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Posts Tagged ‘Photokina’s’

Photokina’s new manager talks about the future of the trade show

18 Jul

Back in May, Photokina, the biennial photo industry trade show in Cologne, Germany, announced that it would become an annual event and include products and technologies beyond its historical focus of cameras and photography.

Now recently appointed show manager Christoph Menke is providing some background on the decision to change the dates of the future shows and other changes in a short Q&A session with the internal PR team of Koelnmesse, the company that is organizing Photokina.

You can read the full Q&A below, in case you’re curious:

What made Koelnmesse decide to change the show cycle from every other year show to a yearly show?

Today, professionals and consumers view the subject of imaging completely different compared to 10 years ago. Now virtual reality, wearables, tablets, mobile and smart home security are an integral part of the imaging world. The same applies to imaging software for editing, sorting, storing images, or even for CGI & sharing solutions.

As an imaging platform, we need to embrace those new technologies. As a part of this embrace, we acknowledge the significantly shorter innovation cycles of those new technologies compared to established capture technologies. For instance, the software industry has always been characterized by short development cycles. To offer these industries a suitable exhibition platform, the answer can only be a shorter cycle.

Based on surveys we know that our visitors prefer an annual photokina. The annual show cycle will also put a more regular spot light on other segments of our show such as photo equipment, photo accessories and photo studio segments and the brands represented there. They will benefit from more frequent exposure to buyers, consumers and the international media attending our show

Why is photokina going to move to May in 2019 and the following years?

The photokina dates for the next 2 years are Sept 26-29, 2018 and May 8-11, 2019 (Wednesday to Saturday). The switch to the May dates starting in 2019 is the result of conversations with key accounts from all segments. The feedback we received indicated that the May dates will provide an ideal time frame to fully take advantage of international demand before the start of the summer season.

The Show will be shortened from six to four days – what will be the upside of this change?

Based on attendees surveys we conducted we know that four show days are sufficient to see all the imaging technologies and content. Within those four days we create a more compact and thereby more intense show experience that is appreciated by both exhibitors and visitors. The fact that our customers will no longer have to wait two years for the next photokina had a significant impact on the decision to shorten the sequence.

Will the annual show cycle also mean changes to the content and focus of this event?

The changes in content and focus are what led to the structural changes. New technologies are accelerating in the innovation cycles in the imaging world. The annual show cycle is photokina’s response to a rapidly changing market place. Our mission is to provide a platform that shows the imaging technologies of the future and promotes the exchange between developers, engineers, start-ups and manufacturers.

Take video for example: In times of the YouTube-revamped trend towards amateur videos and an increasing convergence of the technologies for photo & video (4K-Grabbing), the moving picture is as important as it was in the first hour of photokina – hence the name. One of the highlights for the next event will be an Imaging Lab at photokina.

What has been the reaction of your photokina customers to the date change?

So far the responses are mostly positive. Budgets and logistics are certainly issues which have to be dealt with and we expect a transition process to adjust to the yearly dates. We are confident that the date change will provide an improved photokina for exhibitors and attendees alike.

The latest editions of Photokina were noticeably smaller and less busy than previous shows which is not much of a surprise given the decline of the camera market. Let’s hope the changes mentioned by Christoph Menke will help Photokina remain as relevant and vibrant as it has been throughout most of its existence.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Throwback Thursday: Photokina’s greatest hits

23 Sep

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

Every two years, all eyes in the photography world are focused on Cologne, Germany for the biennial Photokina tradeshow. The first Photokina was in 1950, and it moved into the giant Koelnmesse convention hall 16 years later. DPReview has been going to the show since 2000 and in this edition of Throwback Thursday, we’ll take a look back at some of the most interesting things Phil Askey and the growing DPR team saw in Cologne.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

Way back in the year 2000 we saw the debut of the Canon PowerShot G1, which was truly one of the first enthusiast cameras on the market. It featured a 3.3MP CCD, 34-102mm equivalent lens, fully articulating 1.8″ LCD and, of course, an optical viewfinder. It had full manual controls, Raw support, and could capture QVGA (that’s 320 x 240) video. Heck, it even supported the IBM Microdrive.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

One ‘lengendary’ camera shown at Photokina 2000 was the full-frame Pentax DSLR. Featuring a 6MP Philips-designed CCD, 6-point AF system, 2″ LCD and dual memory card slots, this un-named camera was a serious beast for that time period. But as Pentaxians know, this camera was not to be, and it would be another 16 years before the company finally shipped a full-frame DSLR.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

There were a couple of interesting cameras at Photokina 2002, including the Canon EOS-1Ds as well as this beauty: the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1. What made the FZ1 so impressive was not just its ‘Leica’ 35-420mm equivalent lens, but the fact that it had a constant F2.8 aperture. This 2MP camera had an electronic viewfinder and a fully articulating 1.5″ LCD. It captured QVGA video until you filled up your memory card, which took just 35 seconds with the included 8MB SD card.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

One of the biggest draws at Photokina 2004 was the Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D. Most of its features were similar to what you’d find on other DSLRs of that era; the 6.1MP CCD, 9-pt AF system, and small (2.5″) LCD without live view. But it did have one big trick up its sleeve. The 7D was the first DSLR to have in-body image stabilization, a feature that continues to this day on Sony’s Alpha-mount cameras. While not quite as robust as modern IBIS systems, the sensor-shift IS system could still give you 2-3 stops of shake reduction.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

Photokina 2006 was the largest show yet, with estimates of 160,000 visitors. Despite some tough competition from Nikon with its D80, the 10 Megapixel Pentax K10D turned a lot of heads. The K10D illustrates something about Pentax cameras  that continues to this day: they offer a lot of bang for the buck. The K10D’s body was fully weather-sealed (unlike its similarly priced peers) and it offered sensor-shift image stabilization, unique sensitivity and aperture+shutter priority modes and even in-camera Raw conversion. Not a bad deal for $ 899 body only.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

2008 was a massive year for camera announcements in Cologne. It saw the debut of the video-capable Canon EOS 5D Mark II and Nikon D90, but the real game-changer was the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 and the Micro Four Thirds mirrorless system. As with Phil (and, by this stage, his team), I — as editor of DCResource.com — too was able to see the G1 before the show and was blown away. The G1 was compact, extremely responsive and its live view was way beyond what DSLRs offered at the time. The G1 used a 12MP Four Thirds sensor and had a fully articulating LCD and high-res electronic viewfinder. The one thing it couldn’t do: record video. That was for the G2.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

The 2010 edition of Photokina was hyped as the ‘the year of 3D,’ and we all know how well that worked out. The show had some huge launches from Canon (EOS 60D), Nikon (D7000) and Olympus (E-5), but the most talked-about camera was the Fujifilm X100 concept. With its classic rangefinder styling, one-of-a-kind hybrid viewfinder, 12MP APS-C-size sensor and 35mm-equivalent lens, the X100 was hard to ignore. The X100 didn’t ship at the show, instead hitting store shelves until the following March.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

There were a ton of new products at the 2012 show, so it’s hard to pick just one standout. Something we did see from both Canon and Nikon were budget-friendly full-frame DSLRs (and I use the term ‘budget-friendly’ loosely). Canon offered up the EOS 6D (which is still for sale), a smaller, lighter, cheaper version of the 5D Mark III. The Nikon D600, pictured above, was a more robust camera, with weather-sealing, dual card slots, and 100% viewfinder coverage.

Photokina’s Greatest Hits

That brings us to 2014 — our final stop on memory lane. Photokina 2014 delivered numerous exciting cameras, from mirrorless to DSLR to enthusiast compact. The three products that got the most buzz were the Samsung NX1 (gone, but not forgotten), Nikon D750 and Canon EOS 7D Mark II. Let’s not forget Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-LX100, which combined a Four Thirds sensor and fast lens, and the PowerShot G7 X, which marked Canon’s entry into the enthusiast compact.

We hope you’ve enjoyed a look at Photokinas past. For everything about this year’s show, head over to our Photokina 2016 hub.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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