Your favourite online newsletter is back again - no not the one from the dodgy political organisation in Canberra - the one from us, the Stirling Street photographic shop. We've got better ideas about how to save the nation and ours are a lot more fun!

Vive le Difference! - This copy of THE CESCO TIMES is dedicated to different equipment and different ideas. Time to step out of your imaging rut and head for...the hills, or your studio, or our shop!

Saul has just announced new FREE PAPER deals for our EPSON printers:

1. Buy an EPSON 3800 ink-jet printer (Woo Hoo 1)and, in addition to the full set of ULTRACHROME ink cartridges, take home $400.00 worth of FREE EPSON paper.
2. Buy an EPSON 4880 roll-fed ink-jet printer (Woo Hoo 2) and get the full ink set and $500.00 worth of FREE EPSON paper.

The Woo Hoo's are because this writer has just purchased his own 3800 and started to print from his image files. The set-up of the printer was laughably simple, like this writer...it really did set up in half an hour and it really did print well straight from the large cardboard box. EPSON paper also made a real difference in results - clean blacks and accurate colours. Come into our shop and see the growing folio of results from this brilliant new printer.

IN STORE NOW.....

You probably already know OP TECH as manufacturers of a great variety of camera straps. These range from elegant fashion numbers to really heavy duty ones for tripods and bags. You can find something in their production to suit any camera in any situation.

BUT...did you know that OP/TECH also make a range of Hood Hats and Lens Snoots - clever sacs and pouches designed to coddle and protect your valuable lenses. Some of these are meant to be attached to camera cases and some are suited to being left on the camera all the time. They are neoprene fabric similar to tough wetsuit material. And they come in EVERY size imaginable. This writer keeps one on the lens hood of his standard DSLR lens all the time and can bang his way through crowds without fear of damage.

IN STORE NOW.....

I must confess - every time I turn on my computer I am amazed by what comes up - and I don't mean the advertisements for pills and girls. I mean the images that I have created in Photoshop. I still have not explored all that might be done with this, but already I want more...

Now I can have more. NIK SOFTWARE seems to be the answer for add-on control of images. Whether you need more sharpening precision, more colour control, more monochrome options, or just more fun, NIK has an answer.

I am particularly taken by their Color Efex Pro 3.0 and their Silver Efex Pro programs - you can gain some insight into their capabilities by visiting the website www.niksoftware.com and toggling through the options. The ability to simulate real film emulsions is amazing, as is the duo-tone colour section. There are enough variations to supply any photographer with a new look for every shoot.

• Nik Software Color Efex Pro 3.0 - $399.95
• Nik Software DFine 2.0 - $149.95
• Nik Software Sharpener Pro 3.0 - $279.95
• Nik Software Silver Efex Pro - $279.95
• Nik Software Viveza - $279.95
• Nik Software Complete Collection - $799.95

IN STORE NOW.....

No, not the singer with the eyeglasses and the glottal shock - we're talking about the the ORBIS RINGFLASH. You've probably passed it in our shop cabinet and not realised that the difference with it is....it is not a ring flash. It is a ring flash accessory. Let me explain. The ORBIS is a unique plastic light shaper that you put your portable speed light into. You can feed it with any flash head - SB600, 580EXII, 45 CL-1, etc. - and as long as you can fire the flash in synch with your shutter (wireless, IR, or corded) you have a ring flash. Keep the lens of your camera within the central aperture and you have that smooth shadowless light. Now anyone can do fashion.

AND they can do it cheaper! The ORBIS is reduced in price from $299.00 to $269.00 if you mention the newsletter.

IN STORE NOW.....

Camera Electronic Service Company are pleased to announce that they are full METZ stockist's now. You can get all the flash power you need in the field with the 76MZ-5 digital or the 45-CL4 digital and be assured that these units are utterly reliable. Gracious - I've been using 45 CT's and CL's for years for professional duty and they have never failed to flash yet. These units take a beating!

If you want all the automatic convenience of the ETTL and iTTL programs in your digital camera the flash units for you are the METZ 48 AF1 and 58 AF1. These have been specifically configured to the new digital cameras from Canon and Nikon and work seamlessly. And if things change in the future, METZ have cleverly added a computer port to these flashes for firmware updates

Ring flash too. METZ make a ring flash that can be wirelessly driven from a number of modern digital cameras. Ask to see the the 15MS-1 mounted on your favourite camera. It is perfectly controllable for even the closest macro work.

• Metz Mecablitz 15 MS-1 Ring Flash - $649.95
• Metz Mecablitz 48AF-1 - $440.00
• Metz Mecablitz 58AF-1 - unique second flash unit for great fill-in flash - $726.50
• Metz Mecablitz 76MZ-5 - $1,388.00

IN STORE NOW.....

DROBO is a name that you may not have encountered before in photography. It is derived from Data Robotics, and it is quite frankly the difference between safety and disaster. Or between Heaven and heartbreak, if all your images and work are contained on a hard drive that stops driving.

The DROBO is an automatic juggling act that backs up your files and shuffles them between a number of fitted hard drives. If one drive fails the data is there on the others all the time. The system is expandable from small capacity on an easy basis as your library of files grows - you never lose your hard-won gains.

IN STORE NOW.....

Where were you last Saturday night?

If you, like me, have difficulty answering that question, imagine how much harder it will be when you try to look at the digital files you took on holiday in Europe. Is that Devon or Dordogne? Is that East or West? Who are all those people?

We can't answer that last one, but there are several answers for the first. You can now get add-on GPS trackers for many digital camera systems that accurately locate themselves as you shoot and place that information into the EXIF data. If you operate a NIKON DSLR, think of the GPS-1 unit from NIKON. It slides into the hot shoe and then plugs into the side port of a D3X, D3, D700, D300, or D90.

If you use other camera systems you can get similar performance from the new JOBO photoGPS system. You can even match the GPS position with real address data and the images on your computer - enabling you to search and organise your memories of a trip by location as well as date. YOU might not remember if that really was Loch Aberleuchie but your photoGPS can tell you.

Remember that if you need to take a whole system into difficult conditions, RICOH make their 500SC ruggedized camera with in-built GPS locator as well.

• Jobo Photo GPS - $399.00
• Nikon GP-1 GPS - $499.00

If you mention this advert you will receive an extra 10% off the GPS prices.

I can't speak well enough of the Hahnemuhle range of inkjet printing papers. They have a vast range of fine-art surfaces and weights that provide an opportunity to print such a wide diversity of images. They have been imaginative in their design and packaging as well - the surfaces are described by famous artists - Deurer for etching - Daguerre for silver prints, etc. I'm not sure if the ghosts of the artists would approve of some of the images I put on "their" paper but I can always aspire to do better. You can too with HAHNEMUHLE.

You can also produce some of the most endearing modern art printing by using the Daguerre canvas kits. These include precisely pre-cut wooden stretchers and pins as well as two sheets of canvas. There are small and large kits - you can get started with an 6" x 8" kit for $44.95. (That's nearly as big as Whole Plate, for you youngsters out there....) All you need is a utility knife, a printer, and a suitable file - print it, wrap it, and display it.

You can get a great insight into the various products available from HAHNEMUHLE by going to their website. Try www.hahnemuhle.com and see what you can do.

IN STORE NOW.....

Remember that your inkjet images are unique and worth preserving. After you have used one of the fine papers from HAHNEMEULE or EPSON in your printer preserve it from harsh chemical and environmental elements - or just from good old water - with PREMIER ART Print Shield. Then protect the mounted and framed print with two slavering Rottweilers. We do not sell dogs but we can hire out staff members for the same purpose.

• Premier Art PrintShield - $42.00

Here is a bargain idea with a difference - CESCO can offer you at least $300.00 as trade-in on ANY old working studio flash head when you trade it in on a new PROFOTO compact head. The old head must be capable of working - even if it is only one flash - and you can only trade the heads one-for-one....but what a great opportunity to step up to Sweden's premier studio flash system. The Compact range from PROFOTO include 300, 600, and 1200 models and you can also get them factory-fitted with wireless receivers for complete convenience.

You'll be impressed by the range of light shaping reflectors, diffusers, and concentrators that PROFOTO make - and delighted to see the simple and effective method of attachment that is common throughout their range. Finally a manufacturer has realised that it needs to be easy to change reflectors in the middle of a busy studio shoot without having to resort to bad language.

IN STORE NOW.....

If you are a fan of ELINCHROM studio systems - and I am, and have been for the last decade - you can also benefit from the trade-in fever in CESCO. The offer of trade-in also applies to studio kits from ELINCHROM as well. We have new 500 BX Ri.sets that include:

1. 2 x 500 watt heads
2. 2 x 66cm square softboxes
3. ELINCHROM Skyport transmitter
4. Neat tubular case

These kits normally go out for $1995.00 - now you can trade in any old studio flash head, still working, and reduce the payout to $1695.00.

If you'd like to add some beaut light stands to this kit we have new supplies of air-cushioned and non-air-cushioned available ranging from $110.00 to $140.00. Stand bags? Yes! Add one to the mixture for only $99.00 and you are set to travel in style. Delightful.

Speaking of delightful, we have fresh supplies of the ELINCHROM D-Lite 2 just in. Until the end of August we can offer the two-head kit at $995.00 with the additional sweetener of a FREE 18cm reflector and grid accessory set - normally valued at an additional $150.00. When you consider that the D-Lite 2 kit is normally $1095.00 the whole deal at $995.00 is superb value.

Check out the new supplies of 21cm ELINCHROM reflectors complete with honeycomb grid sets.

IN STORE NOW.....

Let me explain - that should be PHOTOGRAPHIC SOLUTIONS INC. - it is the name of a manufacturer of cleaning aids for the digital photographer. We now have a complete line of products that can keep the dust bunnies off your sensor and out of your backdrops.

If you are not sure what I mean, put your digital SLR on aperture priority, go outside and take several pictures of a clear sky on f22. Load the images on your computer and look at them on the 100% setting. Do you see vague little grey balloons dotted about the the blue sky? Are they in the same place on each successive frame? Dust bunnies on the sensor.

Don't panic - you could clean or clone out the grey blobs in the images with a computer program if necessary. It would be quite a task to repeat it for each image you took. Or you could remove the dust spots on the sensor that are shadowing the pixels. That is where CESCO comes in. If you are in town drop your camera in to us for a few hours and have the technicians carefully remove the dust - you can get it done on small-sensor or full-sensor cameras for $55.00 or $77.00 and know it is clean and right for your next shoot.

But what if you cannot get to see us - or you are attacked by the dust bunnies out in the field and need to clean up or lose a job? PHOTOGRAPHIC SOLUTIONS have the photographic solution. They make a number of items specifically designed for this situation:

1. Eclipse E2 Sensor cleaning solution - safe for all tin-oxide sensors.
2. PEC pads - lint free and available in small and large packets.
3. Sensor Swabs Plus - these are packaged in 4's pre-moistened with the E2 solution. Ideal emergency field pack.
4. Digital Survival Kit -the whole lot packed into a zip case

As with all sensor cleaning, discretion is advised - a light touch and a careful assessment of how much to clean keeps you from damaging this delicate part of your camera. Remember that prevention is also better than the cure. Try not to change lenses in the middle of a paddock during ploughing time....

IN STORE NOW.....

Bears in spring, mosquitoes in summer, dust bunnies in autumn, frozen pipes in winter....me all year long. Just a few famous Canadian Plagues. You needn't fear the bears, mosquitoes, or frozen pipes here in Western Australia and now we have the new Arctic Butterfly series of sensor cleaners from VISIBLE DUST to clear away the bunnies. CESCO has the full range of battery-powered butterflies and their associated solutions. Call in and see them for yourself, eh?

IN STORE NOW.....

It is absolutely glorious. We have the new OLYMPUS E-P1 in store right now. This is the answer that OLYMPUS have for the question of what camera to travel with. Think of a digital camera the size of the famous OLYMPUS PEN with interchangeable lenses and a giant 3 inch LCD screen. Think of a classic flash shoe with provision for external flash or a dedicated viewfinder. Think of a choice of a 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 zoom lens or a 17mm f2.8 pancake lens...or an adapter for every Four Thirds or every OM mount lens ever made.

This is a well-finished camera with immediate access features - there are several good old-fashioned thumb wheels for those of us with good old-fashioned thumbs so that you can shift mode and focus very easily. You can take videos. You can take pop art, or monochrome, or pinhole pictures at a touch of a button. All this on a Micro Four Thirds CMOS sensor at 12.3 mgpxl. This is a camera that is going to bring back the world in high definition.

Did I mention bling? Brushed silver, chrome and black. Matched finish on the flash. Real-sized camera strap on a real-sized camera.

We have been getting a lot of requests lately for some way of achieving more of a studio light for the on-camera flash. You know - the sort of diffusion that a soft box will bring to a frontally-lit portrait. This can be vital when it comes to weddings or other social occasions - no-one wants a harsh bride!

LUMIQUEST have responded to this need with a range of tiny softboxes that fold together and Velcro on to the sides of speed lights. You can get them in sizes ranging from hardly larger than the front flash port through to 19cm x 21cm. They are light in weight but can diffuse up to 2 stops. One model is even cut away to accommodate older flashes that do not have TTL capability.

If that wasn't enough, LUMIQUEST have even produced portable - foldable - snoot units for speed lights with little honeycombs. Now there is no excuse not to control your light in the field.

• Lumiquest LQ-051 - $24.95
• Lumiquest LQ-107 - $89.00
• Lumiquest LQ-108 - $57.20
• Lumiquest LQ-109 - $89.00
• Lumiquest LQ-114 - $79.00
• Lumiquest LQ-119 - $80.00

IN STORE NOW.....

Well, maybe not quite screaming. Yelling loudly. But it is a bargain - now CESCO can offer band new PENTAX 18-250mm f3.5-6.3 zoom lenses for a one-time reduction of $300.00. These superb all-in-one lenses are normally $999.00, but we have enough to be able to offer them at $699.00. Your tax refund cheque is coming and now is the time to put it into something a lot more fun than the pockets of the ATO.

In a future news letter we will be announcing a fundamental change to the normal 12-month calendar that the western world has been using since the time of the Renaissance. This has been carefully worked out in the planning department of CESCO and approved by the Central Committee. You may continue using your normal calendar August through October but be aware that the month after that has been officially changed to LOMOVEMBER. Details to follow.

The AAFPM (photographic branch of the BGA) held a press conference today at Lombard Park to announce an official ban on the photographic associations. A spokesmen for the AAFPM said that the ban was not unexpected, given the activities in recent times of their rivals. Many members of the public have complained over internet forums that their need for reassurance as to which equipment has met with current approval have not been met. In the last four weeks an average of three forum members a day have been left to think for themselves and make their own decisions, leading in some cases to acute anxiety and depression.

This is unacceptable in today's high-speed internet-driven world, said the spokesman. People who have access to computers and who have paid a regular ISP fee had a right to have their prejudices confirmed twenty four hours per day. There was no excuse for not providing members of the general public with ready-made opinions, particularly if these opinions could then be backed up with grey-imported photographic equipment. Service is the name of the game and the public, like a mare in heat, demands to be serviced.

Further rulings will be issued once the AAFPM meets and decides which technical schools and trade associations will be closed, and how their assets will be redistributed. Anyone who wishes may have a say in this consultation. Go to doitourwaybecausewesayso@aafpm.com.au

New arrangements between CESCO and the authorities in Wien have opened the way for distribution of copies of this newsletter throughout the empire. In the interests of harmony English will be retained as the published language, though this may change by the start of April 2010.