After conducting their workshop series in New Delhi (Chandni Chowk), Mumbai (Colaba), Kolkata (Kumortuli) and Bangalore (Koramangalam), Fujifilm India now plans to expand the series with the next one in Chennai – Marina Beach & Fisherman’s village. The street photography workshop will be conducted on 7th December 2013, Saturday by renowned photographer Mr. K.P Krishnan.

Scouring the streets of India on multiple occasions, he not only photographs the unique, eclectic characters and environment of the city, but also brings his subjects to life, exploring the real street life and personalities that few tourists get to see. His relentless passion for shooting photos has resulted in his deeply personal, striking and unapologetic work being exhibited numerous times, while appearing in a variety of print and online publications.

Through this workshop the participants would get a chance to learn various important techniques involved in street photography, framing and composition, selection of right kind of equipment and also a chance to shoot the Marina beach & Fisherman’s village along with the photographer, other participants and mentors from Fujifilm.

Fujifilm India is driving the registrations for the workshop from their Facebook page – http://on.fb.me/1c4ruLk and is inviting all the amateur photographers to attend  this workshop who are interested to learn more about tips and tricks of photography at a cost of Rs. 250 (for Fujifilm X & S Series owners) and Rs. 500 for other camera owners.

Kingston announced that it had completed 26 years in the industry and in order to celebrate this occasion the company unveiled REX, the superhero from Kingston. The renowned symbol of the memory leader was the highlight of the manufacturers participation at a recently held exhibition where the company showcased four of his upgraded superpowers – HyperX Nitro boosters, USB 3.0, Branded RAM and Solid State Drives (SSDs).

Speaking at the event, Mr. Vishal Parekh, Marketing Director, Kingston India said, “We are the leaders in Memory and are elated to complete 26 fruitful years in the industry. Taking cues from the fantastic response received from the markets, we will continue to build a better experience for our network and end users.” He added, “REX is now equipped with newer and secure technologies that will win us more positive feedback.”

Nikon India announced the launch of its first DSLR camera that offers built-in wireless LAN (Wi-Fi®) and GPS functions for the consumers. The D5300 (follow up on the D5200 DSLR camera) isa compact and lightweight entry-level model that will allow the users to share their images captured using the D5300.

The camera possesses significantly enhanced optical technologies, including an optimized EXPEED 4 image-processing engine with no optical low-pass filter. The absence of a low-pass filter maximizes the resolution of the high pixel count and rendering capabilities of NIKKOR lenses. Speaking on the announcement, Mr. Hiroshi Takashina, Managing Director, Nikon India said, “Today’s announcement strengthens Nikon’s leadership in the D-SLR category. The D5300 features Nikon’s latest innovative technologies, allowing users to instantly shoot, store and share images. The new entrant is specifically designed to give an edge to the users to unleash their creativity, and truly test the boundaries of a photographer’s imagination” 

Nikon D5300 Primary Features
– A 24.2 megapixel Nikon DX-format CMOS sensor with no optical low-pass filter
– Nikon’s latest image-processing engine, EXPEED 4
– Built-in Wi-Fi for transmitting images to a smart device for simple sharing and Remote Shooting
– A built-in GPS function that records location data and tracks movement
– A monocoque structure made of a new material for a smaller and lighter body that is strong and durable
– A 3.2-in., 1037k-dot vari-angle LCD monitor with wide viewing angle for simple shooting from any angle
– Toy Camera Effect and HDR Painting added to Special Effects mode (total of 9 effects) for more creative expression with still images and movies

The product shall be available from November mid onwards across pan India in black, Red and Grey colour at an MRP of:
– Nikon D5300 with 18-140mm VR: Rs. 75,950
– Nikon D5300 with 18-55mm VR: Rs. 59,950
– Nikon D5300 body only: Rs. 54,450

Fujifilm India partners with Delhi Photo Festival 2013, which is an initiative towards bringing their range of X Series cameras to the market. The brands is looking forward to this festival, which aims to gather photographers from across the world to not only attend the workshops but also participate in the live galleries. The festival will be held at the India Habitat Centre, and some of the leading galleries of the city are scheduled to participate, mounting independent exhibitions and events in their own spaces, thus providing a larger footprint for the Festival across the city. The festival will go on from September 27 to October 11, 2013. Mr. Rohit Pandit, EVP – Sales & Marketing, Fujifilm India says about the event ‘I would like to extend an invitation to all photography enthusiasts , professionals and amateurs, to come and see the potential of the this series and to learn what attracted professional Photographers from all over the world, including Sephi Bergerson, towards Fujifilm’s X Series Cameras. Get a chance to see ‘X Series’ in India through the eyes of a professional photographer. While Sephi would be talking about the artistic side of Photography, he will be accompanied by Fujifilm Manager to discuss the technology behind the devices and answer any questions’. The workshop is open to all and does not have any fee attached. Details can be found at the Delhi Photo Festival website -http://www.delhiphotofestival.com/delhi_photo_festival_2013/home.html

Sony recently announced its range of camera lenses for smartphone, the QX0 and QX100, and it might just be another evolution in making. As smartphones have been steadily taking over cameras as the prefered medium for amateur photographers, these new lenses can really help settle that debate. The lenses act as a viewfinder as well, and they work with all the smartphones with Wifi. The fact that they work on Wifi and don’t physically connect to the phone might be perturbing, or even discouraging, for some, but this certainly made us realize that this is one technology they aren’t working enough on. Efforts like this can change the future, and they already are, and what was once a rich man’s sport might soon be something everybody can do.

The QX10 will be around $250 when it hits the market, and the QX100 around $500, though we’re still awaiting their official launch for the Indian market. While the QX10 has a 18.2 megapixels Exmor R CMOS sensor, the QX100 is the bigger brother in the family with a 20.2 megapixel Exmor R CMOS sensor, the same one found on cyber-shot RX100 II camera. The QX100 also sports a manual zoom ring found on DSLR lenses, something which might help make it feel like the real thing. The official announcement is still pending, though we hope we get our hands on this one for an exclusive review soon. Stay tuned…

Google brought together professional photographers and photography enthusiasts from across the globe to celebrate World Photography Day at a special event in Mumbai, on August 19th. This event allowed photographers to debate and exchange their ideas on the evolution of photography from, daguerreotypes to digital.

The keynote session was delivered by Padamshree Award winner Raghu Rai, who showcased his photographs and shared his experiences and anecdotes on the developments in the photography world and the transitions over the years. Elaborating upon his experiences as a photographer, Rai said, “The photography world has seen a paradigm shift in the past couple of decades. It has moved away from the isolated dark rooms to highly interactive social platforms. With advanced technology tools at their disposal, photographers today are pushing the boundaries of creativity, and giving birth to new forms of art which were unthinkable just a decade ago.”

For the occasion, Google also collaborated with leading Indian photographers including Pradeep Sanyal, Sumit Sen, and Prashant Panjiar, to encourage photographers to embrace technology for content creation, and network with like-minded photographers from across the globe.

Sandeep Menon, Google India’s Director of Marketing said, “The advent of technology has brought easy-to-use, advanced photography tools within reach of all photography enthusiasts. With its large and active community of photographers, Google+ aims to provide a platform for experts and amateurs from around the world to showcase their work, seek feedback from, and engage with other photographers. Recognizing the evolving needs of photographers, Google is focused on providing useful photo-editing tools and services to help people share the special moments that matter.”

The event was rounded out by a special exhibition of the work of participating photographers.