The National Trust has been slated for exploiting photographers in a nationwide competition.

Organised by the National Trust's Welsh office, the competition rules state: 'By submitting your photographВ… you agree to grant the National Trust, free of charge, the right to publish and the right to license others to publish the photograph online and in all media as required.'

Photographer David Dunnico, who had planned to enter, hit out at the rules, telling us: 'Another photo competition, another rights grab by a publicly-funded body. This time the National Trust of Wales don't just want to be able to use your photograph В– they also want to be able to license it to anybody they want to for free.'

The Manchester-based photographer added: 'I'm sure it's another case of an organisation not thinking things through, or perhaps it's not thinking the photographer is worthy of his hire.'

The contest, which is themed on the Welsh Countryside, is open to all UK residents.

The National Trust's publicity office had yet to respond to our request for comment at the time of writing.

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]]> http://sirint.com/design/national-trust-accused-of-photography-rights-grab.htm Hollywood, Fla.—Natural-colored diamonds got an exclusive in the limelight at the 2008 Billboard Latin Music Awards, where the Natural Colored Diamond Association (NCDIA) served as the event's official jewelry sponsor.

Kat de Luna, Fanny Lu, Olga Tanon and Yuridia were just a few of the Latin-music luminaries to hit the April 10 red carpet in natural-colored diamonds.

Prior to the awards show, the NCDIA hosted a celebrity jewelry suite on April 8 and 9 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The action-packed suite, where celebrities, presenters and hosts picked out their favorite baubles while enjoying mojitos and hors d-oeuvres, featured more than $30 million worth of jewelry supplied by Black, Starr and Frost, and George Walton's Gold and Diamond Co.

Among the big winners of the night was Fanny Lu, winner of the Tropical Airplay Song of the Year, New Artist: "Y Si Te Digo," who donned 3.04-carat natural-colored yellow-diamond earrings by Amgad valued at $240,100, and a yellow-gold bracelet with 1.91 carats of pavé-set natural-colored diamonds by Christian Tse valued at $825,000. Both pieces are available at Black, Starr and Frost.

]]> http://sirint.com/design/ncdia-sponsors-billboard-latin-music-awards.htm Buffalo Technology has added a new model to its line of external hard drives. The DriveStation Combo4 is equipped with automatic backup software, four hardware interfaces, and speed-boosting software for USB transfers. These features lend themselves to backing up large collections of image files that may be spread over more than one computer. The Combo4 is compatible with both Windows and Mac systems, although the included backup software is for Windows only.

The Combo4 houses a 7200 rpm SATA drive and provides eSATA, FireWire 400/800, and USB 2.0 connections. Buffalo claims that its TurboUSB software boosts USB transfer rates by 20 percent. The 3-pound DriveStation uses Buffalo's Heat Sink Chassis design, which cools the drive without the use of a fan to keep the Combo4 quiet. The drive comes preformatted and loaded with Buffalo's SecureLockWare software for 256-bit AES file and folder encryption, as well as Memeo AutoBackup software for Windows. AutoBackup allows users to select folders to be backed up through a simple setup process, and then automatically backs up files as they're created or altered.

Nikon withdrew a firmware update for the D3 digital SLR shortly after releasing it this week. Firmware version 1.10 offered numerous operational improvements, a new Vignette Control function, and other enhancements. However, it also included bugs that cause image files to be corrupted when photos are taken with certain combinations of settings. The download is no longer available, and Nikon says it expects to post a corrected firmware upgrade on its site in late April 2008. The company has advised photographers who have already upgraded their firmware to version 1.10 not to use the following combination of camera settings:

Serious photographers tend to look down on compact cameras. But would they change that attitude for one that delivered the same image quality as a DSLR, yet allowed them to travel light? Sigma believes so -- and that they'll pay a premium for its new compact DP1 ($800, street).

It's too soon to say whether the DP1 -- with its handsome good looks, single-focal-length lens, and slip-on, rangefinder-style viewfinder -- will garner a cult following like the classic 35mm Contax T2 and Konica Hexar compacts, more recent high-end digital compacts such as the Ricoh Caplio GX100 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2 (a less-expensive version of the Leica D-LUX 3), or even Sigma's own SD14 DSLR. But we couldn't wait to put the DP1 to the test in the Pop Photo Lab and the field -- especially after waiting a year and half for it since it was announced.

The delay was predictable, as Sigma was very deliberate in developing the DP1. It has a tough, yet slim, die-cast aluminum body (though no weather or dust seals), a 9-zone (all cross-type) autofocus system, and full manual metering and exposure controls. Most important, it's the first compact to use a DSLR-sized sensor.

Police doubt they will ever trace the man wanted in connection with an attack on an amateur photographer at Waterloo station in London.

The unnamed victim was taking shots on escalators when a man took exception to having his photo taken and asked the photographer to delete the picture from his camera.

The photographer told him he could not delete the image as it was not a digital camera.

It is alleged that the attacker then punched the photographer in the face and attempted to grab his camera.

The alleged assault occurred on escalators leading to the main concourse at Waterloo mainline station.

However, no-one has come forward since police launched a public appeal for help in identifying a man pictured on CCTV (above) after the incident on 12 December 2007.

A British Transport Police spokeswoman said it is now unlikely they will be able to track down the man, given that nearly two months have elapsed since the appeal.

She told us that there has been no further progress on the case since the appeal in February.

The spokeswoman added that it is possible the person they are seeking is a tourist and no longer in the UK.

But she said the case remains open.

The assailant was described as white, 34-38 years old and about 5ft 9in tall.

Anyone who can help is urged to call British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 or the Witness Appeal Line on 0207 391 5275 quoting reference 'B5 of 15/02/08'.

]]> http://sirint.com/design/police-no-trace-of-man-wanted-over-attack-on-amateur-photographer-in-london.htm By Mary Wisniewski

New York—Jade Jagger might not sing "Satisfaction" like her father, Mick, but she hopes to bring that very sentiment to the stylish with Jezebel, a new jewelry and clothing line that pays tribute to her Rolling Stone dad's famous pucker via a series of pink enamel lips.

And it's none other than Elle magazine introducing Jagger to consumer awareness, describing Jezebel as "a street-inspired, hip-hopping jewelry collection and slinky clothing line for spring."

Jagger is just one of several designers featured in the copious pages of March's spring fashion magazines, which collectively plugged big, bold "statement necklaces" and bangles as the top jewelry trends of the season.

  Marie Claire did not devote much ink to jewelry trends, but in a photo shoot, it did deck some of its models in bold, bright statement necklaces that make the neck adornment trend well known.

Elle devoted a few photos to daring necklaces, with snapshots accompanied by a piece that gave an insider's view on Fashion Week.

Harper's Bazaar reinforced the trend, saying "big necklaces never go out of style, and sculptural geometric elements make this season's batch more striking than ever."

And New York's Feb. 25 issue dedicated four pages to the statement necklace trend, dubbing them "chunkers," with the tagline "nothing shy about these baubles."

  Marie Claire chose to back the bangle trend, telling readers to layer them on thick: "If you can still raise your arm, you're not wearing enough," advised the style mavens.

Vogue paid baubles the biggest tribute of all in a jewelry article by Plum Sykes, paired with photos of models bedecked in jewels.

"With the price of clothing skyrocketing (you can pay $12,000 for a skirt at Louis Vuitton), jewelry—selling like gangbusters at stores like Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus and Barneys—suddenly seems like the better deal," Sykes wrote.

  Cocktail rings have not lost their prowess either. As Vogue put it: "A cocktail ring that explodes like a firework, a jeweled frog atop a jade rock, a camellia with turquoise petals—the most coveted collectibles are gorgeously detailed."

Editor's note: This article first appeared in the April 2008 issue of National Jeweler.

]]> http://sirint.com/design/big-bangles-neckwear-on-tap-for-spring.htm By Mary Wisniewski

New York—Fashion is indicative of the times, and with the headlines portending a tough year ahead, expect a departure from the predominant baby-doll look and a return to grown-up chic next autumn.

Designers tapped into their serious side, sending sleek silhouettes down the catwalks at 2008 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City. This doesn't mean all-black looks (although it can), but rather the polished appearances that dark tones tend to imply, with purple hues infiltrating many of the collections.

Still, bow-accented necklines, fur flourishes and ruffles all managed to survive the more somber takes on clothing.

Although jewelry merely played a supporting role, at most, on the catwalks, big "statement necklaces" held their own at the Feb. 1-8 event, with models frequently sashaying down the runways in major neckware. Other top trends included drop earrings, chain necklaces and bracelets.

Finola Hughes, host of The Style Network's How Do I Look?, says a return to more ladylike apparel with slender silhouettes was a strong theme at Fashion Week.

"The waist is coming back," Hughes says.

As for jewelry, Hughes observed it came in one of two ways at the shows: minimal or large and overstated.

She says both looks are interesting, and the minimal, personalized-charm look specifically lends itself to the emerging ladylike trend.

Helena Krodel, associate director of media for the Jewelry Information Center, says it was one of the better years for fine jewelry on the runways of Fashion Week.

When it comes to apparel, Krodel says, designers are moving away from the cutesy baby-doll look in favor of more sophisticated fare, in shades of blue, burnt orange, purple, green, brown and red. For jewelry, this translates to the use of opaque stones such as topaz, malachite, jade, jet, onyx and tiger's eye.

Necklaces carried a lot of importance, with U- and V-shaped versions making repeat appearances, Krodel says. One extreme example was a highly structured necklace that resembled a breastplate and was accented with dangling rectangular- and oval-shaped pendants. But multistrand necklaces dominated the runways too, ranging from Victorian styles (think white metals paired with diamonds), to those achieving an ombré effect or confetti-style mixes, with gemstones in various grades of color, Krodel says.

Even if designers kept their models necklace-free, many incorporated bows into the necklines.

"There's a lot of attention around the neck, no matter what," says Krodel, who also noted layered cuffs and brooch trends.

When it came to playing up the neckline, no one could compete with Badgley Mischka, which sent many of its models down the runway in layered necklaces or big, bold pendants. The designer also chose dangling earrings and bracelets as it channeled high-glam and day-in-the-woods, hunting-type aesthetics in many of its looks.

Though some of the jewelry was costume, Badgley Mischka teamed up with jewelry manufacturer Zalemark for several fine-jewelry pieces and also made some of its own.

Anna Sui chose to use bold accessories to complement her fall collection, with the most notable piece resembling a large, bold flower attached to a choker.

Marc Jacobs sent several of his models down the runway sporting cuffs on each wrist.

Vera Wang blew the runways away with jewelry too, playing up statement necklaces especially, as well as bold cuffs and braided rhinestone necklaces by Philip Crangi for Vera Wang.

A model wears an oatmeal-colored, knee-length, touch-shoulder dress with silver fox fur by Venexiana, paired with high-karat gold cuff bracelets by Gurhan and Coomi at Venexiana's Fall/Winter runway show at 2008 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City. Photo: Jonas Gustavsson, courtesy of the World Gold Council and Venexiana. 3.1 phillip lim's show also sent unusual, bold necklaces on multiple trips down the catwalk.

Other designers opted for delicacy, with Jason Wu, Jonathan Saunders Rag and Bone and Carlos Miele going the more subdued route, sending a few long necklaces, pendants and bracelets down the plank.

Venexiana's Fall/Winter 2008 show shined with models sporting high-end gold jewelry designs, with cuffs and link bracelets foremost among the pieces by Angélique De Paris, Carla Amorim, Coomi, Cynthia Gregg, Doris Panos, Gurhan, Henry Dunay, K. Brunini, Mahlia Collection, Maya Jewels, Mehr-Un-Nissa, Oro Vi for Gold Expressions and Rezzadore for Gold Expressions.

Editor's note: This article first appeared in the April 2008 issue of National Jeweler.

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