Leica news, before it happens

The renowned photographic competition, the Leica Oskar Barnack Award will be celebrating its 30th year in 2009. On the occasion of this special jubilee, Leica Camera AG has revised the entry conditions and included numerous changes.

Entries for the Leica Oskar Barnack Award/Newcomers Award 2009 will be accepted as online submissions between 15 January and 1 March 2009.

A Newcomers Award will be incorporated in the competition for the first time. The competition for this award is open to all (prospective) photographers who are aged 25 years and under.

An international jury awards the Leica Oskar Barnack Award / Leica Oskar Barnack Newcomer Award to photographers whose unerring powers of observation capture and express the relationship between man and the environment in the most graphic form in a sequence of up to 12 images. Entry submissions must be a self-contained series of images in which the photographer perceives and documents the interaction between man and the environment with acute vision and contemporary visual style creative, groundbreaking and unintrusive.

The winner of the Leica Oskar Barnack Award will receive 5,000 euros or, alternatively, Leica camera equipment to the same value. The winner of the Newcomer Award will be awarded 2,500 euros. The prizes will be presented in the course of the Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie photographic festival held in Arles, France.

All photo series submitted will be displayed in a special online gallery section of the Leica website for a period of time, ending with the request for entries for the new competition. All photographers have the possibility to be displayed in the online gallery under a nickname.

Source

SECAUCUS, NJ (January 16, 2009)  Panasonic today announced two new additions to its LUMIX FS-Series of digital cameras, the DMC-FS7 and the DMC-FS15. The FS models, a stylish sister line of the highly-acclaimed LUMIX FX-Series, combine easy operation with a slim and sleek look, enabling both beginner and advanced users to take beautiful digital photos with a model they can slip in their pockets.

The 12.1 megapixel DMC-FS15 features a 29mm wide-angle Leica DC VARIO-ELMAR lens with a 5x optical zoom.  Panasonic has enhanced the Intelligent Auto Mode (iA) on the DMC-FS15 from the previous FS models to now include AF tracking and Intelligent Exposure functions in addition to Mega O.I.S., Intelligent ISO Control, Intelligent Scene Selector and Face Detection. AF Tracking enables the user to lock the focus onto a moving subject. The camera then automatically tracks the subject as it moves, keeping it in focus without the need to hold the shutter button halfway down.  Additionally, Intelligent Exposure helps capture natural-looking images by suppressing blocked shadows and blown highlights. It continually monitors the light source in the shooting environment and automatically activates the backlight compensation function if it detects the light source is behind the subject.

The 10.1 megapixel DMC-FS7 features a bright F2.8 Leica DC VARIO-ELMARIT lens with 4x optical zoom and iA mode, comprised of four functions including Mega O.I.S., Intelligent ISO Control, Intelligent Scene Selector and Face Detection. Like the DMC-FS15, the DMC-FS7 also include a newly-added independent iA button on top of the camera that lets the user enter directly into the mode without going into the menu.

These new additions to the LUMIX FS-Series incorporate a number of enhanced quality and convenience features that provide consumers with simple-to-use, intuitive cameras at an affordable price, said David Briganti, National Marketing Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. By combining Leica lenses, Intelligent Auto Mode and powerful image processing with a sleek and compact design, the FS Series cameras are ideal for consumers looking to take easy, high-quality photos on the go.

Other features of both FS models include a Venus Engine IV processor, which enables an advanced processing system and quick response times. An intelligent LCD screen detects light conditions and automatically adjusts the brightness levels for viewing in sunlight and helps to preserve battery life. The new Photo Frame mode lets the user put attractive borders around photos, so when printed, they look like postcards in picture frames. Also, the new My Scene setting lets the user assign their most frequently used Scene modes to the setting, and with a simple switch, access that scene instantly. The FS-Series is also capable of recording WVGA (848 x 480) motion pictures at 30 frames per second in 16:9 wide-screen format, as well as standard VGA (640 x 480) format.

The DMC-FS15 will be available in silver, black and blue at a suggested retail price (SRP) of $199.95. The DMC-FS7 will be available in silver, black, blue, pink and green at an SRP of $159.95. Both models will be available in late March 2009. For more information, please visit www.panasonic.com/lumix.