson Expression Photo XP-950
Best Entry Level DSLR Lens	SIGMA 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC MACRO OS HSM
Best Design	SIGMA dp Quattro
Best Photo Service	SIGMA Mount Conversion Service
Best ActionCam	Sony Action Cam HDR-AS100V
Best CSC Professional	Sony Alpha 7R
Best Camcorder	Sony FDR-AX100
Best Mobile Imaging Device	Sony QX series
Best Expert DSLR Lens	Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD
Best Photo Bag	Thule Perspektiv series

Nikon D4s firmware update

Nikon published another firmware update, this time for its new flagship camera, the D4s. This new C 1.01 firmware fixes some important issues so I would recommend it to everyone lucky enough to own a D4s.

The firmware can be downloaded from the Nikon support sites: EU / USA

Updates in firmware C 1.01:

• When Custom Setting f1 (Multi selector center button) > Playback mode was set to View histograms, the histogram was not displayed correctly for the image played back in the monitor, even when the center button on the multi selector was pressed, when the following conditions were met. This issue has been resolved.
  - Image quality was set to NEF (RAW) + JPEG fine, NEF (RAW) + JPEG normal, or NEF (RAW) + JPEG basic.
  - An option other than "Overview data" or "RGB histogram" was selected for photo information displayed with full-frame image playback.
• With full-frame image playback with "Highlights" or "RGB histogram" display selected, image chroma (saturation) changed with flashing of highlights. This issue has been resolved.
• When images captured with Color space set to Adobe RGB were enlarged with playback in the monitor, image chroma (saturation) changed. This issue has been resolved.
• When Rotate tall in the playback menu was set to On, and an image captured in "tall" (portrait) orientation was enlarged slightly (playback zoom-in button pressed once or twice) with monitor playback, the image did not appear to be very sharp or clear. This issue has been resolved.
• With capture of a Compressed RAW image, followed by a Lossless compressed RAW image, with Image quality set to NEF (RAW), the camera was sometimes unable to correctly record the second RAW image. This issue has been resolved.