Pixel Magazine

ISSUE NO. 886

THE MAGAZINE THAT UNDERSTANDS THE WORLD OF IMAGING, PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

News Canon Launches Forum Canon has launched its own online forum, offering Canon photographers a place to discuss their kit and photography. The new forum builds on the success of the company’s 200,000+ likes on Facebook and over 5,000 subscribers on YouTube.

Canon USA VP Yuichi Ishizuka said “We are excited to offer our customers a place to ask questions, interact and learn more from their fellow Canon users. With the rise of social media, Canon recognizes the importance of connecting users to each other.”

The five main sections of the forums are: Camera, Printer, Cinema EOS, Camcorder and General Discussion, and there is a ‘Kudos’ system, similar to Facebook’s ‘like’s, which allows forum users to see the popularity of posts.

Cooke Rebrands Panchro Range Cooke Optics is to rebrand its Panchro by Cooke range as the Mini S4/i range.

“When we launched the Panchro

by Cooke range in 2009, we were paying tribute to the original Cooke Speed Panchro lenses built in the 1920s. It made sense to us to invoke a legendary Cooke brand name,” explains Les Zellan, Chairman and Owner, Cooke Optics. “However, in response to our customers’ feedback we have decided to rename them.

Many people are calling them Mini S4’s anyway, because they provide the same high quality and benefits of the S4/i lenses.”

®

www.pixel.co.uk

27/11/2012

COMET ADMINISTRATION: REDUNDANCIES CONFIRMED Deloitte have been appointed Administrators to Comet; stores are remaining open but redundancies are being made.

Comet, which is headquartered in Rickmansworth, operates out of 236 stores across the UK, and employed 6,611 people until the administrators announced that they were making 330 Comet Stores are remaining open employees redundant, the majority of whom work in head office and central functions, such as finance and marketing, or the call centre in Clevedon.

Like many other retailers, Comet has been hit hard by the uncertain economic environment, slow consumer spending and lack of consumer confidence. The electrical retail sector has been particularly challenging, with fewer people buying big ticket items, and fewer first time property buyers who have historically been an important market for the Company. Comet has also struggled to compete with online retailers.

Against a backdrop of continuing weak sales, and speculation that Comet was being approached by prospective buyers, suppliers

have been reluctant to provide credit terms, which has had a negative effect on cash flow. The inability to obtain supplier credit for the peak Christmas trading period, means that the Company had no realistic prospect of raising further capital to build up sufficient stock to allow it to continue trading. As a consequence of all these factors, the Directors of Comet had no choice but to seek Administration.

Neville Kahn, Joint Administrator and restructuring services partner at Deloitte, commented: “Our immediate priorities are to stabilise the business, fully assess its financial position, and begin an urgent process to seek a suitable buyer which would also preserve jobs. In the meantime, all stores will continue to trade and all employees will continue to be paid. We appreciate the cooperation and support from the management, staff, customers, landlords and suppliers at what is clearly a very difficult time.” www.comet.co.uk

Olympus Profits Despite Imaging Loss Olympus have recorded profits of nearly £100m for the quarter to September, in spite of an operating loss in the camera category due to declining compact sales.

The firm’s report said that the 2.9 percent year-on-year rise in operating profits could mostly be attributed to growth in the medical systems division. The sudden profit spike was also due to the profits made from selling off ITX Corporation’s Information & Communication Business. Over the past quarter, the corporation’s overall operating income increased by an impressive 29.5 percent.

The imaging part of the business made an operating loss of 2,904m yen (£23m) and net

sales fell by 21 percent in six months. This was largely due to the decline in compact camera sales, even though CSC sales exceeded expectations.

The OM-d in particular has performed better than expected so far, and the CSC market worldwide is continuing to grow. Olympus has confirmed that it will be shifting focus away from lower end compact cameras and onto high end compacts and CSCs in the future.

reacts quickly, misses nothing

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Capture all the action with 12 framesper-second shooting, 1080 Full HD movie capture and continuous autofocus for movies and stills. www.pixellive.co.uk

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BEST IMAGING INNOVATION Sony SLT, Translucent Mirror Technology

www.sony.co.uk/alpha57

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The InsIder Saying what you’re thinking and asking the difficult questions. each week the Insider reports from the front line of our industry.

Christmas accessories for 2013.

Brace yourselves for the Christmas whirlwind. Are you ready?

Each year, I get to this point and wonder if I am. Do I have the right products on my shelves, have I made the right choices and are my staff clued up enough to deliver the impressive sales drive that’s expected from any boss at a peak time of year?

The answer is, who knows if I have the right products? My experience tells me that I need greater stock of batteries, bags and other traditional peripheral gear to upsell but have I got enough of the new?

On the back of the recent article (and subsequent lengthy conversations) in Pixel on the ‘new opportunities’ I demonstrated an HDSLR rig in a prominent position in my window along with numerous accessories scattered around, all related.

I can’t tell you the amount of interest it has generated from passers by.

Yes, enthusiasts and the buyers of photo mags have seen the first incarnations from these manufacturers over the last couple of years or so but joe public may as well have had an alien placed in the window - and that’s definitely been a good thing!

That said, I’ve also noticed that regular customers have seen this positioning as a ‘stamp of approval’ and has broken down

a barrier between them and their initial preconceptions of the moving image, the technology that they already own or may be looking to upgrade to and ultimately, the extra creativity and possibly work, that all of this offers to them.

So, my question is... How heavy do we go into this? What brands and ranges do we stock? What are the sales segways and how do I get everyone up to speed?

The manufacturers that we all know and love are already making their own audio, WiFi, memory, protection accessories. It would be great to gain comprehensive info on these and whether they are any good? This would mean no, or limited initial new account opening to satisfy the demand that I’m starting to see now.

I hear that the new Pixel site & forum will be up and running by the time this is published.

Meet me there to discuss further.

Google and Amazon Face Government Scrutiny

Google and Amazon have raised the suspicions of the Government by managing to pay a very small amount of tax in comparison with their positive sales figures.

Google and Amazon have raised the suspicions of the Government by managing to pay a very small amount of tax in comparison with their positive sales figures.

Representatives from Amazon, Google and Starbucks met with the Public Accounts Committee last week to discuss fairness in relation to the taxation of multinational corporations. A report from the meeting is expected soon.

According to Reuters, Google’s filings show it had $4 billion of sales in the UK last year, but despite having a group-wide profit margin of 33 percent, its main UK unit had a tax charge of just 3.4 million pounds in 2011. “The company avoids UK tax by channelling nonU.S. sales via an Irish unit, an arrangement that allowed it to pay taxes at a rate of 3.2 percent on non-U.S. profits. Amazon’s main UK unit paid less than 1 million pounds in income tax last year. The company had UK sales

worth $5.3-7.2 billion, filings show. Amazon avoids UK taxes by reporting European sales through a Luxembourg-based unit. This structure allowed it to pay a tax rate of 11 percent on foreign profits last year - less than half the average corporate income tax rate in its major markets.”

Amazon and Google confirmed to the committee that they used favourable European tax jurisdictions in their UK businesses.

Amazon’s sales are handled out of Luxembourg, while Google’s representative admitted that their advertising space is sold by a team in the Republic of Ireland, due to its favourable 12.5% corporation tax rate.

It was pointed out throughout the hearing that none of the loopholes used by these businesses are actually illegal.

“We’re not accusing you of being illegal, we’re accusing you of being immoral.” said Margaret Hodge, Chair of the PAC.

FOCUs

News October Inflation “Hopefully a Blip” Commenting on the October inflation figures issued by the Office for National Statistics, showing a rise in CPI from 2.2 percent in September to 2.7 percent in October and a rise in RPI from 2.6 percent last month to 3.2 percent this month, KPMG Economist, Tom Hooper, said: “Hopefully October’s sharp uptick in inflation proves to be just a blip being that it is driven at least in part by the increase in university tuition fees. But if it marks the beginning of a reversal in the recent downward trend it threatens to put a spanner in the works. After all, recent falls in CPI have raised hopes that the household sector will soon receive a boost as real wages start to grow again - for now at least those hopes have been put on hold.

“The economy is already showing signs that it has failed to carry momentum from the summer into the fourth quarter. And the big picture is that output continues to do no more than bounce along the bottom as it has for the past couple of years. Continuing domestic headwinds, the threat of an escalation in the Eurozone crisis and only slow progress in rebalancing the economy mean the recovery is set to remain fragile.

With this in mind and despite this month’s inflation hiccup further monetary stimulus should be expected in the New Year.”

Kodak Secures Loan to Help with Restructure Kodak aims to emerge from Chapter 11 in the first half of next year, thanks to securing loans of $793 million from a collection of American banks.

However, these loans do mean that Kodak must continue to sell off its patents until it reaches the impressive sum of half a billion dollars.

The investment will come from a group of investment firms and major banks, including JPMorgan Chase and UBS AG. The Wall Street Journal reported that “[Kodak’s] creditors had demanded in a court filing that they be allowed to determine Kodak’s path out of Chapter 11, saying they had “lost all faith” in company executives. The critics said Kodak had lost nearly $1 billion from operations since filing for bankruptcy, or roughly $107 million a month, and was expected to keep draining cash.”

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EVENTS

Going the Distance with Mercedes

Delkin’s David Gleeson explains Fat Gecko’s role in the promotional video for the Panasonic GH3.

“When I heard that Pixel and Panasonic intended to make a video out on the track in the Mercedes Benz cars, I knew that this was the perfect application for Fat Gecko products. Shooting video in and out of fast moving cars is exactly what this equipment was designed for, it’s the classic use for it and I knew that it was going to allow the teams to get the best video results.”

What products were used?

“We used the Fat Gecko Dual Suction and the Fat Gecko Mini. The dual was ideal for use inside the cars as the separate suction cups allow the miniature tripod (and so the camera) to be attached to different surfaces and inclines, which is great for a dashboard or bonnet. Our SD memory cards were also used to provide a stable memory solution and performed well on the day, capturing all the footage without any problem.”

on cti Su l ua oD ck e tG Fa

What inspired you to get involved with the event?

“I’m always keen to support the trade and the Retail Imaging Show, but circumstances didn’t allow us to have a stand this year so

it was great to have the opportunity to be present in a different way. Assisting Pixel and Panasonic with this project really allowed the Fat Gecko devices to shine in the environment that they were designed for, and even if people didn’t necessarily notice the equipment as they were hurtling round the track, they will see the video and appreciate the seamlessness with which the Fat Gecko fits into the workflow... the excellent thing to notice is that you don’t notice it!

“The expanding range of Fat Gecko products is ideal for today’s photographers and the cameras which they use, and what they use them for. With the latest small and light DSLRs and Compact System Cameras, photographers don’t want to have to drag around massive bits of equipment in order to get the best of them - that defeats the object.

I’m glad we can provide small, light and highly functional equipment which meets and exceeds their expectations in terms of quality and specification.”

www.delkin.com

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THE BIG INTERVIEW

An Offer You Can’t Refuse Business Marketing Expert and CEO of Marken Communications, Andy Marken examines the very modern phenomenon of ‘showrooming,’ how it’s affecting retailers and how the new way to shop can be used to retailers’ advantage.

Andy Marken, Business Marketing Expert and CEO of Marken Communications.

For those who have perhaps not heard the term before, what is ‘showrooming’?

If you’re not familiar with the term, you’re bound to be familiar with the practice. We’ve all heard the frustrating anecdote which begins with “a customer comes into the store with their iPad (or iPhone) out…” and now that basically everybody – certainly our core customer audience - is mobile web-enabled, we call it showrooming: visiting a store, checking out a product, leaving and buying it somewhere else. According to conspiracy theorists, this is the primary or sole reason retail stores are performing so poorly… all of the sales (and profits) are being sucked into the cloud and being consumed by etailers.

Do you not agree that this is the case?

If it’s true that online outlets are so devastating to brick and mortar stores, they should be enjoying 30-50 percent of the industry’s total sales. Unfortunately, they have less than five percent of the PC/CE sales, according to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). That’s not to say they don’t have the potential to capture more of the market, as they are very focused and might win a larger share this Christmas. But no, at the moment I don’t think it’s the huge obstacle people think it is. It’s easy to judge by the customer who tells you they can buy a product cheaper online, but almost every other customer is aware of this too and still chooses to shop with you.

As for people comparing prices and then going to other bricks and mortar stores…

I’m not sure that’s valid either, especially given the price of petrol at the moment.

Parking’s also a consideration, especially over the festive season.

So what ARE people doing on their phones and iPads in store?

They’re being empowered consumers!

Mobile and web have helped give consumers complete information about products, services and outlets. A more enlightened consumer should help produce a happier customer and better relationship for all parties. It does mean

Barcode Scanner on an Apple iPhone

“ With mobile devices in hand consumers can map out their shopping and even obtain immediate coupons and special offers. ”

there’s nowhere to hide, but if your sales are sound this is nothing to worry about.

With mobile devices in hand consumers can map out their shopping and even obtain immediate coupons and special offers.

Research can range from reading reviews of social media discussions and videos as well as finding the best price in the store and online. Despite doing their research en route, consumers still tend to purchase from the store they are physically visiting, and to some extent slightly higher prices are forgiven.

Think of it the way I do: My wife loves shopping… she’ll do hours of research online looking at products, reviews, comparisons, availabilities, store locations, reputations.

She’ll grab her smartphone or tablet, go to the mall and shop for hours checking the products, checking off her “to do” list, and she

may or may not buy. That’s not showrooming … that’s shopping! It’s what people do and have always done, especially at this time of year. This is just the new way that they do it today. But in a recession (even if we’re officially out of it now), I accept that less people go out shopping just to shop. Many have done extensive research at home on their computer and while shopping to ensure they have the most current information can answer their last-minute questions and even reserve the product for pickup so they make efficient use of their time. People are careful with their time and money, and you can appeal more to these customers by keeping your website fully updated with relevant information and optimising it to be mobile-friendly. This may represent some investment but it’s a very effective way to ensure you stay competitive even if your traditional customer base is looking online.

How do you suggest retailers make the best of the situation in which they have somebody ‘shopping around’ whilst in store, or using them as a showroom?

If a person is in a store using his/her phone or tablet to check out a product, chances are that they are physically there thinking about buying something – research indicates it’s a good sign that they’re ready or almost ready to part with cash. You have them in your location, not somewhere else, so you’re ahead

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SPECIAL REPORT

THE BIG INTERVIEW

of the game. It’s an opportunity to talk with and assist the customer. It’s not just about selling them something, but developing a personto-person rapport… which will help you sell something eventually, and online shopping just can’t do that.

Proactive retailers are providing salespeople with smartphones, tablets and apps so they can help the customer check reviews, availability and options. They’re also delivering coupons, personalised discounts, anything via email or through hotspot downloading or QR codes to enrich the customer’s in-store experience and build store loyalty.

All things being equal, today’s consumer can show the sales associate or store manager the price of the product at other stores and request a price match; or, they can simply buy elsewhere. It isn’t done to damage the retailer. In fact, the consumer has given the retailer the opportunity to save the sale and perhaps produce add-in/add-on sales. Straight forward price matching isn’t always an option, particularly in electronics, where products are often already sold on a very narrow margin.

However, many retailers find themselves unable to refuse without losing sales, and that’s been the case for a very long time, so what we need to do is encourage add ons and package deals that recoup the difference and turn this situation from just saving a sale from going somewhere else to making money.

Increasingly, brands and retailers have introduced their own web and mobile apps to develop a stronger relationship with the customer. Outlets are making mobile apps available to customers that will make it easier to track their purchases and also enable the retailer to provide more intelligent, more targeted product and promotional offers.

As long as they’re in your store, give them something that will enhance their shopping experience. This is the opportunity to offer

ideas, suggestions that not only help the customer with something they hadn’t thought about but also to build sales and profits with accessories. Those who retail smartphone and tablet accessories have the added advantage that they can suggest sales of the device the customer is using, too! “Oh, I see you have the latest iPhone… have you tried this?” Sales improve, profits improve and customer loyalty increases because your staff paid attention to aiding the customer, not just ringing up the sale and moving on. After all, that’s what customer service is all about: listening, suggesting, helping. That’s where the retail store has the advantage, which is why some retailers are changing the title of their staff from salesperson or sales associate to customer associate. It’s a little thing but a big change in mindset!

Why are online retailers perceived to have such an advantage, and what can high street retailers do to compete?

According to Pew Research, the connected generation have taken to online buying for a lot more reasons than price.

In fact, price is comparatively low on the priority list, especially when you look at rising stars in the online arena like Zappos, Macsales, Gilt Groupe and yes, Amazon, as well as retailers that have become effective in both. This year, in anticipation of a significant increase in online research activity (and hopefully sales), the major consumer electronics sites have been constantly upgrading their servers, software, search activities, carts and offers.

The etailers who rise to the top are those that build depth and breadth into their sites.

They include features such as comprehensive product information; easy comparisons, open user forums, customer reviews, lots of support and hassle-free return policies. All of

Sales Assistant and Customer at a Comet Store

“All things being equal, today’s consumer can show the sales associate or store manager the price of the product at other stores and request a price match; or, they can simply buy elsewhere”

those are things we could easily offer in store, with a bit of creative thinking. Offering them online can also strengthen a bricks-and-mortar store’s position.

For some of us though nothing beats the convenience of being able to kick back on the sofa or in a chair to do your shopping, and having a strong web presence is all you can do about that. The more interesting implications are what can be done in store using the same technologies which create this rivalry. I have been in Nordstrom’s with my wife (to borrow her for an example again) and watched associates check for clothes in her size in-store, regionally and online.

Quickly, effortlessly, enthusiastically, they got her exactly what she wanted and in a few days it was delivered. That’s called customer service, and it took place in store, using online technology.

So in your view, has the concept of showrooming not damaged high street retail?

Mobile devices haven’t “encouraged” people to shop around because they’ve been doing that since the days of bartering.

They have empowered consumers, not just about price but about options, comparisons and the things you don’t really think about standing in front of that huge interactive TV set with the awesome tunedsignal image.

The retailer has the advantage because the customer associate is standing next to the consumer showing product benefits, giving advice and assistance. If the retailer has competitive pricing, inviting displays and a well-trained and motivated team; they can make additional product or accessory recommendations that improve customer satisfaction.

Today’s retail outlets shouldn’t view showrooming as a threat but rather an opportunity to develop a more positive, helpful relationship with the consumer and guide them to the best product for them. That improves sales and profits online and offline.

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THE BUSINESS

Some Good News for Digital Cameras Market

The digital camera market is still suffering, but the last months brought some good news.

The third quarter of 2012 was declining by only -4% in value against Q3 2011.

Furthermore, the only category declining in value is the standard point and shoot camera (digital camera with less than 10x optical zoom) with -37%. Even if bridge camera and superzoom camera (digital camera with 10x optical zoom or more) are growing by respectively 2% and 21% in value in Q3 compared to Q3 2011, the total fixed lens market is declining by -15% in value. This is being dragged by the standard point and shoot camera decline.

The changeable lens market enjoyed 12% value growth in Q3 compared to Q3 2011. This is helped by the Digital Single Lens Reflex cameras (DSLR) having their first quarter of growth in 2012. They experienced 12% value growth between July and September 2012 compared to last year. Compact System Cameras (CSC) still enjoyed growth this quarter with 7% in value.

Other good news is the growing importance of the higher end categories as superzoom, bridge, CSC and SLR. For the first time, standard point and shoot cameras represented less than a quarter in value and only 50% in volume of the digital cameras market.

It tends to prove that the digital camera market is changing, altered by the smartphones

Deals & Promotions Olympus launches PEN 1-2-3 Offer Step 1 - Buy any PEN E-PL5 or E-PM2 kit from an authorised Olympus dealer and get a free Olympus E-PL5 8GB FlashAir Card.

Step 2 - Purchase a PEN Portrait Zoom Kit for just £99, saving £250 on the RRP of £349.99.

Step 3 - If you’ve completed steps 1 & 2 you can then claim a 15mm Body Cap lens (RRP £69.99) absolutely FREE! Don’t forget the OM-D free portrait lens offer is still running too. http://olympusuk.sales-promotions.com

cannibalising the standard point and shoot cameras. The higher end products are becoming more popular among the consumers.

Looking ahead, we can hope to have a more stable market specialised for enthusiast photographers.

Aline Marchal, GfK, account manager, Aline.Marchal@gfk.com, Tel: 0870 603 8181 Web: www.gfkrt.com/uk

Nikon Christmas Cashback Offer Nikon is offering cashback on selected entry-level D-SLR cameras, selected DX lenses, Nikon 1 J1 selected speedlights, as well as the Nikon 1 J1 and J2, from 1st November 2012 - 21st January 2013 (inclusive).

For more information on the promotion, and how to submit your claim, please visit: www.nikon.co.uk/cashback

Retail Photo Gift Solutions Mitsubishi Electric’s latest photo retail solution Gift Kiosk has been designed to offer ID photos, instant print and personalised gifts quickly and easily.

Gift Kiosk enables customers to create and print personalised calendars, albums, gift & greetings cards, mosaic & collage prints and instant prints, using their own images stored on memory card, USB memory stick, CD / DVD or via their online Facebook and Picassa accounts.

All of our systems include passport photo printing services and Mitsubishi’s integrated biometric ID software makes the process of making a passport or ID photograph, very simple and quick; instant prints are available in 6"x4", 5"x7" & 6"x8" formats in either a gloss or matt finish.

Mitsubishi are currently offering Gift Kiosk bundle packages starting at £3899 which includes hardware, starter media, point of sale material as well as installation, training and warranty.* For more detail contact Mitsubishi 01707 278684 email printer.info@meuk.mee.com or visit our website! * Check availability

Tel: 01707 278684 | Fax: 01707 278541 | vis.mitsubishielectric.co.uk | printer.info@meuk.mee.com

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01/11/2012 11:02 16/11/2012 14:40

THE NEW WORLD OF IMAGING

Tablets: The Next Credit Card

News RED lowers Moviemaking Prices

Tablets represent a fundamental shift in business models of leading consumer technology companies.

Epic-M

RED, manufacturers of high end camera and moviemaking equipment have announced lower prices on their filming equipment.

“We have built an incredibly efficient factory in Irvine, California and over time learned how to make Epics in quantity, lowered our assembly costs, and found better suppliers,” says CEO Jim Jannard. “When we assembled the 1st Epic camera it took 12 hours. It took two more days to de-bug. Today we can assemble an EPIC in 13 minutes and 95% need no re-work after diagnostics and testing. It is a testament to our manufacturing team and supply chain teams.

Since our costs are now significantly lower we are re-pricing our cameras as of now.”

Body-only, the Epic-M dropped to $24,000 from $39,500; the Epic-X is $19,000 from $34,500.

New Survey highlights DSLR and CSC Trends InfoTrends’ recently completed a study exploring the growth of the digital interchangeable lens camera (DILC) market. It is important for vendors and retailers to understand how buyers of DSLRs and CILCs are evolving so they can develop the right products and target their marketing messages at the right buyers.

Compact interchangeable lens cameras are a threat to take sales away from the DSLR market. “To combat this, vendors must continue to innovate in areas of image quality and sensor technology to keep photographers coming back to upgrade their DSLRs,” says Ed Lee, Group Director for InfoTrends’ Consumer and Professional Imaging Services. “CILCs face their own external threats, most notably point & shoot cameras with large sensors and smartphones.

Attracting new buyers will require showing consumers that CILCs offer features that are unavailable in today’s smartphones and point & shoot cameras.”

significant, Victor Basta argues: “Apple or Amazon Victor Basta, Managing Director of can now go further, leveraging their trust with Magister Advisors - Advisors to the global consumers, and depth of data about loyal users technology industry - said: “Tablet wars are in fact to create versions of a social media alternative no longer about hardware. The big prize is control to Facebook – through acquisition or innovation of an entire, hugely profitable ecosystem. Devices within their ecosystems. The themselves are fast becoming implications for Facebook would irrelevant and are trending be enormous, and negative. towards zero profit and even Against specialist social platforms loss leading” from major players, Facebook “Apple and Amazon have could suddenly look like a created incredibly profitable legacy system. Apple removing eco-systems using proprietary Apple iPad 2 DVD drives from MacBooks file formats that keep control forever encourages users to get content from over users, and they are able to amass and exploit iTunes, fuelling the value of the Apple ecosystem valuable data on hundreds of millions of people. even more.”

Even more, Apple and Amazon have credit card “The iPad mini is an attempt to bring a wider data for hundreds of millions of consumers.“ customer base into the Apple ecosystem. Jeff Hardware, Victor Basta argues, is now simply a Bezos, Amazon’s CEO, announced in the last few tool for enabling consumers to buy content and will weeks that the company makes no profit on the become as prosaic an element of the commercial Kindle. As competition intensifies between Apple relationship as a credit card. and Amazon, we predict that devices will be sold The ramifications for technology giants, such at a loss or potentially given away to capture value as Facebook, Google and Microsoft, which lack in content.” a global credit-card user community, could be

An Exhibition for Today’s Photography

Sony debuts photography exhibition featuring live images Sony has created the world’s first real-time digital photography exhibition, allowing visitors to appreciate the work of three photographers from the moment the shots were taken. The experience invites visitors to immerse themselves in the cultures of London, Paris and Berlin as local photographers captured their journeys around the cities one evening and transported them live into a gallery in central London.

Sony’s latest NEX-5R camera, complete with built in Wi-Fi, allowed the photographers to send photos directly to the gallery in London from their

separate locations across Europe.The gallery walls were filled with screens that Sony broadcast the images as they NEX-5R were sent through in real time, creating an evolving exhibit that captured the spirit of each city.

“The Real Time Gallery is unlike any project I’ve ever worked on,” said Lee Strickland, the photographer working from London. “The immediacy gave me an opportunity to show how diverse London is, and the stories that can be found if you’re looking for them.” www.sony.co.uk

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Your Essential Guide to the Latest Launches

THE LAUNCHPAD LAUNCH PAD

Name: Nikon D5200 RRP: BODY ONLY: £719.99 BODY & 18-55MM VR LENS: £819.99 Release Date: December 2012 In addition to the 24.1-megapixel DX-format CMOS sensor for finely detailed images, the new EXPEED 3 image processor provides high-speed operation and, rich colour reproduction – as well as enhanced movie recording. The high ISO sensitivity (100-6400 which is extendable to 25600) delivers brilliant shots in dark or poorly lit environments as well as producing clear images of fast moving subjects.

The Nikon D5200 shares an AF system, metering sensor and scene recognition with the Nikon D7000 series, giving this camera a new level of performance and much enhanced image quality. The superior accuracy of the 39-point AF system and nine cross-type sensors delivers razor sharp images by focusing precisely on the subject you choose. Meanwhile, the 2,016-pixel RGB metering sensor provides precise data to the camera’s Scene Recognition System, which optimises exposure, autofocus and white balance immediately before the shutter is released. The Nikon D5200’s versatile 7.5cm (3-in) vari-angle LCD monitor provides the ultimate freedom and flexibility to take beautiful shots and movies from virtually any position.

The D5200 is compatible with WR-R10 Wireless Remote transceiver and WR-T10 Wireless Remote transmitter that let you control key camera functions from a distance.

It’s also compatible with the whole range of Nikkor lenses. www.nikon.com Name: Drift HD Ghost RRP: TBC Release Date: Immediate Unlike other point of view cameras that require aftermarket accessories and peripherals, the Drift HD Ghost includes everything action sports enthusiasts need to capture professional quality video. Plus, the intuitive interface is easy to use, easy to navigate and easy to set up, so users everywhere can begin recording moments after opening the box. The Drift HD Ghost is the only action camera packaged standard with a wearable on/off remote control with LEDs and wrist strap.

The strategically placed LED lights on the remote instantly communicate the mode currently in use displaying a colour-coded system indicating Video, Photo, Timelapse or Photoburst modes. The remote also streamlines functionality by allowing users to take photos and change function modes from up to 30 feet (10m) away, as well as to start and stop recording. www.driftinnovation.com Name: Verbatim Store ‘n’ Go Ultra Slim HDD RRP: £59.99 Release Date: November 2012 At just 10.5mm thick, the Verbatim Store ‘n’ Go Ultra Slim HDD is one of the world’s slimmest portable hard drives - 20% thinner than previous Store ‘n‘ Go models. The Verbatim Ultra Slim Hard Drive has a 500GB capacity and provides a sleek storage extension or backup medium for a range of computing and consumer applications.

The Store ‘n’ Go Ultra Slim drive is equipped with a USB 3.0 port for super-fast data transfer – up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0. The drives are immediately ready to be used on both PC and Mac and are FAT-32 pre-formatted. They are sold preloaded with Nero BackItUp Essentials software that allows PC users full system backup and restore functions, the ability to schedule automatic backup by date/time and an encrypted backup option with password control.

Verbatim’s Green Button software reduces energy consumption by placing the drive into sleep mode whenever the user chooses. There are 3 ‘Sleep Setting’ options. Set the suspend mode to come in after 10 minutes of use, or by increments of 10 minutes up to 120 minutes. Set the drive to suspend immediately by double clicking the Green Button icon on the desktop, alternatively you can set the drive to ‘Never suspend the disk’. www.verbatim-europe.co.uk

Name: Lomography Champagne and Gold 110 Special Editions RRP: TBC Release Date: Immediate After their overwhelming success, fans have been eagerly awaiting the comeback of the Diana F+, Diana Mini and Fisheye 2. Dangling on a golden chain, the New Gold Edition 110 cameras are the must-have accessory for hip parties and special occasions.

Lomography have released four cameras in the gold and Champagne styles: The Diana F+, the Diana Mini, La Sardina or the Fisheye 2.

“Just as glamorous as a fine French champagne, our cameras will seduce you with their real cork covering and metallic colour,” say Lomography. “With an incredibly velvety feel thanks to the cork finish it will be hard to resist their softness. Get a taste of our two best vintages: the Diana F+ with her dreamy square lo-fi images and the Diana Mini with her half-frame format – they’re both fascinating in their own charming way. Each of them comes equipped with the retro-styled Diana Flash making them the must-have accessory to capture your elegant gala or glittery cocktail party!” www.lomography.com

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THE LAUNCHPAD LAUNCH PAD Name: The Reflecta SkriptTab RRP: £56.10 to £137.40 (incl VAT) Release Date: Immediate

Name: Canon EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM and EF 35mm f/2 IS USM RRP: TBC Release Date: TBC Ideal for use alongside DSLRs like the new EOS 6D, both new lenses utilise the latest Canon technologies to consistently deliver superb results. Both include aspherical lenses and Super Spectra Coatings optimised for each individual element, Image Stabiliser (IS) technology and Ultrasonic Motors for superfast Auto Focus. The EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM is also the latest lens to feature Hybrid IS, delivering shake-free shots at any distance, including at macro focal lengths.

EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM Ideal for reportage and wedding photography, it combines an essential everyday focal range with a premium quality L-series construction, delivering consistently sharp, professional-quality stills in a range of different situations. A new macro function also optimises the placement of lens groups during macro photography, allowing shooting at a maximum magnification of 0.7x – reducing the need for photographers to carry a dedicated macro lens.

EF 35mm f/2 IS USM The new EF 35mm f/2 IS USM is designed to offer outstanding flexibility – allowing photographers to capture an even broader range of scenes and subjects in wide-angle The 35mm focal length provides the ability to capture everything from close-up portraits to wide-angle landscapes, making it an ideal companion for travel or reportage photography.

A bright, fixed f/2 aperture also allows photographers to employ a shallow depth of field, and optical IS offers users a 4-stop light advantage. Intelligent detection of panning motion is also supported, with Panning IS mode automatically engaged to enable photographers to capture movement with greater accuracy. www.canon.com

The SkriptTab series comprises of three devices with work surfaces measuring 14 x 10.2 cm, 20.3 x 15.2 cm and 30.5 x 22.9 cm. The new graphic tablet acts as an ergonomic and versatile alternative to the PC mouse and keyboard.

The tablet is ideal for illustrations, drawings, industrial or web design and photo editing. Thanks to its excellent handwriting recognition, users are able to add personal touches to documents such as signatures and hand-written notes.

To send data, the tip of the wireless pointing-stylus is moved on the tablet, pressing the stylus and key on the tablet.

The movement data acquired this way is then quickly transferred to the graphics tablet onto the computer. www.kenro.co.uk

Name: Metro Camera Strap RRP: £45 Inc VAT Release Date: Immediate Metro is BlackRapid’s strap designed for lightweight camera gear. Without sacrificing any of BlackRapid’s famous Grab, Glide and Click, the Metro has a more compact shoulder pad for easier packing and convenient storage. BlackRapid’s “Built for Speed” functionality, like the FastenR and ConnectR hardware system, are identical to BlackRapid’s other R-Straps. Metro is the compact version of the R-Strap, recommended for photographers who use CSCs and high-end compacts. Additionally, because the shoulder pad is slim and compact, Metro folds up small to occupy very little storage space in a shoot bag or carry-on luggage. www.blackrapid.com

Name: Datasat RS20i Cinema Processor RRP: £16,500 Release Date: December 2012 The groundbreaking RS20i is a natural progression from the professional unit, combining Datasat’s considerable experience in conventional analogue sound systems with state-of-the- art digital signal processing. No expense has been spared in producing arguably the most versatile, customisable and feature-rich audio processor available in the high end consumer space today. www.datasat.com

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INSIDE TRACK

Kodak’s Ed Monahan Discusses Recovery

Mailpix Allows Social Network Pic Browsing

In a new interview airing this week on the DIMAcast, Ed Monahan, Worldwide Strategy Director for Eastman Kodak Co., talks about how Kodak plans to recover from bankruptcy and other recent losses and setbacks, and return to a position of growth.

Everyone knows there are gazillions of pictures on Facebook. If we can just get people to start using them to make photo products, the potential is simply staggering. New online photo printing company MailPix is trying to do just that.

The company says users can print Facebook and Instagram photos directly from their MailPix account — as well as photos from their friends’ pages. Even without a MailPix account, users can login with their Facebook IDs. Once logged in, the user’s Facebook or Instagram albums, and those of their friends, show up as folders in the picture browser — where the images can then be accessed and used to create photo products. www.mailpix.com MailPix Website

CNN: Photography Not a Great Career In its listing of “stressful jobs that pay badly, CNN Money includes Commercial Photographer — reporting the median pay is $43,600, and everyone polled — 100 percent — say their job is stressful.

“The job may sound glamorous,” the article says, “but commercial photographers, who capture models, merchandise and landscapes for books, advertisements and catalogues, have to contend with long days, picky personalities and demanding deadlines — sometimes withstanding precarious positions just to get that perfect shot.”

CREDITS & CoNTACTS

In terms of the traditional film and “Kodak has encountered paper business we solidly believe the same difficulties that in them and are excited about the everyone in the industry has prospect of their sale to bring about faced, though on a much broader greater investment and focus for them. scale. Digital has transformed We are not shutting down or exiting our markets and really taken its these businesses, and in fact the market toll on our perennial cash cows, for colour paper remains very strong. In and while we have done a lot to Ed Monahan, Director, fact, we have continued to make capital migrate to a digital portfolio and Eastman Kodak Co. and other investments in our portfolio to new business models, in the end serve the needs of the market. These we needed the re-organisation are strong, healthy businesses that are part of under chapter 11 to resolve our financial a market structure that continues to generate situation. sales and earnings, and will be attractive to That said, there is a lot going on at Kodak prospective buyers for their breadth, market to prepare to emerge from Chapter 11. The coverage and market position. company is preparing to sell the Personalised What I can say is that the selling of these Imaging business which includes our traditional businesses is viewed in a very positive light. film and paper business and the retail kiosk/ It is exciting to consider new ownership that thermal business. The Kodak that emerges is able to make further investments, and the will largely focus on the commercial printing process is proceeding very well.” business and the Personalised Imaging businesses will be sold to generate capital www.kodak.co.uk towards that emergence.

Instagram on the Web Instagram adds web based profile pages for all its members.

If it wasn’t for the fact that Facebook already acquired Instagram, we’d say this is the kind of move that the mobile imaging firm would make to compete with the social network: whereas once Instagram was all-but a mobile-only service, it’s now added Webbased profile pages for its members.

“Your web profile features a selection of your recently shared photographs just above your profile photo and bio. In addition, you can follow users, comment and like photos and edit your profile easily and directly from the web. Members can set whether their profiles and photos are private or public.

Instagram usage certainly hasn’t peaked: the company says more than 800,000 photos were recently posted about Hurricane Sandy.

And late Monday, news broke on TechCrunch

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that Facebook added photographic filters to its iOS mobile app, as well as multiphoto uploads. The moves come as the company transfers the primary features of its standalone photography app to its mainstream complete one.

Also: Twitter is rumoured to soon be adding filters to its photos as well. And just when we would have guessed that filter fanaticism had seen its peak… The NY Times reported late Monday that the founder of Instagram himself says “filters are pretty ubiquitous at this point.” www.instagram.com

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to Midwich

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