Photokina 2014

I’ve been in Cologne, Germany for the past 4 days attending the Photokina Trade Fair, the largest of its kind in the world. I’m a guest artist with Canson Infinity, and I’m really honored once again to have my prints on display in their large beautiful booth. The convention takes place over 6 days, and is spread over 8 separate halls (or buildings) so it’s a huge event to say the least. There’s no way I’ll have enough time to see everything, so during short breaks I try and visit some of the vendors I’m familiar with.

I spend most of my time in the Canson booth of course, and so far we’ve had lots of visitors interested in the papers and wanting to learn more. I provide support to the Canson staff for those who have specific questions about printing, paper selection, or photography in general which I’m always happy to talk about. I also have one of my portfolios with me, about 25 13″x19″ prints in a Canson portfolio box (new this year), and use that to explain how papers affect the presentation and perception of a photograph. Plus there’s no better way to demonstrate this by letting people handle prints in their own hands—the quality of the paper speaks for itself.

One of the things that really caught my eye are some beautiful album books that were printed by ACI Lab using Canson Infinity paper. The books have leather jackets, and lay perfectly flat when open which means images spread across the page look seamless. And using a paper like Canson Baryta or Rag Photographique really brings the look and feel of a fine art print to a book format. I’m working on having one made with my images, and will certainly write a full post on how you can get one made for yourself – they really create an amazing presentation in a book form. Hopefully I can have it done by PhotoPlus in NYC next month.

New products from Canson this year include a Photo Lustre Premium RC paper, two Canvas’ in Museum and Photo Art grades, and black Archival Photo Storage Boxes in 8.5 x 11(A4) and 13 x 19(A3+) size, great for storing and protecting prints. The boxes include 25 sheets of glassine (light tissue paper) to protect each print from scuffing and damage. These are great for anyone who prints their own work, especially when presenting your prints to others. This is my preferred choice of presenting prints to prospective customers, galleries, or industry contacts.

I’ll have some more to share in the coming days, including more photos and hopefully some news on a new potential partnership. Stay tuned!