The Focus Awards 2006

A lot of hard work goes into preparing for an exhibition like Focus on Imaging so we thought it would only be fair to honour those people who went above and beyond the call of duty with ePHOTOzine's very own 'Focus Awards'. As anybody who went to the show will tell you, there are always a number of weird and wonderful things to see so we thought we'd pick those out for you as well. For further Focus coverage, take a look at Rob's diary piece and Gary's guide to the show. Want to have your say? Cast your vote for the Reader's Choice awards in the forum thread here.

Best new product - Nikon D200
Canon enthusiasts will probably disagree but having played with one we can safely say this blew pretty much everything else away at Focus.
Highly commended: Sandisk Ultra II SD Plus, Olympus E330, Sigma 30mm f/1.4

Best stand - Nikon
A veritable adventure playground for camera enthusiasts, this two-tier beast proved the old adage that big really is beautiful.
Highly commended: Nokia, Fuji

Best seminar - Andy Earl (Ricoh)
This revered snapper delivered an impressive talk covering the finer points of music photography.
Highly commended: All of the ePHOTOzine speakers!

Most helpful staff member - Steve, Pentax
Impressive product knowledge combined with a friendly demeanour makes Steve our number one.
High commended: Paul (Johnsons Photopia), Andy (Olympus)

Most shameless PR stunt - The Bentley girls Olympus
It's not big or clever, but having scantily clad women draped over a classic motor is a sure fire way of attracting male photographers to your stand, ePHOTOzine staffers included.
Highly commended: models handing out their own promotional material.

Worst advertising slogan - Demonstration of live shooting - The Flash Center's tannoy announcement
In particularly bad taste considering that shots were fired at a Kanye West concert later that very evening.
Highly commended: Licenced to shoot - Hasselblad

Most famous attendee - Steve Harris (Iron Maiden)
This rock legend and photography enthusiast was spotted perusing the exhibition on Tuesday.
Highly commended: Andy Earl (music photographer), Peter Bargh (ePHOTOzine)