Today Canon has launched a new rebate program for Fall 2008. The rebate applies to 14 lenses, 2 extenders and 3 flashes. Purchases must be made be made between October 19, 2008 and January 17, 2009 to be eligible for this rebate.

The best part of Canon rebates is that they are instant, you don't have to fill out forms or send mails and wait for the chech to arrive. The savings are applied at the time of purchase.

The links to full set of lenses and flashes are listed below along with the rebate amount:

EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM - $125
EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM - $100
EF 300mm f/4L IS USM - $85
EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM - $80
EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM - $80
EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM - $75
EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM - $70
EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM - $50
EF 17-40mm f/4L USM - $50
EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM - $100
EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS - $50
EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM - $50
EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM - $35
EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM - $30
Extender EF 1.4x II - $25
Extender EF 2x II - $25
Speedlite 580EX II - $50
Speedlite 430EX - $30
Speedlite 430EX II - $30

International Garden Photographer of the Year 2009 Contest is open for entries. International Garden Photographer of the Year offers photographers the opportunity to win in excess of £20,000 cash and equipment as well as international exposure in an exhibition at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The photographers are invited to submit works in seven categories: Wildlife in the Garden, Plant Portraits, Garden Views, People in the Garden, the Edible Garden, Trees and World Botanic Gardens. There is also an award for the Young Garden Photographer of the Year for budding photographers under 16 years old.

The competition is open to everyone from all across the world, and participants can enter up to four single images in any one category or a themed portfolio of six images into the Portfolio category. All entries are made online via www.igpoty.com.

For further information about the competition and exhibition go to www.igpoty.com.

Adobe Photoshop CS4 is finally available for download for the North America market, with delivery dates for other markets are coming later on:

Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Windows - $689.99

Adobe Photoshop CS4 Upgrade for Windows - $196.99

Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Mac - $689.99

Adobe Photoshop CS4 Upgrade for Mac - $196.99

Ricoh have released  firmware update Version 1.14 for its R10 compact camera. The new update fixes the following issue: 

- Modified the following phenomenon: Even if you set the [Fix Min. Aperture] ON, it will take a picture with aperture open in some conditions.

Website for  Ricoh R10 Firmware Update 1.14

Adobe Camera Raw 5 is now available as part of Photoshop CS4. Camera Raw 5 is installed automatically with Photoshop CS4 so there's no update process beyond installing Photoshop. But keep in mind that the Camera RAW 5 doesn't support the cameras that are added in the last Camera Raw update for CS3 (Camera RAW 4.6) is not currently available in Camera Raw 5.0. They will be added with the Camera RAW 5.1.

Camera Raw 5 has a number of new features:

- Local adjustment brush
- Graduated Filter
- “Post Crop” Vignetting
- Opacity for the cloning/healing tool
- Improved Auto Adjustment
- Support for the new Camera Profiles that are still in beta form

Mamiya has announced The Mamiya DL28, a brand new and affordable medium-format camera system that features a 28 megapixel Aptus-II 6 Digital Back from Leaf. The image sensor has a pixel size of 7.2 microns, 16-bit capture, 12 stop dynamic range and an ISO range of 50-800. DL28 also features a  3.5 inch LCD screen which is the biggest LCD we have seen so far (I remember one compact digicam that  has the same size of LCD, do you know the model?).

The Mamiya DL28 will be available in November for $14,999.

Mamiya Press Release:

Adobe Systems has released the full version of its Adobe Camera Raw 4.6 plug-in. The update will be the last expansion of coverage for Photoshop CS3 and the cameras that are given provisional support in the beta are now fully covered.

Support for the following cameras have been added in this update:

• Canon 50D, Sony A900, Nikon D700, Nikon D90, Nikon Coolpix P6000, Pentax K2000 (K-m), Sigma DP1, Fuji FinePix IS Pro, Kodak EasyShare, Kodak Z1015 IS, Leaf AFi II 6, Leaf AFi II 7, Leaf Aptus II 6, Leaf Aptus II 7, Olympus SP-565 UZ

  Click here to download ACR v4.6 (Windows)
  Click here to download ACR v4.6 (Mac)

Phase One has released  a new version of its RAW workflow software; Capture One 4 PRO. This latest version features an enhanced Color Editor and Styles palette, a new Skin Tone tool  to set and reproduce skin tones without the use of a gray card, a lens correction tool that has been added to help minimize chromatic aberration, distortion, fringing and a vignetting tool for framing.

Press Release:

I have always been amazed watching a professional photographer at work, how they take their job so seriously and follow certain steps and procedures. They all have their unique workflows and very rarely they get out of it. Unfortunately very few of us have a chance to watch a professional at work, besides very few pro pho photogs reveal their wokflow and keep it as a secret formula.

Fortunately for those of you who at least would like to read their workflow in detail, there are pro photographers that are kind enough like Patrick Lavoie to describe theirs in detail here on Photo.net. I am sure no matter you are a beginner or a pro, no matter if you shoot landscapes or still life, you can still benefit from the experience, techniques and knowledge he revealed in this long article.

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 is one of the best compacts for the enthusiasts to date without a doubt. It is a solid camera with lot of photographic potential. No surprise LX3 is on the bestseller list since its first launch.

LX3 is a 10.1 megapixel point-and-shoot digital camera features 2.5x Optical Zoom (35mm Equivalent: 24-60mm) with Optical Image Stalibilization, Intelligent Auto Mode, ISO 80-1600, and a 3.0" Intelligent LCD screen.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX3 is available at Amazon.com

Panasonic DMC-LX3 Reviews: