At the end of every calendar year we try to
highlight some of the biggest things that have made news in the previous year.
So what exactly did the year 2012 have in store for us? Was it an eventful year
to photography? If approximations are to be believed, for about 10% of all the
photographs made in the entire history of photography were made last year. The
world is communicating with photographs and is engaged with photography like
never before, thanks in part to the smartphone industry. In this article we
underline some of the impactful trends and events that shaped the last year.
The great fall of KODAK
While the writing was on the wall for some
time, the news of Kodak filing for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 on
19th January 2012 was one of the biggest shocks for the consumers and the
photographic industry. News is in, however that Eastman Kodak Co. has agreed to
sell its digital imaging patents for about $525 million; a key step to bringing
the photography pioneer out of bankruptcy in the first half of 20 I 3. The deal
for the 1, 100 patents allows Kodak to fulfill a condition for securing $830 million
in financing.
The Slowdown
The year 20 12 was a taste of reality for
the Indian photographic industry. While the markets internationally have been
dealing with the slowdown for a while, India has been enjoying a honeymoon
period across most segments. Photography has been no exception until recently,
when the reality finally caught up with the markets and 2012 turned out to be
the least enjoyable year for most. We feel that this will continue until the
end of the financial year and things will start to look up post April 2013.
MILCs
While the interchangeable lens category has
been a buzzing market for a few years, the absence of some of the major
manufacturers at the start kept the experts skeptic. But with the entry of all
major manufacturers in this segment in 2012, the mirrorless category has
cemented its place in the industry and promises to be the most exciting space
in the years to come.
Emergence of the Smartphone
While camera phones have been around for a
few years now, they have never had a bigger impact on photography until last
year. 2012 witnessed 8 megapixels nearly becoming the standard in the camera
phone industry as mobile phones upgraded to smart devices. Combine this with
the versatility and the convenience that smartphones have to offer; they pretty
much had the biggest impact on photography in 2012.
Video Recording
Digital compact cameras and DSLRs have
explored and improved upon their video recording capabilities since the time
they were first introduced in the digital camera segment. While most DSLRs had
just a mono mic to support video recording, over the years most digital cameras
have adopted stereo audio recording, allowing the use of external microphones
to go with the High Definition video capabilities they offer.
Megapixels are back
In the initial days of digital photography
everything seemed to be about the megapixels. Much like saying “more the
merrier”, megapixels in the early days seemed to be the key feature of focus
for the industry. However this slowed down with the introduction of newer
features over the years and the focus shifted to what the digital camera had to
offer on the whole. But in 2012, suddenly megapixels came back into fashion.
Nikon for instance started introducing a host of DSLRs in the entry and professional
level packed with high megapixels, prompting many of the other manufacturers to
follow suit.
Smartphone user interface and WiFi
features in cameras
The rise in popularity of smartphones is
crushing the demand for point-and-shoot cameras, threatening the once steady
and vibrant sector as camera manufacturers rush to hit back with web-friendly
features and enhanced quality. Despite this, digital compact cameras have
registered a sharp drop in sales, making them another casualty of smartphones,
just like videogame consoles and portable music players which are also
struggling against the all-in-one features offered by the likes of Apple iPhone
and the Samsung Galaxy phones. Just as digital cameras almost destroyed the
market for photographic film, the compact camera sector, dominated by Japanese
firms including Canon, Olympus, Sony and Nikon, is being torn into, thanks to
the rapid shift to picture-taking smartphones.
Firms are struggling to keep improving
picture quality, offering features such as waterproofing and even expanding
their internet features, like allowing users to share pictures through social
media networks thanks to Wi-Fi features that are being introduced in some of
the newer cameras. The Nikon Coolpix S800c and the Samsung Galaxy Camera, two
new cameras that have been launched in the wake of this war, if it can be
called that, are packed with such features. They are internet friendly and have
interfaces comparable to smartphones, integrating the Android operating system
with compact cameras, making the whole experience of clicking pictures and
sharing them intuitive and simple. Even DSLRs are integrating some of the
features that can be seen in today's smartphones, like the touchscreen. The
Canon EOS 650D is an example of this.
Accessories
A lot has changed over the last decade with
respect to post-production software, storage devices, camera stabilization
equipment, studio equipment etc, primarily due to the constantly growing demand
for better equipment and technology. It's not just the storage space that is
changing. Newer formats now support read and write speeds from 500 MB/sec to I
GB/sec, and storage capabilities beyond 2TB are now on offer. The XQD memory
card, a format announced in November 2010 by SanDisk, Sony and Nikon has now
made an appearance in products, with the Nikon D4 being the first card to
support it.
Professionals are now better equipped, and
more at ease than ever before; with advancements in flash technology, low light
photography etc. Even amateurs couldn't ask for more, as improvements in
technology over the years has made it very easy for them to dabble in the art
of photography. Just as professionals and amateurs, we too look forward to the
inventions and advancements in photography technology in 2013.
