News

Olympus’ TG-3 Tough Cam Sports Serious Macro Capabilities Like Focus Stacking

The PEN-like Stylus SH-1 wasn't the only camera to get its debut tonight. Olympus also introduced a new Tough camera, the Stylus Tough TG-3, whose claim to fame is impressive macro photography capabilities including an automatic focus stacking feature that'll help expand your depth of field when you're shooting really tiny subjects.

Memory Cards vs Kalashnikovs: On Trying to Cover the News in Crimea Right Now

As Jim Morrison once said, "Whoever controls the media, controls the mind." There is power in an image, and the press often become persona non grata in a conflict that is socially and politically charged. This is what is happening in Crimea right now, as photojournalists Kilian Fichou and Laetitia Peron revealed in a recent article on the AFP Correspondent blog.

Flickr’s New Photo Experience Out of Beta, No More Opting Out

Flickr's new "photo experience," which has been in beta for the past few months, is finally live for everyone to see. While this isn't the full-on redesign that we mentioned might be on the way, this update completely overhauls the photo pages in particular -- bringing speed, functionality and aesthetic improvements.

Bidding War Helps Hasselblad Sell 2 Lunar Cameras for $54K at Charity Auction

Still think there's no market for overpriced Hasselblad Sony clones? This might change your mind. Thanks to a heated bidding war at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance exotic car festival, two ... we'll call them generous... generous gentlemen paid $54,500 for two Hasselblad Lunar cameras that would normally run $14,000 retail.

Anti-Piracy Group Accused of Stealing the Photo They Used in an Anti-Piracy Ad

Well this is awkward... We're all for people advocating for copyright law and making sure that people at least understand that it's bad to steal other people's intellectual property, but if you're going to do it, you might want to follow your own rules.

Case in point: Anti-piracy group The Business Software Alliance was called out this weekend for allegedly using a stolen photo in an anti-piracy ad that encouraged people to turn in unlicensed software users.

Wedding Photographers Supposedly Using Fine Print to Sue Clients Over Bad Reviews

In the age of the Internet, with sites like Yelp often being the first stop for anybody looking for a service (say, photography) they've never used before, it's no surprise that pros are trying to keep their star ratings as high as possible.

What is surprising is the news that some photographers are keeping their reviews positive by threatening to sue anybody who writes something negative.

Samyang Broadens Its Mirrorless Support with New 12mm and Updated Older Models

If you believed the rumors, today was supposed to be the day Samyang debuted its first AutoFocus-capable lenses. But that, it seems, wasn't in the cards. What Samyang did announce today (and what they have apparently been teasing all week) was a new 12mm f/2 and several revamped older models that will now work with APS-C and MFT mirrorless cameras.

The Nikon 1 V3 Falls Short of Cheaper MFT Shooters in DxOMark Tests

DxOMark is certainly not the be-all-end-all of camera sensor testing outfits, but what it has going for it is consistency and a whole lot of experience. So while you might not put much stock in their sensor scores, DxO is a great resource for comparing sensor performance between models.

We say all this because there are some Nikon fanboys who will immediately be upset by the news that DxOMark claims the new Nikon 1 V3 might not live up to its price tag.

Student Breaks 19th Century Statue In an Attempt to Grab a #Selfie

Selfies. We can't seem to get enough of them. And while they're somewhat awkward and obnoxious at times, they're rather harmless, innocent and don't cause any damage, right? Wrong. Or at least it was in the case of a student who reportedly broke an early 19th century statue in a museum (see update) in Milan, Italy.

HIPA Grand Prize Winner Looks Like It May be a Big Photoshop Fail

The photograph above by Chinese photographer China’s Fuyang Zhou just won $120,000 as the Hamdan International Photography Awards (HIPA) overall grand prize winner. The theme was "Creating the Future," and you can see why the photo won: it's a wonderful composition that captures the spirit of that theme. And yet, something seems off about it...

Nikon Asked to Halt All D600 Sales in China After Scathing Nationally Televised Exposé

Nikon has probably had just about enough when it comes to the D600 and its sensor dust/oil issues. It started with user complaints, evolved to class action lawsuits from a number of different sources, and has now escalated to a full-on order by the Chinese government to stop D600 sales in China after a state-run television show featured a scathing exposé about the issue.

Impending Flickr Redesign Said to Simplify and Unify the Flickr Experience

According to a report by Re/code, Yahoo! is getting ready to redesign Flickr yet again. Said to be coming "within the next few weeks," the updates won't be as dramatic as the last revamp, but it's definitely going to bring some welcomed changes that focus on the smaller details.

The overarching goal this time, it seems, is to simplify and unifying the mobile and web browser Flickr experiences.

Terry Richardson Responds to Allegations, Calls The Whole Thing a ‘Witch Hunt’

The Terry Richardson debate can be summed up in two sayings, one used by the anti-Richardson army and the other used by the pro-Richardson crowd: "There's no smoke without a fire" and "Tried and convicted in the press." That many allegations can't just spring up out of nowhere, says one group, while the other argues that undue amounts of sensational press attention does not evidence make.

However, for the first time ever, Richardson himself is speaking out, addressing the Allegations in an op-ed published by the Huffington Post in which he calls the entire ordeal an "emotionally-charged witch hunt."

Photojournalist Given Humanitarian Award for Choosing to Help Before Taking Photos

As a photojournalist, there are many moments where you have to answer a simple ethical question: do you take the photo, or do you try to help? This happens a lot in more tragic events, and conflict photographers are often accused of making the wrong choice.

Which is the right and wrong choice is up for debate in any given situation -- a photo might spark change on an international level after all -- but one thing is for sure: we don't often hear about photojournalists putting down the camera and choosing to help right then and there. That, however, is exactly what happened in the case of Miami Herald photojournalist Al Diaz in February of this year.

Judge Rules Model’s Lawsuit Against Getty Will Go to Trial

Several months after model Avril Nolan sued stock photography giant Getty Images for displaying her portrait and licensing it to the New York State Division of Human Rights for an HIV-related advertisement, a judge ruled the lawsuit will be taken to court rather than dismissed as Getty had hoped for.

Exclusive: Calumet Employee Reveals what Was Happening Behind the Scenes

Shortly after news broke this morning that camera store chain Calumet had declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy and would be closing all of its US stores (or will it?), a Calumet Rental Manager -- well, former Rental Manager now -- got in touch with us to see if we wanted to get some of the behind the scenes details of how the bankruptcy came to be.

We, of course, said yes. The employee has asked to remain anonymous, and so his/her answers are labeled simply as "Calumet Employee" below.

Calumet Photo in the US Officially Declares Bankruptcy, Gave Employees Zero Notice

Update: Calumet has posted an update to its Facebook page to say they might reopen a few locations. Full statement at the bottom of this post.

In a story that is still very much developing as more information comes to light, well-known camera store chain Calumet Photographic has filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy without so much as a whispered warning to their employees.

Twitter Accounts Dedicated to Crediting & Debunking Viral Photos Picking Up Steam

In a world where viral photo sharing accounts (such as HistoryInPics) are popping up at an insane pace, it's a necessity that there be counterparts that do their best to verify, fact-check, and credit the images these accounts share.

This increasingly necessary job has recently been taken over by a small group of accounts dedicated to doing exactly that: verifying the legitimacy of the images being shared, and making sure the original creator of the images is being properly credited.