by Veit on September 20, 2009
I have written (and will continue to write) about the Good Enough Revolution, including Steve Jobs being its (intentional?) master.
But the good enough revolution does not stop with consumer products – in fact, you can see it right when examining professional camera gear. Case in point: Canon.
With the advent of the Canon 7D, Canon now has two complete lines of professional gear: Top-of-the-line professional gear (1D for Action Shooters, 1Ds for Landscape/Full-Frame/Wedding shooters, f2.8 zoom lenses covering the entire range from 16 to 200 mm) and the good-enough line (7D for Action, 5D for Landscape/FF/weddings, f4.0 zooms covering 17 to 200mm). In fact, the good enough pro gear provides them with extra revenue, since not only pro’s and discerning amateurs use that gear, but also pro’s often use good-enough gear as backups to their top-of-the-line equipment. Canon clearly gets it that they need to offer two complete sets of cameras and lenses to the customers that are most profitable to them.
Contrast this with Nikon – they are sitting pretty in the camera department, mainly with the D700 and the D300s as good-enough cameras. But their glaring hole is in their lens line-up (see also bythom’s lens overview). No dedicated f4 pro glass, only variable aperture lenses. As much as I applaud Nikon for their strong camera line-up, they seem to have neglected upgrading their lens line-up and fail to offer two lines of pro zooms.
And that’s the reason why I would not buy Nikon today, if I had a chance to start all over again.
by Veit on September 11, 2009
Photoscala released an analysis on the world-wide DSLR market share gains and losses between the years 2006 and 2008.
Analyzing many sources, Photoscala's DSLR market share analysis shows Sony and Nikon as winners, Canon as the main loser.
I think there are three lessons to be learned from this analysis:
1. Brand matters
People shun smaller brands when they are under attack. A big part of Sony’s market share gain is attributable to their take-over of Minolta, thus giving DSLR buyers the confidence that their investment would be protected. As a result, people started to buy Sony again. But there might be another reason why Sony gained share:
2. In-Body Image Stabilization (IS)
Minolta was the first to release in-body IS – all the smaller guys followed. As pointed out in my analysis on the Panasonic GF1, it’s the trend of the future for entry-level DSLR, since it allows consumers, esp. the ones who trade up to their first DSLR and are used to in-body IS in compacts, to buy a wide range of non-IS lenses from multiple manufacturers. Both Canon and Nikon probably lost share to Sony in the entry level market over their lack of in-body IS. Expect at least one of the big guys to adopt in-body IS.
3. Great cameras in the mid- to pro-range
Nikon’s D3, D700 and D300 really improved low-light performance and became very well known for it, which explains why Nikon ended up in the plus and Canon lost even more market share. Canon had no such break-through in that sub-segment of the market at that time.
Who should be scared over these numbers? Mainly Canon, but also Panasonic. For someone who wants to break into the top 4 of the DSLR market, Panasonic needs to improve their market share very quickly. So far, they have not.
by Veit on August 27, 2008
Last weekend, a couple of friends and I went to the Infineon racetrack to photograph the IndyCar Grand Prix of Sonoma. Both of my friends showed up with sparkling new Nikon D300’s — one recently upgraded from a D200, one switched from a Canon 20D.
Of course, the debate ensued whether to switch from Canon to Nikon, especially given Nikon’s recent release of great full-frame cameras (D3, D700) and Canon’s (almost unbelievably) continued absence of a successor to the now 3-year-old 5D. My position in the debate: No, I would not, even if all my gear was stolen tomorrow and I had to start from scratch again. The reason: Canon 24-105/f4 L IS and Canon 70-200/f4 L IS. I use these two lenses for at least 90% of my photography (in fact, I shot more than 2000 images at Infineon with just one lens – the 70-200/f4 L IS) While Nikon offers great f2.8 lenses, these are too big, bulky and expensive for my taste. I gladly trade one stop of lens speed for less weight. And Nikon does not have equivalent f4 lenses.
So the answer remains a solid “no”: I would not switch from Canon to Nikon and would not even consider switching unless they introduce a line of f4 VR lenses.
Below is a shot of Helio Castroneves during qualifying where he captured the pole. He went on to win the Grand Prix the next day. Canon 5D, 70-200/f4 L IS at 200mm, 1/200 sec at f/16, ISO 100.
by Veit on September 5, 2007
When it comes to photo bags, preferences vary. But no matter what bag I’ve tried so far, my main shoulder bag has remained the same over the last four years: The Domke F-4AF. It’s very versatile, extremely well put together and in typical Domke-style, it shows that attention was paid to every single aspect of the bag.
Don’t be fooled by it looking rather small; let me assure you that this bag holds more than you would expect. Its interior consists of one bigger and two smaller departments. To illustrate what you can store in the bag, let’s just look at what’s in mine:
In the bigger department, the Canon Speedlite EX420 flash is placed on the bottom, followed by my Canon EOS 5D with the 24-105/f4L mounted on it. This way, I can just grab the camera by the lens, pull it out and be ready for action.
One of the two smaller compartments holds my Canon 50/1.8 as well as the 70-300/f4.5-5.6 DO IS, whereas the other one houses the 70-200/f4L. Except for the 50mm on the bottom, all lenses are in the bag with their lens hoods mounted!
In addition, I fitted one of the two side pockets with a padded insert, so it now offers enough space for my Canon 1.4 TC, my 85/1.8 and the 100/f2.8 macro. The other side pocket holds batteries, chargers, plates and other accessories, whereas filters and adapters go into the front pocket.
Overall, this bag is a winner. Highly recommended!
Price: $184.75, Amazon: $123.82
