Category Archives: prosumer

5G is upon us. What now?

AR, Augmented reality, computational imaging, computer vision, content, depth imaging, imaging, mobile, photo organizing, PhotoTech, prosumer, Social Media, UGC, video, Visual 1st, VR January 23, 2019 Hans Hartman Leave a comment

If CES was any indication, 5G is supposed to change the world as we know it. And after all the noise we’ll no doubt hear next month at Mobile World Congress, even my 96-year-old mother-in-law will demand 5G on her phone. Before we look into how 5G might impact the world of consumer imaging, let’s first explore what it is and review the most discussed use cases in the consumer tech world at large. In simple terms, 5G is a cellular communications protocol that uses higher radio frequencies…

New study analyzes what’s driving the explosion in user-generated videos and hybrid photo-videos

imaging, mobile, Mobile Photo Connect, phablet, photo organizing, photo sharing, prosumer, Social Media, study, tablet, technology, video September 5, 2018 Paul Melcher Leave a comment

Videos and phodeos surge into the Mainstream Consumer video sure ain’t what it used to be. The category now includes numerous variations, ranging from full-length to short-form narratives, plus what could be called “phodeos”: hybrids of photos and videos such as Boomerang clips, Instagram Stories, and even the (now venerable) GIF animations. Due in large part to these new options that free consumers from the “one (huge) size fits all” straightjacket of the past, motion imaging is more popular now than ever. Are we witnessing a bubble? Or…

Pursuing low hanging fruit or the long tail?

computer vision, content, editing, imaging, mobile, Mobile Photo Connect, photo merchandise, prosumer, Social Media, technology, Visual 1st August 29, 2018 Hans Hartman Leave a comment

The proliferation of cameras, visual formats, and monetization methods are transforming the consumer imaging industry It’s not really new: consumers want – and are getting – more and more finite choices for buying exactly the types of products they need. Specialty retail stores are making a comeback, SMBs with niche products can now easily get nationwide (and to some extent overseas) distribution through Amazon, and big brand vendors keep adding collections of boutique brands that address specific use cases and consumer segments. What is new…

Flickr / Smugmug: The frog that ate the bull

advertising, content, editing, flickr, google, Instagram, mobile, photo organizing, photo sharing, PhotoTech, prosumer, Social Media, transaction April 23, 2018 Paul Melcher 1 Comment

Flickr’s acquisition by Smugmug, if anything, has reminded us that the grandfather of photo sharing site is not dead. Yet. Almost hidden in the weekend lull, the news surprised almost everyone paying attention to this space: It’s been a long while since Flickr grabbed the headlines. But beyond the unconventional lack of details, what does this acquisition forecast? Let’s look at the available numbers. Smugmug and Flickr, while sharing photos as a common denominator, have not much in common. With 90 million monthly users, Flickr is 18 times bigger…

Innovative solution providers tackle the ever-growing headaches of photo management and storage

content, editing, mobile, Mobile Photo Connect, photo merchandise, photo organizing, photo sharing, prosumer, Search, study September 28, 2017 Hans Hartman 1 Comment

It’s a given: we are all overwhelmed by the sheer number of photos we take, or that are being shared with us. With some of these, it’s no big deal if you accidentally missed viewing them, or if you can’t locate them again after you’ve first enjoyed them. With others, it does matter: According to our recent survey, 58% of photos on average are considered to be “long life” keepers. So we want to know on which device or cloud service these important photos reside,…

5 trends to look for in 2017

3D, advertising, analytic, Artificial Intelligence, content, Content Recognition, e-commerce, Emotion analysis, Facial recognition, Funding, Instagram, Interface, marketing, photo organizing, photo sharing, prosumer, Snapchat, Social Media, technology, UGC, visual recognition, VR January 2, 2017 Paul Melcher Leave a comment

With the new year comes the predictions. However, this year, instead of trying to predict what will happen, we prefer to take aim at what we see will be the top major trends in the visual space. We limited ourselves at five in an effort to be succinct and we picked those that will affect people more broadly. In no particular order, here they are: Images as a source of comprehension We can now comfortably have computers tell us what is depicted in photos or videos. From…

10 Questions to a founder : Splore

content, filter, Instagram, interview, mobile, photo sharing, prosumer, Social Media, tablet June 27, 2016 Paul Melcher Leave a comment

All social media is all about connecting users via content. First users establish a core network of relations and via content sharing ( mostly visuals) it maintains and grows that network. But what if content was put first and the network second (or not at all). That is exactly what Splore is now offering. In a way, it levels the playing field as no one has the advantage of coming in with a huge following ( like celebrities). Instead, each one can compete for popularity…

LDV VISION SUMMIT, DAY 2, OVERVIEW

advertising, Artificial Intelligence, big data, Brands, computational imaging, computer vision, content, e-commerce, finance, Funding, google, imaging, Instagram, investment, LDV Summit, marketing, mobile, PhotoTech, prosumer, Search, Social Media, tablet, transaction, UGC, wearable May 22, 2015 Paul Melcher 3 Comments

Different day, different crowd : If day 1 of the LDV Vision Summit was all about science, research and data ( massive amounts of data), Day 2 opened the doors to more practical applications of visual tech, mostly around revenue. In other words, how companies are using the discoveries of researchers to extract value, information and monetary rewards. As in the previous day, panels were a flowing mix of individual presentations and group discussions. Here are some elements of day 2 which particularly caught our attention. Opening…

10 Questions for a Social Editor : BBDO

advertising, Brands, content, editorial, Instagram, marketing, mobile, prosumer, Social Media, technology May 12, 2015 Paul Melcher 8 Comments

Dave Krugman builds online communities. Using his talent as a photographer and his social media insight, he rallies huge amounts of followers around a particular topic or location. As you can imagine, for a brand, he is a golden child. After many successes with such prestigious clients at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY, as well as participating at Esquire magazine’s event, he now lends his talents at the advertising agency BBDO as Social Editor. We caught up with him while he was taking a break from his…