PENTAX Imaging Company has announced a reduction in the minimum advertised price (MAP) of the award winning PENTAX K20 digital SLR. Effective immediately, the MAP price of the PENTAX K20D body and two K20D lens kit configurations have been reduced by $200.00 USD. The new MAP pricing is as follows:

• PENTAX K20D body only: $799.95
• PENTAX K20D with DA 18-55mm II lens kit: $879.95
• PENTAX K20D with DA 16-45mm lens kit: $1199.95

“With this price reduction, PENTAX now offers consumers the highest resolution on one of the most fully-featured DSLRs priced under 800 dollars,” said Bill Zani, vice president sales and marketing, PENTAX Imaging Company.

Along with the price reductions, PENTAX is extending the K20D FREE Three Year Warranty (one year standard, two years extended) on all K20Ds purchased by March 31, 2009.

Highly rated by several consumer magazines, the PENTAX K20D digital SLR camera with 14.6 megapixels is equipped with advanced features including a dust-proof, weather-resistant body, PRIME image processor that allows full image customization, and PENTAX developed Shake Reduction that works with any of the 25 million PENTAX lenses ever manufactured. The PENTAX K20D is the most affordable high resolution DSLR camera in the advanced photo enthusiast category and allows more experienced photographers, who demand complete control, to fully customize the camera.

Ritz Camera, the largest dedicated camera retailer in the US has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company, which owns over 800 stores across the country, under a series of names, including Wolf Camera, has proposed a restructuring plan that will aim to see the chain continue in some form. As part of this, the company has applied to the bankruptcy court for permission to continue to honor its customer loyalty and rebate schemes.

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DNG format exists already since years. But which software does really support this file format.
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Nikon’s new FX-format digital SLR combines 24.5 megapixels of resolution and image quality with the renowned handling of the D3

Nikon Corporation announces the introduction of the Nikon D3X digital SLR. This new camera employs a Nikon FX-format CMOS imaging sensor (35.9 x 24.0 mm) with an imaging area equivalent to 35mm film, and its 24.5 effective megapixels deliver images of striking quality and resolution.

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Adobe Systems has recently released the full version of its Adobe Camera Raw 4.6 plug-in. This latest update extends support to the Pentax K2000 (K-m) and the latest cameras and backs from Leaf. In addition, the cameras given provisional support in the beta are now fully covered. The update will be the last expansion of coverage for Photoshop CS3.

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

• Canon 1000D (Digital Rebel XS/EOS Kiss F)
• Canon 50D
• 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
• Nikon D700
• Nikon D90
• Nikon Coolpix P6000
• Olympus SP-565 UZ
• Pentax K2000 (K-m)
• Sigma DP1
• Sony A900