Camera maker Panasonic brought a ‘giant pigeon’ sculpture to central London this morning in a stunt to publicise the ‘fun’ that can be had with ultra-wideangle lenses.
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The 1.52×3.2m fibre glass structure was lifted into place next to City Hall, the workplace of London Mayor Boris Johnson.
It was then moved further along the River Thames for a photo call in front of the Houses of Parliament.
Panasonic said it commissioned the ‘life-like’ 200kg sculpture to mark the launch of its Lumix DMC-ZX1 digital compact camera which sports an 8x optical zoom. The lens delivers the 35mm [film camera] viewing angle equivalent of a 25mm lens at the wide end.
A spokesman said the firm chose the pigeon because the bird has been a ‘source of controversy’ since former London Mayor Ken Livingstone banned the feeding of them in Trafalgar Square.
The giant pigeon will spend the next fortnight in Neal Street, Covent Garden.
Other installations that can be spotted in selected UK cities over the next two weeks include a giant conker, traffic cone and ‘crumpled coffee cup’.
Panasonic’s head of marketing Mark Robinson added: ‘We are looking forward to seeing how people interact with the larger-than-life installations and we hope everyone has a bit of fun as well. Taking everyday objects and magnifying them highlights the impressive results that are possible thanks to our ultra-wideangle lens and super-zoom compact camera, the Lumix ZX1.
Last month Panasonic made a giant cake to celebrate the first anniversary of its Micro Four Thirds camera system.
