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Nikon Discontinuing 5 DSLR Lines

Ron Texas

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https://nikonrumors.com/2019/08/28/dpreviews-chris-nichols-nikon-is-dropping-5-lines-of-dslrs.aspx/

Looks like the future holds the only Nikon DSLR's will be high end. The rest will go mirrorless.

There is a certain logic to fazing out DX/APS-C DSLR's in favor of mirrorless. Those cameras exist beause it was too expensive to make 135 size sensors at the time and camera manufacturers wanted a mount compatible with their existing lines. For the format size, distance to the lens flange was excessive.

DSLR sales have fallen at least 80% in the last 7 years. Consumer photographers have their DX cameras and see no need to upgrade as IQ is good enough for them. Mirrorless provides an opportunity for camera makers to jump start a replacement cycle. It's not hard to beat the OVF of a low end DSLR with the EVF of a mirrorless camera at around the same price. The question is whether existing low end DSLR owners will buy new stuff or whether young people who are used to the ever improving cameras on their phones will buy in.

Meanwhile I am starting to believe the road to being noticed as a photographer has more to do with Photoshop skills and conceiving unusual images than it has to do with anything else.
 

scott wurcer

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Meanwhile I am starting to believe the road to being noticed as a photographer has more to do with Photoshop skills and conceiving unusual images than it has to do with anything else.

I feel for you, a long time ago I worked with some folks from Minor White's program at MIT. I have to bite my tongue when someone photographs a bowl of fruit and runs some Photoshop filters on it and has it blown up, printed, and framed impressively. I tried it, it's at the level of finger painting.
 
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Ron Texas

Ron Texas

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I feel for you, a long time ago I worked with some folks from Minor White's program at MIT. I have to bite my tongue when someone photographs a bowl of fruit and runs some Photoshop filters on it and has it blown up, printed, and framed impressively. I tried it, it's at the level of finger painting.

Finger painting is fun, for five year olds. What I am thinking about has more to do with composite images.
 

Matias

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Consumer photographers have their DX cameras and see no need to upgrade as IQ is good enough for them.

Just got my D3500 to replace my D3200. I am glad I did before the entry line is mirrorless only...
 
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Ron Texas

Ron Texas

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Just got my D3500 to replace my D3200. I am glad I did before the entry line is mirrorless only...
Now take 100,000 photos and wear it out. I am starting to think APS-C/DX Mirrorless will become the dominant interchangeable lens camera format.
 

bravomail

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https://nikonrumors.com/2019/08/28/dpreviews-chris-nichols-nikon-is-dropping-5-lines-of-dslrs.aspx/

Looks like the future holds the only Nikon DSLR's will be high end. The rest will go mirrorless.
The question is whether existing low end DSLR owners will buy new stuff or whether young people who are used to the ever improving cameras on their phones will buy in.

They (Nikon, Canon, Sony etc) should merge the phone and mirrorless. That is the only way to dominate on Instagram, Snapchat and other social pix platforms. Sony openly said that they will merge computational photography and mirrorless.
Computational is nothing more than stackable - stacking several pix for focus (everything in focus), exposure (HDR), motion compensation, multi-exposure for dark photos (stacking in time), etc. Pixel 3 already does it.
 

suttondesign

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What is this "Nikon camera" of which you speak? Was that something they had in the old west? Is that thing where the little bird pecked out a picture on a stone tablet?
 
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Ron Texas

Ron Texas

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They (Nikon, Canon, Sony etc) should merge the phone and mirrorless. That is the only way to dominate on Instagram, Snapchat and other social pix platforms. Sony openly said that they will merge computational photography and mirrorless.
Computational is nothing more than stackable - stacking several pix for focus (everything in focus), exposure (HDR), motion compensation, multi-exposure for dark photos (stacking in time), etc. Pixel 3 already does it.

What's your vision for merging the phone and mirrorless?
 
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Ron Texas

Ron Texas

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What is this "Nikon camera" of which you speak? Was that something they had in the old west? Is that thing where the little bird pecked out a picture on a stone tablet?

You need to get out of the heat.
 

milw50717

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I can see mirrorless as being the way of the future, but I'll wait for a few more years for before jumping. Speaking as someone who still uses an F5 I think I'd probably buy a D850 if the prices fall a bit more. Us Luddites like the flagship models of dying technology :)
 

Willem

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I have three analogue Nikon bodies and a bunch of Nikor lenses, but we bought into M4/3 a few years ago for the light weight and smal size. I am still pondering a DF, however.
 

scott wurcer

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Finger painting is fun, for five year olds. What I am thinking about has more to do with composite images.
My apologies I thought you were talking about folks who substitute tinkering with Photoshop for basic artistic skills.
 

digicidal

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Meanwhile I am starting to believe the road to being noticed as a photographer has more to do with Photoshop skills and conceiving unusual images than it has to do with anything else.

That's a common trend in art in general - not just photography (and subjectively it doesn't even have to be interestingly unusual).
 

NTomokawa

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Meanwhile I'm still holding onto my F3/T, my F6 and my D3X. And I have a slew of Nikkors from the pre-AI days to the 70-200E VR.

And I wouldn't have it any other way. Gonna go North and shoot some polar bears this Christmas season! With my camera, of course.
 

bigx5murf

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They've announced they're leaving the sports optics market completely as well. Wonder if they're not doing so well.
 

q3cpma

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Not entirely unrelated, https://magiclantern.fm/ (free software add-on for Canon EOS cameras) exists as something incredibly cool for camera amateurs. Didn't test it, since I took something like 10 pictures in my whole life, but as a multimedia compression/filtering amateur, having this much knobs is always good.
 

JJB70

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Camera manufacturers must have been killed by cell phones, nowadays I know few who bother with a camera any more as smartphones offer some pretty impressive capabilities. The camera market seems to have narrowed to the serious enthusiast and professional segments. Those segments are probably high margin but also low volume and it can't be cheap for manufacturers to develop and support a camera system.
 
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