I got another update from Glen Clark last night that’s worth sharing… 

This week I am attending both the PhotoPublishing Summit and the Digital Imaging Conference in Burlingame, California.   For those of you who may not be familiar with InfoTrend’s Digital Imaging Conference, it runs back-to-back with their PhotoPublishing Summit “and is defined as “The Premier Meeting Place for Digital Imaging Executives.”

Digital Imaging Conference attendees participate in general sessions for a broad view of industry trends shaping the market today and also dive deeper into topics via collaborative and special interest sessions.

The Digital Imaging Conference is divided into seven categories allowing attendees to focus on the areas that matter most to them:

  • Capture – the digital camera market
  • Viewing – options and opportunities that exist today, and what’s likely to be coming tomorrow
  • Output – products to drive more digital printing and production
  • Manage/Preserve – tool sets available for managing and preserving photos and what needs to be done to help better organize, preserve and retrieve photos
  • Share/Communicate – behaviors and preferences for sharing and communicating memories
  • Connected Experience – wireless technology and built-in networking driving connected lifestyles
  • Segmentation – segments that are creating the most buzz in digital imaging industry

As you can see from the above list there are a number of topics and detailed sessions offered during the conference.  A few points that stood out for me today were these.

 1. Interest in a “connected experience” and anytime, anywhere access is strong. 

The pathway to success with the connected experience should include elements from traditional photo experiences.

  • Keep images relevant
  • Bring back the emotions of photo images
  • Get people emotionally involved  with their photos
  • Back away from and downplay technology and cool tech messages
  • Emphasize benefits (of capturing moments, creating memories, instilling awe and inspiration)
  • Change the terminology you use
    • It’s not “Digital” Photography . . . It’s just Photography
    • Reconnect with your clients

2010 will be the year of connections both for devises and people

2.  The connected image experience is not only visual but sensory. 

It’s not just what you see that counts, but what you see, and touch, and feel (and what touches you) that makes the connected experience complete.

3.  Here’s one last thought and a message I heard at the conference that is worth considering.

Printed photographs give people images they can touch and interact with physically and emotionally.

The numbers of images being printed each year are continuing to decline; but, it is likely that we will continue to see photographic images printed for some time.  However, as soon as they take away the tactile relationship of children in kindergarten creating images with crayons and paper, that’s when we will begin to really lose the value of printed images and we will see the big slide away from photographic prints and paper.

 Wow!