DSLR cameras seem on their way out. Like the dodo bird and the buggy whip. Will they really go away? Will it one day be cool to sport a legacy DSLR?
How did SLRs evolve?
Single lens reflex cameras — film or digital — have been the favorite choices of photographers for more than a hundred years. The first one was made in 1861 by Thomas Sutton a British photographer. Patents for SLRs were granted in 1893.
One of the first had a folding design. It was developed under the name Spiegel-Reflex-Klappcamera” (German for mirror-reflex-folding camera. Its patent was filed in 1910.
Finally, in 1936, Ihagee in Dresden, Germany invented the first 35mm single lens reflex camera. The Kine Exakta inventor Karl Nüchterlein saw it become an instant sensation. The rest of the world embraced the design for 35mm, medium format and even large format cameras.
The single lens reflex camera became the style most used by professional and hobbyist photographers worldwide.
Why are DSLRs unpopular now?
Electronic viewfinders moved from black and white to full color. Then, EVFs increased in resolution and became smaller. EVFs were lighter, too. They replaced the heavy, noisy and mechanical mirror box assembly. Without the mirror box, the lens-to-sensor distance shrank. So did the weight and size of the new mirrorless cameras.
DSLR cameras’ lenses were larger to focus farther from the sensor. This made them heavier, too.
Smaller and lighter mirrorless lenses and more compact mirrorless cameras became popular.
Photographers want smaller, lighter and easier-to-use cameras. Mirrorless cameras are handholdable when taking pictures with the monitor on the back. That shooting style evolved from shooting the mirrorless camera everyone has in their pockets or purses: the smartphone. DSLRs are too heavy to hold steady using their monitors.
Camera manufacturers shift focus
At a recent photo show in New York City, I spoke with several representatives from a camera maker. They told me that the company was quietly withdrawing from DSLR development. One individual mentioned that the company had pulled all DSLR sample cameras from the sales and tech teams.
Is this change horrible?
Of course not. Change is inevitable. It is the only constant in life.
Film became a rarely used alternative process, almost disappearing after an 11-megapixel DSLR hit the shelves. DSLR may fade away into the background. Some will still use them for various reasons, from wanting to appear different from the rest of the photographers to simply wanting to stay with their investment in bodies and lenses.
Change is good
My mantle has eight F series Nikon single lens reflex cameras I have used and loved since the early 1970s. One of them is a 6-megapixel DSLR from 2001.
Canon has been my camera of choice for a couple of decades now. I added their mirrorless EOS R5 right after it was introduced. It was with me everywhere for a couple of reasons. First, it was much lighter and smaller than my 1DX Mark III. Second, it has a 45-megapixel sensor. That’s twice the amount of the 1Dx III.
The more I used the R5, the more I carried it everywhere and the more I realized it could do everything that the 1Dx III could. I had to disable the EVF’s exposure simulation in the studio with flash. No big deal.
I did notice that the EVF did not present a scene’s colors as well as the optical viewfinder did. On several occasions, I saw color in the RAW file that did not appear in the viewfinder. Oh well, again, no big deal.
I recently sold both of my DSLR bodies and bought an EOS R5C, the R5 with a full video camera built in. I am now out of the digital single lens reflex style of cameras. The important point is I am still making photographs that please me and my clients. Change is good.
Remember: It’s not the lens, it’s the lensmanship.
*History of the single-lens reflex camera. (2023, July 31)
The featured photo was produced using Adobe Firefly Image 2 using the prompt: Dinosaur holding a digital single lens reflex camera.
DSLR are no less doomed than film cameras. There will always be a supply of excellent DSLRs in the market as there are excellent film cameras.
I’m in my 70’s and have been using DSLR’s for a long time. My cameras still take good images and I have accessories that allow a lot of flexibility. I will continue to use my Nikon DSLR and I have no intention of upgrading at this point in my life.
The market for NEW DSLRs will certainly shrink, but just as the phonograph and DVD persist, so will a niche that wants that style of camera.
During the pandemic my trusty Canon 80D died and getting it repaired was not easily done so I got the Canon R6 and used it for more tan a year with more and more frustration. During the past summer I bought myself a used 80D and sold my R6. I’ve been happy ever since. Change happens and I may try another mirrorless in the future but for now I prefer the reliability of a well-tested technology to the uncertainty of one that is still in its relatively early stages.