Ricoh/Pentax has no plan to go back to mirrorless…yet

[shoplink 303880 ebay][/shoplink]

Image on top shows the [shoplink 303880 ebay]Pentax Q[/shoplink]

PentaxForums had the chance to interview Ricoh/Pentax managers. When they asked them about the possibility of going back making 1 inch or APS-C mirrorless system cameras that’s the answer they got:

We keep watching the trends in the mirrorless camera market, however there is no specific plan on our roadmap at the moment.

And regarding the Q-Line they say:

The Q series is still an active line and the Q-S1 and lenses are still being made and marketed for Asian markets.

Imaging Resource says the GFX “produces the best lab shots we’ve ever come across”


ISO 100: Fuji GFX (left) vs. Pentax 645Z (right)

Imaging Resource posted the Fuji GFX Labs shots. And the great news is that Fuji really managed to squeeze out much more from the Sony 50MP sensor than Pentax managed to do with the Pentax 645Z (which sues the same sensor). Imaging Resource writes:

Well, based on this initial First Shots assessment, the Fuji GFX is simply stunning, both at low and high ISOs. This camera produces the best lab shots we’ve ever come across. Detail is fantastic, and high ISO performance is excellent.

Impressive work from Fuji! Now lets hope IR will add the Hasselblad X1D Lab shots soon too. I am curious to see if Hasselblad can match the GFX performance.

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.

Japanese companies report a 5% shipment increase in system cameras for January 2017

CIPA released the January report based on Japanese camera manufacturers shipments. And again there is a small good news to report. In January we got a 5% increase of camera shipments over the previous year.

Our reader Mistral (Thanks!) also noticed this:

– mirrorless cameras: +48.3 in number of units sold and +47.4% in turnover (shipments)
– DSLRs: -11.1%  in number of units sold and +6.5% in turnover.
– This is also the first month ever during which shipments of mirrorless cameras to Japan were higher than those of DSLRs.

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!