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Mobile Phones dominate Flickr uploads in 2016 with Apple staying at the top spot

Dec 8, 2016 by John Aldred 2 Comments

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flickr_year_in_review

Flickr have released their 2016 end of year review, and, it’s actually not that much different from last year. Mobile phones still dominate, and mirrorless still lag way behind. What’s interesting, though, is that while the leader board hasn’t really changed, the numbers have.

Last year, 39% of all photos uploaded to Flickr were shot with a smartphone. This year, that number has jumped to 48%. Both DSLRs and point & shoots have dropped, although mirrorless cameras have remained at a stable 3%.

flickr_top_device_types

Last year, DSLRs accounted for 31% of uploads, with point & shoots at 25%. The fall in point & shoots is fairly obvious. It’s not exactly a secret that compact cameras are suffering in sales due to the rapidly improving tech in our phones. People simply aren’t buying them any more – at least certainly not in the quantity that they once did.

DSLRs, while perhaps not suffering from cellphone domination are facing ever stiff competition from mirrorless cameras. However, the mirrorless percentage hasn’t moved a point from last year. Does this mean that those DSLR users who have switched to mirrorless simply aren’t uploading to flickr? Or have DSLR users not switched in the numbers we might expect, and they’ve just stopped posting there?

Flickr haven’t released exact numbers of images uploaded, so it’s difficult to make a solid conclusion.

When it comes to brands, things are, again, as they were last year. That being said, Apple have jumped a whole 5%, Nikon has edge up 2% while Canon have dropped 3%. Overall, this now means that more images are uploaded with iPhones than all Nikon and Canon cameras combined.

flickr_top_camera_manufacturers

Last year, iPhones were lagging only 1% behind the combined forces of Nikon and Canon. So, here the trend seems somewhat obvious. Although, again, is it that people are shifting away from using their DSLRs, preferring the convenience of the camera that’s always with them? Or are DSLR users simply posting elsewhere, instead?

I stopped uploading to Flickr in 2012, and quite a few of the people I know have either shifted over to 500px. Or, they’ve simply gone back to self-hosted galleries on their own websites. So, it’s possible that Flickr’s observations aren’t quite as reflective of the larger situation, especially with as easy as it is to upload to Flickr from a mobile device today.

But, the numbers are interesting nonetheless.

Flickr also posted their top 25 picks of photos uploaded during 2016. These are a couple of my favourites in that list.

Zig Zag

Tropic Thunder II

On the road

You can see the full list of Flickr’s top 25 of 2016 here, and their year in review here.

Do the change in numbers surprise you? Do you think it shows a shift in user technology? Or a shift that certain types of photographer are moving away from Flickr? Do you still use Flickr? Or have you left it, too? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

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Related posts:

Flickr’s Camera Uploads Dominated by Smartphones, Mirorrles almost Non-Existing Phones aren’t winning yet – Flickr’s top 25 photos of 2017 dominated by DSLRs and mirrorless Breaking news: Surprise – Flickr bought by SmugMug, swears to make Flickr awesome again Flickr is losing money, puts out plea for help asking users to upgrade to Flickr Pro

Filed Under: news Tagged With: flickr

John Aldred: from diyphotography.net

About John Aldred

John Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

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