[Wheatfield]

In an interview with Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun, Canon CEO Fujio Mitarai confirmed that the EOS-1D X Mark III will be the company's latest SLR camera. All efforts will be channelled towards the Mirrorless system.
Only Pentax will remain to carry on the Reflex discourse. They said that even the rangefinder cameras were destined to disappear, but still some remain and are sold at a high price because it is considered a cult object as well as an excellent machine.

Canon is preparing to drop support for the EF lens mount. It's 1987 all over again.

[UncleVanya]

Canon is preparing to drop support for the EF lens mount. It's 1987 all over again.

That is of the reasons I won’t shoot Canon. At least Nikon waited until mirrorless and they offered a full function adapter. In the FD to EF transition there was no way to continue using the old glass as it wasn’t possible to adapt without a teleconverter type adapter.

[reh321]

That is of the reasons I won’t shoot Canon. At least Nikon waited until mirrorless and they offered a full function adapter. In the FD to EF transition there was no way to continue using the old glass as it wasn’t possible to adapt without a teleconverter type adapter.

I don’t understand your comment at all. Canon offers full function adapters which allows any true EF lens to be used on any MILC. Nikon’s adapter requires an in-lens focusing motor, which not all lenses had when their MILCs came out. FD-to-FE is very old news and is remembered only by the guy from the wheat fields of Canada, and some of us were attracted to Canon because their EF/usm system worked so well compared to the screw-drive Nikon and Pentax offered at the time.

[reeftool]

In the end, profits will decide the outcome. Photographers tend to be a rather conservative bunch who are not comfortable changing the tools that have been successful for them. I think DSLR's will be around for a while but it's the younger generations who have grown up around all electronic everything who will decide by what cameras they choose to purchase. Will they avoid cameras with mechanical mechanisms? The music industry has been forced to bring back vinyl records because the younger generation has "discovered" record players. But in the end, mirrorless cameras will be much cheaper to mass produce and more profits for the manufacturers.

[Michail_P]

I believe you have misquoted him.

Last flagship, not necessarily the last DSLR.

^^^this. In addition to the decrease in demand for a dslr , Canon has made a great touchdown for professionals with the R series. I think it’s gonna be the start of the move for the other brands too. Only Pentax will remain, who knows for how long...

[Serkevan]

That is of the reasons I won’t shoot Canon. At least Nikon waited until mirrorless and they offered a full function adapter. In the FD to EF transition there was no way to continue using the old glass as it wasn’t possible to adapt without a teleconverter type adapter.

Ironically, this time it's Canon that offered a full function adapter, while Nikon removed support for AF lenses from before ~2005 or so. Even Sony offers screwdrive support, at the same price as Nikon's "ring of aluminum with a couple wires" adapter (which is a joke).

[UncleVanya]

I don’t understand your comment at all. Canon offers full function adapters which allows any true EF lens to be used on any MILC. Nikon’s adapter requires an in-lens focusing motor, which not all lenses had when their MILCs came out. FD-to-FE is very old news and is remembered only by the guy from the wheat fields of Canada, and some of us were attracted to Canon because their EF/usm system worked so well compared to the screw-drive Nikon and Pentax offered at the time.

If you were a photographer or camera seller in 1987 it made a big impression. It is old news but the pain of that sting never went away. I was lucky in that I shot Nikon. My dad had worked for Canon early in the 70’s. My mom had an AE-1 - which she never upgraded after Canon left FD. If fact she left for point and shoot land.

Ask around. Those who were there at the time felt betrayed. Canon screwed their existing users rather callously and internal discussions (per my Dad’s insider sources at the time ) were that by leveraging a shorter flange focal distance they could force users to buy new gear. They saw it as a means of revenue generation. That coupled to good marketing gave them their position ripped from Nikon’s grasp - so to be fair it worked but at a massive cost to users.

There are additional reasons why I will not shoot Canon if they were the last camera company on Earth. But those are personal rather than objective. I am trying to only state my objective view divorced from the personal reasons.

In addition I have handled a few Canons and never liked them and I’ve seen some mid priced gear and it was junk compared to Pentax (in durability mainly).

So if you want to continue this discussion please don’t suggest that Wheatfield is the only one who cares about the FD to EF transition. Try asking that topic on Fred Miranda or DP Review and ask “who of those responding was shooting regularly with 35mm gear at the time of the transition that still feels that Canon abandoned their user base?” I suspect there will be legions of people who agree with what I’ve said. Many may have sucked it up and or had a small investment (mom only had three lenses but that’s a lot in 1980’s $) acquired over 5-10 years. I knew pros with a dozen lenses or more who felt abandoned. Many had the finances to either move to Nikon or rebuild with EF - and they survived. Some stubbornly kept the FD gear and ignored the future. And others retired.

It didn’t destroy Canon - but it left them standing on the backs of their FD users and that hurts.

[Not a Number]

Not news, not an official Pentax announcement nor even a rumor. Moved to Photo Industry and Professionals.

FYI Pentax News and Rumors: "Discuss rumored Pentax or photographic news (that upcoming Pentax full-frame) and official Pentax announcements here!"

[Kunzite]

If you were a photographer or camera seller in 1987 it made a big impression. It is old news but the pain of that sting never went away. I was lucky in that I shot Nikon. My dad had worked for Canon early in the 70’s. My mom had an AE-1 - which she never upgraded after Canon left FD. If fact she left for point and shoot land.

Ask around. Those who were there at the time felt betrayed. Canon screwed their existing users rather callously and internal discussions (per my Dad’s insider sources at the time ) were that by leveraging a shorter flange focal distance they could force users to buy new gear. They saw it as a means of revenue generation. That coupled to good marketing gave them their position ripped from Nikon’s grasp - so to be fair it worked but at a massive cost to users.

On the other forum, some guy - Canon shooter posting in the Pentax SLR Talk section - explains how Canon is one of the "safe" choices.
People forgot that; now history repeats itself. At least this is likely the last time.

[Wheatfield]

I don’t understand your comment at all. Canon offers full function adapters which allows any true EF lens to be used on any MILC. Nikon’s adapter requires an in-lens focusing motor, which not all lenses had when their MILCs came out. FD-to-FE is very old news and is remembered only by the guy from the wheat fields of Canada, and some of us were attracted to Canon because their EF/usm system worked so well compared to the screw-drive Nikon and Pentax offered at the time.

I think it's Canon's history of kicking their customers to the curb that is worrying. I saw what they did first hand and take a fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me attitude towards them.
Canon is most likely counting on people to take the FD-to-EF debacle as either old news or an urban legend to allow themselves to do something similar again.
Canon's adapters might work for now, but I am certain that if they see adapters cutting into lens sales, those adapters will not work on future new cameras.
People refuse to learn from history all the time, and then get butt hurt because of their own failing.

[Serkevan]

Canon's adaptors might work for now, but I am certain that if they see adaptors cutting into lens sales, those adaptors will not work on future new cameras.

The day they do that it will also kill third party lenses, which would be enough to chase a bunch of customers away. On top of that, people can bring all their EF lenses to [name any other MILC brand] while getting 100% functionality, so Canon wouldn't make money out of the decision. They would, in fact, lose a lot of money.


The decision to kick FD users was based on revenue. The decision to not kill EF adapters is also based on revenue, it just drops to the other side of the fence.

[Wheatfield]

The day they do that it will also kill third party lenses, which would be enough to chase a bunch of customers away. On top of that, people can bring all their EF lenses to [name any other MILC brand] while getting 100% functionality, so Canon wouldn't make money out of the decision. They would, in fact, lose a lot of money.


The decision to kick FD users was based on revenue. The decision to not kill EF adapters is also based on revenue, it just drops to the other side of the fence.

Until they see those adapters as killing revenue by hurting new lens sales. At that point, cameras that don't recognize the adapter won't be far behind.
The purpose of camera bodies, from the point of view of the manufacturer, is to sell lenses. If they aren't selling the number of lenses they want to sell, they will find a way to boost those sales.
If that means disabling the means to use EF lenses, they will do that without hesitation.
Canon is in business to make money, not friends.

[Serkevan]

Until they see those adapters as killing revenue by hurting new lens sales. At that point, cameras that don't recognize the adapter won't be far behind.
The purpose of camera bodies, from the point of view of the manufacturer, is to sell lenses. If they aren't selling the number of lenses they want to sell, they will find a way to boost those sales.
If that means disabling the means to use EF lenses, they will do that without hesitation.
Canon is in business to make money, not friends.

And I am saying that such approach will not make them money, but the opposite.

[UncleVanya]

EF adapters like F adapters and A adapters will always be slightly lower functionality and this will drive moving to the native platform. I don’t look for anything more than this to happen.

[Wheatfield]

And I am saying that such approach will not make them money, but the opposite.

Third party lens makers will move from the EF mount to the RF mount. They don't care what happens to their EF lenses other than if the sales numbers drop, so do the lenses.
If too many EF users just buy an RF body and an adapter for their EF lenses, Canon will have to look at forcing people to buy RF lenses.
When they made the EF mount they shortened the registration distance just enough to make it virtually impossible to mount FD lenses. Sure, they made an adapter with an optical element to make it possible, but it was a quality killer and they stopped making it after a few years anyway. If one wanted to use FD lenses, one had to have an FD camera, which Canon also stopped supporting through their service centers.
Meanwhile, Canon was laughing all the way to the bank.

I really don't see how keeping support for EF lenses on RF cameras is going to be in Canon's best self interest in the long haul. Those old lenses with an adapter can do nothing but erode new RF lens sales.
History tells us what Canon will be looking at doing.