Forgot Password
Pentax Camera Forums Home
 

Reply
Show Printable Version Search this Thread
02-28-2015, 08:26 PM   #1
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter




Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Tumbleweed, Arizona
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 5,698
What Happened to the Photography Industry in 2014?

QuoteQuote:
2013 was the worst year for the photography industry in a long long time. A few days ago CIPA (the Camera & Imaging Products Association) published the official numbers of the photography industry for 2014. So did the industry bounce back or did the fall continue downhill, and what does it all mean for us as consumers?



02-28-2015, 08:43 PM   #2
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
Stavri's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: at a Bean & Leaf
Photos: Albums
Posts: 1,832
Very interesting, thank you for the link
02-28-2015, 08:56 PM   #3
Kiwi Pentaxian
Loyal Site Supporter
NZ_Ross's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Timaru
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 4,222
Really interesting information - thanks for the link
02-28-2015, 09:25 PM   #4
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
UncleVanya's Avatar

Join Date: Jul 2014
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 28,167
I know this sounds like a sky is falling comment - but I wonder if Pentax is picking the right time to step into FF. The market conditions are terrible. I guess their thinking may be that this opens up sales that might not occur and that's a possibility. Fingers crossed!

02-28-2015, 10:00 PM   #5
Veteran Member
Venturi's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Tulsa, OK
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 2,636
Welcome to equilibrium. The camera craze of the past decade, from my perspective, parallels the same that happened in the mid-70s when the AE cameras hit the market. It just lasted a lot longer this time around thanks to digital processing. The general public is finally realizing that no they really cannot make better photographs with a $5000 dSLR kit than they can with their $500 (subsidized) smart phone. Many don't care to make/get really good photographs - but they never did before either. Those that do really want really good photographs are slowly realizing that it's worth it to enlist the services of someone that can.
This is a very good time to be a skilled photographer, and it's only going to get better.
Pentax' full-frame offering though is rather irrelevant. Likely a good tool, but the game already moved on.
02-28-2015, 10:07 PM   #6
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
monochrome's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Working From Home
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 26,276
If you aren't burdened with redundant capacity in a shrinking market it is a good time. Declines end and become expansions.

Same thing as investing during a recession. When it ends you are already expanding while others are still contracting.

Very interesting data on how little mirrorless really matters.
02-28-2015, 10:47 PM - 1 Like   #7
Site Supporter
Site Supporter
luftfluss's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: NJ
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 11,594
QuoteOriginally posted by Venturi Quote
This is a very good time to be a skilled photographer, and it's only going to get better.
Is it? Many staff photogs lost their jobs last year. Publications are using user-submitted images, including cameraphone snaps. People are viewing images on small devices, so some of the craftsmanship involved in producing a really good photograph is not so necessary any more.

Maybe I'm just being cranky, but it seems to me that in terms of public consumption, things are not so great for "skilled photographers" if they want to be "well-paid" photographers.

QuoteOriginally posted by monochrome Quote
Very interesting data on how little mirrorless really matters.
If current trends continue, DSLR will "catch down" to mirrorless in a few years.

03-01-2015, 01:09 AM   #8
Veteran Member
old4570's Avatar

Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Melbourne
Photos: Albums
Posts: 2,551
If Phones with cameras : Keep getting better , better images , better video . more pixels ..
Expect the trend to continue ..


only people interested in Amateur Photography will buy cameras ( SLR ) ... And as attention deficit disorder grows in the community , less and less people will take the time to learn the DSLR .
Remember , most of us probably played outside as children , the next generation ? and the one after that ? How long before the number of children that played outside , or have any outside interests become the minority ?
03-01-2015, 05:06 AM   #9
Pentaxian




Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Sydney
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 909
Look at the numbers. 42 Million cameras manufactured in 2014. This is divided amongst 10 manufacturers. Even with Canikon taking the lion's share it's still a huge market. There's still money to be made.
03-01-2015, 06:07 AM   #10
Pentaxian
rangercarp's Avatar

Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Southern Michigan
Posts: 437
I find it interesting that ILC's are still ahead of 2009 and 2010 levels. I realize those were post recession years, so sales may have been depressed. I would like to see the numbers from 2004 though 2008 or so. It has been a while but I have seen them posted before. If memory serves there was a marked uptick though those years. Point being, on a historical basis ILC sales are still fairly high. The sky is not falling, but the bubble has burst. The switch to digital which drove sales hard for six or eight years is complete. The upgrade path has slowed dramatically as well.
03-01-2015, 08:50 AM   #11
Senior Member




Join Date: May 2010
Location: Indiana
Photos: Gallery
Posts: 274
QuoteOriginally posted by old4570 Quote
If Phones with cameras : Keep getting better , better images , better video . more pixels ..
Expect the trend to continue ..


only people interested in Amateur Photography will buy cameras ( SLR ) ... And as attention deficit disorder grows in the community , less and less people will take the time to learn the DSLR .
Remember , most of us probably played outside as children , the next generation ? and the one after that ? How long before the number of children that played outside , or have any outside interests become the minority ?
Hopefully not very long...the fewer people I see in the great outdoors the better. Maybe we can accelerate the exidus via some sort of public service propaganda - exposure to West Nile virus, lyme disease, manic-depressive bigfeet? :-)
03-01-2015, 09:16 AM   #12
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
monochrome's Avatar

Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Working From Home
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 26,276
QuoteOriginally posted by rangercarp Quote
The sky is not falling, but the bubble has burst.
The NASDAQ Composite stock index last traded at this level 14 years ago. The largest component companies in the Index changed markedly but the total market eventually recovered. I understand it is a complex analogy but if history is a guide I wouldn't want to be one of the larger camera manufacturers.

03-01-2015, 09:37 AM   #13
Pentaxian




Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: New York
Posts: 4,833
QuoteOriginally posted by venturi:
This is a very good time to be a skilled photographer, and it's only going to get better.
QuoteOriginally posted by luftfluss:
Is it? Many staff photogs lost their jobs last year. Publications are using user-submitted images, including cameraphone snaps. People are viewing images on small devices, so some of the craftsmanship involved in producing a really good photograph is not so necessary any more. Maybe I'm just being cranky, but it seems to me that in terms of public consumption, things are not so great for "skilled photographers" if they want to be "well-paid" photographers.
Good points, both of you. It's a good time to be a photographer but a tough time to work as a photographer. Skilled hobbyists have great tools available but as photography has gotten easier the job market for photographers has changed. Newspapers, Sports Illustrated, etc. are shedding photo staff. There's a lot less paid work in local photojournalism. These changes are due to a combination of camera technology and a shift from print to internet distribution. There are new opportunities to sell blog ads but fewer photographers can make a good living from that.

2 friends used to work for a sizable newspaper (400k+ circulation). The photo staff was downsized 5 years ago when the newspaper shifted to reporter cell phones plus free submissions by readers. It worked out okay for my 2 friends, though. 1 was close to retirement anyway and got a good severance package that included walking away with a lot of pro level gear. The other was too young to retire and found work with a large press agency.
03-01-2015, 09:47 AM   #14
Veteran Member




Join Date: May 2007
Location: Prince George, BC Canada
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 642
QuoteOriginally posted by UncleVanya Quote
I know this sounds like a sky is falling comment - but I wonder if Pentax is picking the right time to step into FF. The market conditions are terrible. I guess their thinking may be that this opens up sales that might not occur and that's a possibility. Fingers crossed!
I think you have to be careful when looking at statistics. Lumping the DSLR market together is probably a bit misleading as even that market is segmented and I suspect that the advanced amateur/pro segment, and I think this is distinct from the photojournalist segment, is probably still quite healthy. People who are serious about their photography will continue to use serious cameras.
03-01-2015, 10:05 AM   #15
Loyal Site Supporter
Loyal Site Supporter
UncleVanya's Avatar

Join Date: Jul 2014
Photos: Gallery | Albums
Posts: 28,167
QuoteOriginally posted by MikePerham Quote
I think you have to be careful when looking at statistics. Lumping the DSLR market together is probably a bit misleading as even that market is segmented and I suspect that the advanced amateur/pro segment, and I think this is distinct from the photojournalist segment, is probably still quite healthy. People who are serious about their photography will continue to use serious cameras.
My fingers are crossed...
Reply

Bookmarks
  • Submit Thread to Facebook Facebook
  • Submit Thread to Twitter Twitter
  • Submit Thread to Digg Digg
Tags - Make this thread easier to find by adding keywords to it!
camera, cameras, form, function, image, industry, m43, media, olympus, photography, photography industry, size, time
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
What will the cameras and the camera industry look like in 3-5 years lesmore49 General Photography 104 12-08-2016 03:10 AM
Photography industry 2014 Winder Photographic Industry and Professionals 5 02-18-2015 01:52 PM
What Matters: Why the Camera Industry is in The Dumper And What Can be Done About It interested_observer Photographic Industry and Professionals 200 03-26-2014 09:38 AM
what happened to all the kit lens? vmax84 Pentax SLR Lens Discussion 31 06-27-2013 10:39 PM
What happened to photography? Pentaxperson Photographic Technique 51 09-01-2007 07:13 PM



All times are GMT -7. The time now is 06:21 AM. | See also: NikonForums.com, CanonForums.com part of our network of photo forums!
  • Red (Default)
  • Green
  • Gray
  • Dark
  • Dark Yellow
  • Dark Blue
  • Old Red
  • Old Green
  • Old Gray
  • Dial-Up Style
Hello! It's great to see you back on the forum! Have you considered joining the community?
register
Creating a FREE ACCOUNT takes under a minute, removes ads, and lets you post! [Dismiss]
Top