charles brown Loc: Tennesse

First, want to thank all who took the time to respond to my previous posting concerning an article on the Outside Magazine web site. For me it was a good discussion. As I originally said Outside Magazine web site had an article about DSLR cameras. The article was entitled "Mirrorless Cameras Will Change Photography Forever." Following are quotes from the article:

"The DSLR....is going the way of vinyl. Canon says sales of it's interchangeable-lens cameras, a category that includes the DSLR....are down 17 percent worldwide, while Nikon reported a 19 percent dip."

"The best of these new devices comes from Sony, which reported this summer that revenue from its mirrorless sales was up 66 percent over the previous year. Canon and Nikon also make mirrorless cameras and analysts predict those options will keep getting better in an effort to chip away at Sony's lead."

"Mirrorless cameras aren't perfect. At the moment, their main drawback is speed: DSLRs can shoot more frames per second and focus faster. ....But mirrorless cameras will likely close the gap soon, says Barnaby Britton, editor of popular digital photography site DPReview.com."

Give it a couple of years and mirrorless cameras will be the number one choice for both pros and consumers, Britton predicts. DSLRs won't completely disappear, but the technology will be obsolete."

"Think of it like this...vinyl hasn't gone away, but there's no real reason it needs to exist. It will be the same with DSLRs. Those cameras will stick around, not because they need too, but because people happen to like them."

I think that the article is probably correct but as for me I will continue to use my DSLR and most likely will not go the mirrorless route (budget and my age being the main factors). However, for those much younger and just now getting into photography it presents an interesting delemma, do you buy for what's best now or do you buy for the future. And as far as Canon and Nikon go I think that they can see the hand writing on the wall and their focus on mirrorless cameras will dramatically increase.

Again, thanks to all.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Questionable article. My little Sony WX9 ($200) can shoot 10 fps, compared with the slower Nikon D4s. Percentages can be misleading. According to this article from two years ago, DSLR sales are leading all digital camera sales.
http://petapixel.com/2013/12/18/crunching-numbers-4-insights-camera-sales-data/

DSLR sales are roughly five times mirrorless sales.
http://nikonrumors.com/2015/06/08/spike-in-dslr-camera-shipments-in-april.aspx/

"Give it a couple of years..." Mirrorless will not overtake DSLRs in a couple of years, not judging by past, and current, sales. Some professionals have switched from DSLR's to mirrorless, but that is not the common practice.

Just my two cent's worth.

dragonfist Loc: Stafford, N.Y.

Kodak thought that digital thing wouldn't catch on either.

lsaguy Loc: Udall, KS, USA

Remember the "Paperless Office"? So much for the prognosticators. Perhaps mirrorless cameras will overtake the DSLR among professional photographers in time, but mirror technology is so highly developed and it's support system so vast that there will be many more who, like me, will buy a couple of generations past to get technology we could only dream of not that long ago. So, yeah, if I hit the lotto I'm going with the latest full frame mirrorless, but if it's the little I can save up from my SS check it'll be Pentax's new FF refurb'ed so my pawn shop and garage sale Asahi lenses will still be usable.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Yeah, even at the time I thought that was a ridiculous expectation.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

A comment at the time was that "The paperless office is about as likely as the paperless bathroom!"

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Coming soon to a bathroom near you. Temperature control and air drying. :D

N4646W

1. They left out is that the economy just ain't what it used to be.
2. If SLR and DSLR are so noisey, why do the put a shutter sound in cell phone cameras?

Ron

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Are you blowing hot air up my ....? :shock:

rbfanman

ALL camera sales are down a bit...since so many people recently bought costly cameras they will be using for years to come. Mirrors do not weigh all that much, so the weight savings a mirrorless camera provides is not enough to induce me to junk my DSLR system, and switch to a mirrorless system. Even as mirrorless becomes more common, that will just lower the prices on existing DSLR systems, which will become more affordable bargains, which many people will continue to buy into. Mirrorless won't obsolete DSLRs any time soon, any more than hybrid autos have obsoleted internal combustion gasoline powered, automobiles.

LFingar Loc: Claverack, NY

I suspect that we will all be quite a bit older before today's predictions for tomorrow come to pass.

BebuLamar

I don't know which way it's going to go but either way is fine by me.

dragonfist Loc: Stafford, N.Y.

Mirrors may not weigh all that much, but it appears there would be a substantial weight difference in the bodies of the cameras. What I am of a mind to think is that there is only so much money any company can afford to plow into research. If the camera companies think mirrorless is the wave of the future you can guess what that money will be earmarked for, and it won"t be for a better dslr.

kymarto Loc: Portland OR and Milan Italy

Huge advantages to DSLRs, one of which is the ability to leave it on and have it ready to shoot without draining the battery. I have a mirrorless and have lost countless shots by having to power it up.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

There is some confusion between MFT (Micro 4/3) and Mirrorless. Of course - MFT is mirrorless - but not all mirrorless is MFT.
The way forward will certainly , therefore, be MFT (as opposed to "mirrorless".) The advantages are well versed. Lighter, smaller (both cameras and lenses), therefore less expensive.
DSLR has had many years more than MFT to improve it's sensors - with many more companies contributing, but MFT is fast catching up. The hi-tec geometrically advanced MFT design certainly spells the demise of DSLR.
In this ultra modern world, hi-tec moves very fast - two years is now a long time - more than enough for DSLR to be replaced by MFT. :-)