History of PMA

The PMA (Photo Marketing Association) tradeshow is a place where vendors, photographers, and customers can come together to get a taste of what’s new in photography. The biggest names in photography display their latest products, prototypes, and concepts at this convention.

The annual PMA tradeshow has been taking place for 85 years. The convention is typically held in Las Vegas, NV although it did enjoy a brief stint in Orlando, FL from 2001 to 2002. Virtually every new photography product that has made in impact in the photography world has debuted at PMA.

The PMA tradeshow is a great venue for manufacturers to get their latest products into the hands of potential customers. It’s a place where photographers can acquire new clients and expand their business. Consumers can see everything the photography world has to offer and receive direct answers and assistance from manufacturers.

This year’s PMA tradeshow showcased many hybrid products. From the humblest point and shoot camera to dSLRs that costs thousands of dollars, video was everywhere. Not just any video, but high definition video. It wasn’t long ago that digital cameras first made their appearance at PMA. These humble cameras were bulky and shot a mere .3 megapixels.

The first commercially available digital SLR made its debut in 1991. This camera made by Kodak shot a measly 1.3 megapixels and cost $30,000. It wasn’t until 2003 when we saw the Canon EOS 300D, the first affordable consumer oriented digital SLR costing less than $1,000. Now, over the past year, we have seen these entry level point-and-shoot and dSLR cameras alike incorporate high definition video.

One thing’s for sure, if it has to do with photography, you can see it at the annual PMA tradeshow. With each PMA, we see new technologies introduced and older technologies are made faster, smaller, and better.

No one knows exactly what PMA 2010 will be like, but if we learned anything from history, we are guaranteed to see the latest technologies and concepts revealed.