Lots of big news for digital photographers coming up next month.

The Photokina "World of Imaging" Trade Show is a digital photography show that happens every two years in Germany. This big event is held at the Cologne Exhibition Center. The last show (in 2004) had over 160,000 visitors and had over 1,500 exhibitors. The 2006 Photokina will start September 26 and end October 1.

The Photokina is important partly because it is one of the year's mass unveiling of new photography products. Even though the event won't be until next month, the slow and steady build-up started this past July with the announcements of new products (like the snazzy Ergo-Tech bags from KATA). Here's a list of some of the products announced since July:

• Digicams
• Casio EXILIM EX-Z770
• Casio EXILIM EX-Z700
• Fujifilm FinePix S6500fd
• Fujifilm FinePix F20 Zoom
• Kodak EasyShare V705
• Kodak EasyShare C875
• Kodak EasyShare C743
• Kodak EasyShare C433
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ50
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX3
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX07
• Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX50
• Pentax Optio S7
• Pentax Optio W20
• Samsung NV10
• Samsung NV7 OPS
• Samsung NV3
• Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T10
• Digital SLR
• Nikon D80
• Lenses
• Nikon AF-S DX 18-135 mm
• Nikon AF-S DX 70-300 mm VR

Digital photography continues to advance, as does the general field of photography. Remember those "how did they do that?" shots that used to make our jaws drop when we saw them in National Geographic? Quite a lot of those are now common and within the reach of amateurs, so who knows what great things will be revealed at this Photokina?

So to our European readers who manage to get in, send us an email or two, will you?

When Kodak released its first dual lens camera (the Kodak Easyshare V570), I thought there was no way for things to get better. For one, those two lenses are just lovely. And the wide-angle shots that you could take with the camera is just fantastic (and that means I'll have less trouble taking pictures of the whole clan during holidays!). I don't even have to worry about my shaky hands anymore with the digital image stabilization technology. Taking videos with it also comes as a bonus.

Now, Kodak has announced another dual-lens camera: the V705 (just switch the numbers in your previous model, and voila! You have a new name for your new camera). More like an upgrade to the Easyshare V570, it boasts of 7-megapixel prints (its predecessor has 5MP), 5X optical zoom range for better close-ups, plus the usual video mode (you could take videos up to 80 minutes), 2.5' LCD, red-eye and blur alert, as well as cropping features and easy picture sharing. This will be available on September, and will cost $349.95 USD.

Another baby is born to the Kodak digital camera family, the Kodak Easyshare C875. It features a whopping 8-megapixel prints, 5X zoom lens as well as a 2.5'' LCD. But the striking feature of the C875 is the "smart scene" mode where it actually chooses the best scene for your shot. This will be available at the end of the month, for $299.95 USD.

The last newcomer is the Kodak Easyshare G600 Printer Dock. Just prop your Pictbridge or Imagelink compatible device on top of it, and get your pictures printing in no time (4"x6" prints are done in 60 seconds). Its built-in handle makes it convenient to lug around, and it automatically charges your Kodak camera battery, too. Plus with the Kodak Xtralife lamination, prints are guaranteed waterproof, fingerprint proof, stain resistant, and wipable. It's available in stores now, for $149.95 USD.

Are you on the hunt for a camera that will fit your budget? Then take advantage of this deal from Amazon. They are offering the Kodak EasyShare C300 3.2-Megapixel Digital Camera without the additional shipping fee.

Sporting a 5x digital zoom (no optical zoom), 1.5" LCD, video clip recording, 16MB internal memory, Secure Digital/MMC card slot, and USB connectivity this camera originally having a total price of $129.95 is now slashed to $79.88. They say that the best things in life are free, and that a picture is worth a thousand words: With this $80 camera, you can have a bunch of thousand word-worth photos, each having the potential to capture one of your life's best moments - not very far from being free if you ask me.