Hot products from The Digital Show 2012
The Digital Show is the Southern Hemisphere's largest exhibition of photography and tech gear. Held in Melbourne in 2012, CNET Australia was there to check out all the latest gear.
Camera and accessories manufacturers were out in force to show off their new wares, but there were plenty of opportunities for like-minded photographers to meet and greet at various stages, throughout the show.
Stay tuned for our video features and interviews from the show, coming soon.
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Usually, at The Digital Show (formerly known as PMA, if you were wondering), there are plenty of promotional stunts to be found. This year's show was tamer on that front, and all the better for it. Over at the Olympus stand, two colourful geishas greeted guests as they perused the latest cameras.
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Part of the Olympus stand was dedicated to a "shoot-off" between the OM-D Micro Four Thirds interchangeable lens camera and any full-frame camera. There was a model, studio lighting and a professional printer, so visitors could compare their shots side-by-side. Stay tuned for the video if you're interested in the results.
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Underwater casings proved to be more popular, than ever, with photographers. This was the case for the OM-D.
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Still at the Olympus stand, these bonsai trees were over 50 years old. They were even insured. Turns out, they were even more expensive than the brand new cameras on display.
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What would a photographic expo be, without a display of the telephotos might and glory? At Canon's stand, photographers got the chance to shoot with some massively long lenses, on all sorts of SLR bodies.
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Not to be outdone by ridiculously expensive telephoto lenses, the C300 Cinema EOS camera makes its debut to Australian audiences. It's so precious, we had to take a photo of it from behind a plate glass.
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Here's a camera that professionals have been waiting to get their hands on — the EOS-1D X.
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Nikon showed off just as much telephoto might with its range of lenses.
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With a prime position at the front of the hall, visitors walked past the range of Nikon cameras, to their right, and had the opportunity to listen to various speakers in the Nikon theatre, to the left.
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One of those speakers was Joe McNally, who shared his knowledge and experience to an audience of photographers. If McNally was on stage, it was pretty much guaranteed to be a packed theatre.
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Award for the coolest product at the show this year? That has to go to Aerobot. Here, Simon Jardine and Felicity Durham, of Aussie-based Aerobot, pieced together the Cinestar 8 octocopter, which is an aerial robot that can carry a camera. Used for aerial photography and videography, it has a GPS module on it that can help the device navigate to the right spots for taking photos.
This model can carry a camera and lens configuration weighing up to 2kg, and is recommended for use with cameras such as the Sony NEX-7 or Canon EOS 600D. It can fly for up to 24 minutes, at a time.
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A prototype of a new Aerobot, which is going to make its debut in the coming weeks.
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Not content with hauling heavy-duty digital SLRs to the skies, there's also a miniature remote-controlled Aerobot available, just for fun.
Other, smaller models include a quadrocopter, which can carry cameras such as the GoPro.
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Want to see some footage captured using Aerobots? Check out this amazing showreel.
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For anyone interested in film-making with digital SLRs, there were plenty of cinema-ready kits, such as the Red Rock Micro, for sale.
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More crazy contraptions were over at Nauticam, which makes waterproof casings for digital SLRs. This model is for the Canon 5D Mark III, but there are also units for the Nikon D800, Sony NEX-7 and a range of other popular cameras.
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The insides of the Nauticam shows just how many bits and pieces go into them.
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There's even a baby version available for compact cameras, like the Canon PowerShot S100.
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Fujifilm showed off its photo-editing table, powered by Microsoft Surface.
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The limited-edition Fuji X100 in its special box, with metal lens hood, ring adapter, protector filter and leather case, was so special, it's behind a plate glass. We're starting to see a pattern here. You can pick one of these up for around AU$1599.
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The belle of the Fujifilm stall was the XPro-1, with a dedicated area for showcasing prints that were taken on the camera by some of Australia's best photographers.
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More plate glass, more expensive cameras. The Hasselblad H4D.
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Want to see the internals of a whole bunch of Zeiss lenses? The Digital Show was the place to be.
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Glass within glass. How apt.
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Towards the back of the exhibition hall, several panels of judging took place for the Australian Professional Photography Awards (APPAs).
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The prize for best-dressed inflatable, goes to Hoodman.
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The stand had a couple of interesting bits of camera kit, including this hood loupe which sits on the back of your camera's LCD screen, so you can see it easily in sunlight and glare.
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For those bespectacled folk who find it difficult to press one's eye up to a camera's viewfinder, these glasses provide an interesting solution. Buy the frames and insert your own prescription glass, which can then be flipped up and down, as appropriate.
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Roaming Polaroids were on the show floor.
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Did you hear the news? Finally, Eye-Fi is coming to Australia. These wireless SD cards allow you to, almost instantaneously, transfer photos and video from your camera to a computer, smartphone or tablet, via Wi-Fi.
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What's this? A GoPro? No. It's just one of many action camera lookalikes, the AEE Action Camcorder.
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Nope, this one wasn't a GoPro either — it's a GoCam waterproof action camcorder.
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At the actual GoPro stand, there were plenty of display models and some spectacular footage from the cameras. Here's some from the 3D Hero System on show, a dedicated 3D housing for two GoPro HD Hero or Hero2 cameras, including a synchronisation cable.
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Nikon showed off its brand new cherry red D3200. Shiny.
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It wasn't all just imaging solutions, with post-capture options on show, too. At Epson's stand, this beast was printing off canvas-sized prints.
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Canon's stand also showcased photo books and images, printed on its DreamLabo commercial printer; of which, there are only two in Australia.
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Need a high-end display solution? There's none more famous in the imaging space than Eizo.
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We're suckers for softboxes and lighting solutions. This giant reflctor took up plenty of room on the show floor, and had a diameter of around 1.5 metres.
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An old-school Polaroid passport camera on show.
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A brand-new product that was announced just before the show, the 75mm f/1.8 lens for Olympus Micro Four Thirds cameras.
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The new Tough TG-1 was also at the show.
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Fancy a photo booth picture? There were plenty of those around, too.
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Lots of expensive glass on display, including the Sigma's 300mm telephoto.
Latest comments (Add your comment)
Loved the Aerobot footage, tracking the surfers on the wave was awesome, and the amazing views of the waterfalls were breathtaking.
With the telephoto lenses, the camera bodies blur into minature... even the full frame monsters look tiny when attached to thoses lenses.
The cut away of the lenses are nice, gives you perspective of what its like on the inside