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Panasonic reported to be dumping “low end models” to target professional photographers and filmmakers

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It seems that Panasonic is dumping development of their lower-end camera systems in favour of higher-end kit for enthusiast and professional photographers and filmmakers, according to a report from Nikkei Asia. Exactly how low-end Panasonic will go is unclear, but it seems that they’ve finally admitted defeat in certain sectors of the market against the onslaught of ever-improving smartphones.

It’s not much of a surprise. Many companies have been killing off compacts for several years already, putting their efforts where things pay a little better. Only a handful still produce even high-end compacts now. And, well, it looks like Panasonic’s following suit and killing off their lower-end stuff.

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Leica wants to kick off your street photography with new $1,549 camera kit

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Leica has just released a $1,549 camera kit that aims to kick start your street photography. The Leica D-Lux 7 Street Kit is perfect if you’ve always wanted a Leica, but weren’t ready to pay thousands of dollars for a camera body only. Other than the Leica D-Lux 7, you also get a few other items that will pimp your camera and, hopefully, improve the shooting experience.

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The king of compacts: Ricoh GR III vs. Fuji X100F

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If you’re going to get serious about shooting all the time the best camera you can buy yourself is a quality compact. High End DSLRs and interchangeable lens mirrorless cameras can be intimidating to shoot with for the everyday, not to mention an unnecessarily heavy load to carry. A compact is a camera you can take everywhere, that will distinguish you from other ‘phonetographers’ in both improved control and image quality.

There are two premium compacts that I was stuck between; the Fuji X100F and Ricoh’s GRiii to take on my Trans-Siberian train trip.

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Leica’s new V-Lux 5 balances photo and video capabilities in a compact body

It seems that compact cameras aren’t going anywhere despite mobile photography being more and more widespread. The V-Lux 5 is the latest compact camera from Leica, and it’s aimed at both photo and video shooters, as well as those who want to get the best of their travel images and videos.[Read More…]

Ricoh recalls some GR III cameras due to wobbly control dial, offers free repairs to customers

In late February, Ricoh announced its high-end compact camera Ricoh GR III. However, after the first batches have been shipped, it turned out that some series have issues with the control dial pad button. It’s extremely wobbly in some cameras, so the company is offering free repairs to those who have bought faulty cameras.

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Ricoh announces high-end GR III and rugged WG-6 compact cameras

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Ever since I posted my review of the Godox XPro-P trigger for Pentax, I’ve been hanging out in some Pentax communities on Facebook. They’re an interesting bunch of photographers, and very loyal to their brand. They’ve been speculating on what Ricoh might be getting ready to announce.

They’ve been hoping for a Pentax K3 Mark III (although, they’ve been hoping for that one for a couple of years now). But no, Ricoh has today announced a couple of new compact cameras. The new Ricoh GR III high-end compact is now out of development, and the new rugged Ricoh WG-6.

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Sony launches HX99 and HX95, the smallest compact cameras yet with 720 mm zoom

For all of you who want to travel light and don’t take photos with a smartphone, Sony has just launched two new compact cameras: HX99 and HX95. Both of them feature a 30x, which isn’t new for compact cameras. But the difference is that the 24-720 mm equivalent lens is placed in the tiniest body so far. Let’s see the specs of both cameras, as well as how they compare to other compact superzoom cameras that have been launched this year.

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For the first time in years, camera and lens production actually increased in 2017

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Well, this is a pleasant surprise. For the first time in a long time, camera and lens production and sales has gone up! Seeing an overall 8% increase in cameras and 2% lenses. Sure, not massive amounts, but compared to a 33% drop from 2015 to 2016, that’s mighty impressive. Of course, there have been a whole lot of new amazing cameras come out in the past year, so lots of people are updating their kit.

Our friends at Lensvid took a look at the numbers over the last year, as they have been doing each year for the last several years. And what’s interesting, if not all that surprising, is that while camera sales are up, DSLR sales are down. It seems the world is going mirrorless. At least it’s looking better than last year!

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Compact cameras,the future: a call to compact camera manufacturers

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Since I have been running this site and doing this job I have watched as the prices for compact cameras have steadily increased into the sort of price ranges usually reserved for collectible cameras. I do feel partly responsible for this as the site helped to popularise these cameras and bring them to new audiences.

But this was also inevitable. These cameras are getting expensive not just because they are more popular, but also because there are fewer and fewer or them available now. Even the younger compact cameras (apart from the Fuji Klasse) are over 10 years old now and they are reaching their performance limits. Basically the cameras are dying and there is nobody that can rescue them.

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