[hitrate]

At PHOTOKINA 2014 i found RICOHs booth - not quite disappointing but a little too... ahaaam .. i think clinical is the word i am searching for... or too SOBER if u like that better.
The busy people with RICOH shirts behind the counters actually were very laboured (or is willing more correct?); (despite 2 guys who were very competent to some point but ... ehmmm lets say, not sooo friendly.)
But that's not the point, point is: We are really missing something there.
If you wanna attract the public and gain customers you gotta offer them some sensations.

Nikon had a real arena, (directly behind there was the RICOH booth hiding out - AFAIR.) and you could go upstairs and test some (Super-)TELE-lenses from above...
Sony had a real nice show, where they adverted their AF-skills by letting people photograph BMX-artists that where (mostly on one point so it was kind of a con-attraction) moving real fast inside a small round area.
Canon had the "REDROOM"... Where there was some on-stage performance where a guy showed off how to exempt a subject(person) by using an aperture of F:22 or so in combination with a flash and one reflector.
Samsung had the "CandyShop", where girls where swingin on "swing sets".... between tables that where filled up with trendy pastel colored candy etc.

RICOH-PENTAX indeed had cameras with good IQ in their show-cabinets. And the usual water-fountain... surrounded with lots of differently colored K-30 bodies.
- Honestly... that is nice to look at, but feels like an aquarium compared to the "battle-arenas" of the other camera makers.

My suggestion:
Let people show off the equipment who know what they are doing. - Kenspo for instance. ? Did you ask him?
- I have the slight feeling you did not invite ANY ambassador to this years PHOTOKINA up until now.

He could show off how to CORRECTLY use Autofocus functions and how to prepare(set) your camera for shooting.
And how to handle it so you get to the results that you want and reduce random output.
I am pretty sure he could do that...

And if you know what you are doing you can even get better results with a K-1 than with equivalent Nikon(D810) gear.
Show them what the gear eqquiped with a decent tele lens mounted actually can do. - Maybe you can get Mike Muizebelt to stand a short show...

And put the big ones out on heavy and secured tripods.

One DFA 70-200... - attached to a K-1II
One DFA 150-450... - attached to a K-1II
One DA*560mm... - attached to a KP
And why not show some legacy glass(in mint condition) also?

A portrait-workshop with the K-1 and the new DFA 50mm 1.4 with a Cactus RQ250 or Priolite 500HS Flash-Setup? - ? --> REMO NEUHAUS?
A gallery with artprints from photographic work that has been shot with TAKUMAR - lenses for instance?

Product Photography with PENTAX 645Z(with Priolite Studio-Flashes)or PENTAX K-1 in Pixelshift mode with a set of GODOX SL-60W units... ..I am pretty sure there are some product photographers that could show off the potential of PiXelShifT.

If any RICOH rep gets to read this. PLZ search for people who are actually able to answer questions on PENTAX-cameras... and who can really make the most of the capabilities of PENTAX newest DSLRs.
Dont hide behind Nikon and let us down. One can get real "I am gettin"-messed feeling if you you have to go to the last corner of the room and stand in front of reps that are actually good at inventing alibis for their lack of knowledge but appearantly dont know how to set color profiles etc.

We dont need trained elephants(though tamed cheetahs on a race track sound tempting) , but RICOH... call your ambassadors... Buy some influencers... do something. -thank you so much.

I personally would vote for Kenspo to do a short show... on one or at least 2 days of the event.
How is it with you fellow pentaxians? Any PENTAX RICOH-Ambassadors...you would want to vote for, so they will do a performance or some kind of public workshop at photokina?
Maybe a few of the "Soul of Street"-Photographers could start a hike through photokina-area and at a certain time show off what moments they did catch with the GR?

Note, that it is the last photokina following the 2 year cycle ... to some point you could say its the first of the 1 year cycle but that could be rendered a lie... Since the annually photokinas show off in Spring whilst it was autumn for the 2 year cycle fairs.
... that aint telling much.
But by doing so the people behind PHOTOKINA want to herald the start of a new era in photography...

And RICOH really should step up to get a ticket for a ride... IMHO with presenting new and competitive gear and a better appearance...
either at this years photokina in FALL or next years Photokina in spring.

Like I mentioned it before, maybe some of you also would like to vote for some ambassadors to show up there???

[bobmaxja]

2014 ????

[hitrate]

yep... I visited Photokina in 2014... and according to what i saw in the videos from 2016... it was pretty much the same 2 years ago... But i pray to god, twill be better this or the next year.