As a Nikon user for decades, I hope they pull through. I've always wondered why they have SO many bodies – why not simplify the line-up?
Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
261–270 of 371 posts
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#262Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think you’re about 2 or 3 years too late with this comment. The switch to mirrorless is already here, Nikon and Canon have the majority of their core lens lineups out already for these platforms so it’s unlikely they’d replace them again for the next decade or longer. And yes, they are mostly better than previous generations across the board. Which is pretty cool, that something based on such a simple idea that’s b…
What is the deal with mirrorless? (no mirror, but why does this improve optics?)
Also less moving parts, so this results in a more reliable product.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#263Heartbreaking, but they are a "survivor" company. They have lasted over 100 years, through a world war (including firestorm bombing), earthquakes, fires and tsunamis. They had never been particularly big, until the 1990s, with the advent of point-and-shoot digital cameras. That gravy train ended when the iPhone came out. They are probably contracting to their more traditional role, of Big Black Cameras, as well as so…
> They have some of the finest scientists and engineers in the world, as well as a gigantic portfolio of patents. They aren't going away. Kodak would like to have a word.
Kodak stubbornly refused to embrace the digital transformation, they kept making film cameras and film for them well after everybody else had a digital camera lineup for years.
No amount of valuable patents and top-notch engineers can help a failed strategic bet like this.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#264Oof, that's not a good sign. For me, Japan is the place for the best camera and lens manufacturing. Most of the makers seem to split their manufacturing between Japan for their quality models/lenses and cheaper countries for the consumer stuff, which I think is a valid compromise. But this feels short-sighted on Nikon's part and rather like they have already failed. Perhaps instead of relocating their production they…
Traditional lens manufacturing is likely in its last days (which can easily take a decade or two, but ... the end is visible). Modern lens are made with techniques perfected in semiconductor manufacturing, and use advances in material science (meta materials in particular). I don't know how close this is to mass market, but I've seen superthin flat lens, with a marginal cost of production around ~$2 in a university f…
Do you have a link? Most likely that $2 lens only works well at a single frequency.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#265Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have a Sigma 150-600mm Sport, which is a hell of a lens, both in quality/features and uh...weight :D It's totally hand-holdable, but reviews online make me wonder if everyone else has pipe cleaners for arms; it took a couple of weeks to get used to it but I don't have any trouble now. The image quality is fantastic and extremely competitive. The image-stabilisation works superbly, and the autofocus is very good - m…
Thanks, your photos are great. I'd like to get myself a long lense for those kinds of shots but I really can't afford Nikon prices!
That was exactly my thought process too :D There's pretty much nothing else in the price range of the Sport that does 600mm at less than f/8, and the Contemporary model has 90% of the performance of the Sport but at an even more digestible price. For birds the lens length can never be long enough, and I think the Sigma range is in a great price point where it's expensive enough to be good but you're not paying more for marginal gains. Plus some of their latest lenses can be hooked up to a USB dock to allow you to customise them a bit, such as making micro-focus adjustments, which is really cool.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#266Earlier quoted context omitted.
What is the deal with mirrorless? (no mirror, but why does this improve optics?)
Also less moving parts, so this results in a more reliable product.
And smaller. I think the days of a big ‘hero camera’ are behind us. People just don’t want to lug around the weight if they don’t have to, and it’s no longer such a status symbol.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#267Earlier quoted context omitted.
I wonder how many photographers were put off by the cost & weight of a 800mm lens, and how many just didn't actually need a 800mm lens? The only time I can remember wanting > 200mm was back when I did sports photography.
Wildlife & nature, architecture, astronomy, any scene that you want to "flatten"...
Yeah wildlife photography, particularly bird photography, can never have enough focal length. I practice stalking techniques to get closer (which has a much better cost/reward ratio to buying bigger lenses) but if you can fill the frame with a bird you can get awesome shots that just aren't possible otherwise. Currently I'm shooting at 600mm, and I definitely want a teleconverter to get up to ~800mm. After that the prices get truly insane so I think I'll just have to find some bigger birds at that point.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#268Oof, that's not a good sign. For me, Japan is the place for the best camera and lens manufacturing. Most of the makers seem to split their manufacturing between Japan for their quality models/lenses and cheaper countries for the consumer stuff, which I think is a valid compromise. But this feels short-sighted on Nikon's part and rather like they have already failed. Perhaps instead of relocating their production they…
As an old Nikon customer I agree with your sentiments. When I got into DSLR cameras about 15 years ago it seemed like Nikon and Canon were evenly matched with each company having a set group of fans. It seems like since then Canon has really pulled away and Nikon seems to be falling behind especially in terms of lenses(quality and variety). If I were to start getting into cameras now I would not look to Nikon, and it makes me somewhat sad to say that.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#269Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's a couple of lens advancements I've seen recently that I found particularly interesting: Canon putting Fresnel elements in their lenses to reduce size/weight: https://kenrockwell.com/canon/lenses/400mm-f4-do-is-ii.htm Canon making an f/11 800mm super telephoto lens that can still autofocus thanks to the new mirrorless camera bodies: https://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/eos-r/lenses/800mm.htm I think we'll see a b…
I think you’re about 2 or 3 years too late with this comment. The switch to mirrorless is already here, Nikon and Canon have the majority of their core lens lineups out already for these platforms so it’s unlikely they’d replace them again for the next decade or longer. And yes, they are mostly better than previous generations across the board. Which is pretty cool, that something based on such a simple idea that’s b…
Oh yes in many respects the mirrorless switch is already done. I don't tend to buy new camera bodies though; my most recent purchase was a 1Ds MKIII from ~10 years ago, as I want the build quality/weather-resistance you get from those pro models. I'm really excited to see what a pro mirrorless camera might look like in a few years (Canon only just released the 1Dx MkIII so it's not arriving just yet).
The switch is quite obvious from the Canon release schedule - I don't think they have a single non-RF (mirrorless mount) lens being released this year.
Re: Nikon Is ending 70 years of camera production in Japan
#270Heartbreaking, but they are a "survivor" company. They have lasted over 100 years, through a world war (including firestorm bombing), earthquakes, fires and tsunamis. They had never been particularly big, until the 1990s, with the advent of point-and-shoot digital cameras. That gravy train ended when the iPhone came out. They are probably contracting to their more traditional role, of Big Black Cameras, as well as so…
> They have some of the finest scientists and engineers in the world, as well as a gigantic portfolio of patents. They aren't going away. Those are exactly quickly going away. Engineers and scientists need to get paid and want job stability, while patents have a 20-year lifespan. Nikon was on top of the world in 2008 with the D300 and the D90, but the technologies that made those possible were patented years prior. R…
This is a side related question, but I have always been curious about the process by which say, a Nikon team, decides to create a new lens.
I'd love to know things like what they trade off in terms of $, weight, complexity, aberrations, performance. And do they have to retire an old lens line to make room for a new one?
And this is way too much to ask here (I'm sure I need to read an optics intro), but how in the world do they solve that they need 12 elements, etc. to make some aberration go away, by combining 3 different index of refraction glasses in a certain order, etc! Amazingly complicated.
I imagine now there are ray tracing solvers for it, but I wonder how they did it in the early days of lens design!