An In-depth conversation with Chris Blythe from AirCastPro, exploring innovation, solutions, and successes in the event photography sector.

In the bustling world of event photography, where each click immortalises a moment, the appetite for innovation endures. AirCastPro has been developing solutions to capitalise on Citizen’s leading dye-sub printing capabilities to offer revolutionary solutions for the industry. From inception to their latest achievements, the synergy between the two is setting new standards for excellence, illuminating the path towards a brighter future for everyone working in the event photography market today.

Q: Please share a little about the development journey of the AirCastPro business and how it came to life.

Chris Blyte (CB): Sure. So, I started in the photo world many years ago, and it’s the only industry I've worked in to this day. We started out selling digital cameras, which, at the time were the big DSLRs that were hugely expensive. Our average sale was probably in the region of $150,000, so we didn’t need to sell too many systems for the business to do well. I headed up our support team, which required a lot of time and grit as there was a lot of custom software and specialised profiles coming into the market, along with the camera systems. This demanded a lot of education. In the early 2000s, most people didn't know how to use Photoshop; they didn't know what RAW files were, so we had a duty to educate them in order to encourage market growth and, ultimately, sales. Back then, photo printing was mostly carried out with wet labs but dye-sub printing was emerging into the market. It was at that point that we started to sell dye sub printers.

Q: And did dye-sub printers grow into the business model as they evolved? We know that the event photography sector and booth business is not without its challenges. Photographers often grapple with the complexities of printing on the go, relying on cumbersome setups and outdated technologies. From connectivity issues to slow printing speeds, these challenges can disrupt the flow of events and compromise the quality of prints. What was the catalyst for the development of the AirCastPro range?

CB: Yes. Primarily, our focus with dye-sub printers had been in the events market, where we spotted an opportunity to collaborate our operations. AirCastPro was the collaborative brainchild of three companies: Allen Christopher Software, Desktop Darkroom, and ImageTech Marketing. We put it all together, and that was the birth of AirCastPro! We started to target portrait photographers and then, as the printers became smaller, lighter and produced faster prints, we targeted shopping mall printers such as the Santa experiences, along with golfing tournaments. As they continued to become more reliable, the printers found themselves increasingly being used in photo kiosks and photo booths but it was only about six or seven years ago that we had the idea to develop AirCastPro. We saw the trend of people switching to iPads versus dedicated Windows or Mac computers. Users found that they didn’t need to worry about viruses and could implement money-spinning augmented reality features; it was just simple. More and more app developers started abandoning Windows and just focusing on iOS but with iOS, there's no way to natively print. There's no air print server built into these machines, so what people were doing before AirCastPro, was to take a dedicated computer to their event with the requirement for them to run server software. The iPad would send the image to that server and that server would then send the image to the printer.

That was the genesis behind AirCastPro. The aim was to simplify the process. Make it a little bit less expensive, too, but mostly simplify things for the user.

Q: Making the experience more fluid.

CB: It’s all about simplicity and speed. There are other solutions on the market but the AirCastPro is producing prints in circa six seconds, compared to around 30 seconds with other brands. We also look after all of the software updates and compatibility issues that manifest over time.

“The panoramic printing feature that’s found in Citizen’s dye-sub photo printers, allows us to print larger, panoramic prints and that has gained traction in the youth sports industry. It offers ample space for team photos or action shots, catering to a broader market beyond traditional event photography.”

Q: What does the market look like for you right now?

CB: I’d say that, in the US, 95% of our customers are photobooth operators. In Europe, it's more evenly split between photobooths and events. Probably 50/50, however, we're constantly exploring other potential applications. For instance, the panoramic printing feature that’s found in Citizen’s CX-02 dye-sub photo printers, allows us to print larger, panoramic prints and that has gained traction in the youth sports industry. It offers ample space for team photos or action shots, catering to a broader market beyond traditional event photography.

Q: That's fascinating. Panoramic prints are something that Citizen’s CX-02 photo printers can deliver with extremely high quality and incredible reliability. Every event, from weddings to corporate gatherings, relies on capturing moments to immortalise memories. Event & booth photographers face the challenge of delivering high volume prints, often amidst the chaos of a bustling environment. It is the different offerings that cut through and, beyond the demand for speed and reliability, AirCastPro is offering innovative printing solutions that streamline workflows and enhance user experiences with impressive formats and interesting applications. Can you elaborate on some of the unique features or benefits that come with Citizen printers, and that lead your business to choose them as a preferred partner?

CB: Absolutely. Citizen printers offer unparalleled speed and performance, making them ideal for event photography settings where rapid printing is essential. Our collaboration with Citizen has also allowed us to introduce innovative features like the ‘overcoat’ watermark, which adds a distinctive touch to prints. This is a really interesting finish that’s achieved by manipulating the print ribbon process and adds a dimension to the print that many people haven’t seen before. Moreover, Citizen's printers are renowned for their reliability and versatility, ensuring a seamless printing experience for photographers across various events and applications.

Q: So tell us a little more about the evolution of the AirCast product range. The business went from a great idea and the first iteration, to today, where you've just launched the AirCast III.

CB: Confusingly, the AirCastPro III is our fourth-generation product. We're not very good at naming, (laughs). Every generation has been a more stable product has had more features and has been faster than its predecessor. Initially, we were focused on taking an image and facilitating the print as quickly and efficiently as possible. We made sure that it was simple to connect to the internet, add text, etc. AirCastPro facilitates all of these core features but the next generation was more about developing options for the customer. This and colour. We worked incredibly hard on fine-tuning colour profiles because this was software that didn't exist at the time. We started to add options including different print sizes, while tweaking the colour and working directly with manufacturers to get their colour profiles the best they could be in the device. That was number two. The next device was the AirCastPro II Express, where we continued to increase speed and features. The AirCastPro III offers features that came from requests from customers.

Q: So, you’ve been listening! The collaboration between Citizen and AirCastPro has yielded notable successes in the event photography industry. From large-scale activations with major brands to intimate weddings and corporate events, their solutions have left a lasting impression on clients and attendees alike. By offering unparalleled speed, reliability, and versatility, they've become the go-to choice for event photographers seeking cutting-edge solutions. Tell us more about your experience here.

CB: Absolutely. We've had a lot of customers reach out to us. Large brands will reach out to work on big activations. One example of this was with Coca Cola. They visited one of our customers for a brand activation with a celebrity in a concert series that would take in 30 cities. But they didn’t want a traditional four-by-six-inch print. We spoke with the customer and came up with the idea for a panoramic option. Citizen printers offer the ability to print six by fourteen inches and even larger panoramic prints, so we came up with a product that alloweda leading global beverage brandto have their logo on one half of the print, leaving a photo strip with marketing information and ads on the other half.

On top of this, we have USB printing. In a USB device, you can attach to AirCastPro III and have it print. With our new FTP support, we can now capture directly from a pro-level camera to an AirCastPro III device and it will print instantly with the option to include any kind of branding or templates.

Q: It seems that the collaboration between Citizen and AirCastPro is pushing the boundaries of possibility, shaping the landscape of event photography for years to come.

CB: I would agree with that. We’re excited to see what the next steps will be and what we can deliver for the industry together.

Q: Thank you for your time.

Chris Blythe – AirCastPro

You can find the AirCastPro family of products at aircastpro.com.

Citizen’s photo printers can be found here.