[vonuhl]

And yet Canon doesnt make it in the top ten at DxoMark

Best Cameras under $45,200

[Franc]

and the 645Z tops its all (even if not shown)

[Rondec]

And yet Canon doesnt make it in the top ten at DxoMark

Best Cameras under $45,200

You know, it is us on the internet that stew about the best baseline dynamic range and sweat 2 percent difference in noise at high iso, etc. For most folks, it comes down to base performance in regular iso situations, often with out of camera jpegs. In those situations Canon performs every bit as well as Nikon and may have a little cheaper lenses for the quality.

[TaoMaas]

You guys are going to hate this, but I recently went to weekend of photography seminars and all the speakers talked about was Sony and Fuji DSLRs. It was totally due to how well they handled video. The quality of stills each brand created was pretty much a given.

[mee]

You guys are going to hate this, but I recently went to weekend of photography seminars and all the speakers talked about was Sony and Fuji DSLRs. It was totally due to how well they handled video. The quality of stills each brand created was pretty much a given.

That is a little ironic don't you think? Attending a photography seminar where the speakers discussed video features.

I wonder if there was a videography seminar down the hall where they discussed photography features.


I understand the point you're making though. There is a lot of desire from a chunk of the camera buyers that value video features greatly. And, it seems, that chunk is getting larger (or at least louder).

Pentax has it's work cut out for it.. the market trends seem to be moving towards both mirrorless and video. Pentax have thus been staunch in sticking to mirrorful (haha) and photo.

Perhaps that is also a part of why they are seemingly slow on product release? Maybe Ricoh Imaging are trying to get a feel for the market.. as to where to put more of their resources into? Or maybe they stick to the plan until it either reaches shore or hits an iceberg.. one.

Seems like an especially volatile time for camera makers at the moment. There is a lot of churn right now.

[reh321]

You guys are going to hate this, but I recently went to weekend of photography seminars and all the speakers talked about was Sony and Fuji DSLRs. It was totally due to how well they handled video. The quality of stills each brand created was pretty much a given.

The company that should benefit from increased importance of video is Panasonic - but they seem to be struggling also.

[mee]

The company that should benefit from increased importance of video is Panasonic - but they seem to be struggling also.

I think part of the success of a brand isn't in the products but simply the hype surrounding the products.

If there is a lot of hype, there is generally a sense of it being the IT thing and something safe (to spend money on). Hypetrain is rolling strong for Fuji and Sony right now.


That and It seems most people don't want to stick out.. rather they want to blend in.


This is probably something corporate bosses don't really consider too heavily. I get the impression they generally think of costs and product features and what they think the market wants but probably not so much how the customer thinks in terms of psychology of the purchase and of herd mentality.

[TaoMaas]

That is a little ironic don't you think? Attending a photography seminar where the speakers discussed video features.

You're exactly right! The point is that the speakers were stressing that video is a crucial part of commercial imaging these days and we need to be prepared for that. This is about the third year I've been to this seminar and this is the most time they've given to video. They also held a video competion. "Ready or not, here we come!!!"

[mee]

You're exactly right! The point is that the speakers were stressing that video is a crucial part of commercial imaging these days and we need to be prepared for that. This is about the third year I've been to this seminar and this is the most time they've given to video. They also held a video competion. "Ready or not, here we come!!!"

Was this conference hosted by Fuji and Sony? Wedding photography?

I'm trying to understand why videography would be important to photographers.

[ChrisPlatt]

Wasn't Sony on the verge of bankruptcy just a few short years ago?
IIRC predictions of their imminent demise were rampant.

The camera business certainly has become quite volatile lately.
Do Japanese corporations still have five hundred year plans?

Chris

[monochrome]

Doom is Doomed.

[Winder]

Wasn't Sony on the verge of bankruptcy just a few short years ago?
IIRC predictions of their imminent demise were rampant.

The camera business certainly has become quite volatile lately.
Do Japanese corporations still have five hundred year plans?

Chris

They had several divisions (computers) I don't remember all of them, and they were gushing money. They sold off or closed the failing units and reorganized. When if comes to cameras, Sony has simple thrown as much mud against the wall as they could and waited to see what would stick. It has been a pretty expensive plan. Sony has also done a better job of marketing and working with high-profile bloggers and photographers. Sony's actual cameras are average at best in terms of build quality and the menus are still awful, but they know how to market and they obviously have the technology. If Ricoh even had half of an idea on how to market and communicate with customers their market share would be twice that of Leica instead of the other way around.

[Clarkey]

For the record, others have pointed out this news release is linked back to Sony themselves, and the period data is 2017, only. Ref. Photographylife.

Big lump of rocksalt.

[surfar]

I always thought Pentax had the number 2 spot to itself, behind that CaNikOny brand !

[BigMackCam]

Sony's actual cameras are average at best in terms of build quality and the menus are still awful, but they know how to market and they obviously have the technology.

I'm a big fan of the A7 Mark II, and the original A99, but I mostly agree regarding the build quality... certainly with the A7 series, at least. They're decent enough, but nowhere near the quality of Pentax's high-end models, and the weather resistance is a joke by comparison. I haven't had the chance to play with the A99 Mark II properly, but I understand they've (finally!) improved the menu structure in response to user feedback. I hope that's true, as the menus on the A7 Mark II and A99 aren't good at all... I'm used to them now, but oh my... Still, good cameras, with excellent marketing