Gizmag looks back at a bustling Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The "Largest Photoglobe in the World" celebrates 175 years of photography at Photokina (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
No bulls were harmed in Gizmag's coverage of Photokina (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Gizmag looks back at a bustling Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
One of the many activities to help give your eyes a break from Photokina booth goodies (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
This poor chap thought it would be a great idea to video himself constantly falling over inside one of the giant floating balls at Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
An impressive actioncam rig at GoPro's Photokina booth (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The HD-capable Isaw 360 degree motorized moving actioncam with a 12 MP CMOS sensor, and built-in Wi-Fi (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
An Isaw panning cam atop a Blackbolt BA20 panning head (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
An early Olympus "Open Platform" prototype camera gets its first public showing at Photokina (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Details are light, but Olympus is working with MIT Media Lab to bring much-improved image quality to smartphone and tablet users (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Kolor Abyss Rig allows for 360 degree underwater videography (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The TrueCam A7 dashcam includes speed camera detection and Google Maps integration (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The TrueCam A7 can record video at 2304 x 1296 resolution at 16:9 aspect, or 2560 x 1080 at 21:9 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The 360cam is described at the world's first true 360 degree HD camera (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The pear-shaped camera uses three 185 degree fish-eye lenses which overlap to enable the capture 360 degree video, which is stitched together inside the device in real-time (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The developer kit 360cam Kickstarter orders are scheduled to start shipping in October (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
An attachment is available for the 360cam that allows it to be fitted in a light socket to act as a home security camera (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Now this is how to promote a tripod - the eye-catching 3LT booth at Photokina (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Xelfie II can remotely activate the shutter on a DSLR via IR, or activate a smartphone's camera via Bluetooth (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Film camera fun at the lomography booth, with the new LC-A120 automatic film camera in center position (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
One way to put those aging telephoto lenses to good use again is to turn them into spotting scopes with Lens2scope (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Lenses converted to spotting scopes with the help of Lens2scope (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
dioVision says that when a slightly curved Plexiglas screen is placed over a tablet screen, the image immediately gains spatial depth and brilliant clarity (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The curvy Plexiglass TV covers on show at Photokina did seem to add more depth to videos (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Photokina is not just for photographers, as confirmed by this enormous Meade telescope (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Different sensor sizes on display at the Canon booth, have a look out our guide for more information on why bigger is usually better (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Fujifilm's fixed focal length X100T camera (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Fujifilm X100T is reported to feature the world's first electronic rangefinder (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
With the electronic rangefinde, users can look through the optical viewfinder, but also see an EVF display projected in the bottom right corner of the optical image (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Fujifilm X100T features a 16.3-megapixel APS-C size (23.6 x 15.6 mm) X-Trans CMOS II sensor, EXR Processor II image processing engine, and a Fujinon 23-mm F2 lens (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Those wishing to take an X100T for a test drive could focus on any of these beauties at the Fujifilm booth (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
A giant replica of an instax mini 90 greets visitors to Fuijifilm's Photokina booth (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The 512 GB SanDisk Extreme PRO SDXC UHS-I memory card is designed with professional videographers and photographers in mind (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The DJI Phantom 2 Vision quadcopter with built-in Wi-Fi HD video camera (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Phantom 2 Vision's 14 MP camera is capable of capturing 1080p video at 30 frames per second (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Those wishing to try out the Hasselblad H5D at Photokina could focus their attention on this gorgeous Norton Commando (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Hassleblad H5X gets a brief showing at Photokina (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Red Bull was parked in this Airstream beauty at Photokina as part of its Illume Exhibition Tour (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Music and video at the Red Bull stand was provided by a vehicle which looked like a London Taxi that had been prepared for war zone duty (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Seating at Red Bull's Illume Exhibition Tour stand came courtesy of long-board benches (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
One of the demonstrations at Red Bull's Illume Exhibition Tour stand at Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The HP Designjet Z6800 is reported to be the fastest 60-inch printer in the world (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Leica booth at Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Leica D-Lux compact has a fast Leica DC Vario-Summilux 10.9–34 mm F1.7–2.8 zoom lens (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Leica D-Lux is the first in the D-Lux range to come with built-in Wi-Fi for remote operation and viewing via a free iOS/Android app (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Looxis 3D laser photo offers a good deal more depth than a traditional black and white framed photo (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Looxis 3D laser "print" from the side shows how the effect is achieved (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Leica X (Type 113) boasts a fast new Leica Summilux 23 mm F1.7 Aspherical prime lens (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Leica X features a 16.2 MP APS-C CMOS sensor, has ISO 100 to 12500 and is capable of 5 fps continuous shooting for a burst of seven JPEG format photos at fine quality (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Buyers can replace the clock face of the clock in a tin from my clock with a printed photo (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The compact and lightweight Leica X-E (Type 102) features a 16.2 MP APS-C CMOS sensor and a Leica Elmarit 24 mm F/2.8 Aspherical lens (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
To the rear of the Leica X-E (Type 102) is a 2.7-inch, 230k-dot high contrast monitor (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
More non-camera distractions for Photokina show-goers (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Leica V-Lux is capable of recording 4K video (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The F2.8 lens of the Leica V-Lux has a zoom range of 25 to 400 mm (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Nikon dominates the entrance to Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Nikon's long-awaited follow-up to the D700, the mighty D750 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Nikon D750 features a 24.3-megapixel CMOS sensor, an EXPEED 4 image processor and an Advanced Multi-Cam 3500-FX II AF focus system (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
The Nikon D750 has a vari-angle 3.2-inch RGBW LCD monitor at 1229K dots (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Nikon demonstrated the polycam synchronized robotic tracking system at Photokina 2014 (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
View gallery - 60 images
Every two years Cologne in Germany goes photo crazy. Photokina is the focal point for everyone who is passionate about taking photographs or recording video, or sitting back to enjoy looking at both. Over the past week, Gizmag has covered the big news coming out of Germany. Now we take a look at some new releases that didn't make the front page, and catch up with some show favorites.
Nikon chose to break news of its new full-frame DSLR ahead of Photokina, but that didn't prevent us from pushing through the crowds at the Messe to grab a few brief moments with the mighty D750. Zooming in on a few sample shots taken at speed (6.5 fps) revealed very sharp and clear low light photos thanks to the high ISO range (and the high resolution of the 3.2-inch tilting monitor) of the 24 megapixel prothusiast camera. Autofocus was quick and quiet, and aperture adjustment during Full HD video recording was really smooth.
The Nikon D750 features a 24.3-megapixel CMOS sensor, an EXPEED 4 image processor and an Advanced Multi-Cam 3500-FX II AF focus system (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
By contrast, Canon decided to wait for just before the doors were opened to the public to announce its Mark II EOS 7D. Enthusiast photographers were invited to test the continuous shooting prowess of this 20.2 MP camera by trying to snap shots of a soccer player firing a ball towards the line of trigger-happy Mark II testers. Yes, I had a go and can report being pretty impressed by the clear images of the projectile as it flew in my direction like a bat out of hell.
Gizmag also got to handle the powerful NX1 from Samsung, the enormous H5D-50c from Hasselblad and the heavy-but-beautifully-made Leica S (Type 007).
Music and video at the Red Bull stand was provided by a vehicle which looked like a London Taxi that had been prepared for war zone duty (Photo: Paul Ridden/Gizmag)
Unusually, if pressed to choose a booth favorite it wouldn't be the classy Leica hall and gallery. Pansonic's presence may have been a visual feast, and the Fujifilm booth buzzing with activity. But my pick would have to be the Airstream, long-board bench seats and music-and-video producing Volvo Sugga that was Red Bull's Illume Exhibition Tour stand. Most entertaining.
Have a browse through our Photokina gallery for some of our favorite memories of the 2014 expo.
While Paul is loath to reveal his age, he will admit to cutting his IT teeth on a TRS-80 (although he won't say which version). An obsessive fascination with computer technology blossomed from hobby into career before hopping over to France for 10 years, where he started work for New Atlas in 2009. Now back in his native Blighty, he serves as Managing Editor in Europe.