The Photography Show 2015 – NEC Birmingham

This is my second time attending this show. It is improving and something I really love about it all is the varied amount of stalls. Unlike a lot of shows that seem to be album sellers heavy, the different sellers at The Photography Show is always a welcome sight. Two years in attendance The Photography Show 2015 was an improvement on the 2014 edition and it really is coming on leaps and bounds.

My main aim for this show attendance was to look for new gadgets for my photography studio here in Northampton but also to collect my copy of the Photographer Academy Yearbook (my image is on the front cover). Didnt take me long to find the front cover, a lovely chat with the team and off I popped hunting gadgets. 

The Bizarre

One thing that I found bizarre that given the amount of female photographers, how many companies still resort to very much glamour promo models in skin tight clothes and teeny tops to pull punters in. Instead I took a wide berth. If  a girl who bless her soul cant answer basic questions about the product she is promoting I am NOT interested in learning more. Can we all move on from the ‘just a pretty face/body’ promo models of yesteryear and perhaps be more current? Use promo models who actually understand the product/used it at least once perhaps. At least then I dont feel women are being demoted to nothing more than pretty eyecandy for people to take photos of (logos cross the chest area seem to be a popular thing to photograph that day…cant think why.) I dont mind models promoting but lets get the tech knowledge up at least.Rant over.

There was some great bargains to be had such as a Bowens Gemini twin head kit for less than £800 (damn it for not bringing my card to snap this up!), old film reels and the amazing Disabled Photographers Society were there again with their masses of vintage cameras. Yep I made purchases with them as I do every time I see them. My favourite stalls were the Nikon (I love NIKON), Fuji film Instax and the Bowens stand. If nothing else for the expertise of the staff and the layout. They really have their target audiences in mind. I wish I had purchased a Fujifilm instax camera but I didnt. STUPID move. I use Polaroid so often in the studio for fun snaps and even the odd Emily Soto inspired shoot, but after a recent batch of my Impossible Project film turned out to be all duff (ggrrr) I am seriously looking into switching cameras.

Instax competition entry

Spotted Brian Newmany aka Mr Angie Pontani Aka Lady Gaga’s trumpet player. All round awesome man

I sat in on a few of the presentations, again the Nikon school provided a fab varied amount of speakers despite a few from the previous years presenting again. There always seemed to be a presentation going on so if you miss one, you sort of fall into another. The live stage had a VERY impressive amount of speakers and I found myself listening in to the food photography session. An area I have not been interested in but was super interesting and already home I am ‘staging’ my first food shoot.

Roll on next year’s show. I am putting it in the diary.