FotoBridge | Digitizing Photos Blog

Call it the biggest photo-op ever or the largest gathering of Photography and Imaging Industry professionals on earth, PMA 2010 has come and gone. The 86th annual event included massive trade show floor displays, high-caliber educational sessions with 300 speakers and the opportunity to connect with industry leaders. The Photography Marketing Association (PMA) is not one organization, but a community of many Imaging Associations.

The rapid pace of transforming change, new technologies and social engagement focused this years product announcements, sessions and discussion on new ways of doing business, better products and  innovative services. Especially exciting for FotoBridge, and many other organizations, was the increased awareness and discussion about the opportunities in the areas of image preservation, permanence and sharing of memories. Clearly transforming traditional legacy media to digital is vital for many in the Photography and Imaging Industry. Not only does conversion unlock  highly-valued personal content for a huge swath of commercial products and services - but most critically, facilitates essential preservation for generations to come.

"IDC believes that consumers' interest in converting their photo prints to digital will rise as their digital experience expands" said Ron Glaz, IDC Program Director, Worldwide Digital Imaging Solutions and Services.

PMA provided the perfect backdrop for the charter meeting of a core group of imaging professionals and organizations dedicated to preservation and permanence of visual and other forms of captured information. The group, led by Lasting Links CEO Robert Dunford, worked to refine the groups primary mission and strategies and included representation from the Professional Photographers of America (PPA), Association of Personal Historians (APH), International Imaging Industry Association (I3A),  and Alinari (the world's oldest photographic archive).  Also participating were representatives from commercial ventures focused on digital conversion services and products. These were Kodak, FotoBridge, ScanDigital, Digital Pickle, iMemories, and Creative Memories.

I3A's Consumer Photo Preservation Group also conducted a workshop to gain input and feedback for it's updated SaveMyMemories.org online resource site. The site is a rich resource for anyone with digital images and is the place to discover and learn about new photo preservation tools, tricks and techniques.