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Nikon interview: “We’re at a transitional stage”

13 Feb
Keiji Oishi, Department Manager of Nikon’s UX Planning Dept, Imaging Business Unit.

We were at the Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas last month, and during our time on the floor we sat down with Keiji Oishi, Department Manager of Nikon’s UX Planning Dept, Imaging Business Unit.

In a wide-ranging conversation, Mr Oishi gave us an insight into Nikon’s strategy at all levels of its business, and shared some details of Nikon’s (then very much under wraps) new professional flagship, the D6.

Nikon recently released the D780 – some people might be surprised to see the launch of a new DSLR in 2020.

The development of the Z-series is our core focus, but we need to support the demands of our DSLR customers, for the latest technologies. The D780 represents a leap in terms of technology compared to the D750. The D780 has what we might call ‘over-class’ features for a DSLR of this type, such as the autofocus algorithm from the D5, and the shutter mechanism of the D850.

It also incorporates some of the advantages of mirrorless technology, such as live view autofocus performance and Eye-Detection AF. It’s all combined in one model.

The D750 continues to be competitive, long after its introduction. Why did you feel it needed updating?

The D750 is a very good camera, and its sales are good because of its well-balanced specifications and its price point. But some customers were starting to consider replacing [their D750] because their camera body is five years old.

We’re at a transitional stage at the moment, with our customers. They’re wondering which platform is better for their needs

Some people we’ve pointed towards the Z 6 or Z 7, because of the advantages of mirrorless, but some customers want to stick with DSLR because of the optical viewfinder, autofocus performance in some situations, and also the long battery life. For those customers looking to replace their D750, we wanted to prepare two options – the Z-series lineup, and also DSLR.

Does this indicate a deliberate strategy going forward of creating closely-related ‘companion’ models, across the Z-series and DSLR lineups? The Z 6 and D780, and the Z 7 and D850, for example?

I can’t say that we’ll do that forever, but we’re at a transitional stage at the moment, with our customers. They’re wondering which platform is better for their needs. And given the current state of our technologies we’ve concluded that we should prepare both options right now – Z-series, and DSLR, because of the [different] advantages of both platforms, for different customer needs.

The Nikon D780 is a significant upgrade over the D750, offering a lot of the same technologies as the mirrorless Z 6 in a solid, power-efficient DSLR form factor.

Do you have a sense of the timeframe over which you’ll transition customers away from DSLR, eventually?

We haven’t finalized our plan yet. At this time I can say that we will prioritize both DSLR and mirrorless. We also want to complete our Z system: that’s the first priority. At a certain point, we hope that all DSLR customers will [ultimately] be satisfied by the features provided by mirrorless, and will shift to the Z system. That’s the goal. But until then, we will continue to develop DSLRs.

In building out the Z system, what are you prioritizing? Lower-end or higher-end products?

We’re actually going in both directions. The Z 50 is a good entry-level body, using the DX format, but we also want to expand the FX lineup at both the high-end, and the more affordable level.

The Z 50 is still fairly new in the market – how do you see the DX Z lineup evolving over time? Or do you see it as a step-up model on the way to full-frame?

The Z 50 is a well-balanced body. The beauty of the Z 50 is that it uses the same mount as our FX cameras, so Z 50 customers can use DX and FX lenses. But if they require more, let’s say high image quality or more resolution, we can point them towards the Z 6 or Z 7..

Nikon’s DX format Z-mount lens lineup currently consists of only two ‘kit’ zooms but Nikon sees FX-format lens compatibility as a major advantage of the Z-mount compared to some competitive systems.

Traditionally, APS-C customers tend to buy fewer lenses. Do you expect your DX customers will purchase full-frame lenses for their camera?

Currently, our 16-50mm and 50-250mm [DX format Z-mount lenses] offer very good optical performance. So first of all, I would like Z 50 customers to explore those two lenses. And on our roadmap we have another lens, the 18-140mm, also for those customers. We want to make [DX lenses] affordable, and of the right size.

A lot of DPReview readers want to see something like a small, high-quality 35mm equivalent lens for DX.

Some of our FX customers also want more affordable, smaller lenses, for example pancake lenses. if we can make those kinds of lenses [for FX] they will provide a good solution for both DX and FX-format customers. We have a 28mm and a 40mm [already] on the roadmap [for full-frame].

Nikon is fully committed to the future of the Z system, and we will have 23 lenses by the end of 2021

We need to make these kinds of lenses. The roadmap is always evolving, year by year, which is why we don’t put any dates on it. Additionally, we understand that many potential customers are interested in teleconverters and we are thinking about it. Although [teleconverters] are not in the Lens Roadmap, we understand the necessity of those accessories. Nikon is fully committed to the future of the Z system, and we will have 23 lenses by the end of 2021.

There are almost no restrictions for the Z mount system, compared to F-mount. The approach to lens design is totally different than for the F-mount system. Our engineers get to enjoy lens design from scratch. They can aim for ultimate image quality.

The Nikon Z 50mm F1.8 S is one of the company’s first lenses designed from scratch for a wide diameter mirrorless lens mount. Without the physical restrictions imposed by the narrow F-mount, Nikon’s optical engineers were able to deliver excellent performance, even at maximum aperture,

Does that mean that the manufacturing techniques for Z mount lenses are different, too?

Yes, that’s true.

You’ve had 18 months or so to gather feedback from Z 6 and Z 7 users – what lenses do they really want to see?

Basically, they’re just saying “more lenses!” But we’re getting most requests for a pancake. The mirrorless camera bodies are smaller than DSLR, but the lenses are still the same size. A lot of our Z 6 and Z 7 customers want to make their system size much smaller, so this is a priority for us.

What feedback or requests have you had on the cameras themselves?

The number of card slots was one of the [most common] pieces of feedback. Also, we have received requests for a vertical control grip. Customers are used to the D850 or D750, with two slots. With the Z 6 and Z 7 we wanted to minimize the [body] size.

There is a grip available now, obviously functionally quite limited, has it done well in the marketplace?

It hasn’t been as popular as vertical grips for the DSLRs, but some customers really appreciate the additional battery capacity.

In developing the Z 6 and Z 7 Nikon placed priority on minimizing the size of the camera bodies. As such, the company opted for a single card slot, supporting high-speed XQD / CFexpress media. Apparently, one of the most-requested features from Z 6 and Z 7 owners for future models is another card slot.

Do you see your APS-C and full-frame customers as being different?

Actually, our APS-C customers are unique, I think. There are two kinds: one is the person who wants a second camera. They’re really [interested in] system size. For those people, APS-C makes sense because it makes the cameras smaller.

The other kind is first-time camera buyers. We want to promote [the Z 50] to these people as an affordable, small camera that creates good stills and video. Because these customers don’t just stick to stills, they also want to enjoy movie capture. We feel the Z 50 offers a good balance for both these kinds of customers.

Obviously there’s a lot of competition now in the mirrorless market. What is the most important customer demographic for Nikon, in the medium-term?

Nikon’s advantage is that we have a full lineup, for both DSLR and mirrorless, that satisfies the needs of many kinds of customers. This still isn’t offered by other manufacturers, so far.

We want to create a new group of customers. Of course we want to prioritize our existing users, but we also need to capture more new photographers, who are currently enjoying using their smartphones, but who want to move towards better image quality, to differentiate their work from others. For those customers we want to send the message that we can help them create good images with a small platform. With the wide diameter of the Z mount we can create very good optics.

The size difference between the Z-mount (left) and the legacy F-mount (right – obviously) is significant. The wider diameter and much shorter flange-back allow Nikon’s optical engineers a much greater degree of freedom when designing lenses for Nikon’s new Z system.

Those are the same people that every manufacturer, across the entire industry wants to attract. What is your strategy to actually get the message across to them?

We want to emphasize the benefits of the Z-mount diameter, and short flange-back distance, which differentiates the image quality from our cameras from others. So by introducing our technology to those customers we want them to understand the beauty of our system, and bring them into our world.

How will Nikon be competitive in the full-frame market in the future?

We understand that we need to keep on evolving, with the Z series as our first priority, and complete our lineup of Nikkor Z lenses and accessories.

Some of our customers still see an advantage to DSLRs, because of their particular usage needs

By having a full system lineup, the customer can easily enter the system and see the great advantages of the mount diameter and short flange back. This is our strategy.

Have you seen a drop in DSLR sales following the launch of the Z 6 and Z 7?

We have seen some impact, but much less than we anticipated. Some of our customers still see an advantage to DSLRs, because of their particular usage needs.

Looking forward, how important is video capture to your camera strategy?

We’ve really prioritized video customers, at both entry-level and high-end. The Z 50 is a good solution for an entry-level video customer, like a YouTuber. But for professional customers, we introduced new firmware for the Z 6 and Z 7 for RAW video output. That’s the kind of approach we want to take – step by step, and we want to keep those kinds of professional-level features in future products.

Do you have any sense of how many customers have opted for the Raw video firmware update?

I can’t share the exact number but it’s more than we expected. It was a real surprise.

We want to do regular scheduled firmware updates to keep the products up to date

The firmware update was promised a long time ago – why did it take so long to become available?

To be honest, it was just a question of resources. But after I took over product planning, we are planning to schedule firmware updates more frequently. We don’t want that kind of delay [again] between the announcement of firmware and its availability. We want to do regular scheduled firmware updates to keep the products up to date for a long time.

What are the most important differences from the D5 to the D6?

The D6 has two big advantages. The first is the performance of its new autofocus system, and also the interface for transmitting images. These two advantages are of major importance to professional photographers, who need more rapid data transfer and more focus accuracy. In these respects the D6 is a dramatic jump from the D5.

the forthcoming D6 is a powerful camera designed to satisfy the needs of Nikon’s most demanding customers, but it’s still a fairly traditional, stills-focused DSLRs.

The D6 obviously has a 4K video feature, but it appears to be primarily a stills camera. Is that fair?

Basically yes.

Was the decision not to load more video features into the D6 based on feedback from professional D5 users?

Yes, we had a lot of requests from D5 users around stills features, but fewer requests and opinions about movie enhancements. Most of the customers for the D5 don’t need things like 4K, 60p video for sports shooting. If they were shooting for commercial uses like weddings, maybe they would need it, but not for sports.

Do you think that this requirement is met, for example, by the Z 6?

The Z 6, yes, or the D850.

Editors’ note: Barnaby Britton

Mr Oishi is a candid and engaging interviewee, and a man who is clearly passionate about his company and its customers. Few other manufacturers have quite as much history behind their brand, and for this reason alone Nikon’s move into full-frame mirrorless was probably always going to be a little fraught.

Despite the fact that Nikon’s Z 6 and Z 7 are among the most well-rounded mirrorless ILCs on the market, and certainly among the nicest to use, the cameras have attracted some criticism from the company’s own customers over the past 18 months. Some people complained about their single card slots, some people complained about the limitations of their autofocus implementation, some people complained about the lack of a proper vertical grip, and some complained about their cost (because some people always complain about the cost).

It just goes to show that you can’t please all of the people all of the time. But you can try. I’m sure that a lot of our readers will be pleased to hear Mr Oishi’s comments about more regular firmware updates, for one thing, but the launch of the attractively well-featured D780 is another indication that Nikon is genuinely keen to keep its customers happy – whatever system they’re invested in. Mr Oishi all-but confirmed that during this ‘transitional stage’, Nikon will create both mirrorless and DSLR bodies which share common technology.

Nikon would like to transition its customers over to mirrorless at some point, en masse, but the company is in no rush

The Z 7 is already (almost) a D850 without a mirror, and the new D780 seems intended both to reassure Nikon’s wider DSLR customer base that the company hasn’t forgotten about them, and also to satisfy the immediate needs of D750 owners interested in an upgrade. Nikon is probably also hoping that the raft of ‘mirrorless’ technologies offered in the D780 will smooth an eventual transition to Z-mount, if and when buyers choose to make the ‘big’ switch.

It’s clear from talking to Mr. Oishi that Nikon would like to transition its customers over to mirrorless eventually, en masse, but the company is in no rush. Several things have to happen before a full transition to the Z-mount becomes realistic. One of those things is lenses. Mr Oishi mentioned that 21 lenses will be available for Z-mount by the end of next year, and repeatedly stressed that the roadmap is very flexible, based on requests from Nikon’s customers. As it stands right now, that roadmap includes a couple of vital professional-friendly telezooms, as well as a 105mm macro and more primes.

Another factor, of course, is that compared to beginners and enthusiasts, transitioning professional sports and photojournalism photographers (a vital demographic for Nikon) over to mirrorless will be a slow and gradual process. These people rely on their cameras to make a living, one split second at a time. Despite its impressive feature set, the new D6 is still a fairly traditional, stills-focused DSLR, because that’s the kind of camera that Nikon’s pro users are asking for.

For now.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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GoPro Karma drones around the world were grounded due to GPS glitch

07 Jan

GoPro introduced its first—and only—drone in September 2016 to much fanfare. Unfortunately, the Karma, as the action camera company named it, was plagued with issues from the very beginning. Besides poor reviews that pointed out its lack of standard safety features, reports of Karma drones losing power, mid-flight, and falling from the sky became rampant to the point where GoPro recalled it on the same night as the U.S. Presidential election in November 2016.

While the number of sales is undisclosed, the Karma was purchased by drone enthusiasts even after it was discontinued in January 2018. The users that held onto their Karma discovered that it wouldn’t take off at the beginning of this year due to a glitch in the GPS and GLONASS systems of the drone. User complaints surfaced in dozens of forum posts and tweets as first pointed out by The Verge.

‘I recently got a karma and am having an issue with compass calibration. For some reason this doesn’t work: as soon as I select compass calibration in the controller, within half a second (not enough time to pick up the drone and start calibrating), I get the message ” calibration failed, try again”. It also gives a message about not being able to calibrate the compass without a GPS signal. I am trying this in a field and had the drone there for at least 10 minutes…’ lamented one user in GoPro’s forum. The Karma’s firmware has not been updated since September 26, 2018.

Most tech companies update their software consistently to avoid the same issues the Karma experienced as the new year rolled in. GoPro’s dilemma is likely the result of the GPS clock “rollover” phenomenon, which happens once every 1,024 weeks, or every 19.7 years. If a company’s software is not updated, it may automatically reset the date which can corrupt navigation data and throw off location estimates. GPS needs these precise figures to properly function.

After receiving enough media attention, a GoPro spokesperson has announced that the company’s engineering team is “actively troubleshooting” the issue.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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These were the most-clicked-on cameras in 2019

29 Dec

While DPReview readers have already voted for their favorite products of 2019, we were curious to know which cameras were the most popular among site visitors in the past year. For that information, we went to the raw data. What we’ve come up with is a list of the year’s ten most popular cameras (released at any time) based on product page views within 2019. We’ll count it down starting at the top, Casey Kasem-style.

10. Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark III (announced July 2019)

It’s no surprise that a highly capable enthusiast compact makes the list, since this class of camera is always popular with DPR readers. The Canon G7 X Mark II was announced in early July alongside the G5 X II, with which it shares many of the same features. We saw a lot to like about it when we reviewed it – and DPReview visitors clearly saw the appeal too.

9. Nikon D850 (announced September 2017)

We called the D850 one of the most important cameras of the decade and DPReview readers seem to agree – it’s just over two years old (which is approximately one hundred in consumer technology years) and it’s still one of the most-viewed products on the site. It was a very impressive camera in 2017 and it’s still one we recommend to a wide range of photographers today.

8. Canon EOS M50 (announced February 2018)

We all love a built-in viewfinder, which is likely one of the features that drew so many people to the Canon M50 this year. It also appears in several of our use-case buying guides, and its well-rounded stills feature set clearly attracts a lot of attention even nearly two years after its announcement.

7. Nikon Z6 (announced October 2018)

It makes sense that the Z6 appears in this top ten while its higher-resolution Z7 sibling (spoiler alert) doesn’t – 24MP is still more than enough resolution for most photographers, and as a whole package it’s more accessible. For those just starting to think about switching from their beloved DSLRs to mirrorless, the Z6 is a logical jump-off point for that research. While photographers like our own Dan Bracaglia may choose to hang onto their DSLRs for a while longer, we imagine that the number of full-frame mirrorless cameras on this list will only grow each year.

6. Sony a6000 (announced February 2014)

The Sony a6000 has had incredible staying power in the camera market. It’s one of the best-selling interchangeable lens cameras of all time and this nearly six year old camera’s feature set remains surprisingly competitive. It certainly doesn’t hurt that it’s one of the absolute best deals out there – it was competitively priced at its introduction and has come down in price since then to $ 500 with kit lens at the time of writing. The debut of the a6100 may signal the beginning of the a6000’s end, but there’s no wonder at all why it has remained so popular for so long after its release.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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These unseen photos of Ground Zero following the 9/11 attacks were salvaged from rotting CDs

25 Jun

Archivists Dr. Johnathan Burgess and Jason Scott have published 2,400 previously unseen images of Ground Zero in the days following the 9/11 attacks. The images were found on old CDs purchased from a house clearance sale in New York and shared by a ‘partner’ of Dr. Burgess because it’s ‘about doing what’s right for humanity,’ according to a statement he made to the BBC.

Dr. Burgess said the CDs were in poor condition after so many years in storage, and that a recovery service was used to retrieve some of the photos. At this time, the duo hasn’t been able to locate the photographer or any family members who may know them. Scott says the images were captured with the 3MP Canon PowerShot G1.

The full archive of images has been made available to the public via Flickr. The photos appear to have been taken by a construction worker in the aftermath of the attacks. Emergency and construction workers are featured prominently in the images, as well as debris from the fallen buildings, machinery, dust and the surrounding New York City skyline, including multiple aerial shots.

Dr. Burgess suggests that ‘people who are moved by [the images] should consider donating to a worthy cause of their choice,’ according to the BBC report.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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We’re hiring! DPReview is looking for a Software Development Engineer and Senior Product Manager

13 Jun

We’re looking to add a Software Development Engineer and a Senior Product Manager to our team! Each role is uniquely positioned to help shape the future of the site. The Senior Product Manager will own DPReview’s product roadmap, working closely with our engineering and editorial teams. The Software Development Engineer will help build the next generation of web and mobile experiences for DPReview, shaping products from concept to delivery.

If you’re passionate about photography and ready to help build the future of DPReview, take a look at the full job descriptions linked below and learn how to apply.

Apply now: Senior Product Manager

Apply now: Software Development Engineer

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Nikon confirms some counterfeit EN-EL15b batteries were sold by authorized retailers

29 May

Last week, B&H Photo began emailing customers who had purchased Nikon EN-EL15b rechargeable Li-ion camera batteries, advising these buyers that they may have received units from a ‘subpar batch.’ The company didn’t elaborate on what subpar meant in this instance, but did state that it would replace all Nikon EN-EL15b batteries it had shipped because it couldn’t determine which customers had received the bad units.

Following a leak that claimed as much, Nikon has confirmed counterfeit EN-EL15b batteries have been sold by authorized retailers to some of its camera owners. In a statement to DPReview, a Nikon spokesperson said:

We have been made aware that some customers who purchased individual EN-EL15b batteries from authorized Nikon retailers received defective product. These batteries are not genuine and were not manufactured or distributed by Nikon USA. Concerned users can find a guide for determining if the battery they have purchased is a genuine Nikon battery at this link.

Counterfeit batteries may be poorly constructed and cause damage to the camera hardware; lithium-ion batteries are known to be volatile and counterfeit units are particularly prone to overheating, which may result in fire or explosion. In addition to the fake EN-EL15b batteries, Nikon says it has been alerted to other counterfeit batteries intended for its hardware, including fake versions of its EN-EL11, EN-EL10, EN-EL9a, and others.

Nikon customers who have purchased camera batteries from third-party sources can evaluate their products for signs of being counterfeit using Nikon’s guide. Indications may include font differences in the logo and text on the battery and the possible inclusion of the battery model number on the front of the batteries.

B&H Photo encourages its customers to recycle the EN-EL15b batteries they received from the retailer. These customers will receive free authentic replacement batteries from B&H, which will send both order processed and shipment emails to the customers.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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The Camera Store employees were attacked with bear spray during robbery

20 May

The Camera Store, located in Calgary, Alberta, has reported a camera theft incident that involved an attack on staff using bear (capsaicin) spray. The incident took place on May 16 at around 5PM local time, according to the company, which says the thief took off with a Sony A7R III camera and Sony 16-35mm F2.8 G Master lens.

The thief is described as a middle-aged man wearing a grey jacket, dark pants, sunglasses, and light running shoes. The Camera Store’s Evelyn Drake said in a post on the company’s blog, ‘We knew there was something ‘off’ about him since the moment he walked in, and our team was on high alert.’

As the security footage shared on YouTube shows, the man attempted to run away with the camera and the store’s employees took off after him. To evade them, the thief sprayed two of the employees with bear spray before fleeing in a black pickup truck.

‘Although it is not our policy to chase down thieves, the loyalty and bravery of the staff who risked their safety are commendable,’ Drake said.

The stolen Sony A7R III camera body has the serial number 3372445 and the stolen lens has the serial number 1803243. The Camera Store is seeking reports from anyone who finds the products for sale or who has knowledge about the theft.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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CP+ 2019 Panasonic interview: ‘We’re proud of our cameraness’

12 May

The CP+ 2019 trade show in Yokohama, Japan, gave us the chance to speak to most of the major camera makers. Panasonic put forward an extensive team to discuss the company’s move into the full-frame market.

  • Michiharu Uematsu – Technical PR Adviser, Merchandising Dep., INBU
  • Tetsuya Uno – Group Manager, Optical Engineering Dep., INBU
  • Koji Shibuno – Manager, Software Engineering Dep. Key (responsible) engineer of AF engineering, INBU
  • Takayuki Tochio – Senior Coordinator, Product Engineering Dep., INBU Key engineer of Picture Quality
  • Hidenari Nishikawa – Senior Coordinator, Merchandising Dep., INBU
  • Shiori Kitaoka – Senior Coordinator, Communication Dep. CMD

Please note that this interview was conducted partly via an interpreter, and has been edited for clarity and flow.

How different is it to design a lens for a much bigger sensor? What are the challenges?

When we’re designing a lens, we look first at the most important properties: sharpness, transmission, distortion, vignetting, CA. But there are also some things are not measurable, quantitatively, such as bokeh. These are the ‘taste’ of the lens. So we need to understand this.

We assess bokeh at various distances. With Micro Four Thirds, the depth-of-field is deeper, relatively speaking. It’s obvious where the tack-sharp range is and where is the ‘big bokeh’ [significantly out-of-focus area] range is. But now, for the full frame we need to consider the intermediate range: the ‘small bokeh’ area. It could be around the focal plane: that may already begin to be defocused with a full frame sensor.

We’re constantly developing this to ensure the perfect ‘taste’ to our S-series lenses

We segment with depth: for the big bokeh area we want the beautiful bokeh with no onion ring effect and no unpleasant vignetting [of the bokeh: the ‘cats’ eye effect’]. We need to have smooth vignetting from the center to edges, with circular bokeh in the center and a smooth progression to non-circular bokeh near the corners.

With the small bokeh [transitional] area we think about the double-line bokeh: which is considered a ‘busy’ bokeh effect. Around the focal plane area the transition between tack-sharp and out-of-focus is very important.

We needed a way to quantify and evaluate these usually qualitative aspects. This feeling when we look at the picture, we need to calculate or transfer those parameters to the quantitative evaluation.

We’re constantly developing this to ensure the perfect ‘taste’ to our S-series lenses.

How well can you model bokeh or do you just have to build a sample lens and test it?

Thanks to very good simulation system we can roughly predict what the bokeh will look like beforehand. We create a prototype model but there can be gaps between what we expected from the simulation and exactly what we made, so we iterate with creation of the prototypes. So we model, create pre-production samples, evaluate and adjust before making another prototype model.

We firstly simulate a typical value of what we’d like to develop, then we can simulate the differences made by manufacturing tolerances, so we can predict those as well.

What are the challenges of making larger lenses with the high speed AF performance we’ve seen in Micro Four Thirds?

In terms of the mechanical part of the lens, we have a newly-developed double focus system and ultrasonic assist system. We have the double focus system in the 50mm lens and ultrasonic assist in the 24-105mm and 70-200mm.

In our double focus system, we have two groups of lenses which move independently for autofocus. Because we’ve separated the two groups, we can broaden the freedom of the development to give the best image quality and fast autofocus. Because we divided the AF into two, each group ends up being lighter, so they’re faster, too.

We have a newly-developed double focus system and an ultrasonic assist system

For the ultrasonic assist, it’s a new addition, on top of the linear focus actuator. The system keeps the lenses moving constantly, so that they don’t have to overcome ‘stiction’ [the friction that needs to be overcome to start moving] before being driven to the correct location. This means the force needed to drive the lens is much less. So we have an ultrasonic system moving the lens a matter of nanometers, to ensure the lens isn’t having to move from a dead start each time. It’s a small enough vibration that you don’t see it as AF wobbling.

Have you shared your DFD technology with Sigma and Leica?

The autofocus system protocol between the body and the lens is standardized in the L-mount alliance. So the other alliance members know what information the autofocus system needs. Beyond that it’s up to the individual lens businesses whether they include that information to be fully compatible. It’s up to them what they implement.

How do Leica L-mount lenses behave on the S1 and S1R?

Because this [DFD information] is already included in the protocol standard of the L-mount alliance, they already know how the body can command the lens to work.

The protocol hasn’t changed: L-mount lenses that already exist should work in the same way as our new lenses. The protocol was already fixed when Leica started it as the SL system. Of course we’re working on it all the time so it may be upgraded at some time, but for now it stays the same.

How does Panasonic plan to balance its resources between L-mount and Micro Four Thirds?

Because this was the launch of the S-series, we put the maximum effort into the S-series, including lenses. But you already know that we’re developing the 10-25mm F1.7 lens for Micro Four Thirds, that’s coming soon. So of course we are developing both S-series and G-series at the same time.

The forthcoming Panasonic Leica DG Vario Summilux 10-25mm F1.7 is supposed to show the company’s continued Micro Four Thirds ambitions.

Has the expansion to a new system involved any expansion of engineering or manufacturing capacity?

We have optimized our human resources internally so that we can develop both S series and G series to the highest standard.

The S1 video spec is good but not up to GH standard. Do you see L-mount making sense for pro/semi-pro video?

First of all, let us confirm the concept of these cameras: the S1R is for the professional photographer while the S1 is for the hybrid stills and video photographer, so the concepts of those models are a little bit different. This might be why the spec is not beyond the GH series.

In the future, we’d like to consider the users’ needs: it’s open to users’ feedback.

Do you feel there’s an advantage to Micro Four Thirds, when it comes to video?

There are many categories of video shooters from broadcasting or run-and-gun, through to cinema and creative videography. If we are thinking about broadcasting or run-and-gun videographers, there may be some advantage to the small, compact and lightweight combination. That’s the first benefit, compared to the larger sensor system. Image stabilization and overheating will be less of an issue, compared to full-frame sensors.

The degree of [creative] freedom broadens if you use a larger sensor, so maybe the cinema type of videographer would prefer the larger sensor, such as full frame. Maybe for cinema it’s better to take full frame.

Was EVA-1 level videography considered when developing the L system and its lenses?

Of course we have been discussing with professional camcorder team as a fundamental part of the engineering, but we haven’t discussed deeply how we might create such models. We’re not discussing which mount would be used for the coming product.

Of course we don’t disclose any further product information. At this point we don’t have any future information we can disclose.

Panasonic talks about the ‘cameraness’ of the S1: the degree to which it feels like a camera

You’re arriving in a very crowded sector of the market. What is it you think Panasonic can uniquely bring?

Firstly, cameraness: the interface, in terms of both hardware and software [making the device feel like a camera]. If you look at competitor models, they’re very innovative cameras but they’re having some negative comments in the market that the grips are smaller than expected or that the interface is [too] cutting-edge, leaving people confused when they first try to use them. We listened to a lot of customers’ feedback to create the S-series, so we designed the position of buttons, shape of buttons and also the menu settings accordingly. We’re proud of this cameraness and the interface, first of all.

In terms of features, we have the high resolution mode, which is number one in the market and Dual IS that gives up to six stops of stabilization. 4K/60p is a feature only we have in the full frame market and the electronic viewfinder is really high resolution: that too is number one in the market. This isn’t everything, of course, but we can offer all those functions and features, to even professional users so that they can easily come to our system and start using them for their professional work.

Also our HLG Photo mode: this comes from our background in videography and this allows for a new photographic style.

What does HLG mean for stills photography: what happens next? Editing tools for HDR images?

The editing, as you say, and the public awareness are important in the near future. Firstly we’d like everyone to try the HLG HDR photos, where people can have a [means] of expression beyond the standard definition.

In terms of editing, we are co-working with an alliance: we’re trying to find a solution to edit HDR images. On the technology side we’d like to be at least one step ahead of our competitors, so we will keep improving the image sensor technology to be capable for the high dynamic range world.

Of course we’re one of the few companies that can create HDR TVs as well as cameras, so of course we’re working with [our] TV business group. That way you’re not only shooting but can also display and view HDR images in the best possible environment.

For the HDR Photo style we’re working to have a wider [DR] option so that you can be really creative when shooting HLG photos.

Editor’s note

This meeting was a mixture of briefing and interview, which is why some of the answers are quite long and detailed. The upshot of this is, perhaps, that you don’t have to read quite so closely between the lines to see the message Panasonic wants to send. My own interpretation of it would be ‘we’re not just an electronics company: we care about even the most subtle aspects of image quality.’ Or maybe that’s just my response to hearing the word ‘cameraness’ again.

The thing I haven’t been able to capture in the text is the slide Panasonic showed me about the autofocus hit-rate they measured when shooting their cameras side-by-side with phase-detection-based rivals. The testing protocol wasn’t fully disclosed, but it showed their products delivering a hit-rate comparable to some pretty good cameras, and even out-performing phase-detection systems when the subject gets close to the camera.

My own interpretation of it would be ‘we’re not just an electronics company: we care about even the most subtle aspects of image quality.’

This is something we’ll be looking at as we test the S1 and S1R, because the general perception of DFD is that it’s flat-out inferior to phase-detection. This isn’t helped by the visually disturbing ‘flutter’ as the cameras try to maintain focus on moving objects (an effect made more dramatic by the high res viewfinders and shallow depth-of-field of the lenses on the S cameras).

Overall, though, it’s clear that Panasonic wants its S1 and S1R to appeal specifically to professional stills photographers. When it comes to video, the company’s plans seem less well-developed. For now, at least, it seems that Panasonic sees the GH series as its main video/stills camera platform.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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CP+ 2019: Tamron interview – ‘the full-frame market is expanding, so we’re looking at that market first’

28 Apr

At the CP+ show in Yokohama last month, we talked with senior executives from several major camera and lens manufacturers including Tamron. In our conversation with Mr Takashi Sawao, Mr Kenji Nakagawa and Mr Minoru Ando, we discussed various topics including the 40th anniversary of the ‘SP’ series, Tamron’s plans for mirrorless, and the shrinking APS-C market.

Participants:

  • Takashi Sawao, Executive Officer, General Manager, Imaging Products Business Unit
  • Kenji Nakagawa, Product Manager, Product Planning Dept., Imaging Products Business Unit
  • Minoru Ando, General Manager, Optical Design & Engineering R&D Unit

Please note that this interview has been edited for clarity and flow.

Why did you decide to make a premium F1.4 35mm?

‘SP’ stands for superior performance, and this year we’re celebrating 40 years since we first introduced ‘SP’. We had the F1.8 35mm and 45mm, and for those lenses the concept was compact prime lenses and ‘good balance’. F1.8 turned out to provide an optimal balance, having weighed various design criteria to deliver the highest possible performance and practical functionality including the VC feature. For the 35mm F1.4, we thought particularly about optical performance.

Since other manufacturers already have high-performance 35mm F1.4 lenses we wanted to achieve a very high-level prime lens. The MTF shows [better performance] than other lenses in this category.

Because this year is the 40th anniversary of SP, our engineers really tried to get the best optical performance with this F1.4 model. We really wanted to achieve high-quality, high-resolution images. Superior performance.

So the SP 35mm F1.4 is a 40th anniversary lens, in effect?

Yes, and we believe it’s performance is better than other brands. We have a lot of confidence in it.

The Tamron SP 35mm F1.4 Di USD should – according to Tamron’s executives – offer superior performance to competitive lenses from the other major manufacturers.

It feels very well-constructed – what does ‘SP’ mean in terms of build and design?

Tamron always tries to make unique lenses making a lens as compact as possible, or as lightweight as possible – and sometimes we trade off certain specifications to achieve that such as focal length, aperture range, or image quality. But with SP lenses we don’t do that. We just want to make a really high-performance lens with superior performance. We don’t want any compromises.

Is the weather-resistance different?

It is the same as other lenses described as having ‘Moisture-Resistant Construction’.

35-150mm is an unusual focal length range – can you explain this decision?

We see a lot of demand from portrait and wedding photographers, and wedding photographers. Especially in the US and Asia. They mostly use prime lenses like 85mm, 105mm or 135mm – single focal lengths. We wanted to make a very convenient lens that could cover from 35 to 150mm, which is the range mostly used for portraiture.

Effectively, this is six prime lenses in one

There are two popular focal length ranges – 24-70mm and 70-200mm, and usually people will take those two lenses when they shoot. We wanted to only make one lens. So while 200mm is maybe too long [for portrait photographers] and 24mm is too wide, 35-150mm allowed us to make the lens as compact as possible. Effectively, this is six prime lenses in one.

On an APS-C camera this lens will cover 56-240mm, do you anticipate that a lot of APS-C shooters will buy this lens?

Our primary goal is to cover the most popular focal lengths for full-frame. And by having 85mm in the middle of the range, which is the most popular focal length for portraiture, [that’s where] MTF is highest.

What is the maximum aperture at 85mm?

F3.5.

The Tamron 35-150mm F2.8-4 Di VC OSD offers an unusual focal length range, intended to incorporated the major prime lens focal lengths used by portrait photographers.

Are you confident that performance is a match for high quality primes?

Yes. And the bokeh effect is really soft and natural.

When you design a lens that you intend to be used for portraiture, what does that mean from an optical design standpoint?

When we make portrait lenses, we focus on very natural bokeh together with high resolution. Those factors are really difficult to achieve at the same time, but with this lens we’re really concentrating on that. Sharp, high contrast from the center to the edge together with a very natural bokeh effect. Those two factors are really important.

The 17-28mm F2.8 Di III RXD is the second of your full-frame Sony E-mount lenses – do you have plans for more?

Yes of course. People really want a telephoto zoom to cover focal lengths longer than 75mm. We’re looking [into] that.

Do you have plans to create lenses for Canon RF and Nikon Z?

Yes, we’re also looking at that area. We have to do a lot of research and development into the reverse engineering, because they don’t disclose the details of their systems, so it’s a really hard job for us.

There are now four main full-frame mirrorless systems with different mount dimensions. Will you make completely different designs for the different mounts?

Each system has a different flange back distance and diameter. We need to do more research to see if we can use the same optical designs for the different mounts. But basically our approach will be the same as it is for DSLR. When we launch DSLR lenses we have the same optical design, and we customize for the different mounts. Even if the systems are totally different we’ll try to make a unified optical design.

If we design optics for a long flange back, we can adapt them for short flange back systems. It doesn’t work the other way around.

Tamron’s new 17-28mm F2.8 Di III RXD is the second of the company’s lenses designed for Sony’s full-frame mirrorless cameras. Slated to be available in the coming weeks, it will be joined by a third FE lens, covering the 75mm+ range, at some point in the future.

How important is APS-C to Tamron?

APS-C is still important to us, but when we think about the [industry], the full-frame market is expanding, so we’re looking at that market first – that’s the first priority. So gradually we’ll create a [full-frame] line and then at another time we can launch more APS-C lenses. The APS-C market is shrinking quite fast.

Do you think that will change?

It might stop shrinking, but we’re looking at customers who buy APS-C cameras, and they tend to have a single zoom kit and they don’t [tend to] invest in additional lenses.

What do you think differentiates Tamron from other lens manufacturers?

Our target is those photographers who really want to enjoy photography with a lightweight and compact [package]. We introduced the FE 28-75mm f2.8 for Sony E-mount, which is really compact and matches the Sony cameras really nicely for size and weight. This lens is selling quite well, and we’re backordered for six months.

Tamron always tries to give photographers another solution

Other manufacturers are making very big lenses with high resolution and wide apertures, but people are struggling to carry such heavy lenses. They can’t take a lot of them when they’re out shooting. Tamron always tries to give photographers another solution. Lenses that are compact, with very high quality, but maybe a slightly different spec. Like this 17-28mm F2.8 Di III RXD, it’s a different solution – you can see the really compact size of this lens. Our aim is to provide another solution to our customers.

In a compact lens of this kind, how much are you relying on software correction?

We utilize software corrections in the camera body, but even without correction this lens will still give good performance. Of course this lens will let a Sony camera correct some things, but it offers a very high level of quality. We checked pictures from the lens, without any corrections, and the picture quality is very good. The quality only gets better with corrections from the camera body. We’re very confident [in its performance].

Editors’ note: Barnaby Britton

The ‘SP’ lineup is 40 years old, and even if you forgot its birthday, Tamron’s engineers didn’t. According to the executives that I spoke to, the new SP 35mm F1.4 is, to all intents and purposes, a special 40th anniversary lens. A ‘no compromise’ design intended to take on, and beat, the best that the company’s competitors can offer.

Although I’ve only spent a few minutes handling a pre-production sample, that was enough to whet my appetite. We’re hoping to get hold of a final copy soon, so watch out for some sample images the minute we do. The large, heavyweight SP 35mm F1.4 doesn’t seem to quite fit with the company’s ‘compact’ lenses philosophy, but we’ll let Tamron’s engineers off this time – it is a birthday, after all.

Also coming soon is the 35-150mm F2.8-4, at first glance a somewhat odd lens that I, like a lot of people, I suspect, originally assumed was designed for APS-C when it was announced earlier this year. On the contrary, this is a full-frame lens, specifically designed to replace the most common focal lengths for portrait photographers. We’re told that in the middle of its range, around 85mm, it should deliver an optimal combination of sharpness and attractive bokeh for portraiture. Tamron has made lenses of this kind before – the ancient Adaptall-2 35-135mm F3.5-4.5 and its subsequent variants was pretty well-regarded, but the 35-150mm appears to be a much more specialized lens.

The APS-C market is shrinking, and Tamron would be irresponsible to pour resources into a contracting market

My question about whether Tamron expected APS-C users to be interested in its 56-240mm equivalent focal length was given polite consideration, but it was obvious from this conversation that the company is focused elsewhere: on full-frame. The APS-C market is shrinking, and Tamron would be irresponsible to pour significant resources into developing lenses for a contracting market. The audience for lenses designed for full-frame mirrorless, on the other hand, is guaranteed to grow over the coming years. With two FE lenses for Sony already on the market, it was reassuring to hear from Tamron’s executives that longer focal lengths are being planned, to round out the lineup.

Next, of course, will be reverse-engineering lenses for the Canon RF and Nikon Z mounts (it seems unlikely that Tamron will bother with L-mount given Sigma’s head start as a member of the alliance). In our conversation, Tamron’s executives reinforced what we’ve been told by other optical engineers (including Sigma’s Kazuto Yamaki) that designing for a longer flange back distance and adapting that design to shorter mounts is the only practical way to create one optical formula for several mounts. As such, it seems possible that before too long, the popular Sony FE-mount 28-75mm F2.8 might form the basis of new standard zooms for Canon and Nikon mirrorless.

Read more interviews from CP+ 2019 and beyond

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Copytrack report claims 2.5 billion online images were stolen per day in 2018

30 Mar
Illustration showing copyright infringements by continent, used with permission

Image rights enforcement company Copytrack has released its new Global Infringement Report 2019 study detailing the current state of unauthorized image use around the world. According to the company, it performed a statistical analysis of more than 12,000 Copytrack user profiles as part of its new report, which details the number of ‘potential copyright violations’ the company dealt with from December 2017 to December 2018.

Based on its analysis, Copytrack estimates more than 2.5 billion images are stolen every day with potential daily damages estimated at up €532.5 billion / $ 598 billion. Due to the vast number of images used daily, the company found that most photographers and agencies were unaware of many instances of image infringement.

Illustration showing the top 20 most image infringing countries, used with permission

The study found that the majority of copyright infringement cases originated from North America at 33.90%, with Europe coming in second at 31.40% and Asia in third with 29.38%. The company isn’t able to answer why Asia had lower rates of infringement than NA and EU regions but speculated it may be due, in part, to the percentage of regular Internet users in each continent.

Looking at infringement numbers by country, Copytrack found the US had the highest percentage at 22.96%, followed by Panama at 6.76%, China at 6.57% and Germany at 6.32%. The percentage drop quickly from there, coming in at 3.75% for the UK all the way down to 1.25% for Switzerland, 1.16% for the Netherlands and 1.05% for Vietnam.

Below is the report in its entirety:

Of the infringing use, Copytrack found Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution images were the most commonly used. Most unauthorized use involved images with 3:2, 2:3, and 1:1 format ratios, as well as 640 x 400 and 800 x 800 resolutions. Copytrack concludes its report, stating, ‘This problem will most likely continue at a similar rate until major search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and the like figure out a way to reliably identify the authors of images posted online.’

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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