Inofgraphic shows what happened to the Photography Industry in 2016 (via Lensvid)

Lensvid shared this Infographic that shows what happened to the Photography Industry in 2016 (Click on it to enlarge). Here are some of their findings:

  • Smartphones killed the compact camera market – from over 100 million compact cameras sold in 2010 we will most likely see under 10 million sold in 2017. Just for reference, in 2016 the global sales of smart phones reached 1.5 billion units, an increase of 5 percent from 2015.
  • Mirrorless are not fulfilling their promise – mirrorless are making lots of noise in the photo industry but looking at the numbers they have been more or less stagnant for the past 3 years at around 3 million cameras per year – far from impressive numbers.
  • The DSLR market is shrinking – this was to be expected but it is not because of the rise of  mirrorless. Why this is happening is probably a combination of reasons – at the entry level some people who might have considered buying a DSLR a few years back just settle for their smartphone camera which is better than ever and will soon improve even further with dual cameras, smart zoom technologies and more advanced features. At the mid to high end segments – there just isn’t enough innovation to justify replacing gear as often as it used to be and on the more positive side – cameras are quite reliable and replacing a working camera for a new one which doesn’t offer significantly more, just doesn’t make sense to many users.
  • Cameras are for older people – you can’t see this in the numbers but we clearly see this all around us – aside from the professional segment – dedicated cameras do not interest the younger generation. The people who are still interested in photography are typically around the ages of 40-60 or more – the same people who maybe shot with analog cameras as youngsters and now have the time and money to invest in photography as a hobby – their children and grandchildren are far less interested in cameras and prefer to use their smartphones.

Canon says mirorrless market is “slowing down” (WTF?)


Mr. Mizoguchi and Mr. Tokura interviewed by Dpreview

Dpreview interviewed two Canon managers and that’s what they say about their mirrorless strategy:

  1. Our intention is to become number one in the overall ILC market: mirrorless and SLR.
  2. “Compared to two years ago we’re now seeing a slowing down of mirrorless taking over. We were expecting to see more mirrorless taking off, keeping that momentum, but that has not happened.”
  3. When asked about a possible professional EOS-M the answer is “Obviously we think it could be possible, there is a potential, but we do not want to put a time frame on that.
  4. About professional L lenses for the EOS-M: “The demand for that is still quite limited and so we won’t be able to say.
  5. In terms of introducing sensor-based stabilization into our EOS-M series, I think it will add weight, which might deter some of our mirrorless customers. Which is why we think optical IS is the way to go for us.”

So either Canon is hiding their cards or they seriously believe mirrorless is just a Gimmick. That would be disappointing!

Hasselblad announces the new XCD 35-75mm Zoom, XCD 65mm, XCD 22mm Wide Angle and XCD 120mm f/3.5 Macro lenses!

Today the Fuji GFX shipment officially started at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto. But it looks like Hasselblad wants to steal a bit of the show and just announced four new lenses!

Three lenses will sip in 2018: The XCD 35-75mm Zoom, XCD 65mm and XCD 22mm Wide Angle. And only the new XCD 3,5/120mm Macro lens will be available soon for now and this is the press text:

The XCD 120mm Macro is a compact macro lens for the X1D camera featuring close focusing from infinity to an image scale of 1:2 (43 cm distance setting). The optical design and internal focusing system ensures amazing performance at all distance settings. Mirrorlessrumors
The focal length and high aperture also makes the lens an eminently suitable portrait lens with beautiful bokeh. All XCD lenses contain a lens shutter delivering shutter speeds from 60 minutes to 1/2000 second. Synchronizing with flash at all speeds, allows full creative freedom when mixing flash and daylight. The lens shutter also generates very little vibration providing hand-hold shots with perfect sharpness.

Fuji GFX shipment started today! GFX manual now available for download.

The full Fuji GFX manual is now available for download at fujifilm-dsc.com/en/manual/gfx50s/gfx_50s_omw_en_s_f.pdf

The camera is also finally shipping out from various US stores:

GFX System Camera & Lenses
GFX 50S Medium Format Mirrorless Camera at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm GF 63mm F/2.8 R WR Lens for GFX at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm GF 32-64mm F/4 R LM WR Lens for GFX at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm GF 120mm F/4 R LM OIS WR Macro Lens for GFX at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.

GFX 50S Accessories at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm EVF-TL1 EVF Tilt Adapter for GFX 50S at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm H Mount Adapter G, for GFX at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm RLCP-002 Rear Lens Cap for GFX Lenses at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm BCP-002 Body Cap for GFX at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm FLCP-62II Front Lens Cap fpr GF 63mm Lens at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm VG-GFX1 Vertical Battery Grip f/GFX 50S at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm NP-T125 Rechargeable Battery for GFX 50S at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm BC-T125 Battery Charger for NP-T125 Battery at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.
Fujifilm AC-15V AC Power Adapter for GFX 50S at Amazon, Adorama and BHphoto.

Fuji says next generation of mirrorless cameras will beat DSLRs in every respect!

Dpreview interviewed Mr. Toshihisa Iida from Fuji. One of his most interesting statements is this:

“Maybe one more processor and sensor generation should be enough to make mirrorless beat DSLRs in every respect.”

That would be nice!

And here are a few interesting bits about the GFX which will start shipping out next week at BHphoto, Amazon and at Calumet Germany:

GFX camera release cycle:Obviously the sales volume will be lower, so the product life cycle will probably be longer. But whenever we have the right combination of the right hardware, the right sensor and the right processor, we’ll introduce a new camera.

Future lenses:A lot of photographers are asking us for telephoto lenses, in the 200-300mm range. Nature photographers for example. Also people are asking for a wide-angle, like a 15mm equivalent, and an equivalent to the 70-200mm on full-frame.

Press text: SD association doubles bus interface speeds with UHS-iii

The SD association announced a newUHS-III card standard. It allows up to 624 MB/sec transfer ratem which is ideal for 8K and 360 degree video recording. Here is the full original press text:

SD ASSOCIATION DOUBLES BUS INTERFACE SPEEDS WITH UHS-III

  624 MB/sec transfer rate makes quick work of high-quality camera images,
          360-degree, virtual reality and 4K and 8K video applications

Pacifico Yokohama, Japan — CP+ Camera and Photo Imaging Show Booth # G-16 —
Feb. 22, 2017 — The SD Association announced today UHS-III, doubling the fastest
SD memory card transfer rate up to 624 megabytes per second (MB/s). UHS-III faster
speeds help move large amounts of data generated by data-intense Gbps wireless
communication, 360-degree cameras, drones, 3D, 4K and 8K videos recorded on
SDXC and SDHC memory cards.Mirrorlessrumors.com
Immense storage capacities introduced with SDXC memory cards give users the ability
to take more pictures and make unique video features on the latest imaging devices.
Fast UHS bus interfaces help users manage that content more quickly. Since it is fully
backwards compatible, devices offering UHS-III bus interface will accept the billions of
existing SD memory cards in the market today.

“SD memory card capabilities continue to expand, paving the way for new and highly
anticipated imaging and video features, from virtual reality to 8K video,” said Brian
Kumagai, SDA president. “The SDA remains committed to supporting innovation by
consumer electronics manufacturers and to delivering the same performance and
interoperability consumers and professional users love about SD memory cards.”

The SDA released a visual mark to denote UHS-III SD memory cards for easy
matching with devices’ recommendation for the best SD memory card for optimal
performance.

SDXC UHS-III card example:
UHS Bus InterfaceMirrorlessrumors.com
The UHS-III high-speed interface signals are assigned to the second row of SD
memory card pins introduced with UHS-II. This newest bus transfer speed option will be
available in full-size SDHC and SDXC cards, as well as microSDHC and microSDXC
cards. It does not change the physical size or shape of the cards as the move from
UHS-II to UHS-III involves only a PHY change, allowing relatively easy and fast
upgrades of existing UHS-II products to UHS-III.

Both UHS-I and UHS-II make the robust storage specified for SDHC and SDXC
manageable and even more portable. Ultra High Speed was announced in June 2010
with UHS-I delivering top bus-interface speeds of 104 MB/sec, which was tripled to 312
MB/sec in UHS-II. UHS bus interfaces are backwards compatible and are exclusive to
SDXC and SDHC products. All UHS-equipped memory cards achieve greatest
performance when paired with corresponding UHS devices. SDXC and SDHC UHS-I
and UHS-II products are already in retail outlets around the world and supported by
leading camera manufacturers. You can read more about UHS on our website.

Find the SD Association at CP+ Camera and Photo Imaging Show in Booth MR-16,
February 23-26, 2017, in Pacifico Yokohama, Japan.

SD Association
The SD Association is a global ecosystem of nearly 900 technology companies charged
with setting interoperable SD standards. The Association encourages the development
of consumer electronic, wireless communication, digital imaging and networking
products that utilize market-leading SD technology. The SD standard is the number one
choice for consumers and has earned more than 80 percent of the memory card market
with its reliable interoperability and its easy-to-use format. Today, smart phones, tablets,
Blu-ray players, HDTVs, audio players, automotive multimedia systems, handheld PCs,
digital cameras and digital video cameras feature SD interoperability. For more
information about SDA or to join, please visit the Association’s website,
https://www.sdcard.org.
SD Logos are trademarks licensed by SD-3C LLC.