A Weekly Column By Mike Johnston

Photokina, the world's largest and most important photo equipment show, takes place every even-numbered year in Cologne, Germany, in the gargantuan KölnMesse convention center. This year it will take place from the 25th to the 30th of September.

Historically, many manufacturers use Photokina (technically the trademark is written with a lower-case "p") to announce their most significant new products. Although this is less true now than it used to be owing to the viciously short life-cycles of some products and the pell-mell pace of competition (obliging companies to introduce products as soon as they're ready), it's still the best occasion to get a handle on the present and future plans of the world's photo equipment manufacturers.

Cologne (Köln), Germany

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