Photography News 05

10

Profile

INTERVIEW

BIOGRAPHY

Susie Donaldson

AGE: 37 YEARS IN THE PHOTO INDUSTRY: 7 CURRENT LOCATION: Reigate LAST PICTURE TAKEN: I recently recordedmy daughter’s first steps! WHEN YOUWERE YOUNGER, WHAT DID YOU WANT TO DOWHEN YOU GREWUP? Fighter pilot, unfortunately I’m now scared of flying! DOGS OR CATS? Cats TOAST OR CEREAL? Toast EMAIL OR PHONE CALL? Phone or Facebook! challenges but makes for an interesting future. We’ve been delivering products with the best balance of these features for years, but our latest and greatest was the EOS 100D – the smallest and lightest DSLR in its class but still including an APS-C sized sensor. Can you explain why top-end Canon lenses are white rather than the traditional black? Many people think this is just to signify that it’s a long zoom Canon L series lens, however, the technical reason is a white lens reflects light and heat. As a lens is essentially a metal tube this stops them heating up, expanding and the glass moving out of alignment. In the compact camera world this is an important feature and the benefits are starting to filter through to the DSLR user. It introduces additional features like RemoteCapture. We’ve found features like this are especially popular among professional photographers shooting wildlife. I’d expect to see more Wi-Fi enabled features as time moves on. What in your view has been Canon’s most successful technology of the past few years? One of our true strengths is lens design. When we build any product, top of the list is image quality. More recently the introduction of Full HD on our EOS range changed the way people use their DSLRs. Are compact cameras doomed with the camera phone playing such a big role in photography? We have watched with interest over recent months the launch of several new smartphones offering photographic features. As a leading photography brand we are happy to see photography becoming even more popular. We want to help people take their next step and that’s why we offer products with the highest possible image quality and the most advanced features. Our compact and DSLR ranges offer these features in abundance, allowing for the best results. Photos represent memories, and we aim to ensure that people retain the quality of those memories in years to come. Canon has built Wi-Fi into its latest cameras. Is sharing going to be a big attraction? In the pro market, Canon seems to have held on to its market share in this sector. Why? We have a very large EOS system and great support fromour Canon Professional Services networkwhich I feel is key for pro photographers. Looking forward we want to engage with future photographers too and that’s why in 2013 we launched the Canon Student Network. Watch this space!

Answering PN’s incisive questions, including why top-end Canon lenses are white, this month is Canon’s consumer imaging marketing director

Please introduce yourself to our readers. I’m the consumer imaging marketing director at Canon UK and Ireland. I look after all aspects of marketing for Canon’s consumer portfolio ensuring all products are brought to market effectively and that our campaigns are implemented with impact and efficiency. I look at a mix of things from understanding what’s happening now and keeping one eye on the future. What are your proudest career achievements? In my seven years at Canon the last 12 months have been the most challenging but the most rewarding. Many of the categories that we cover were under pressure yet we achieved some record market positions for our products and at the same time we launched a campaign ‘first’ with the inclusion of all our products under the Power To Your Next Step umbrella. On top of that we made huge steps forward with our digital activity including the launch of Live Chat for our cashback campaign, a 10x increase in our Facebook fans, the launch of our ‘digital demonstrator’ activity and we’ve been helping create, what I hope are really interesting photography videos for our retailers’ websites. Canon is a global market leader, but how is the company doing in these cash-strapped times? When our customers’ wallets are under pressure, we see them turning to the trusted brands that can deliver a quality product and a good customer experience. As the market leader in DSLR and compact camera markets, customers are confident that Canon will give them value for money and a great photographic experience. People are still willing to spend their money on camera equipment but are puttingmore into research tomake sure they are making the right choice. We want to help them make the right choice for their needs which is why we are continuing to improve our digital content. 2013 seemed a quiet year for Canon with three DSLRs announced, will 2014 see more launches? 2013 was an exciting year. We launched the world’s smallest APS-C DSLR with the EOS 100D and the EOS 70D with built-in Wi-Fi and fast autofocus during movies. We have other areas of our business too and we have made big advances in the pro video world with our new Cine products for example. We’re looking forward to what 2014 will bring. Canon must take great pride in being the only imaging company to offer input (cameras and scanners) and output solutions (printers). Is the aim to continue to offer a wide product range? Yes, we are very proud tohave such a diverse product range and not forgetting the software in between.

The power of image runs through everything we do, from entry-level cameras to professional print. We’re unique in that we also have a huge range on our business imaging side, giving imaging power to business users and through our professional print division. We are not only maintaining our broad range but expanding all the time with mobile apps and our own photo sharing site, Project 1709, which we are looking forward to talking more about soon. With Canon’s breadth of products, the Power to Your Next Step campaign made perfect sense. Howhas it been received by customers? Our campaign has been successful in showcasing our range and encourages people to take their next step. The success could be seen over Christmas, particularly with our digital campaign. We saw our highest ever interaction rate on Facebook with our Capture Christmas activity. But it was more than a campaign; it acted as a talking point when speaking with retailers and is a genuine expression of how we want to support our customers on every step of their imaging journey. Is Canon serious about the CSCmarket or was the Ma toe in the water to test the temperature? We are very proud to have the EOS M in our range. It has opened up the image quality of EOS to new users who maybe wouldn’t consider a DSLR. The EOS M was the number 2 selling CSC in the UK in 2013 – a testament to the strength of its features. In your view, what is the most exciting technology in current Canon cameras? The current DIGIC processors. Their power enables features like high-speed shooting, creative filters, low-light capability, zoom plus – the list goes on. All this gives the best experience to the photographer. Canon’s highest resolution DSLR is the EOS 5D Mark III at 22 megapixels. Does Canon think that super-high resolution is not a headline feature? We find super-high resolution can result in things like pixel blur and excessive file sizes. We have to look at what is important and how people will be using our cameras. For example a 22-megapixel image can be printed in large dimensions which is important for many professionals. Many factors influence final specifications such as how it’s used and the different conditions that it will be used in. What in your view is the biggest technical challenge facing Canon right now? The boundary at the moment is the relationship between the size of the camera and the size of the sensor. People are asking for the biggest sensor in the smallest body, which creates huge technical

The biggest sensor in the smallest body creates huge technical challenges butmakes for an interesting future

π To find out more, go to www.canon.co.uk.

Photography News | Issue 5

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