ISSUE NO. 976
June 2017
www.pixel.co.uk
INSIDE THE PHOTOGRAPHY INDUSTRY: THEN AND NOW PIXEL EXPLORES THE GRADUAL CHANGE IN THE PHOTOGRAPHIC INDUSTRY AND HOW IT HAS BECOME MORE ENTHUSIAST-BASED
CANON: LIVE FOR THE STORY
LAST MONTH, CANON LAUNCHED ‘LIVE FOR THE STORY’ - A NEW EUROPEAN BRAND PROPOSITION FOR THE CONSUMER AND PROFESSIONAL IMAGING BUSINESS - IN A BID TO SHIFT THE COMPANY’S PERCEPTION AMONGST A YOUNGER AUDIENCE
THE LATEST NEWS... SONY EXPANDS FLAGSHIP G MASTER™ LENS SERIES, SAMYANG INTRODUCES VDSLR 16MM T2.6, CALUMET COLLEAGUES TAKE HOME TRIO OF TOP AWARDS, DELKIN LAUNCHES RUGGED MEMORY CARD READER AND MUCH MORE...
THE BIG INTERVIEW:
SONY UK
Game Changer
FOR THIS MONTH’S BIG INTERVIEW, PIXEL GOT IN TOUCH WITH SONY UK’S HEAD OF PHOTO SPECIALIST CHANNEL, FRED LANGE AND ARNAUD GUTLEBEN, HEAD OF DIGITAL IMAGING MARKETING TO DISCUSS THE BRAND’S RECENT SUCCESS AND PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
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NEWS
WELCOME To Pixel Magazine We’re now half way through another year in the industry and Pixel is back again this month to provide you with all the latest and most exciting industry news! Here, in our June issue, we bring to you a review of 3 Legged Thing’s EQUINOX Albert Carbon FIbre Tripod with AirHed 360, plus the latest news from Canon. While InPrint this month focuses on The Impossible Project as we review the brand’s Pink Duochrome Film with a little help from the
Polaroid 600 camera, we also take a detailed look at how the photographic industry has changed over the years and in particular, how it has become more enthusiast-based. In addition to all of this, this month’s Big Interview is that of Sony UK as Pixel hears from Head of Photo Specialist Channel, Fred Lange and Head of Digital Imaging Marketing, Arnaud Gutleben to discuss the company’s recent success and plans for the future. Enjoy your June read! Jess Saunders, Editor Team Pixel.
Calumet Colleagues Take Home Trio of Top Awards Calumet Photographic has “exceeded all expectations” by being named Store of the Year in a global award competition. Its London store on Drummond Street scooped the Manfrotto Store of the Year prize, beating off stiff competition from many other leading worldwide companies. Continuing the company’s winning streak, Calumet Photographic was also recognised for its excellent customer service for the sixth year running, picking up Amateur Photography’s Gold Service award, which was
established to recognise and reward outstanding retailers. The third and final accolade for the company was the Best Hire Centre prize at the Photography Now awards. The rental part of the business allows amateur and professional photographers to hire cameras, lenses, lighting, video equipment and studio space at reasonable prices. Jon Warner, Managing Director of Calumet Photographic, said: “We are hugely proud that our hard work, dedication and excellent customer service is paying off.”
Industry News Bites Find out more info on this month’s news bites at Pixel.co.uk
When Park Cameras Got UpClose to Nature
On April 29 leading independent photo retailer, Park Cameras held a Wildlife Open Day at their store in Burgess Hill, dedicated to getting the most out of customers’ camera gear this Summer. The day was a fantastic chance to see some of the top new products that will be coming out this Summer, with the Sony a9, Canon EF-S 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM lens and the Panasonic TZ90. This was one of the first
opportunities that customers were able to get hands on with these fantastic new products, with technical experts from the brands available to offer customers help and advice. New Store Manager, Michael Chant got up close and personal with a Harris Hawk. Michael said: “Today was an extremely busy day, and I was pleased to hear feedback from a range of new and existing customers saying how much they enjoyed the day, and how passionate they are about their photography. The birds of prey certainly added a different element to the day, and really allowed customers to photograph something not normally seen.”
New ZEISS CP.3 XD Cine Lens Family
The ten compact prime lenses provide metadata and enable the correction of distortion and shading. For the first time, even low-budget productions can employ visual effects. No matter if it is Star Wars, Harry Potter or Avatar: these days, just about every film features special effects. For many small film productions, having visual effects in their movie would be a dream come true. Unfortunately, making the image fit the look of the footage has required expensive tools –
until now. At the NAB Show in Las Vegas, ZEISS presented new metadata technology that makes this possible: the company has equipped its new ZEISS CP.3 XD compact lens family – comprising of ten lenses – with ZEISS eXtended Data. Initially, a limited number of ZEISS CP.3 XD and CP.3 lenses will be available at authorised ZEISS dealers. For futher information, plus pricing and availability, please visit www. zeiss.co.uk/photo
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NEWS Samyang Introduces VDSLR 16mm T2.6 Samyang Optics has announced a new VDSLR 16mm T2.6 lens, designed specifically for video shooting with uncoupled gear rings with T numbers. This launch adds one more VDSLR cine lens to the existing 12 lenses for DSLR cameras. Inheriting the renowned image quality of Samyang’s wideangle lenses, the new VDSLR 16mm T2.6 completes the cine lens line-up. This angle of view is commonly used by directors of photography around the globe for its versatile usage for wide-angle, emotional scenes
in film and videos. Along with the existing 14mm, 20mm and 24mm, this new 16mm lens will realise the delicate changes in the scenes. The full range of Samyang VDSLR Cine Lenses for full frame sensors range from the 8mm fisheye through to a 135mm telephoto lens, for DSLR Cameras with APS-C sensor sizes lenses range from 8mm to a 50mm lens. The Samyang VDSLR 16mm T2.6 is available from this month with an SRP of £529. Pleas see www.syopt.com for more information.
Sony Expands Flagship G Master™ Lens Series with New 100-400mm Super Telephoto E-Mount Zoom Sony has introduced its furthest reaching E-mount lens, the FE 100-400mm F4.5–5.6 GM OSS Super Telephoto Zoom (model SEL100400GM). The new full-frame lens maintains the high standard of resolution that is the hallmark of Sony’s flagship lineup of G Master™ lenses, while also offering incredibly fast, precise AF capabilities, a lightweight, portable design and a variety of professional functions and customisability. It’s an exceptionally powerful photographic tool for a variety of enthusiast and professional shooters,
particularly those that are commonly shooting sports or wildlife. The new FE 100-400mm GM lens features built-in optical image stabilisation, ensuring that sharp images can be captured during handheld shooting. It also offers a minimum focusing range of just 0.98 metres, which maximises its versatility in the field, and a 9 bladed circular aperture design that produces soft, beautiful bokeh. The new FE 100-400mm GM Super Telephoto Zoom Lens will start to ship from July 2017, priced at approximately £2,500.
Delkin Launches Rugged Memory Card Reader Rotolight Reveals Pioneering AEOS Location LED Light Rotolight has announced the launch of an industryfirst location LED lighting innovation, AEOS. Designed for portrait and location photographers and videographers on the move, AEOS is a bi-colour, location LED light with a unique ‘ultrathin’ design concept. Weighing in at under 1.5kg and just 1cm thick, AEOS is one of the most portable lights on the market. It delivers a powerful light output of 5,750 lux at three feet, but is also one of the most energy efficient LEDs out there, able to run for three hours at 100% power on a
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single 95W battery – more than twice as long as the industry standard. It includes a professional level ball head as standard, providing complete 360 degree rotation, and 200 degrees of tilt when mounted to a light stand. This makes it incredibly versatile and enables users to achieve lighting setups not otherwise possible with traditional light sources. The ball head is made from highquality, solid aluminium and can support the full weight of the AEOS with battery and barn doors mounted, at any angle.
Delkin Devices has announced the newest addition to their growing line of BLACK products: the Delkin BLACK USB 3.0 Rugged Memory Card Reader; the first of its kind to include both UHS-I and UHS-II SD and microSD compatible slots. Combining industrial design with ultra-fast USB 3.0 transfer rates, the Delkin BLACK reader is built to endure even the most strenuous shooting environments. Utilising an innovative aluminum-plastic design, the BLACK rugged
memory card reader takes advantage of stronger materials to offer protection and extend the lifetime of the reader. Designed with three memory card slots, the Delkin BLACK reader is specifically built to handle the highperformance demands of the latest generation of memory cards used in the broadcast, cinema, and photography industries. Large files, such as high-res RAW images, 4K, 2K & 3D videos, can be offloaded quickly and efficiently at speeds up to 500MB/s.
UK warehouse, great credit terms, next day delivery, small minimum order value for carriage paid. email or call for an application form Photo Accessories Filters Cleaning Hoods Straps Batteries Photo Albums Photo Frames Astronomy Telescopes Flash Tripods Bags & Cases Optics Flash Lenses Studio
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SONY UK
The Big Interview:
Continued...
Fred Lange, Head of Photo Specialist Channel
Arnaud Gutleben, Head of Digital Imaging Marketing
Sony UK
“We are ready to reinvest in the market and re-engage in consumer activities and with the launch of our recent flagship, the a9, we are ready to show that we are still one of the strongest, growing image brands in the market”
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2016 was a tough year for Sony. What are your expectations for 2017? FL: 2016 was indeed a year where we faced a number of challenges. After a really successful 2015, which saw a significant year-on-year growth in the UK Imaging market driven by the launch of our a7 series and RX flagships, in very early 2016 our Kumamoto Technology Center was hit by several earthquakes. This greatly impacted our sensor production and therefore had a detrimental impact on our stock levels and our supply, which ultimately also affected our sales. Later on in the year, the UK voted to leave the European Union, which impacted exchange rates. In addition, our competitors didn’t rest in 2016 as
demonstrated by a large amount of flagship model launches throughout the year. Bottom line we faced no stock, financial pressure and strong competitor launches. However, despite these odds we managed to grow our business and make it a very successful year for us and our retail partners. To a large extent, I attribute this to the strong relationships with our photo retail partners and through strong sales of our lens and accessory systems. So after a challenging but fruitful 2016, 2017 is looking bright. We have high ambitions and are ready to regain strong momentum; we are fully stocked, our sensor production has fully recovered, we are ready to re-invest in the market and
SONY UK
re-engage in consumer activities. With the launch of our recent flagship, the a9, we are ready to show that we are still one of the strongest, growing image brands in the market. To complement the new a9 we also want to ensure our professional customers receive the support they need and hence, we launched our Pro Support Programme last year. We are currently aspiring to expand our support for professionals to stores and servicing points throughout the UK, which is another strong focus for this year. Which of Sony’s product lines have seen the most attention from retailers and enthusiasts so far this year and why do you think this is? FL: If you refer to Gfk data you will see that the UK Imaging market is in decline by 20%. But Sony sees huge growth opportunities in the business, especially in the enthusiast and professional area, hence we try to steer our product lines into these markets. Photography has become more accessible and more popular than ever before and we concentrate on our high end product systems, which consist of our range of full-frame, interchangeable products and our FE lenses and accessories launching new industry leading technology, creating consumer demand. 2016 was incredibly positive for our system sales, which was one of the strongest growth areas for Sony and our retailers. We hope this will continue in 2017. By offering product lines such as our interchangeable lens cameras, our incredible G Master lens range and very strong accessories such as our wireless flashes, we have created a sustainable system for our retail partners and customers that position us as a competitive long term brand. In 2017, we want to further penetrate the enthusiast and professional markets, where the a9 has an important role to play and is set to revolutionise professional speed-based photography.
You attended The Photography Show 2017, what product ranges were you exhibiting and what did you find were the centre of attention for visitors? AG: This year was the third time Sony exhibited at the Photography Show in Birmingham and we love the buzz these shows create. For me this was the most interesting year. Previous years were very much about educating consumers on why to make the switch to Sony and about selling our mirrorless systems, whereas this year we saw a lot of returning customers looking for system upgrades or expansion of their current equipment. For us it’s also great to have a lot of third parties complementing our existing systems and building into them, such as our long lasting relationship with Zeiss and the newly announced partnership with Profoto. The Photography Show was a great reflection of our efforts to establish ourselves as a sustainable player in
the market and convince new and old customers with our innovative developments. I understand you attended NAB in April. How successful/worthwhile do you find events such as The Photography Show and NAB etc. Does Sony itself get a lot of out of them? FL: We recognise that engaging with our retail partners and consumers at trade shows and through workshops is increasingly important and therefore dedicate a lot of resource to these events. Customers are increasingly savvy and are striving for more knowledge and insight and these platforms are a perfect way for us to engage with them. At the same time, of course our portfolio of ambassadors and the number of professional photographers using our products is growing. Trade shows are a great opportunity for us to talk to our customers and to hear from them about why they love our systems and how we can improve in future. We have a growing ambassador programme; and as a part of that programme they run workshops and talks to showcase how our Sony products give them the possibility to produce beautiful photography and videography.
www.pixel.co.uk 7
SONY UK
Pixel attended the Sony Trade Show earlier this year. What kind of products did you find to cause the most interest from retailers? FL: Our annual trade show is a platform for us to reconvene with our retail partners and press at the beginning of each year to discuss objectives and direction for the year ahead. This year, even though we had no new announcements, it was a great opportunity to have the whole range on display and remind our retail partners about key technologies and features. With regards to 4K equipment, what are your most advanced products currently in the market and why? Have you seen much of an increase in the demand for 4K recently? AG: We increasingly find that consumers are looking for cameras with enhanced video capabilities and with 4K becoming and more accessible to the everyday the standard in many homes, be it TVs or consumer. Blu-ray players, offering 4K in our models We have seen tremendous growth in is an opportunity for our retailers to sellthe 4K market, and we are positioned up and to enable our customers to shoot really well thanks incredibly sharp and to our professional professional looking broadcast division, content. Some of our “For us as a giving us the possibility consumer cameras, to demonstrate our like the new a9, are manufacturer it’s an product strength and really blurring the line incredibly exciting time offer great equipment to between consumer for the industry, and we our retail partners. and professional are seeing our products video products and change the market and Let’s talk about VR. make them a great What is your view one-stop solution for its dynamics rapidly” on Virtual Reality our retail partners products and do and customers. you have plans to Our professional incorporate this into the photography camcorders like the FS-7 are groundand imaging sector? breaking innovations for professional AG: VR is an exciting development and filmmakers, and on the consumer we watch with interest how it is going side, products such as the a7SII make to unfold for consumer electronics. Our professional film-making more affordable
team at Sony PlayStation are heavily involved. Can you give us a brief explanation of Sony’s plans for the near future? Do you have plans to bring out new product lines etc.? AG: We obviously can’t comment on future releases but we believe we are in a very strong position in the market. For us as a manufacturer, it’s an incredibly exciting time for the industry, and we are seeing our products change the market and its dynamics rapidly. We’ve come a long way since we started and are now in a strong and challenging position against the most established brands in the industry. We have strong ambassador and retail partner relationships that continue to grow and provide strong support for our business. We also have the unique advantage of manufacturing all our components in-house, from lenses, to sensors to our processor algorithms, which ensure that our products are nothing short of technical excellence. Our latest announcement, the a9 is opening the door into the professional market and shows our dedication to forefront innovation and cutting-edge design. Our range now consists of 24 full-frame FE lenses, 7 full-frame mirrorless bodies and a vast selection of accessories. To quote our engineering colleagues in Tokyo, “this is just the beginning”.
FL: Fred Lange, Head of Photo Specialist Channel AG: Arnaud Gutleben, Head of Digital Imaging Marketing
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CANON
Live for the Story
Last month, Canon launched ‘Live for the Story’ - a new European brand proposition for the consumer and professional imaging business - in a bid to shift the company’s perception amongst a younger audience
T
he fully integrated campaign, which launched back in May across 19 European markets, sees Canon’s new brand proposition take centre stage. ‘Live for the Story’ encourages people to find special memories in all moments of their life, no matter where they are or what they are doing. Led by London-based agencies VCCP and PHD, the campaign features real-life scenarios created to intrigue viewers to want to know more about the story behind the picture, and every touch point that Canon’s customers will come into contact with now heroes the ‘Live for the story’ proposition, including the website and all ecommerce. Canon Senior Director – CIG Marketing, Lee Bonniface said: “Live for the story’ is an industry defining approach developed to completely change the way that people view Canon. The shift sees Canon cement itself as a storytelling brand, ensuring that every output from its entire ecosystem and product portfolio helps consumers to tell their story.” “Remaining relevant in an industry that is constantly shifting and evolving is exciting, and something we are embracing to enable us to reach a younger audience”, said Lee. “Here at Canon we offer so
“‘Live for the Story’ encourages people to find special memories in all moments of their life, no matter where they are or what they are doing” much more than just photography. We print memories, we save memories and we help to make memories with apps such as Lifecake.” As part of this launch Canon is looking for someone to travel the world, identifying 365 global stories. This comes at a time when 200 million photos are uploaded to Facebook, and 95 million videos and photos are uploaded to Instagram, every single day. As a result, the art of storytelling is getting lost in an ocean of selfies, cats and infamous avocado brunches. The PR and Social campaign, entitled ‘365 Days of Summer’, will be led by famous storyteller, Zoë Kravitz. Supported by CRM for both existing and new audiences, fans are being encouraged to share their stories of summer using the
hashtag #LiveForTheStory to be in with a chance of winning. Zoë Kravitz said: “Summer is a time of spontaneity and living in the moment. We want to encourage people to live every second to the fullest, because it’s then that the best stories can happen.” Those who think they have what it takes to inspire people to find their own stories can apply by sharing their most memorable summer story on Instagram with the story behind it, tagging @ CanonUK and #LiveForTheStory. Submissions will be judged on a number of elements including storytelling ability, visual appeal, originality and inspirational qualities, and the successful candidate will be required to travel the world, chasing summer in order to identify 365 inspiring stories throughout the course of the job. The role is all expenses paid and, of course, offers a holiday allowance of 365 days per annum. Lee concluded: “Experiences are what matters and this is where our focus is. ‘Live for the Story’ has been developed to inspire people to do just that. Through every element of Canon’s repositioning they are encouraging people to be ready to capture stories they are creating every day.”
www.pixel.co.uk 9
The Photography Industry:
Then and Now
Many amateur photographers dream of turning their hobby into a thriving business; it’s almost a natural progression. Some may even call it a noble pursuit. Who wouldn’t want to get paid to do what they love doing? Here, Pixel explores the gradual change in the photographic industry and how it has become more enthusiast-based
I
t’s 2017 and we are in an ever-evolving industry. Thanks to the Internet and especially YouTube, it’s easier now to learn photography than ever before. Also, while we are in the era of the mobile phone, as we all know, more and more people are taking photos than ever before,
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whilst many others are getting creative with using editing apps like the booming VSCO. Photography is now at everyone’s fingertips. Whether it is because of the mobile phone in their pocket, or the camera they have just been given by family, yet over the years, smartphones have killed the compact camera. We are in a technology age where the world is constantly changing and industries are evolving. Nothing is safe. Adapt or perish. But what does this mean for the industry? The main positive is that there are more people trying to become professional photographers than ever before. This can only be a good thing for the pro market. But what happens to the mass public who no longer
feel the need to buy a compact camera when they can take nice photos on their phone? This opens up a potential market that didn’t exist, they just need to see the benefit of what the brands are offering. Some brands have embraced this fascinating time while others have stagnated. In the professional market, fewer people feel the need to spend thousands of pounds upgrading their camera body with the benefit of a couple more million megapixels or a few extra frames per second. The smart manufacturers are working harder than ever to bring us fresh and new exciting things, and they need too to keep interest and generate sales. The public are smarter than they used to be. More creative marketing is required to achieve the goal of making people see the benefit in investing in a separate camera. Bloggers are a great example of people that are having a beneficial effect on the industry. As blogging is getting more and more competitive, the most savvy are searching for ways to make their profiles better than others. They know that the main way to do this is by creating the best quality imagery for their social media. Having a camera like
“The public are smarter than they used to be. More creative marketing is required to achieve the goal of making people see the benefit in investing in a separate camera” the Olympus Pen range or other brands equivalents produces a better quality than any phone. They aren’t compact in the traditional sense of the word but they are much smaller than the average DSLR, so fairly easy to carry around. We are in a time where personal image is more important than it’s ever been, so whereas before it was cooler to have a camera phone rather than a compact, now it’s cooler to have a camera instead of just using your phone. Also, the great thing about bloggers is that they are influential; they are great people who help instigate the change we are seeing now.
www.pixel.co.uk 11
INSIGHT
Ten years ago people bought a compact camera to take good photos on holiday. It was the standard procedure for the average family. There were also lots of other uses - drunken nights out, pictures of pets, kids growing up. Then came along the mobile phone with a camera. At the start, as we all know, the quality of these images was pretty terrible. Of course though, as with everything, as time moved on, it got better and better. Forward to this day and not only are the images from phones pretty amazing, but users now have everything they need on one high-quality device - if they select the right device that is. Of course phones are generally slimmer and lighter as well, ruling out pretty much any need for a compact camera. Although for a while, this may seem
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like such a colossally negative thing to happen to the industry, we feel that overall, it has been very positive. The monumental change gave manufacturers a proverbial push. They are forced to innovate and draw attention to themselves in a volatile era. As technology advances products get better but never before have innovations happened at such a rapid rate. In this time it’s important to keep the focus on the pros who deserve the product attention they recieve, but also innovate and recognise that smaller cameras are becoming more and more important within the changing market, just in a different way than they once were. Cameras are becoming cool again, and its an exciting time.
“I feel that the monumental change gave manufacturers a proverbial push. They are forced to innovate and draw attention to themselves in a volatile era. As technology advances products get better but never before have innovations happened at such a rapid rate�
REVIEW
Pixel Review:
3 Legged Thing EQUINOX Albert Carbon Fibre Tripod with AirHed 360
Following on from last month’s review of the Toshiba Canvio Drive, in this month’s issue, Pixel reviews the EQUINOX Albert Carbon Fibre Tripod from 3 Legged Thing
T
he first point to be made is that the Albert is cosmetically beautiful, but then so are all of 3 Legged Thing’s tripods. It’s not often that you find tripods that incorporate the whole package and to put it plainly, 3 Legged Thing have instigated a change in the industry. Everything about the use of this tripod seems effortless, and it’s completely smooth in all of its movements. The twist and grip mechanism on the legs is almost too easy. When having to adjust a tripod on shoots, the easier users can adjust the height, the better; it saves valuable time and effort for photographers spend on what’s important… Creating their photographs. The maximum height is 5”, which is perfect for most situations. The tripod is constructed with 100% pure, eight-layer Carbon Fibre to make it as lightweight as possible whilst retaining maximum strength and durability. It boasts a whopping 30kg load capacity, which is more than enough for practically any situation imaginable. Having a load capacity this high is enough to put any
user’s mind at ease, and for the worriers out there, it’s always reassuring to know that the capacity is six times the needed amount. It comes equipped with a detachable monopod, completely taking away the need for owning a separate device, of course making travelling much lighter and more efficient. One of the main elements that makes 3 Legged Thing’s products so appealing is that everything they do is done differently; they pride themselves on being unique, and they deliver everytime. Included with this product is a Multi Tool, which has a hex key, coin key, carabiner and bottle opener, and for many photographers, this tool will be a godsend. Additionally, the AirHed 360 Precision ball-head
“The tripod is constructed with 100% pure, eight-layer Carbon Fibre to make it as lightweight as possible whilst retainint maximum strength and durability. It boasts a whopping 30kg load capacity”
with 360 clamp is just as brilliant as the rest of the product. It’s one of the smoothest we’ve come across and is extremely easy to adjust; it’s engineered to perfection. The EQUINOX Albert Carbon Fibre is a tremendous tripod and here at Pixel, we thank the team at 3 Legged thing for their constant innovations and forward thinking. The industry needs more brands like this.
www.pixel.co.uk 13
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RETAIL SOLUTIONS FOR THE PRINT PROFESSIONAL
Pretty In Pink InPrint tested the brand new Pink Duochrome Film and the the Hot Pink and Mint framed Film with a little help from the Polaroid 600 camera. Here, we share our thoughts… Continued on P16...
Impossible
Pretty In Pink Continued...
We first tested the brand new Pink Duochrome Film, deciding to keep it simple and use pretty local scenery on a rare sunny day. We felt that it’s best to see this beauty in action in natural, earthly surroundings, so off we went down to the local park, which has an eclectic mix of trees, ponds and interestingness. Here at InPrint, we like to add grain and textures into our images because we love the atmosphere it gives to an image. We knew it was going to be a great experience to shoot with 100% authenticity. We fell in love with the pink film as soon as the first one developed. There is something extremely special and clearly unique about it. To get the benefit out of it, users have to take any colour in the scene in front of their eyes out of the equation, because it simply doesn’t matter with the pink tint. This makes the consumer focus purely on what is in
“We fell in love with the pink film as soon as the first one developed. There is something extremely special and clearly unique about it”
front of them - the subject, shapes and light. Of course, as with any film related camera, each image taken counts, so it’s important to take the time needed to compose the images before hand so no valuable film is wasted. Once we had decided on our first
in print
shot, we clicked the shutter and waited in anticipation as the film developed. We left it for 5 minutes and sneaked a peek, and the result was glorious. The colour we could see coming through was fantastic and the black border adds a real punch to the films. We would be interested to see what they would look like with white but black was the correct choice. We had two packs of the pink to shoot, and we got as experimental as possible. Shooting into the light was fun, and we loved the effect it created; almost like the sun was burning the film. We also shot some with the light on the subject, with some harsh shadows. We adored the results. We thought the film rendered the tones really well, especially as there are limited functions available to help control the outcome. Overall we had a ball shooting with this film. For photographers who want to document every day life, normal films are the right choice, but for those who want to create an end product that’s more edgy, these films are perfect. Now it was time to play with the Hot Pink and Mint framed films, and here at InPrint, we can’t think of any way better than these to capture your authentic summer photos. The quality of the captures is again, phenomenal and the coloured frames just add to the finished results. They’re perfect for big, creative shoots for photographers who want a truly authentic vibe, or equally just for capturing the simple, valuable moments in life. Each to their own; that’s the beauty of photography! www.lukeandmandy.com
NEWS
Polaroid Acquired by The Impossible Project’s Largest Shareholder
For this month’s InPrint News section, we take a look at the big news story that emerged in the industry last month: Polaroid’s brand and intellectual property has been acquired by the largest shareholder of The Impossible Project
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ow a single family has control of both the Polaroid brand and The Impossible Project. The company that owns the Polaroid brand and IP, PLR IP Holdings, LLC, was just sold by an ownership group led by the Pohlad family to an ownership group led by the Smolokowski family, particularly Mr Wiaczeslaw (Slava) Smolokowski – a Polish businessman and now a majority shareholder of the Impossible Project, who produces the instant film for Polaroid cameras. The Pohlad family, which owns the Minnesota Twins baseball team, purchased its majority stake in Polaroid back in December 2014 for $70 million. Wiacezlaw Smolokowski, an energy industry mogul who founded one of the world’s largest commodity trading houses, originally acquired a 20% stake in The
CREDITS & CONTACTS
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Impossible Project back in 2012 after being persuaded to do so by his son, Oskar. In 2014, Oskar Smolokowski took his current position as CEO of The Impossible Project while still in his mid 20s. The elder Smolokowski is now Impossible’s largest shareholder. This latest Polaroid deal brings two related brands under one roof. The Impossible Project purchased the last remaining Polaroid factory in Enschede, Netherlands, in October 2008 for $3.1 million after Polaroid announced the end
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of its instant film production in February 2008. Since 2008, Impossible has successfully launched a number of new instant film lines, as well as its first camera, the I-1. Polaroid President and CEO, Scott Hardy has commented: “We are also very pleased to welcome the new ownership group to the Polaroid family, and excited to begin writing the next chapter in the story of the Polaroid brand.” Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, and there’s no word yet on when we’ll see the Polaroid and Impossible Project brands come together in a closer way in the future. But it seems likely that there are exciting days ahead for fans of Polaroid and instant photography.
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