You are correct about the DSLR not being dead. In a lot of places around the world people are using these cameras. Not all peoples around the world can afford buying the "latest and greatest" each year. Not only that, but repairing a DSLR camera and lenses is much easier to do in a lot of places around the world.Well Pentax (who has also indicated a desire to start making new film cameras) has announced a new monochrome dSLR.... will be a lot less expensive than the monochrome Leicas if you are really into shooting BW.
So I guess dSLR isn't quite dead yet.
PENTAX K-3 Mark III Monochrome - Ricoh
us.ricoh-imaging.com
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When will mirrorless take over DSLR ... and time to sell mirror DSLR equipment??
- Thread starter mtbdudex
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well it’s dead in the sense that few camera makers are putting out new dslrs anymore.
Canon still produces entry level cameras. But I imagine that eventually all will be mirrorless.
Still love the shutter thunk my 6D makes, there's just something satisfying about it.
That's a tough argument to make considering that there was still quite a bit of DSLR movement up until ~2020 or so when the big makers pretty much dropped DSLR development.
Available resolution has been pretty much at parity. DSLRs still held the edge until relatively recently in AF speed/responsiveness(and I've talked to more than a few serious pros who think the Nikon D6 still out-performs the Z9 in this department.
There's also been things like native lens selection. As an example, if one is a heavy user of f/2.8 zooms, it looks like Sony didn't get the basic 24-70 and 70-200 until 2016. A lot of basic primes(50mm f/1.8) were around the same time...
There are times where it can be obnoxious, especially since different cameras can sound so different.
To me, some of the highlights of shutter sound are the 70s pro-level Japanese SLRs, and the Nikon F2 and Canon F-1 in particular. Neither are quiet, but they both are so refined and precise sounding.
One reason I can't let go of my D810 is just how quiet it is. The D800 is quite loud and rattly sounding, and the D850 is better than the D800 but not as quiet as the D810. One big consequence of pushing frame rates the past decade+ has been that the shutter and mirrors tend to move relatively fast to reduce blackout time. My D5 is really loud.
At least among 35mm-sized SLRs, though, I think the worst I've personally used are the Nikon N8008 and N90(s). Both have an earth-shattering KLUNK followed by what sounds like a cheap battery toy to advance the film. AF with screwdriver focus lenses is about as bad on these(not that it's quiet on any body). The F4 is around the same age as these(I think a little newer than the N8008 and a little older than the N90) and is still loud but sounds a bit more sure and the mirror seems better damped.
Very few have anything on medium format SLRs, though. The Hasselblad 500 series bodies do make a solid clunk, although the lack of instant-return mirror helps spread out the sound a bit more and the overall dampening is quite good. The Pentax 67 is loud also, and the dampening is mostly good on the mirror(you just have to watch the shutter intertia, which is not insignificant and pulling the camera 90º to where the mirror slap pulls it). The Mamiya RB67 is probably the best of the bunch and is surprisingly quiet. The worst I've ever used is the Bronica S2A with its Rube Goldberg instant return mirror. There's just way too much going on in that one, as the mirror falls to the bottom of the box, silk blinds pop out to cover it and the focusing screen(flipping the mirror up does that nicely in a normal design), or course stopping down the lens, and then finally firing the big slow focal plane shutter. I never could get reliably sharp results handheld(and yes I did replace the bumpers under the mirror) despite the promising looking 1/1000 shutter speed, and needed my obnoxiously heavy(10lb or so) wooden studio tripod to even have any hope of getting something sharp. There's just too many different(large) forces in too many different directions, and little effort to dampen any of them. The later EC helped things a bit with the weird split mirror.
I agree with you. All depends on which DSLR one is talking about. For example look at the 3-year old Canon 1Dx III that is still used around the world by sports photographers. One can shoot photos and videos for two days or more on a single charge of its battery.
This is a 2020 video:
On the battery thing-
Again I'll plead ignorance on Canon, but on Nikons the flagship cameras for a long time have used a different battery than the mid-range cameras. Going back to the early 2010s, mid-range cameras have used the EN-EL15 series batteries and flagship cameras have used the EN-EL18 series. Before that, it was the EN-EL3a for mid-range and EN-EL4 for flagship. The EN-EL4 and EN-EL18 in particular are similar in size and shape(but with the contacts "mirrored"). The EN-EL15 is a bit longer and a bit thinner than the EN-EL3 and doesn't have exposed terminals like the earlier one. The EN-EL15 I think is now up to a "C" version and the EN-EL18 up to a "D" version. They're all more or less backwards compatible and fully forward compatible(all of mine in use now are A/B/C versions and they all work fine in my D800) but I think the B version added in-camera charging with the original Z6 and Z7. I'm pretty sure the EN-EL18D added in-camera for the Z9.
The EN-EL3/EN-EL15 is a "low voltage" battery at I think 7.2V. The EN-EL4 and EN-EL15 are "high voltage" at I think 11.8V. Most of us who have used cameras in both classes see a real difference in autofocus performance both when using the in-body motor and in-lens motor(at least with pro-level lenses) on the high voltage batteries. There's a long history of this, too, and it's noticeable on the 8xAA F5 vs. the 4xAA F100(or 6xAA with a battery grip). Further, the D300 and D700 can use EN-EL4 batteries in the battery grip. The D8xx cameras can use EN-EL18 batteries in the grip. You can get a lot of this benefit using the big battery in a grip.
I really was headed to a point with that, though.
When I bought my D5, I bought a couple of spare EN-EL18 batteries. I never feel comfortable without at least one fully charged EN-EL15 spare per camera using it in my bag when out for a day of shooting, and I thought if I really used the D5 the way it was meant to be used I'd want the spares.
I think the official rating on the D5 is something like 1900 shots on a charge. I'll come home with 500 shots on a battery and it will still read over 80%. Part of the savings is that I turn off auto image review(something that I think official testing requires) but I still am not averse to manual review on occasion. Still, though, the life is just unreal on these things.
The Z9 I think is rated at 900 per charge on an EN-EL18D, and I've talked to several Z9 shooters who say they wouldn't consider leaving home without at least one spare battery as they're likely to go through a full one.
About batteries: not all Canon cameras use the same batteries, but a few batteries are interchangeable. The battery in the Canon 1Dx 2 and 3 are large and different than the ones in the R-series (R5, R6, etc.). However, the battery in the Canon 7-series can be used on the R5 and R6. Sometimes I take a spare battery from the Canon 5D, or the 7D to use with my R6. But while the R6's battery is of the same dimensions at the one in the 7D, it is a high-capacity battery compared to the 7D's one. The R-series cameras would discharge the lower capacity batteries at a faster rate.
On another note, there are plenty of older DSLR cameras in the 2023 market, and in a lot of places around the world people use DSLR cameras:
The best DSLR camera for 2024: top choices for photography and video
The best DSLR camera you can buy for novices, hobbyists and pros
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Well, Amazon days had the RF 100-500 on sale, got that plus a RF 1.4TC, figure 700mm reach is decent to start with.
Now gonna list for sale my much beloved and used EF 70-200 L f2.8 mkii with its 1.4/2 TC. Tack sharp lens.
Someone will get great usage outta that.
I’ve kinda bucketed the R5 as my photo hobbyist camera, hence the 100-500, plus the walkabout f4 24-105.
I’ll be using my iPhone 14 pro for all other images.
The only lens I’ll still need is UWA for astrophotography.. tbd which I get.
Congratulations and have fun!![f6157f0f83150cec71fee840cee7eef5.jpg]()
Well, Amazon days had the RF 100-500 on sale, got that plus a RF 1.4TC, figure 700mm reach is decent to start with.
Now gonna list for sale my much beloved and used EF 70-200 L f2.8 mkii with its 1.4/2 TC. Tack sharp lens.
Someone will get great usage outta that.
I’ve kinda bucketed the R5 as my photo hobbyist camera, hence the 100-500, plus the walkabout f4 24-105.
I’ll be using my iPhone 14 pro for all other images.
The only lens I’ll still need is UWA for astrophotography.. tbd which I get.
I have the 100-500mm. Great lens.![f6157f0f83150cec71fee840cee7eef5.jpg]()
Well, Amazon days had the RF 100-500 on sale, got that plus a RF 1.4TC, figure 700mm reach is decent to start with.
Now gonna list for sale my much beloved and used EF 70-200 L f2.8 mkii with its 1.4/2 TC. Tack sharp lens.
Someone will get great usage outta that.
I’ve kinda bucketed the R5 as my photo hobbyist camera, hence the 100-500, plus the walkabout f4 24-105.
I’ll be using my iPhone 14 pro for all other images.
The only lens I’ll still need is UWA for astrophotography.. tbd which I get.
Been happy with my ultra-wide too. Also good, though Canon has very few good cheap lenses in the RF mount.
I have the same lens, too. I often use it for close-ups of flowers and plants (usually post then in this forum), mounted on the R6. Focusing manually: focus accuracy is quite easy to achieve because of the green LED focus guide. I have the RF 1.4x extender, but seldom use it. I bought the RF 100-500 a couple of years ago, and I noticed that it costs a lot more these days.
I just received the Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8 L IS USM last week. I ordered from Canon USA online store, since they had free shipping to Alaska. Will be using it for taking photos of the Auroras, more than likely from 15 to 18mm or so, wide open to f/2.8, 4-6 second exposure at 1,200 ISO (sometimes from 800-1,000 when the lights are very bright).
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New lens day!
Also listing day for my beloved EF 70-200.
Lens for my R5 are complete:
UWA 10-20 L (Nov or Dec delivery)
Zoom 24-105 L
Tele zoom 100-500 L + 1.4 TC
Going up to copper harbor Michigan this weekend, looking forward to some picture taking hikes.
exciting!! really happy for you.![04612eba9854931f1b959961a18b1e15.jpg]()
New lens day!
Also listing day for my beloved EF 70-200.
Lens for my R5 are complete:
UWA 10-20 L (Nov or Dec delivery)
Zoom 24-105 L
Tele zoom 100-500 L + 1.4 TC
Going up to copper harbor Michigan this weekend, looking forward to some picture taking hikes.
Agreed. I got it for my kids / friends doing ski races, I’m the volunteer photographer. Plus when birding I’ll be at max zoom. Since can’t stack these RF like you could the EF I debated 1.4 or 2, went with 1.4 as 700mm is lots reach with 48mp ff sensor.