Photokina, where camera nerds wrestle with wants vs. needs
The camera industry’s giant, biennial trade show is on in Cologne from Sept. 20-25
Canon and Sony launched their highly anticipated new dSLRs.
The photo industry's biggest trade show is where camera makers like to launch their latest wares and this year's Photokina didn't disappoint. Both Canon and Sony unveiled their highly anticipated new digital SLRs, the 5D mkIV and Alpha A99II.
Lens companies also bring out the big guns at Photokina.
Regular picture-taking folks make up the bulk of the camera-buying market, but Photokina is also where the optically-obsessed showcase their flashiest, niche equipment.
But it was Fujifilm that stole the show, according to many industry watchers.
The GFX 50S is the Japanese brand's first digital medium-format camera (its newly designed sensor is way bigger than the standard 35-millimetre ones that form the benchmark for most higher end dSLRs), and Fuji promises to sell it for "under $10,000" US. A price tag in that range is, believe it or not, quite a bit more reasonable than other cameras in its class, which is giving Fuji some potentially game-changing caché.
Somewhat paradoxically there aren't many photos of the latest cameras, but tech site Engadget has a good review of the new Fuji.
Here's an attendee trying out a pair of Zeiss Optical virtual reality glasses on Tuesday.
The camera marketplace is crowded with quality.
Manufacturers continue to push powerful models on consumers, which makes it hard to pick a lemon when it comes to buying something new. But, as The Verge reports, several years of high quality releases make the need for upgrading from a good camera that's a few years old to a newer model a much harder sell.
One category making a comeback? Analog instant cameras like this one that uses the original Polaroid format.
Action cameras are another growing market.
Here's the new DJI Phantom 4 Quadcopter drone being put through its paces at Photokina this week.
