[Photos-by-Chas]

I guess Pentax will be having difficulty in attracting the younger generation. Everybody now fashions MILC. That's the problem with too much marketing. Companies keep on pushing consumers to upgrade their gears despite the fact that sometimes the upgrade features are not even that much. Unfortunately, what people are getting in to taking pictures are their cellphones. Just my point of view, sooner the demand for all ILC will be lesser and lesser. Only those with the passion for photography will buy ILC.

,
Not denying the positives of SLR/DSLR photography, or of ILC, but look at some of the ads for the add-on lenses for cell phones. I've been seeing attachments for long lenses that somehow attach to a cell phone and there is also the new iPhone that has multiple lenses included in the design, maybe other manufacturers also. Maybe because I remember the days of film at the time when most films were B/W and color was beginning to take hold. I think that, eventually, everything will balance out.

[Serkevan]

My perspective, as a young sprig into photography who knows some other younglings, is that we get cameras because we want to make the photos. It's not even necessarily the image quality arms race, but controls and the creative choices that even an APS-C camera with kit lens gets you over a phone or small compact. Then there's, of course, the specific needs of each person - one of my friends has a Sony NEX-6 that he shoots with "just" the two kit lenses and a pancake prime, because he can go on 30 km mountain hikes or 100 km bike rides, and shaving off half a kilo or a kilo in gear is worth it for him. I cannot stand EVFs and my eyesight is not the best so a good OVF was mandatory, and I'm from a wet and rainy corner of Europe, so Pentax was a natural choice.


The point being, we all want to push the creative side. A dedicated camera is simply the best tool... not only for the job, but also to make the job enjoyable, and IMO the latter is half the reason we do this...

[Photos-by-Chas]

My perspective, as a young sprig into photography who knows some other younglings, is that we get cameras because we want to make the photos. It's not even necessarily the image quality arms race, but controls and the creative choices that even an APS-C camera with kit lens gets you over a phone or small compact. Then there's, of course, the specific needs of each person - one of my friends has a Sony NEX-6 that he shoots with "just" the two kit lenses and a pancake prime, because he can go on 30 km mountain hikes or 100 km bike rides, and shaving off half a kilo or a kilo in gear is worth it for him. I cannot stand EVFs and my eyesight is not the best so a good OVF was mandatory, and I'm from a wet and rainy corner of Europe, so Pentax was a natural choice.


The point being, we all want to push the creative side. A dedicated camera is simply the best tool... not only for the job, but also to make the job enjoyable, and IMO the latter is half the reason we do this...

Thank you for providing a different perspective from the younger generation. Your words give hope for the future of photography.

[seagas]

I have three sons, two daughter's-in-law and two grandsons. Only one son and his wife have made the purchase of a DSLR. the others seem to be perfectly happy with their cell phone cameras. Maybe it is because I was taking many photos of them when they were younger. Who knows. Oh, and the youngest is a millennial.

Nice, we have many more than just listed the ones that use digital cameras, all Pentax of course, but then most of those are old ones of mine which they then use. In total we have two sons and a daughter, a daughter and son-in-law, eleven grandchildren, 6 girls, 5 boys, a new great granddaughter and a grandson-in-law. Thanksgiving and Christmas are BIG at our house. LOL

[Photos-by-Chas]

Nice, we have many more than just listed the ones that use digital cameras, all Pentax of course, but then most of those are old ones of mine which they then use. In total we have two sons and a daughter, a daughter and son-in-law, eleven grandchildren, 6 girls, 5 boys, a new great granddaughter and a grandson-in-law. Thanksgiving and Christmas are BIG at our house. LOL

I forgot to mention, my son with the DSLR, he’s a Nikon fan. But in his defense, he thought he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, so he goes for the higher priced things in life. lol

[Serkevan]

Thank you for providing a different perspective from the younger generation. Your words give hope for the future of photography.

I think it will end up like in the 80s... not THAT many people actually had SLRs, and many who did only owned one or two primes - my parents have a Zenit 12XP with a Helios and a Cosina 28mm, but they stopped using it the moment compact point and shoots became good and affordable; their most used camera was a Pentax Espio 115G, a much more compact machine. And with AF to follow me!

Phones are the new point and shoot - it's just a matter of the industry being able to downsize back to reasonable levels because this time it's not them selling the cheap alternatives - it's Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei and Apple.

[richard0170]

I guess Pentax will be having difficulty in attracting the younger generation. Everybody now fashions MILC. That's the problem with too much marketing. Companies keep on pushing consumers to upgrade their gears despite the fact that sometimes the upgrade features are not even that much. Unfortunately, what people are getting in to taking pictures are their cellphones. Just my point of view, sooner the demand for all ILC will be lesser and lesser. Only those with the passion for photography will buy ILC.

I am not so sure about what you say about cellphones. Used as PAS cameras they fit many users' needs and are easy to take anywhere, but what is now happening is they are getting more and more features which I am far from convinced most people want. These extra features are pushing up the prices into the realm of medium priced "real" cameras, and to get the full benefit of what these phones are capable of it seems that you need to put as much effort in as you would a camera.
Another potential issue for the cell phone makers is 5G. I work with quite a few younger generation people, who seem to be more uneasy about the potential health effects and snooping capabilities of the new network than people of my generation.
It is unfortunate for us enthusiasts that the cell phone market has ripped the cash cow of PAS cameras away from the traditional market and put the future of our beloved manufacturers at risk, but hopefully enough will survive to serve our needs. A few of the younger generation are finding their cell phones do not offer enough so are dribbling into the market both for film and digital, so all may not be lost.

[dbs]

We only seem rare because we do not congregate together at a ' hot spot ' like owners of other brands.

[totsmuyco]

My perspective, as a young sprig into photography who knows some other younglings, is that we get cameras because we want to make the photos. It's not even necessarily the image quality arms race, but controls and the creative choices that even an APS-C camera with kit lens gets you over a phone or small compact. Then there's, of course, the specific needs of each person - one of my friends has a Sony NEX-6 that he shoots with "just" the two kit lenses and a pancake prime, because he can go on 30 km mountain hikes or 100 km bike rides, and shaving off half a kilo or a kilo in gear is worth it for him. I cannot stand EVFs and my eyesight is not the best so a good OVF was mandatory, and I'm from a wet and rainy corner of Europe, so Pentax was a natural choice.


The point being, we all want to push the creative side. A dedicated camera is simply the best tool... not only for the job, but also to make the job enjoyable, and IMO the latter is half the reason we do this...

Agree, a dedicated camera is simply the best tool. That would be us photo enthusiasts who can't live in this world without capturing the moments with our choice cameras.

[Photos-by-Chas]

Camera choice is relative to a persons choice and that may rely on the visibility of advertisements telling about the camera. Advertising can be in the public eye (TV, Magazines, online, word of mouth, etc.) but that costs money and it seems Ricoh/Pentax (or Pentax/Ricoh) has not stepped up that area. We members of PF have done it to an extent, but it has not proven to be exceptionally efficient. How would a letter writing campaign to Ricoh/Pentax help? If our Pentax friends who are not members here could be encouraged to join in.

[BigDave]

the point being, we all want to push the creative side. A dedicated camera is simply the best tool...

Something that I feel when I pick up the camera, whether it is a Kodak Instamatic (I still have my Instamatic 100), my view camera, my 35mm film camera or one of my digital Pentax cameras, I feel like I am there to make an image. I am not capturing a moment, though this happens as part of the process, I am creating something through framing, exposure and lens choice, to get the viewer to see something more in a way I want them to see it, maybe in a way they did not see it.

[heinamj]

Something that I feel when I pick up the camera, whether it is a Kodak Instamatic (I still have my Instamatic 100), my view camera, my 35mm film camera or one of my digital Pentax cameras, I feel like I am there to make an image. I am not capturing a moment, though this happens as part of the process, I am creating something through framing, exposure and lens choice, to get the viewer to see something more in a way I want them to see it, maybe in a way they did not see it.

Thanks Dave, you captured my thoughts just like an image.

[rodcy]

I like not following the crowd. I bought my KP because it felt right.

[Photos-by-Chas]

I like not following the crowd.

Exactly the reason I bought a little known brand when I bought my first SLR. Not so much when I bought a Pentax K1000. I had heard of Pentax and new it was a well known brand and had a good reputation. Made some difference, but I also knew they were not the most expensive.

[cometguy]

I am not so sure about what you say about cellphones. Used as PAS cameras they fit many users' needs and are easy to take anywhere, but what is now happening is they are getting more and more features which I am far from convinced most people want. These extra features are pushing up the prices into the realm of medium priced "real" cameras, and to get the full benefit of what these phones are capable of it seems that you need to put as much effort in as you would a camera.
Another potential issue for the cell phone makers is 5G. I work with quite a few younger generation people, who seem to be more uneasy about the potential health effects and snooping capabilities of the new network than people of my generation.
It is unfortunate for us enthusiasts that the cell phone market has ripped the cash cow of PAS cameras away from the traditional market and put the future of our beloved manufacturers at risk, but hopefully enough will survive to serve our needs. A few of the younger generation are finding their cell phones do not offer enough so are dribbling into the market both for film and digital, so all may not be lost.

I think that many more people do photography now than ever before -- by a long shot -- because of the good cameras in cellphones. Almost everybody has a cellphone, and the option for good photos is there every single minute because everybody carries their cellphone wherever they go. This was never the case with point-and-shoot cameras (film or digital) of decades past; many many people never owned a camera of any kind. But that has changed now with cellphones. And because almost everybody can and does take photos now due to their cellphones, there will logically be an increasing number of cellphone photographers who will want more and who will advance to ILCs, especially amongst younger people (those who don't know photography outside of a cellphone). So I don't think that the future is so bleak for Pentax if they can hang in there and look closely at these younger, eager photographers with potential interest in ILCs (or even cameras like the GR III).

I would love to know how much of the ever-increasing costs of new cellphones is due to the camera equipment inside. Given how good the camera technology is on the new cellphones, I'm guessing that the camera cost portion is not insignificant. Has anybody ever seen a breakdown of costs of the different parts of a modern cellphone?