Introduction: Photokina 2004 Show Report: Digital Photography Review

Photokina 2004 Show Report

Welcome to the Digital Photography Review Photokina 2004 show report. The Photokina 'World of Imaging' Trade Show is held every two years at the Cologne Exhibition Center, Germany. It took place from 28th September to 3rd October (10 AM to 6 PM). The last show held in 2002 attracted 157,911 visitors and had 1,546 exhibitors. The build-up to Photokina began back in July when the first batches of new camera announcements began to come through.

Note: This is not designed to be comprehensive report of the entire show but rather a look at the new digital photography related products announced and shown at Photokina.

Photokina 2004 Summary

Photokina is now over and it was certainly the biggest Photokina to date with over 100 new digital photography products announced. We had a great (if tiring) time covering the show live (thank goodness for WiFi). Here are a few statistics from the show (from our point of view):

Show report: 21 stands, 270 images, 3,000 words transmitted live from the show floor
News: 76 news articles posted since September 1st
Reviews / previews: 11 articles posted based on brand new / pre-production models
Products announced: Over 100 new digital photography products (major manufacturers)
Site stats (27/Sep - 3/Oct; 7 days): 3.2 million visitors, 17.6 million pages read
Forums (27/Sep - 3/Oct; 7 days): 77,546 messages posted

Photokina 2004, our Top 10 new products

Canon EOS 20D Digital SLR
Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D Digital SLR
Epson P-2000 Portable Storage Device
Nikon D2X
Epson R-D1 Digital Rangefinder
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II
Mamiya ZD Digital Medium Format SLR
Olympus E-300 Digital SLR
Pentax Optio X Digital Camera
Leica Digital-Modul-R

New Product Index (109 total)

Manufacturer (& stand report)	Product type	Date (2004)	New products / Information
ACD Systems	Software	Sep 28	ACD Systems ACDSee 7.0 NEW
Adobe	Software	Sep 15	Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0 NEW
Adobe	Technology	Sep 27	Adobe Digital Negative file format NEW
Canon	Digital SLR	Aug 19	Canon EOS 20D NEW
	Digital SLR	Sep 21	Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II NEW
	Lens	Aug 19	Canon EF-S 17-85 mm F4.5-F5.6 IS NEW
	Lens	Aug 19	Canon EF-S 10-22 mm F3.5-F4.5 NEW
	Flash	Aug 19	Canon Speedlite 580EX NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 19	Canon PowerShot G6 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 19	Canon PowerShot S70 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 21	Canon PowerShot SD20 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 21	Canon PowerShot SD200 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 21	Canon PowerShot SD300 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 19	Canon PowerShot A400 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 20	Canon PowerShot A85 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 19	Canon PowerShot A95 NEW
Casio	Compact Digicam	Aug 25	Casio Exilim EX-Z50 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 25	Casio Exilim EX-Z55 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 25	Casio Exilim EX-S100 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 25	Casio Exilim EX-P700 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 25	Casio QV-R61 NEW
Contax	Compact Digicam	Sep 28	Contax U4R NEW
Contax	Compact Digicam	Sep 28	Contax I4R NEW
Epson	Compact Digicam	Jul 12	Epson PhotoPC L-410 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 28	Epson PhotoPC L-500V NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	Epson P-2000 Portable Storage Device NEW
	Digital Rangefinder	Sep 28	Epson R-D1 (working sample) NEW
Fujifilm	Digital SLR	Sep 22	Fujifilm FinePix S3 Pro NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 28	Fujifilm FinePix E500 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 28	Fujifilm FinePix E510 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 28	Fujifilm FinePix E550 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 21	Fujifilm FinePix F455 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 28	Fujifilm FinePix F810 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 28	Fujifilm FinePix S3500 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 28	Fujifilm FinePix S5500 Zoom NEW
	Storage	Sep 27	Fujifilm 1 GB xD-Picture Card NEW
HP	Compact Digicam	Aug 2	HP Photosmart M307 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 2	HP Photosmart M407 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 2	HP Photosmart R507 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 2	HP Photosmart R607 NEW
Kodak	Compact Digicam	Aug 3	Kodak Easyshare DX7590 NEW
Konica Minolta	Digital SLR	Sep 15	Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 15	Konica Minolta DiMAGE A200 NEW
	Software	Sep 15	Konica Minolta DiMAGE Master NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 7	Konica Minolta DiMAGE X50 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 7	Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z3 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 7	Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z10 NEW
Leica	Digital Back	Sep 28	Leica Digital-Modul-R (working sample) NEW
Lexar	Storage	Sep 27	Lexar Four new card readers NEW
Lexar	Storage	Sep 27	Lexar ActiveMemory NEW
Mamiya	Digital SLR	Sep 29	Mamiya ZD NEW
Mamiya	Digital Back	Sep 29	Mamiya ZD back NEW
Microsoft	Technology	Sep 28	Microsoft MTP/IP NEW
Nikon	Digital SLR	Sep 16	Nikon D2X NEW
	Lens	Sep 16	Nikon AF-S 300 mm F2.8G VR NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 16	Nikon Coolpix 4800 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 16	Nikon Coolpix 8400 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 16	Nikon Coolpix 8800 NEW
Olympus	Digital SLR	Sep 27	Olympus E-300 (EVOLT) NEW
	Lens	Sep 27	Olympus ED 7-14 mm F4.0 NEW
	Lens	Sep 27	Olympus E 14-45 mm F3.5-F5.6 NEW
	Lens	Sep 27	Olympus E 40-150 mm F3.5-F4.5 NEW
	Flash	Sep 27	Olympus FL-36 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 16	Olympus C-7000 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 3	Olympus Stylus Verve (mju:mini) NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 16	Olympus D-535 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 27	Olympus D-590 Zoom NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 27	Olympus AZ-2 NEW
	Storage	Sep 27	Olympus 1 GB xD-Picture Card NEW
Panasonic	Compact Digicam	Jul 21	Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX2 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 21	Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX7 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 21	Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ3 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 21	Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ20 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Jul 21	Panasonic Lumix DMC-LC80 NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	Panasonic Pro High Speed SD NEW
Pentax	Digital SLR	Sep 13	Pentax *ist DS NEW
	Lens	Aug 8	Pentax D FA Macro 50 mm F2.8 NEW
	Lens	Aug 8	Pentax D FA Macro 100 mm F2.8 NEW
	Lens	Sep 13	Pentax DA 18-55 mm F3.5-F5.6 AL NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 16	Pentax Optio S50 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 16	Pentax Optio 750Z NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 24	Pentax Optio S5i NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 24	Pentax Optio X NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 13	Pentax Optio SV NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 13	Pentax Optio MX4 NEW
Polaroid	Compact Digicam	Sep 28	Polaroid x530 (working sample) NEW
Samsung	Compact Digicam	Aug 6	Samsung Digimax U-CA4 NEW
Samsung	Compact Digicam	Aug 5	Samsung Digimax V6 NEW
SanDisk	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk Digital Photo TV Player NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk ImageMate CF NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk ImageMate 5-in-1 NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk ImageMate 12-in-1 NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk Shoot and Store (Europe) NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk Ultra II 4 & 8 GB CF, 2 GB SD NEW
	Storage	Sep 28	SanDisk Extreme III NEW
Sigma	Lens	Sep 22	Sigma 18-125 mm F3.5-5.6 DC 4/3 Lens NEW
	Lens	Sep 22	Sigma APO Macro 150 mm F2.8 EX DG HSM Lens NEW
	Lens	Sep 22	Sigma 24-70 mm F2.8 EX DG Macro Lens NEW
	Lens	Sep 22	Sigma 28-70 F2.8 EX DG Lens NEW
	Flash	Sep 22	Sigma EM-140 DG Ring Flash NEW
Sony	Compact Digicam	Jul 21	Sony CyberShot DSC-P150 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 29	Sony CyberShot DSC-L1 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 29	Sony CyberShot DSC-T3 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Aug 29	Sony CyberShot DSC-V3 NEW
	Compact Digicam	Sep 10	Sony CyberShot DSC-M1 NEW
Tamron	Lens	Sep 28	Tamron SP AF 11-18 mm F4.5-F5.6 Di-II NEW
Tamron	Lens	Sep 28	Tamron SP AF 18-200 mm F3.5 - F6.3 Di-II NEW
Ulead	Software	Sep 27	Ulead PhotoImpact 10 NEW
Wacom	Accessory	Sep 10	Wacom Intuos 3 Tablet NEW

Please note that all of the above products are brand new and just announced, our 'NEW' indicator simply marks those products which have been addded to this list within the last three days.

Live from the show floor (posting history)

As we did at PMA earlier in the year we posted live stand reports and photos direct from the show floor. At Photokina we used a Canon EOS 20D and a pair of Sony Vaio notebooks. The table below shows a list of pages uploaded / modified in reverse date order. Text and analysis were by Simon Joinson, Images by Phil Askey.

Company / Stand / Products		Last updated
Adobe	(Photoshop Elements 3.0, Digital Negativ...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Canon	(EOS 20D, EOS-1Ds Mark II, EF-S 17-85 mm...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Casio	(Exilim EX-Z50, Exilim EX-Z55, Exilim EX...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Epson	(PhotoPC L-410, PhotoPC L-500V, P-2000 P...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Fujifilm	(FinePix S3 Pro, FinePix E500 Zoom, Fine...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
HP	(Photosmart M307, Photosmart M407, Photo...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Kodak	(Easyshare DX7590)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Konica Minolta	(Maxxum 7D, DiMAGE A200, DiMAGE Master, ...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Leica	(Digital-Modul-R (working sample))	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Lexar	(Four new card readers, ActiveMemory)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Mamiya	(ZD, ZD back)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Microsoft	(MTP/IP)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Nikon	(D2X, AF-S 300 mm F2.8G VR, Coolpix 4800...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Olympus	(E-300 (EVOLT), ED 7-14 mm F4.0, E 14-45...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Panasonic	(Lumix DMC-FX2, Lumix DMC-FX7, Lumix DMC...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Pentax	(*ist DS, D FA Macro 50 mm F2.8, D FA Ma...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Polaroid	(x530 (working sample))	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Samsung	(Digimax U-CA4, Digimax V6)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
SanDisk	(Digital Photo TV Player, ImageMate CF, ...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Sigma	(18-125 mm F3.5-5.6 DC 4/3 Lens, APO Mac...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT
Sony	(CyberShot DSC-P150, CyberShot DSC-L1, C...)	3 Oct 04 22:54 CEDT

Photokina 2004 Trends

Seven megapixel 1/1.8" CCD - the latest 'drop in' upgrade for the manufacturers
Smaller sensors, 1/2.5" and 1/2.7" becoming more 'the norm'
Larger LCD monitors (upgrade models going from 1.5" to 1.8", 1.8" to 2.0")
More 'big zoom' cameras at budget prices
Very few 'bargain basement' cameras - mostly affected by cheap imports / cameraphones
Even more digital SLR's
A few digital cameras with MPEG-4 video codec coming through
Smaller, neater, better build quality
Fewer compact cameras with viewfinders
Digital SLRs
Dark horse manufacturer: Panasonic