Saturday, June 22nd, 2013

Crumplepop on FCP X’s success

In an article on the company’s blog, Final Cut Effects designers Crumplepop’s co-founder Gabe Cheifetz has written an interesting view on Apple’s NLE Final Cut Pro X (FCP X). Crumplepop’s sales of Effects for FCP X were strong right from the program’s release, which contradicts the apparent industry-wide spurning of it. He also notes that FCP X’s “remarkable Effects architecture” has spurred the creation of a new crop of plugin developers to add new and exciting options to the app, which simply would not have been possible with previous iterations of FCP.

Saturday, June 22nd, 2013

R.I.P. Hans Hass

Hans Hass, underwater filmmaker and diving pioneer, died last weekend aged 94 in Vienna. He was perhaps the original creator of the niche underwater filmmaking with his 1951 film, “Adventure in the Red Sea,” being one of the first films to make the underwater world observable to all. During his long career, he published 32 books, produced 73 films and was awarded numerous accolades.

Thursday, June 20th, 2013

NOAA proposal weakens state shark finning statutes

A proposal by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on the implementation of the 2010 Shark Conservation Act has the potential to weaken existing state laws on finning. The majority of the state legislation is more restrictive than the Act’s and also focus on trade in shark fin and some feel that the new law will weaken the U.S.A.’s leadership in shark conservation. (Image from Shutterstock)

Wednesday, June 19th, 2013

That teen who rode a whale shark

I’m being asked about the kid who rode a whale shark recently, and I have mixed feelings about it. I am, however, sad that there is a witch hunt by so-called conservationists and animal lovers whenever something like this happens.

Tuesday, June 18th, 2013

Underwater imagery on display at the UN

Wetpixel sister site, DivePhotoGuide, in conjunction with Swiss watch company Blancpain, has created a display of underwater imagery in the United Nations Visitor Center in New York City. The exhibit highlights World Oceans Day and includes images captured many noted photographers, and features ocean ecosystems from around the globe.

Tuesday, June 18th, 2013

Adobe updates its Creative Cloud

Amidst the furore regarding its change to a subscription based model for most of its software, Adobe has released the new Creative Cloud (CC) versions of its apps. These include Photoshop CC, Premier Pro CC and After Effects CC amongst others. Key improvements include new sharpening technology in Photoshop and the Lumetri Deep Color Engine in Premiere.

Monday, June 17th, 2013

Sea & Sea announces the MDX D7100

Sea & Sea has announced that their MDX-D7100 housing for the Nikon D7100 SLR will be available from the end of June. The new housing features the option of a built-in YS TTL convertor and a multi selector control that mimics both the function and position of the camera’s. It also has an externally controlled port lock and a leak detector as standard.

Monday, June 17th, 2013

New study estimates manta ray tourism at $140 million

A study published in the Public Library of Science (PLOS) ONE journal has quantified the revenue that is accrued from tourism related activities associated with manta rays. In the 23 countries in which manta ray watching operations met the study’s criteria, direct revenue to dive operators from manta ray dives and snorkels is estimated at over US$73 million annually and direct economic impact, including associated tourism expenditures, at US$140 million annually.