The end of DSLR ?

[usayit]

On the flip side, though, my experience has proven to me that far too many people lack the ability to dig their heels in and say "Nope, you're just wrong" when it's warranted

Steve,

Absolutely. A skillful person in communications could inform the customer that they are wrong without placing them into a defensive position. I agree... the customer is not always right.








As I write this response, I could have easily responded with


Steve,

You are WRONG. You should never tell the customer is wrong. You should lead them to a conclusion that compliments your position. Its elementary customer relationship skills that a person of your experience should already know.





Take either as my real response... I'll let you decide.

 

[Steve5D]

I'm rather adept at handling people effectively. I've done it for years.

Sugar-coating things accomplishes nothing beyond prolonging a discussion in lieu of the inevitable. If someone is wrong, I can certainly tell them in a way which will leave them feeling good about themselves. If they just stand there and insist on saying the same thing over and over, despite being wrong, I have no problem with finally just telling them they're wrong.

There comes a time when tact loses its effect...

 

[Derrel]

So, back to "the end of d-slr"... you know, I would not mind eliminating the mirror, as long as the camera could use my current Nikon F-mount lenses. With the same diaphragm stop-down system, and instant return capabilities, and full infinity focus. To me, the LENSES are where the money's at, and where the long-term plans really are backed by dinero. I'm more interested in LENS-compatibility of a camera than I am the camera's specific construction and design.

The "box" is what holds the lenses. And, in digital cameras for the most part, excepting medium format and LF scanning backs, the "box" also holds the imaging sensor and its associated electronics. And the metering and exposure control systems. And the focusing sensors. Right now, the current 35mm-style systems from Sony,Nikon,and Canon have the largest sensors, and the best electronics, and the best pure, technical image quality, with the 24x36 sensor models leading, and the APS-C, then the 4/3 models coming in at #2 and #3 "levels".

I dunno...the mirrorless brigade a couple years ago loved to talk about how great mirrorless cameras from Panny, Oly, etc., were. And yes, they are nice machines. And getting better all the time, with lenses now being better too. Sony's first mirroless lenses SUCKED, and sucked SO BADLY they had to pull and re-design their wide-angles...Oopsie!!! From what I read now, the Fuji and Oly lenses are almost all excellent, and most of Panny's lenses are too, and Sony has made huge progress.

What I see though is the mini-disc recorder thing going on...yes, great quality...small...all the rage, but now, basically dead. It's like trying to get people to move from Audio CD to some all-new format....uhhhh....why,exactly? People get to where good enough is good enough, and buying into something all-brand-new, all the time, cycle after cycle, seems unappealing. It seems NOT needed. Convincing a world-wide market to STOP buying and using Canon and Nikon d-slr cameras just doesn't seem all that likely. I would not mind a new CD DISC "system" like one that had higher-capacity or more-durable disc media...as long as the new discs would PLAY in all of my various CD-playing devices, at home, portable, in my computers, in my car...but if I were to be forced into replacing eight players and 800 CD's...uh..it would be a classic NO SALE scenario....

 

[amolitor]

The lens thing certainly matters to me, and there's a very strong argument to be made that the DSLR will survive forever in some form as the go-to choice for people with lens collections that they care about. I think that part of that argument is that the DSLR+Kitlens buying population will, somewhat earlier, move on to something else.

 

[Dao]

MiniDisc .. oh wow ... Sadly I still have few MiniDisc portable players ... MiniDisc deck ..... and of course the minidiscs .. Some of the blank minidiscs still strink wrapped ... Sad ... so sad ...

 

[myvinyl333]

The same was said in the 80's about vinyl and now look at the many sonic advantages and options... I am not worried!

 

[RickD]

Those iPhone wedding photos from the article in the first page of the thread look absolutely horrible (link again - An Entire Wedding Shot On An iPhone And Processed Using Instagram | Fstoppers). How anyone could want to make a big deal out of what is supposed to be such a special day and photograph it with an iPhone is beyond me, it just doesn't make sense. Anyone with an even reasonable eye for detail would agree I'm sure.

 

[dubiousone]

I remember when...
Real photographers used speed graphics and the like.
Mom used a Kodak Brownie, and then the oooh--ahhh Instamatic. No stupid film to load, no fussy flashbulbs, film cartridges and flash cubes for the masses...goodbye Speed Graphic! Funny, I never saw a 'real' photographer with a Brownie or Instamatic but I did see lots back in the day with a Nikon F, Pentax or Canon SLR and a big huge (At that time) strobe.

Fast forward thirty-something years. Every electronic gadget they come out with seems like, its got a camera. Lots of people prefer the cell because they always have it AND...its easy to share selfies. But it takes crappy pictures. Crap lenses, crap focusing, crap...everything compared to a real camera but most people don't care. It's possible to take really nice photos with one and I suppose the current crop of mirrorless cameras are technically better in some ways but the ones I've looked at with their crummy LCD viewfinders, I can't see how anyone could take good photos looking through such a grainy, murky tunnel.

I think there will come a day when our favorite SLR's and DSLR's become what the box camera is today; really old outdated technology but I think that day is way off. Way off.

 

[Derrel]

Lots of people prefer the cell because they always have it AND...its easy to share selfies. But it takes crappy pictures. Crap lenses, crap focusing, crap...everything compared to a real camera but most people don't care. It's possible to take really nice photos with one and I suppose the current crop of mirrorless cameras are technically better in some ways but the ones I've looked at with their crummy LCD viewfinders, I can't see how anyone could take good photos looking through such a grainy, murky tunnel.

I think there will come a day when our favorite SLR's and DSLR's become what the box camera is today; really old outdated technology but I think that day is way off. Way off.

I've seen some pretty good images coming out of the newer smart phones. In fact, the 4k NATIVE video out of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is higher-resolution than the video from the Canon 5D Mark III. See the comparison professional cinematographer Alec Weinstein did in May of 2014.Video Test: Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Versus the Canon 5D Mark III

Keep in mind--this is a cellphone with a $749 retail price point.

 

[Victo]

It's possible to take really nice photos with one and I suppose the current crop of mirrorless cameras are technically better in some ways but the ones I've looked at with their crummy LCD viewfinders, I can't see how anyone could take good photos looking through such a grainy, murky tunnel.

I think there will come a day when our favorite SLR's and DSLR's become what the box camera is today; really old outdated technology but I think that day is way off. Way off.

Have you looked through the FUJI XT-1 viewfinder? It is bigger than about any full frame DSLR OVF. Expect the same HUGE, NO LAG EVF in most top mirrorless bodies in a couple of years. The fact is - it is almost impossible to improve a current OVF, but EVF is improving fast.
The FUJI XT-1 EVF has just overlapped most DSLRs. The writing is on the wall.
A mirrorless system has one huge advantage - it is cheaper to manufacture. No one will be able to argue with that in a long term.

 

[greybeard]

Nobody ever thought MP3 downloads would replace CD's as the preferred medium for music.

 

[myvinyl333]

Nobody ever thought MP3 downloads would replace CD's as the preferred medium for music.

I knew MP3 format would be the musical mode of choice for the masses. Masses care little about an "album" or "album" notes let alone audio quality.

 

[Civchic]

Lots of people prefer the cell because they always have it AND...its easy to share selfies. But it takes crappy pictures. Crap lenses, crap focusing, crap...everything compared to a real camera but most people don't care. It's possible to take really nice photos with one and I suppose the current crop of mirrorless cameras are technically better in some ways but the ones I've looked at with their crummy LCD viewfinders, I can't see how anyone could take good photos looking through such a grainy, murky tunnel.

I think there will come a day when our favorite SLR's and DSLR's become what the box camera is today; really old outdated technology but I think that day is way off. Way off.

I've seen some pretty good images coming out of the newer smart phones. In fact, the 4k NATIVE video out of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is higher-resolution than the video from the Canon 5D Mark III. See the comparison professional cinematographer Alec Weinstein did in May of 2014.Video Test: Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Versus the Canon 5D Mark III

Before I got my DSLR we went on a trip to Sedona, Arizona and the Grand Canyon. We had (between three adults), two point and shoot cameras, both of them fairly low-end, a Blackberry Bold, a Blackberry Torch, and my Samsung Galaxy S3. The Galaxy took absolutely incredible photos. I printed a photo album of the pictures, some photos were full-page spreads of an 8.5x11 landscape profile book and the quality is fantastic. In ideal light (can't get much more ideal than Arizona on a sunny day) I'd choose my Galaxy over a pocket camera. The S4, which I have now, is even better.

It still falls apart when you are trying to achieve something outside the realm of bright sunny landscapes and people within 20 feet away, though. You need more powerful equipment once you're out of that comfort range. But for the vast majority of people, sunny days landscapes and snapshots of their family are all they're ever going to care about.

 

[greybeard]

Nobody ever thought MP3 downloads would replace CD's as the preferred medium for music.

I knew MP3 format would be the musical mode of choice for the masses. Masses care little about an "album" or "album" notes let alone audio quality.

And the masses are crazy about getting their pictures onto the web as fast as possible. The masses are not buying prints anymore, they do most of their picture viewing on their phones and tablets.

 

[myvinyl333]

Nobody ever thought MP3 downloads would replace CD's as the preferred medium for music.

I knew MP3 format would be the musical mode of choice for the masses. Masses care little about an "album" or "album" notes let alone audio quality.

And the masses are crazy about getting their pictures onto the web as fast as possible. The masses are not buying prints anymore, they do most of their picture viewing on their phones and tablets.

How true, all the venues/promoters want concert photos posted during and/or after the show. They do not care about quality just get them on social media.... hell they do not even buy them unless you hold out