Amateur Photographer – 30 August 2019

6 24 August 2019I http://www.amateurphotographer.co.ukI subscribe 0330 333 1113

CORELhasrefreshedits

PaintShopProimage

editingsoftware.New

featuresof the 2020 version,

whichis soldat a fixedprice

ratherthanviasubscription,

includea Photography

workspaceforbeginners,

whichgivesaneasy

introductiontothetools

andfeatures.There’salso

a SmartClonefeaturefor

objectremoval,a Refine

Brushforrefiningselections,

a fastertexttoolandextensive

supportforlayersandmasks.

UpgradetotheUltimate

edition,andyoualsogetthe

GRFX Studio, with thousands

of photoeffects,PhotoMirage

Expressforturningstill

imagesintoanimations

andPainterEssentials6 for

turning photos into paintings.

It is onsalenowfor£69.

forthestandardedition

and£89.99forthe

Ultimateversion.See

http://www.paintshoppro.com.

ACCESSORY
makerKenko–
nottobeconfused
withKenro–
hasreleased
a motorised
flashheadthat
automatically
determinesthe
optimumanglefor
bounceflash,like
theCanonSpeedlite
470E X-AI.The
KenkoAB600-R
incorporatesan
‘AI’Auto - Bounce
functiontoworkout
thebestangleof light
bouncefromthewall
(leftorrightside)orfromtheceiling.
‘Thisfunctionis invaluableforwedding
photographersoranyoneshootingportraits
toa tightschedule,’saysUKdistributor,
Intro2020.AnAutoLockfunctionalso
remembersthisanglewhenthecamera
is turnedfromhorizontaltoverticalformat.
Theunithasa maximumguidenumber
60 (ISO 100 at 200mm),andthebuilt-in
radiotransmittingandreceivingunitallows
a masterflashtocontrolthebounceangle
of theslaveflashremotely.Thelightcoverage
angle,meanwhile,is equalto the18-200mm
range,with18mmachievedwhenusedwith
thewidediffuserpanel.Powercomesfrom
4 AAbatteries,withanoptionalbattery
packforlongershootingsessionsand
fasterrecyclingtimes.TheNikonversion
is availableimmediatelyfor£399,with
CanonandSonyversionstofollow.For
more information visit http://www.intro2020.co.uk.

Flashheadworksout

best bounce angle

Big makers under

continued pressure

Visitamateurphotographersubs.co.uk/44AB,or seep62. For the latest newsvisit http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk

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As DSLR margins shrink, makers will be forced to keepinnovatingin thecompetitivemirrorlessmarket

Corel releases refreshed Paint Shop Pro

The latest Paint Shop Pro package includes a wealth of new tools

THElatestresultsfromJapan’sbigcamera

makersrevealthattradingconditionsare

tough,tosaytheleast.Nikon,forexample,has

recordeda sobering71%plungein earnings

initsfinancialresultsforthefirstquarterof

2020 withrevenuedown14.92%(from

¥79.1billionto¥67.3billion),andearnings

down71.77%(¥12.4billionto¥3.5billion).

Whilesalesof itsfull-framemirrorless

camerasandlensesappeartoberobust,

thecompanyhasbeenhithardbyfalling

salesof entrytomid-rangeDSLRsin Asia,

particularlyin theimportantChinesemarket.

Thecostof developingnewmirrorlesslenses

hasalsobeena factor.‘Althougheffortswill

becontinuouslymadetoexpandthesales

of (mirrorless)camerasandZ mountlenses,

decliningsalesof entry/midDSLRandcompacts

areexpectedtosuppresstheoverallrevenue,’

thecompanysaidin a presentation (read in full

at bit.ly/nikonresults).

Canon,meanwhile,recentlyreportedthatunit

salesforthesecondhalfof thisyearhadfallen

22%to 1.08million.‘DSLRmarketcontraction’

wasblamed,alongsidetheimpactof prolonged

US/Chinatradefrictionandthegeneral

economicslowdownin ChinaandEurope.

Badnewscomesin threes,anda report

issuedon1 AugustbyJapan’sCameraand

ImagingProductsAssociationshowscamera

salesdroppedbyalmosta millionin June.

Howthebigmakerswillrespondtocontinued

economicuncertainlyandthegrowingthreat

of advancedsmartphonecamerasis notclear;

theymighttrytopushmorecompetitively

pricedfull-framemirrorlessmodels,orfocus

onprofitable,higher-endniches,in anattempt

toconvincesmartphoneusersorusersof older

DSLRcamerastoswitch.Orwemightbe

seeingfewerandfewernewentry-levelor

mid-rangeDSLRsasmakers focus research

budgets elsewhere.