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BookExpo America (BEA 2013) Overview with Recommended Photo-Related Titles

I had a great day yesterday at the BookExpo America (BEA 2013) in New York City. I generally cover photo- and art-related trade shows and news, and this one had quite a bit to offer in those areas. The show ends today (Sat. 6/1/2013), and 6/1/2013 is the only day of the show in which non-industry professionals can attend the show. The cost to attend today is $49, and details can be found here:

https://www.bookexpoamerica.com/Power/#page=page-1

Even if you don’t attend the show, virtually all of the products I mention below can be found either online or in stores. Here are just a few of the booths I visited in which I saw things that really impressed me (the first four are photo-related, and the last four offer educational resources for children, which is a major category of the show). I think that educators and anyone who enjoys books will find the show fascinating.

If you’d like to see a full list of all the exhibitors, visit this page (just click on any company name for a link to their website).

1. Abbeville Press (Booth #1206): The art books on display in this booth are incredible. Two in particular caught my eye were: Southern Light: Images from Antarctica by David Nelson, and Celestial Realm: The Yellow Mountains of China by Wang Wusheng. The reproduction and image quality of both books is truly incredible. I also browsed through Photojournalism: 1855 to the Present (published in 2009) and thought that it was very well written. It is illustrated with many striking (and in some cases, upsetting) photographs, and is presented in a way that highlights the work of 54 different photographers. At the booth, you can also pick up a free poster highlighting 80 years of Best Picture Winners from the Oscars.

2. O’Reilly Media Inc. (Booth #1269 ): O’Reilly is known for their technical books, but the company also distributes books from photo book publisher Rocky Nook. Two books on display absolutely blew me away: The Art of Photography by Bruce Barnbaum, and Photographic Visions. Photographic Visions is a collection of images and tips from many different photographers.  An image is presented beautifully, and it is then deconstructed on subsequent pages so that the reader can truly understand what went into creating it. You can also get a “sneak peek” at an upcoming book entitled Beautiful Lego that showcases a lot of truly incredible artwork created using Lego-brand products.

3. Parragon Publishing (Booth #1846 and #1847): I was amazed at the photo quality of the following four books from this publisher: BIRDS, WOLVES, WILDCATS and HORSES. I also enjoyed browsing through the beautifully designed book: The Complete Guitar Encyclopedia, and the books: Then and Now: A world history of how people lived from ancient times to the present, 100 Cities of the World, and 100 Wonders of the World. There are also many innovative products on display from this publisher that combine products with books. One example is “Make Your Own Ice Pops,” which includes ice pop molds and a recipe book (perfect for the 95 degree weather we’re having in the Northeast!)

4. Browntrout Publishers (Booth #C1183): This booth is worth a visit just to browse through the many outstanding calendars that they produce (many featuring photography, including the work of photographer Dan Borris, who created the very popular “Yoga Dogs” and “Yoga Cats” books).

Even though I generally don’t cover children’s books for my website, because I have a young son, I’m always on the lookout for good books and apps for children, and I’ve purchased and read hundreds of titles over the last few years. Here are three companies who produce educational materials for children that really stood out in my mind:

5. Beaver Books (Booth #1167): This company produces many educational titles for children. One group of books that particularly impressed me were a series of books, each of which contains large posters and 100 stickers with the names of specific animals, dog breeds, etc. clearly typed out under each sticker. The four titles I saw were: My Favourite Playful Puppies, My Favourite Cuddly Kittens, My Favourite Baby Animals and My Favourite Farmyard Friends. Another product that truly amazed me is a series of books that uses a pen filled with water to bring out colors from specially-treated paper. They call them: “Palette Pages Painting Books.” The colors are quite vivid, and when the paper dries, the books can be used again, which is pure genius. What’s also nice is that there is quite a bit of text on each page that challenges kids to find things “hidden” inside the pages.

6. Nina Charles Publishing (Pumpkinheads) (Booth #C1182): Pumpkinheads has published five children’s board books to date, and they have some great-looking apps that look incredible on tablets. The author of all the books is Karen Kilpatrick (she is also one of the illustrators). You can learn about the company’s products, view and listen to a great read-along story, play online games and more on the company’s outstanding website: www.pumpkinheads.com.

7. AZ Books (Booth #1703): This company’s pop-up books with music are truly amazing. They also have many other educational materials for young people.

8. Publications International (Booth #2538 and Booth #2539): This company has a dizzying selection of products for children, as well as books for all audiences. My son loves one of their Disney book collections that comes with multiple books and a standalone reading device that resembles a smartphone. The audio is very clear, and it makes reading a lot of fun while imparting the many benefits that come with listening to a book being read as a child follows along with a story. They even offer books with embedded piano keyboards.

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PhotoPlus Expo 2012: Second Day Impressions from the Show Floor

Digital Silver Imaging’s Eric Luden holding a mounted print on Dibond to demonstrate how they can attach a brace to the back of a mounted print for easy and secure hanging on a wall. One of the main reasons I go to the PhotoPlus Expo is to see things like this.  

My second day at the PhotoPlus Expo in New York City on Friday, 10/26 was, like the first day, filled with photo-related goodness at every turn. Below is a list of more booths that I highly recommend stopping by if you are planning to visit the show. If you can’t make it to the show, or if you are not visiting today, I’ve linked each company’s name to its website so that you can find out more about each company. There are, of course, many more great products and services on the show floor, and I will be adding content from the show in the upcoming weeks.

1. Canon: Canon’s booth at the show is always big, but this year, it’s MASSIVE. The gallery has outstanding print samples from various Canon printers, the demo areas allow you to test Canon gear, and the Expo Stage is always a fantastic place to learn from Pros who specialize in both stills and video. Just to give you some idea of how much you can learn on the show floor, I’ve inserted Canon’s Expo Stage schedule below:

2. Squarespace: Squarespace built an amazing booth inside of a black box on the show floor. You can speak with one of their reps and learn about many of the features available in it’s two plans. I was blown away by the quality of the newest templates that are available inside the system. They make it extremely simple for photographers and other artists to make a great-looking website, and the cost for one of the plans is just $8/month. They also have a 10% off coupon code printed on the small notebooks that they are giving out on the center table inside the demo area.

3. Synology: This company specializes in NAS  (Network Attached Storage) enclosures, and their products are very impressive. They showed a small unit about the size of a softball that can hold four “laptop” or SSD 2.5-inch drives, as well as a larger enclosure that can hold 8 laptop, SSD or 5.25-inch drives (the larger enclosure is expandable to 16 drives total).

4. Gura Gear: GuraGear makes camera bags with many features that set them apart from the competition. The split design, and unique handles are just two of the things that impressed me.

5. Digital Silver Imaging: This company, based in Massachusetts, does incredible printmaking for clients around the world. One of the things that sets them apart from others is that they can take a digital file and make real photo-based fiber and RC black and white and toned prints. They also print color or black and white using pigment inkjet printers, and they do mounting to materials like Dibond and aluminum.

Below are five companies who make plug-ins to help extend the functionality of Lightroom, Photoshop and other applications. Some also make phone and/or tablet apps that should definitely be seen. Each has a great booth with live demos worth stopping by to see. You can learn tips and tricks from people who know the software inside and out:

6. Nik Software 

7. OnOne Software

8. Athentech Imaging

9. Topaz Labs

10. Datacolor: Datacolor has many products made to help photographers get sharper images from their lenses and better color/consistent screen matches and prints. The company’s small but extremely useful SpyderCUBE is one of my favorite products for helping to get more accurate color in-camera under different lighting conditions. I highly recommend getting a demo of the products that you might want to add to your workflow.

11. Midwest Photo Exchange: This is a candy store for photographers inside of a larger candy store! Midwest Photo is a retailer who sells an amazing array of equipment during the show. You can demo gear and ask questions about the products they sell. They also have a stage with live presentations on each day.

12. Lowepro: Lowepro has an amazing selection of camera bags and related gear at the show, and they definitely encourage you to play with the many products on the show floor.

And below are five book and DVD/online content publishers who always have great titles to browse through:

13. Course Technology PTR/Cengage Learning

14. Focal Press

15. Peachpit

16. Rocky Nook

17. PhotoshopCAFE

18. Pexagon Technology: (Their booth graphics say “PhotoFlashDrives.com”): This company has a very large booth in the back of the exhibit hall. They do amazing laser engraving on photo boxes, flash drives, etc. They also have some very simple but elegant new paper folders in both black and white that can be used to hold prints.

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PhotoPlus Expo 2012: First Day Impressions from the Show Floor

Yesterday was the first day of PhotoPlus Expo and as usual, I was amazed at the sheer number of products for photographers and video pros. I need to get back to the show floor, so I’m not able to post many photos right now, but I wanted to share a list of things that impressed me so far on the show floor (especially the things that you can only see (or really appreciate) in person at the show-stay tuned for more general announcements). Below is a quick list of 15 companies and there are more to come! Just search for the company name in the show guide (or at photoplusexpo.com) for booth numbers. I’ve hotlinked the company names to their respective websites, and added links in some cases to specific products that I mentioned.

At the Moab Paper booth, PhotoPlus Expo 2012, New York City. Photograph by Douglas Kirkland of Sophia Loren. Paper: Entrada Rag Natural 300.

1. CamRanger: A MUST SEE! This is an amazing wireless device that allows you to view DSLR video live and control many Canon or Nikon cameras from an iPad or iPhone. Plus, you can shoot RAW + JPEG and just have the jpeg’s transfer to an iPad or iPhone.

2. Nikon: As usual, Nikon has a huge booth, and highlights include a “mad scientist” actor with an amazing set, as well as some walls covered with impressive photos.

3. Moab: Moab’s booth is very open, which makes for easy navigation and print viewing. As usual, they have many print samples with the same image printed on many of their papers. There is a print by Douglas Kirkland of Sophia Loren from 1972 on Entrada Rag Natural that is truly stunning!

4. Graphistudio: INCREDIBLE BOOKS! There are not enough superlatives to describe the quality of the books in their booth. They also have free sample swatch books with actual print samples (about 4×5 inches). These are invaluable when trying to decide what papers to choose). The book cases/boxes are also incredible. They also have a number of very affordable book options for  under their Graphisenior program. For example, you can order sets of up to 30 tiny books that look amazing for under $100.

5. MetalMural: Really nice metal prints, in many different configurations. The booth is definitely worth a visit. Be sure to compare the different finishes they offer. Each is very distinct.

6. CamRanger: A MUST SEE! This is an amazing wireless device that allows you to view DSLR video live and control many Canon or Nikon cameras from an iPad or iPhone. Plus, you can shoot RAW + JPEG and just have the jpeg’s transfer to an iPad or iPhone.

7. SKB Industrial Cases: Gear is expensive, and this company’s hard cases really impressed me.

8. Canson-Infinity: Canson’s booth has a number of fantastic prints by Elliot Landy and others. Also, many of the prints in the gallery area were printed on Canson papers.

9. Kolo: I’m been a huge fan of Kolo ever since I first noticed their albums more than 15 years ago. They have a great service that includes photo printing and insertion into their albums at a very affordable cost. They even allow you to use their software to make proof books.

10. Woodsnap: Prints on wood! Amazing. Enough said. You should see these. I was told that the ink becomes part of the wood surface, and you have to see how they rout out the back for hanging with screws.

11. Innova Digital Art: In addition to showcasing many great paper options, the company sells inexpensive do-it-yourself art box kits that look like gallery-wrapped canvas prints called the “JetMaster Display System.” These should definitely be seen in person. They can used with a wide variety of different papers or canvas. I also learned about a direct printable option for flatbed printers.

12. Epson: The Epson booth is always impressive, especially because of the print samples on the walls. They have a new OBA (Optical Brightening Agent) free canvas in three finishes. They also have a new system for high volume printing called the SureLab D3000.

13. Moo: Moo has some amazing examples of their postcards, business cards and stickers at the show. They also have some great show specials that work by allowing you to purchase store credit at about a 20-30% discount.

14. Hahnemühle Fine Art: Hahnemule always shows incredible prints on the walls of their booth, and their sample books with large printed examples of different images are very helpful for narrowing down choices when selecting papers, canvas, etc.

15. UNDFIND: This company has great-looking and very functional camera bags with replaceable front covers. But what caught my eve first was their FISHBOMB. They are very strong, well-designed and functional cases that can attach to belts, straps, etc, and the newest version, the FISHBOMBV2, is a bit larger and has four special pockets designed for media cards.