Why Canon is Winning Full-Frame Mirrorless

[Panther]

https://petapixel.com/2020/11/27/why-canon-is-winning-full-frame-mirrorless/

Interesting read here - this part stands out the most to me:

Unlike Nikon, who is still announcing plans for more DSLRs and F-mount glass in 2021, Canon went all-in on the RF Mount, shifting all of their resources over to RF lens development and releasing the kind of glass you usually only make once you’re confident the mount is here to stay.

 

[Butlerkid]

unfortunately, I have to agree...................

 

[Palouse]

Well, there is the counter argument that Nikon has a large and loyal market of existing and future DSLR users who Nikon feels loyal to, and they are confidant that can serve both markets. It doesn't really matter what I think, but I will be more convinced if the author/s provide all sides of the arguments.

 

[Mike Buckley]

It's easier for Canon to go all-in because the company is so much larger and because its product portfolio is so much more diversified. Going all-in is far more risky for a smaller company with less diversification. That's one reason small companies tend to stay small while their larger competitors continue to get bigger and bigger.

 

[MortyCapp]

Canon is a diversified conglomerate, they can afford to make many mistakes.
Nikon is not in such a position.
Still, Sony is way ahead of all of them and can afford to innovate with such concepts as the ZV-1.

 

[Phil K]

I'm not sure if Canon is 'winning', certainly Nikon is not 'losing'.

 

[Butlerkid]

Canon is a diversified conglomerate, they can afford to make many mistakes.
Nikon is not in such a position.
Still, Sony is way ahead of all of them and can afford to innovate with such concepts as the ZV-1.

Maybe.....maybe not. A long time friend, Canon shooter and pro and wildlife shooter, is so impressed with the new mirrorless that he is using it over the top Canon DSLR! Eye focus tracking is the biggest reason, but there are others. He is blown away by Canon's FF mirrorless offering. And many reviewers are too. Canon is now neck and neck with Sony....while Nikon.....well..............................

 

[Panther]

Maybe.....maybe not. A long time friend, Canon shooter and pro and wildlife shooter, is so impressed with the new mirrorless that he is using it over the top Canon DSLR! Eye focus tracking is the biggest reason, but there are others. He is blown away by Canon's FF mirrorless offering. And many reviewers are too. Canon is now neck and neck with Sony....while Nikon.....well..............................

Yeah....
I have a Canon shooter friend of mine that gave up all his 'old' Canon equipment and went all in the Canon mirrorless system.....

 

[Clix Pix]

Sorry, folks -- Sony is still leading the pack in the current mirrorless game! Both Nikon and Canon were slow to come to the fray, while Sony was busily building up its collection of bodies and lenses and......and most importantly, customers and users of their gear.

 

[Clix Pix]

What's really going down the tubes is DSLRs.....regardless of who is manufacturing and selling them these days. Mirrorless is the new kid in town and a stellar one with a lot of advantages; now more and more photographers are realizing this and shifting away from DSLR to mirrorless.....

 

[Palouse]

I'm not sure of all this winning/losing language. All 3, and more, are competing.

 

[Clix Pix]

Good point, Nick. People are going to buy and use what appeals to them and which meets their needs and desires. That is going to be different in everyone's case, as what appeals to me isn't necessarily going to be the same type of gear or lens(es) or shooting scenarios that appeal to someone else, and vice-versa.

 

[Mike Buckley]

Canon is now neck and neck with Sony

Is that referring to subjective analysis of capabilities or to objective analysis of market share and the like? If it's the latter, please provide a source because that's not my understanding, though admittedly I don't spend much time keeping up with those stats.

 

[Mike Buckley]

I'm not sure of all this winning/losing language. All 3, and more, are competing.

Exactly. It's not a winner-take-all situation. That's consistent with many markets that have dominating companies and others picking up the crumbs. The absolute worst situation is whether Nikon can survive by picking up the crumbs or by being purchased by another company, whether in the photo industry or not.

 

[Mike Buckley]

As I mentioned previously, I don't spend a lot of time following this stuff. However...

Sony is still leading the pack in the current mirrorless game!

What information do you have to support that?

From an article published January 25, 2020 by PetaPixel: "Last year, Canon overtook [Olympus] to become #1 in both Mirrorless and SLR; this year, Sony rises to the #2 position, overtaking Olympus and eating into Canon’s lead." The article provides data indicating that Canon has 31% of the mirrorless interchange-able lens segment, with Sony having 26%."
https://petapixel.com/2020/01/15/so...anese-mirrorless-sales-canon-still-dominates/

 

[Clix Pix]

As I've said before, the magic word here is "LENSES." It's all about the native lenses, even more than it is about the bodies, and at this point in time Nikon is way behind with native lenses, while I guess Canon is surging forward a little faster because some of their earlier lenses work on their new bodies without fussing with an adapter? I'm not at all familiar with Canon and their offerings, past or current, but have gotten this impression somewhere. In the meantime Sony has a nice selection of native lenses ready and waiting for the customer -- who just has to select what he or she wants to go with the new FF mirrorless body he or she is buying....and Sony is still adding more lenses, so even as the others continue to scramble to catch up, Sony's coming out with new offerings....

 

[Butlerkid]

Is that referring to subjective analysis of capabilities or to objective analysis of market share and the like? If it's the latter, please provide a source because that's not my understanding, though admittedly I don't spend much time keeping up with those stats.

User assesments based on capabilities................Market share, etc will likely follow

 

[Mike Buckley]

As I've said before, the magic word here is "LENSES."

That hasn't led to increased market share of cameras, so I have to believe that's your subjective analysis rather than an objective analysis of market share.

 

[Clix Pix]

Actually, while it probably is subjective, too, I daresay that my comment is based on reality as well (sorry, I' m not a statistics or numbers person, I sure don't bother with reading market reports and actually don't base my buying decisions on those any more than I do on sentiment; I buy what I think I want and need and can afford) -- if one company has lenses and a variety of bodies to offer customers and another company has some bodies and a few lenses, in which direction is a customer going to head, especially if they have particular types of lenses that they want or need? If those lenses are not available in one line by one manufacturer, they have a choice: they can wait and wait for those lenses to finally make an appearance, or they can compromise by sticking an older lens on an adapter and hope that this will produce satisfying results or they can look elsewhere and find exactly what they want, native lenses offered by another manufacturer.....

All that said, the key here is in what kinds of lenses a particular individual chooses to use and what type of shooting style he or she has as well. Specialized lenses are not going to be the first out of the gate for any manufacturer -- instead, the first lenses will be the ones most likely to appeal to the greatest number of potential purchasers. Lenses that work well for portraiture or for landscape, plus the more all-purpose sorts of ones as well, are going to be perceived as being in greater demand than, say, macro lenses. That's understandable.

 

[Mike Buckley]

if one company has lenses and a variety of bodies to offer customers and another company has some bodies and a few lenses, in which direction is a customer going to head

The answer to that question depends mostly on the customer's situation. If the customer can justify switching to an entirely different brand of cameras and lenses as you did or if that customer is, relatively speaking, a first-time stand-alone camera user, that customer can easily justify selecting any brand. Not so for the customers who are already somewhat married to a particular brand and would have to take a significant financial hit or go through a significant learning curve to switch to a system made by a different brand.