Monday, December 30, 2002		Guest Speak

Taking photo printouts in vogue
Alok Bharadwaj

Alok Bharadwaj, Director & GM,  CIID, Canon India

IN today’s networked world where digital cameras are fast replacing traditional analog photography equipment, digital photo printing is the new buzzword, which is taking the digital revolution into consumer homes. The growing popularity of direct photo printing can be attributed to the phenomenal success of the digital photography industry, which is enabling users to capture and share images in a universal digital format. Given the rapid convergence of devices and consumer demand for greater convenience and functionality from their digital equipment - photo capturing and printing are expected to become so intertwined that companies which align with both are expected to be the ones that will lead the digital revolution.

In this new digital world, while the main function of a digital camera will be to capture and store images in a solid-state image sensor instead of traditional film, there will also be a corresponding demand for photo printers, which will enable users to transform their digital memories into photographs at their own convenience. Going by global trends and user patterns in countries like Japan, the USA and the UK, it is expected that the photo printing industry in India will mirror the success of the global digital photography industry, which has moved from being an expensive equipment for professional photographers, to a lifestyle product which is increasingly becoming a part and parcel of our day-to-day life.

With analog cameras losing ground to digital cameras, the future of digital imaging and printing looks exciting. In India, according to IDC, the digital camera market is growing at 77 per cent per year while in the West, over 50 per cent of the market has already been cornered by digital equipment. Given these early indicators it is clear that as technology innovations continue and prices fall, it will not be long before a large percentage of Indian urban household possess a digital camera and photo printer. However, it is important to remember that the journey has just begun, and for this trend to become a lifestyle reality, it will be imperative that all stakeholders in this industry work together to drive product education and adoption.

The do-it-at-home trend has proved to be a popular alternative overseas and has reduced the dependence on commercial photo studios. In India too, this trend is beginning to gain popularity amongst a new profile of users - school and college students, business professionals and photography buffs, who are increasingly using home printing due to the flexibility and convenience it provides. On an estimated installed base of 1.8 million inkjet printers in India, the belief is that above 4 lakh are photo print capable and this represents a large market in itself.

However, from a long-term perspective, ease of use and convenience will not be the only factors that will make photo printing popular. Demand for this technology is expected to grow as more and more people realise how home photo printing is a more cost effective medium when compared to commercial photo printing solutions. Similarly the flexibility this medium provides to manipulate and review images before printing and immediacy of the photo output (no more waiting to finish an entire roll or waiting for the film to get processed) are the other factors that will contribute to its adoption.

The latest trend in photo printing is the printing of high quality photos instantly and directly from the camera to the direct-connect printer. This direct connect photo printing is made possible by the adoption of card photo printing technology which enables users to print versatile credit card size pictures of 4"x 6" dimension in just three easy steps (connect, select and print).