4 trends camera makers are using to boost sales (not new tech)

The camera market is a high tech bastion as manufacturers are constantly innovating to create market leading products. Not only that, but they seem to be investing more and more heavily in research and development to stay relevant as the smartphone onslaught continues unabated. Or do they?

Many products in recent years actually suggest a reduction in investment as a way to minimize exposure to risk. So what are manufacturers trying to do?

The trajectory of technological development by camera manufacturers that pushed the limits of image creation is remarkable. Rangefinder Leica, SLR, autoexposure, microelectronics, autofocus, miniaturization, digital, DSLR, IBIS, mirrorless, to name a few. These are Nikon F, Leica M3, Minolta Maxxum. It might remind you of cameras like the 7000, Nikon D1, Minolta DiMAGE A1, Panasonic Lumix G1 (or perhaps Epson R-D1).

But what this highlights is that the camera market has been driven by technological innovation. That’s not to say there aren’t gorgeously designed cameras — anyone who owns a Leica M3 or Olympus Trip can attest to that — but innovation is what defines the market.

Combining innovation with mass production and the mass market creates a rapidly evolving, dynamic and exciting field that we saw in the development of mirrorless cameras circa 2010. While the emergence of new camera designs is an anomaly in itself, the design and manufacture of new systems by all major manufacturers is unprecedented.

Not only did mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras (MILC) take hold, but manufacturers knew there were many ways they could fit into the existing market. It has always been disruptive, and destruction changed the fate of the makers. These destinies were doubly affected by the advent of smartphones. Manufacturers saw sales decline at a crucial time as the camera market collapsed and the rest of the consumer began migrating to MILC.

Graph of camera sales by type from 1933 to 2014 (left), cropped to zoom in on details (right). Chart by Mayflower Concepts and Sven Skafisk.manufacturing trends

Against this background, manufacturers have had to continue developing their systems, but the speed and scope of these developments are perhaps not quite what they first seemed. , can be highlighted in four distinct trends.

Trend #1: Retro is the new cool

First, retro is the new cool, at least in the eyes of manufacturers. Fuji and Olympus have been touting the retro bandwagon for a while, but taking this a step further, why have one model when you can incorporate existing technology into another body? Nikon’s relatively recent Z fc builds on its Df legacy, spawning another retro-inspired camera.

Retro Nikon Z fc.

In fact, Nikon has a habit of gradually evolving its camera technology until a new professional-grade body is released, at which point it makes a big leap and drops this innovation bit by bit. The camera, to the extent that it’s otherwise perfectly “modern,” is anachronistic, speaking to the marketing department that identifies a “segment” and rapidly iterates designs to take advantage of it.

Is the Z fc a new model? Well, yes in the sense that it has a new body sprinkled with new features, but it’s ultimately a Nikon Z50 in a different shell.

Trend #2: Product Personalization

It’s the photographer’s vanity that makes retro designs so popular. You don’t just want a good camera, you want a camera that looks good. The second trend we’re seeing is personalization, a ditch Pentax has tried to plow. By getting paid, manufacturers may be able to squeeze more margins out of their existing products without having to do any extra work!

Pentax has said it wants to move to a more “workshop-like” process, but this, pessimistically, only looks like it’s closing the gap in the slowdown in the camera’s release cycle.

Variations on this trend include limited editions that Leica has consistently pursued (such as Pentax’s special edition color KF). This creates scarcity (and value) in production as the initial cost for the manufacturer is very limited. For example, the Leica Q2 Ghost is coming soon. It’s priced the same as his standard Q2, but is intended to encourage collectors to make repeat purchases. This has worked well for Leica as it can really add value to the resale price, but it remains to be seen if Pentax has the renown to achieve the same results.

Leica Q2 Ghost Limited Edition Camera.

Trend #3: Camera Improvements

A third trend is the release of new cameras that are nothing more than facelifts. Pentax has committed this misdemeanor by releasing the KF, a largely unchanged K-70 from 2016. The new model number was a surprise. Because the camera is pretty much the same and the lack of parts required another replacement.

The 2016 Pentax K-70 (left) and the new 2022 Pentax KF (right) are nearly identical in form and function.

Of course, this begs the question. When will a new model actually be a new camera? What the manufacturer considers to be a major deviation in parts may actually be pretty much the same specs and features to the end user . The OM system OM-5 also had minimal changes that experts liked to call a “refresh”, which saw the new processor as the most notable.

Trend #4: Firmware Upgrades

The final trend is probably the most valuable one: firmware upgrades. Cameras have always been defined by hardware, but performance and features are increasingly dictated by onboard processing, a trend demanded by smartphone users. It’s no exaggeration to say that OM is ahead of in-camera computational photography. The aforementioned OM-5 is a great example of additional software features that really add value.

Another area of ​​rapid software development is autofocus, with Sony, Canon, and Nikon vying to have the best systems available. Nikon has continued to catch up in this area and has made a variety of significant upgrades available to users, including improved animal detection and eye AF.

As the flip side of the software coin, manufacturers have historically been reluctant to make significant improvements to older hardware, but Fuji is a notable exception. We can’t expect manufacturers to keep updates available indefinitely, but as Adobe has indicated, users are willing to pay hefty subscription fees or one-off fees for additional features. I would welcome a more flexible approach to extending the life of existing hardware.

future of sales

All that has been emphasized so far is that we are used to iterative cycles focused on new camera technology. The drastic contraction of the camera market over the past decade has forced manufacturers to pull back in order to introduce a wider range and find new ways to increase sales without such rapid development. .

Perhaps one company that has managed to make this work both internally and for consumers is Sony. With the A7, he produces three variations that take one body, share components, and are technically similar but focused on changing features for photographers. Not only that, when a new model comes out, they continue to produce the old model as a low-priced model. This means that only one cost is spent designing and manufacturing the model, he will continue to be produced (in terms of sales and parts) as long as the model is viable.

Whatever the future holds, the current era of mirrorless innovation will likely settle as manufacturers try to compete with smartphones.

Image credits: Stock photos and illustrations from 123RF

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