The Photo and Video Kit Hall Of Fame
Publisher’s Note: If you are a regular reader of this site you know I like photo gear. When this came across my desk I thought you might enjoy not only looking at some classic gear being nominated. It will be fun if you participate to see the results. The voting site is easy and fun to use. You go to each category and male a vote and share where your location (country) is. After the voting is completed and tabulated we will share the results right here in photoPXL around August 19th. MPB, the originator of this Hall Of Fame is an advertiser on photoPXL and has supported us. Thank You MPB.
Public Voting Opens for Hall of Fame Honoring Photography Gear
MPB launches first-ever Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame and announces nominees
Public voting is now open for the 2020 inaugural class of the Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame. MPB, the world’s largest resale platform for digital photography and filmmaking kit, has launched the Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame to honor the best photo and video equipment of the digital era.
The twenty-five nominees across five awards categories—Classic, Game Changer, Iconic, Road Tested, and Trendsetter—cover thirteen leading brands of photography and videography kit. The camera experts at MPB chose the nominees based on their qualities, embodying the spirit of each category.
The Classic category—with camera bodies and lenses renowned as evergreen benchmarks of quality—features the Canon EOS 5D Mk III, Nikon D700, Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8, Sony A7R and Canon 50mm f/1.8.
Meanwhile, the field-disrupting Game Changer category offers the choice between the DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone, the GoPro HERO sports camera, the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM ART lens, and the mirrorless Panasonic S1H and Sony Alpha A9.
In the category of the rugged kit workhorses, Road Tested nominees include the Nikon D810 and Canon EOS 1DX Mk II DSLRs, the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM lens, the Nikon SB-900 Speed-light flash, and the mirrorless Fujifilm XT-2.
The Trendsetter category features cameras that shape the conversation based on their appearance as well as their capabilities. Enter the Fujifilm X100F, Ricoh GR II, Canon 40mm f/2.8 STM, Hasselblad X1D-50c and Olympus PEN-F.
Cameras in the creme-de-la-creme category, Iconic, are symbols of quality and inspiration—the Leica M3, Mamiya 7 Mk II, Canon EOS 5D, Hasselblad 500CM, and the Canon 50mm f/0.95 lens.
“Being able to handle this range and caliber of the kit week in and week out, we’re honored to be launching the Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame,” said Matt Barker, CEO, and Founder of MPB. “The kit you shoot with can give you the freedom to explore creatively as well as the confidence that you’ll get the right shot. We understand how passionate people are about camera gear, and we launched this Hall of Fame to give people a tangible way to engage with that passion. We’re super excited about this, and we hope you will be too.”
Photographers, filmmakers, and creatives around the world can vote for nominees in all five award categories at www.kithalloffame.com and share their selections across social media with the hashtag #kithalloffame. Voting is open until 11 August 2020.
MPB will announce the Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame’s inaugural 2020 class on World Photography Day—19 August 2020—and will award plaques to the manufacturers of the winning kit. The gear itself will feature in an exhibition in Brooklyn, NYC. Details about the exhibition and future induction events will be announced in the coming months.
The Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame Nominees
They may not be brand-new or flashy, but the nominees in this category stand as benchmarks for quality in an ever-changing world of gear. A ‘Classic’ is a valued piece of kit for anyone looking to get into photography.
Canon EOS 5D Mk III
The Canon EOS 5D III ruled the roost for half a decade, loved by photographers and videographers alike.
Nikon D700
This was the full-frame pro body in its day, and the Nikon D700 is still used by pros because of its incredible image quality, build quality and character.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8
Making this lens white made this lens a legend. But the performance of the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM is what made it truly legendary.
Sony A7R
The first mirrorless camera that made everyone excited about the possibilities of mirrorless tech.
Canon 50mm f/1.8
Cheap and cheerful, but with loads of character, the Canon 50mm f/1.8 lens is equally at home in the kitbag of a beginner or a pro.
Vote now at kithalloffame.com
The Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame Nominees
The photo and video kit that disrupted the fields of photography and videography by ushering in new technology, expanding product capabilities, or making quality more accessible.
DJI Mavic 2 Pro
Unprecedented image quality for a small drone. The sky’s the limit with the DJI Mavic 2 Pro.
GoPro HERO
The GoPro HERO revolutionized point-of-view filming for sports and otherwise impossible-to-capture activities.
Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM ART
Sigma came out of nowhere with their ART range. The Sigma 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM ART offered a huge improvement in image quality at a fraction of the cost of its competitors.
Panasonic S1H
With 422 color and 10-bit recording, the Panasonic S1H has video functions never seen before on a DSLR-sized camera.
Sony Alpha A9
Sony’s entry into the pro-market made waves. The incredibly-capable Sony Alpha A9 made believers out of many photographers who were considering going mirrorless.
Vote now at kithalloffame.com
The Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame Nominees
The kit workhorses, Road Tested nominees are the tried-and-true gear you reach for when you have to get the shot. From rainforests to runways, these nominees deliver time and again.
Nikon D810
A near-perfect all-rounder, the Nikon D810 brought high resolution to a familiar package, with reliable ISO performance.
Canon EOS 1DX Mk II
A speed beast. The Canon EOS 1DX Mk II combined incredible ISO performance with breakneck shooting speed.
Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM
An instantly recognizable lens. For a decade, every Canon-shooting pro kept the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM in their kitbag at all times.
Nikon SB-900 Speedlight
The Nikon SB-900 Speedlight’s sheer power is the reason you find them on top of many professional photographers’ Nikon cameras.
Fujifilm XT-2
Fujifilm’s pro body, the XT-2 gained serious traction with pros looking to make the most of mirrorless tech.
Vote now at kithalloffame.com
The Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame Nominees
A Trendsetter shapes conversation about how it looks, as well as the images it captures.
Fujifilm X100F
Beautiful and portable, the Fujifilm X100F is the retro camera everyone wishes they had in their kitbag right alongside their pro body.
Ricoh GR II
A point-and-shoot camera that packs big ideas in a small size, the Ricoh GR II boasts pro features and full manual controls.
Canon 40mm f/2.8 STM
A tiny lens with incredible image quality, you won’t believe the Canon 40mm f/2.8 STM until you try it.
Hasselblad X1D-50c
The Hasselblad X1D-50c is the size and weight of a DSLR—but comes with a medium format sensor. This camera created a niche all on its own.
Olympus PEN-F
With the PEN-F, Olympus revived the name of a classic carry-everywhere camera with advanced features.
Vote now at kithalloffame.com
The Photo and Video Kit Hall of Fame Nominees
The crème de la crème of photo kit. Iconic cameras are the ones you idolize, they’re symbols of quality and inspiration.
Leica M3
With its iconic rangefinder shape, the Leica M3 is loved by many of the world’s greatest street and documentary photographers.
Mamiya 7 Mk II
Due to its quality and portability, the Mamiya 7 Mk II has been the camera of choice for many fine art photographers over the last 30 years.
Canon EOS 5D
The original Canon EOS 5D was the world’s first full-frame digital camera sold to the mass market, and it made the high-end much more accessible.
Hasselblad 500CM
An iconic shape from an iconic manufacturer. The Hasselblad 500CM helped create much of the world’s finest work—and it still holds up today.
Canon 50mm f/0.95
Going below f/1 made the Canon 50mm f/0.95 iconic – particularly with its spectacular level of image quality.
Vote now at kithalloffame.com
MPB Company Background
MPB is the world’s largest resale platform for digital photography and filmmaking kit.
Launched in 2011 by Matt Barker, MPB was born from a desire to provide more freedom and flexibility to photographers. Barker, an avid photographer, set out to improve the speed, reliability, and experience of trading kit online. By combining the power of an end-to-end technology platform, rigorous testing and validation by product experts, and top-notch customer service, MPB has become the most convenient and trustworthy way to buy, sell, and trade digital photography, videography, and filmmaking kit online. Over 250,000 creatives in Europe and the United States trust MPB for their kit needs
Unlike other camera resellers, MPB focuses exclusively on the used kit. With over 160,000 cameras, lenses, and accessories traded each year, MPB offers buyers and traders an unrivaled choice of digital photo and video kit. The MPB platform provides more than £250M in quotes to sellers per year and ensures that sellers are paid the same day. MPB carefully monitors supply and demand to ensure that sellers receive the highest price possible and that all items are priced correctly for the market. With MPB, users get more money for their kit and more kit for their money. By inspiring photographers and filmmakers to choose used, MPB is making creative industries more sustainable and driving the circular economy.
Backed by leading investment firms Acton, Mobeus Equity Partners, Beringea, and FJ Labs, MPB has continued to increase its global reach. Headquartered in Brighton in the UK, MPB launched US operations in Brooklyn, NY in 2017 and will establish operations in Berlin, Germany by the end of 2020. MPB employs a talented global team of 150.
MPB has been named to the Sunday Times Tech Track 100, the Deloitte Technology Fast 50, and the Tech Nation Future Fifty.
Kevin Raber
June 2020
Kevin Raber
Indianapolis, IN
Photography is my passion and has been for 50 plus years. My career in photography has allowed me to travel the world, meet some of the most interesting people on the planet and see things I could never have dreamed of. My goal is to share the passion of picture taking through photographs and teaching with as many people as I can, hoping it brings them as much joy and happiness as it has me. I do this through photoPXL.com, this site, as well as Rockhopper Workshops, and other projects, as well as teaching as Artist In Residence at the Indianapolis Art Center.
