Digicameinfo listed the latest published lens patents:
Fuji:
Canon:
Nikon:
Fujirumors reports the new 18-120mm lens will have a constant aperture f/4.0 aperture. While SonyAlphaRumors says a new 24-70mm f/2.8 GM II lens will be announced this month.
DJI Mini 3 First leak video pic.twitter.com/NgskqONf8w
— 航拍世家 打手 (@DealsDrone) April 2, 2022
DJI will announce the new mini 3 within the next few weeks. It has (finally!) obstacle avoidance sensors, a larger battery with longer flight autonomy and maybe even a 1inch sensor with f/1.7 lens (this would be a stunner).
Nikkei published an article that gives a positive outlook about the camera market. Digicameinfo made this summary:
Could it get any worse? Yes it can! In February camera shipments hit a new low record according to CIPA. And also the lens sales hit a new low:
Damn it, I was hoping 2022 would at least match the 2021 sales…
Digitalcameraworld summed up what we can expect to get in 2022. Here is just the quick summary:
What we think: Canon seems to have gone all in on mirrorless, but not just in the sense of traditional camera bodies – more and more we’re seeing it stretch the boundaries of photo products, with concept cameras like the PowerShot Pick and Posture Fit. Sony has fought fire with napalm in responding to the EOS R5 with the Sony A1, and Canon has returned a ferocious salvo of its own in the form of the 30fps, eye-controlled Canon EOS R3 – which may also spell the beginning of the end for mechanical shutters.
What we think: We expect Nikon to keep building on the Z system for the foreseeable future, adding more full-frame mirrorless lenses to complement the Nikon Z6 II, Nikon Z7 II and of course the Z9 – along with new, smaller optics like the Nikkor Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR and the Nikon pancake primes to suit the new wave of APS-C cameras like the Z fc.
With Fujifilm having meaningfully expanded the medium format GFX line last year, while only giving its APS-C X cameras a light refresh, this year is all about the fifth generation of X-mount cameras – namely, the long-awaited X-H2. We also wouldn’t be at all surprised to see a similarly long-awaited new Instax Wide camera appearing.
What we think: If the rumors are true about the A7R V, this could cause a seismic shift in the industry. And with content creation having exploded even further over the past couple of years, thanks to the global pandemic, further innovating the new ZV-1 line to appease young vloggers seems like a very open goal.
It’s anyone’s guess what happens to Olympus in 2021. Its future will very much be dictated by the next cameras it releases – and much as we love the PEN E-P7, a body that’s not being released in North America doesn’t seem like an obvious solution for an unprofitable business. With rumblings of a new “wow” camera coming next year, we hope that OM Digital pulls out all the stops rather than kitbashing the old sensor with new parts yet again. And who knows what will come of the rumored alliance with Samsung – could this be the start of Olympus providing cameras for other brands, whether it’s drones or dashcams?
We’ve finally got the GH6 – and Panasonic is still employing herky-jerky DFD technology instead of the phase detect autofocus system that its cameras so desperately need. Will this new flagship be a shot in the arm for Panasonic and the Micro Four Thirds format, or will the dogged refusal to embrace reliable autofocus tech continue to spell trouble for the manufacturer?
While Sigma has successfully delivered the intriguing fp L, the future of its troubled Foveon camera – and Foveon technology in general – appears to be fairly rocky right now. Will we ever see this technology materialize?
After a few years of mainly licensing its name, if not its optics, to smartphone companies and DJI drones, Hasselblad might finally be unleashing a long-awaited new medium format body. And not before time!
