1DX or 5D Mark III at this year's SXSW?

[JustinTArthur]

SXSW is about to start up. Anyone know if Canon's trade booth will have either of the new bodies? I'm curious what Canon's presence will be like. Nikon usually rocks out pretty hard in terms of buying booze and concerts, but it looks like Canon will be taking a more active role as they're sponsoring one of the film screening venues, however there aren't any CPS events scheduled for the weeks.

On a side note, travel photographer Trey Ratcliff (Stuck in Customs) will doing a photowalk through town on Saturday the 10th. It's free RSVP and no SXSW badge is required. Details on this post.

 

[JustinTArthur]

I've confirmed they are demoing the 5D Mark III at the trade show and have at least one unit for people to look at. No 1DX today, unsure about the next few days. The line to play with the 5D Mark III is a little long but if you're interested, it's at stands 201, 203, 300, and 302. These are right next to the Trinity Street entrance.

Canon booth manager for the event can be reached at +1.516.328.4840.

I've been to the Canon Imagination Lounge at the Crystal Room of the Driskill. I can tell you it's not worth your time if you're a gear-head. If you're interested in Project Imagin8ion or Ron Howard's pretty film shot on the C300 and DSLRs, then it might be worth a few minutes of your time. The lounge is run by a marketing firm representing Canon and most of them know very little about Canon products. You can snap some photos using the thematic frames they give you and upload them at the lounge in order to enter a sweepstakes for a T3i (the girl in a Canon shirt there called it a 3Ti, lolz).

 

[V8Beast]

Thanks for the heads up. I had no idea Canon was going to be in attendance. How much does it cost to get into the trade show?

 

[JustinTArthur]

How much does it cost to get into the trade show?

The trade show is free as long as you've got any of the five badge types; it's effectively paid for by the vendors peddling their wares. You just walk in and they'll look at your lanyard as you pass. If you don't have a badge, the cheapest one is a Film badge for $595 at the walk-up rate (ouch, I know).

If you're an Austinite or are in town for the free/unofficial stuff, you might be able to find an attendee finishing out their Interactive week tomorrow (March 13th) who's willing to part with their badge on the cheap before they head home. Caveat: using someone else's badge like this may technically break the rules—I'm not sure.

The trade show ends on Thursday and the hours are:
Monday, March 12 - 11:00-18:00 CDT
Tuesday, March 13 - 11:00-18:00 CDT
Wednesday, March 14 - 11:00-18:00 CDT
Thursday, March 15 11:00-16:00 CDT

I don't know the Canon booth's specific hours but given their target audience is filmmakers this year, there's a good chance they'll be up for the bulk of the trade show. The Film conference doesn't end until the 17th.

 

[V8Beast]

I don't have a badge, so it sounds like it will cost me $595? Yikes. I'm an Austinite, but I'll have to pass.