Canon makes 10 million EF lenses in 9 months

http://www.canonrumors​.com/

Normally I wouldn't start a post like this, but this astounded me. I know we all buy as many lenses as we can afford, but I would have guessed the average DSLR user really only get's their kit lens and maybe one other.

Assuming that all these lenses are not getting stockpiled, that's a lot of DSLR users buying a lot of lenses. With all the developments in compacts and mirrorless, it's interesting that Canon's lens manufacturing seems to have) seriously ramped up in the last few years.

Are more rebel uses buying multiple lenses (not just they types on POTN)? Maybe the ability/IQ of sub $800 bodies is such that people are tending to upgrade and buy extra lenses more than in the past. I can also see why Canon may not have been too enthusiastic about getting a mirrorless system out too soon - the DSLR market must still be pretty good.

Anyway, I was just pondering, not real insight and probably a waste of a thread, but something I thought was interesting.

Proves what many here have said for years...

Percentage of people on POTN is nothing compared to world-wide camera use.

The numbers might be astounding to those who did not read this Canon news release in 2012.

Read the release and it appears that annual EOS-mount lens production in the millions for Canon has been commonplace for decades.

DC Fan wrote in post #14898173
The numbers might be astounding to those who did not read this Canon news release in 2012.

Read the release and it appears that annual EOS-mount lens production in the millions for Canon has been commonplace for decades.

Huh? OK, since 2011 - i.e. you are correct that this is not the first time they have made 10 million lenses in 9-10 months, but they have not been producing 10 million+ lenses/year until recently.

On reflection though, I guess it has been increasing steadily for the last 5 years or so.

Thanks to the rebel series, people have now a taste for dslr. It's like razors and razor blades. Sell them a nicely priced entry model body and they will buy the lenses.

Also this is worldwide. People do photography in other countries than the US. Each asian countries have websites like POTN.

This exponential growth is clearly due to the digital revolution and emerging market consumers.

I think the number of people who only ever buy and use the one lens is likely fairly low. More than likely you'll find the average around at least 2-3 lenses, after all, why buy a camera that can switch lenses if you never do? You might not get one right away, but after a year or two I'm sure the average user finds themselves at least wanting that cheap telephoto to go with their kit lens, or one of the lower end primes to work in lower light.

Also wouldn't surprise me if the number of users that look above and beyond your lower end glass to be as high as 1/8th of users. I know I've gotten the bug, and have so far gotten three lenses beyond the cheap kit lens, given the cheap 50f/1.8 to a friend who is trying to get into the hobby (Got a deal off another friend for a body, but had no lens) since I am planning to upgrade it to a better built 50 in the next few months.

Just proves the point why Canon lens prices continue to increase. Demand is driving the price up, not manufacturing costs.

Maybe we could all stop buying lenses for a month worldwide and see if the price goes drops any. Like that would really work!!!

Stats like these also point to why people aren't hiring professionals as much as they may have 10 years back. Everyone wants quality photos of their kids and loved ones. The price point of the Rebel series really hasn't changed over the last 5-6+ years, as the new models still come in at about the same price point over and over. So people keep buying the latest and greatest and sell a year or two later for a few hundred less. i'm one of these stats myself as for years either used a point and shoot or my cell phone camera.

It does work. Thats why they have christmas sales and more rebate amounts before Christmas. People are using their disposable income and either aren't buying lenses for themselves because of gifts for others, or because the companies need to pad their 4Q numbers for investors. So the price drops and the sales go up...

Earwax69 wrote in post #14898495
Thanks to the rebel series, people have now a taste for dslr. It's like razors and razor blades. Sell them a nicely priced entry model body and they will buy the lenses.
.

you know, that's actually a pretty good marketing strategy

watt100 wrote in post #14901924
you know, that's actually a pretty good marketing strategy

Dunno, how many of the people who buy Rebel kits go on to buy lenses before they buy a new body?

mercaptan wrote in post #14901935
Dunno, how many of the people who buy Rebel kits go on to buy lenses before they buy a new body?

guilty as charged. I got the L fever

And that's just lenses from Canon.

Add Sigma and Tamron to the mix and wow!

I wonder how this stacks up to the number of canon bodies sold.

I'm curious as to why people assume that these manufacturing figures suggest that most camera owners are buying multiple lenses - in the grand scheme of things, 10 million isn't really that high for a consumer product being shipped internationally. DSLR ownership is huge, certainly in the tens of millions, so why the surprise at the lens manufacturing figure? I think that most casual camera owners only own one or two lenses at the most - hell, most people who use DSLRs probably don't really explore options beyond bog standard auto mode, so it's unlikely that they invest in large collections of lenses.

Without wanting to sound elitist (as that's not my intention), I think a lot of DSLR purchases are made purely on the superficial perception that "DSLRs are better" by folks who don't really have any interest in photography beyond owning what they feel is a good piece of gear for their holiday and day-to-day snaps. A lot of my friends are like this, actually, and these casual users don't really expand their lens collections at all. Because DSLRs are so affordable now, many people opt for them over compacts because of the perception that they're better.

When I'm out and about, the majority of people I see using DSLRs are shooting with kit lenses, because they're sufficient for most people's needs.