The Photography Show 2022

We always look forward to TPS and now that Covid19 has somewhat receded hopefully it will once again be a regular entry in our diaries. There are a few things to think about up-front, such as buying tickets in advance, and also buying parking in advance which saves a significant amount of money. The car parks at the NEC can be some way away from the exhibition halls, so the free shuttle buses are very welcome.

This year things were off to a slowish start and for once there was no queueing to gain entry to the car parks, and no queues at the entrance to the exhibition. A quick scan of the entry badge already received and we were in and being greeted almost immediately by the Nikon stand. This set the tone really, with the latest gear being demonstrated but also some historical material and a very well attended teaching programme. Schooling in photography was a major theme for the exhibition, with extensive presentations from a multitude of manufacturers. Nikon, Fujifilm and Canon, in particular, were offering a large and varied selection of presentations and these were all well attended. There were also of course the pre-bookable events and the Super Theatre was filled with interested photographers.

A playground was also on offer, where everyone could join in and use the small prepared and quite unusual studio sets. Strange perspectives and surreal zebras vied for the attention of a public who were totally up for some photographic fun. 

Organisations that were familiar included the Disabled Photographers' Society, The Societies, the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain and the RHS. Less photographically orientated were such varied groups as Canal and Rivers Trust, Greenpeace, Woodland Trust and WWF. Displays of members' images came from websites such as Sheclicks and the standard of images being displayed was very high.

Of the major players, Nikon were very busy, not only with information but also majoring with the phenomenal Z9 and a rapidly expanding portfolio of high-class lenses. Here as usual was the chance to try out some of the more exotic optics. For the historians, on display in tightly locked cases were the Nikon S3 rangefinder of the 1950s, the NASA Nikon camera and the legendary 1972 Nikkor 6mm f/2.8, with its bulbous front element the diameter of a small dinner plate. 

Canon had a clearly huge investment in the show and a mouth-watering display of incredible long telephoto lenses. Here was the playground of wildlife and sports photographers. This audience might well have made Sigma their next port of call, as a mass of fine lenses also awaited them there. 

Fujifilm offered an exciting array of choices, from the Instax instant cameras through to the fine quality lenses and rather interesting model set. Also, there was a central viewing platform, not perhaps the height of Mount Fuji, but allowing six people at a time to observe a dramatic overview of the entire exhibition.

OM Digital Solutions are to be commended on their innovative web presence, and they were here in person to present their current camera and lens range, including the ground-breaking Olympus OM-1, last of the line in its name, but first in the new line of OM Digital Solutions. The stand presenters were in a helpful, friendly and sometimes even playful mood, a perfect mirror of their online personalities.

Tamron has been producing some very exciting and extremely well-performing lenses over the past few years, and soon to appear is a new innovative 50-400mm lens, with a 1:2 macro capability. The sheer versatility of this, in a relatively compact package, would have whet the appetite of many a Tamron fan, and certainly created many new ones.

Holdan were showing the Atomos viewfinders for a variety of cameras, and the quality was clearly brilliant. They also handle Samyang lenses, another manufacturer that has been upping standards to new levels over the past few years, always a reliable and quality source of lenses but lifting this to new heights with their AF range. In this context, we also ran into ambassador Jayce Clarke who was presenting talks on the stand.

Sony of course needs no introduction, and their vast portfolio is as strong as ever, from the superb lenses to the super-fast A9 II, the classy vlogging camera ZV-E10 and to some major video kit such as the FX6, part of a range that is now, essentially, marketed as “Netflix approved”. 

Also covered were book publishers, printing companies, albums, wedding photography, magazines with various free offers, software companies such as Affinity Photo, tripods, filters, and for those in a buying mood Wex and LCE were on hand to do a deal. 

However, for all the hardware on display, it was also very heartening to see the vast effort put into creativity, with Master Classes, demonstrations, and in-depth talks all there for the taking. 

The show day visited, Saturday for this report, started fairly quietly, but by 11am it was starting to buzz and by lunchtime was in full flow, with stands as busy as they could hope to cater for. As a sign of respect, the show will be closed on Monday, but there are two days left to visit, Sunday and Tuesday, and there is plenty for all styles of photographers and videographers to enjoy and to benefit from.

To see more from this year's show, take a look at John's blog.