Words by Andy Meltzer

Since 2004, Matter has participated in the PDN PhotoPlus Expo in New York, a gathering of the Who’s Who in photography.  We’re (exhaustedly) getting back into the office following this year’s fantastic event and I wanted to use this space to express some thanks to the many who made our presence at PPE a major success:

-     Our clients: SIGMA, Unified Color, Spider Holster, ILFORD, Gary Fong, Camera Bits, Datacolor, DxO Labs, Lowepro and Acme Made, and, of course, our booth neighbors at Lexar.  All of these brands came out strong at PhotoPlus and trusted Matter to help make their investments in PPE that much more effective.  Additional thanks to our client, Pinhole Press, who sat this one out but helped provide collateral that was incredibly well received!

-     The media: It never ceases to amaze me how Matter staff and members of the photography trade media interact at this and other events – almost as if we were seeing old friends at a reunion.  The photo community is a very tight group, even as it grows on a yearly basis.  We are honored to consider ourselves a part of this network and it is our relationship with the media that help make that a reality.  We staffed about 125 press meetings at this show and we can’t thank those who took time out to meet with our clients enough.

-     The team at Matter – in no particular order: Zachary Heath, Tobi Young, Greg Wind, Chrissy Kinch, Kristin Amico, Colleen McCarthy, Andrew Rodger, Sheena Guide, Tim Bradley and, of course, the Boss, Scott Signore.  At home in PVD, Theresa Freeman and Julie Sellew did serious grunt work and held down the fort.  Thank you for your incredible and diligent work before, during and after this show, for making a naturally chaotic experience run like clockwork, for trudging through rain, snow and cold and still keeping up your enthusiasm for your work and for sacrificing the treads on your shoes to the Javits Center floor.  You guys are the best.

I will let Tim’s sweet video (that’s only fault is that it contains my visage) give you a sense of what it all looked like, but to all who were there and made this year a rousing success for Matter and our partners, my sincere thanks and see you at the next show!

The Photo Marketing Association conference and trade show kicks off next Friday and, like everyone else in the industry who will be in attendance, I’m eager to see how things pan out. Much has been said about the success of the show and the future of this event since last fall, when Canon announced that it would not be exhibiting and several companies followed suit.

Their reasoning? Canon reps told PDN Gear Guide that it was a combination of the show’s timing, its move to Anaheim, and the need for a larger, broader audience. What didn’t factor into their decision, the Canon reps said, was the money.

For many companies whose pockets aren’t as deep as Canon’s, the money probably was a factor. There are a lot of events to consider and trade show budgets certainly aren’t what they used to be, regardless of who you are. And, as the Canon folks duly noted, the convergence of technologies is attracting more people to events like the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Heck, in addition to the fancy gadgetry on display, half the appeal is Vegas itself. Without the roulette tables and showgirls, PMA already seems, as Alice Cooper would say, like a shadow of itself.

All joking aside, though, what will become of PMA? I’m a glass half-full gal (depending on when you catch me and who you ask) and to me, the outlook is not that bad. I received an updated press list with 300-plus names on it this week and I’ve booked meetings for my client with all the major players. Sure, I’ve heard from a few media folks who will not be attending or who are sending fewer writers, but it’s certainly not the letdown that I was expecting.

I think the exhibition hall will speak for itself – and news of the turnout will likely get more press than any gear announcement, but I also think the conference’s organizers have something up their sleeves. It’s hard to imagine that they’ve sat back and listened to all this scuttlebutt without devising some plans for 2011’s show. We look forward to hearing what they have in store for us in the years to come and, in the meantime, we plan to sit back and enjoy the show!