"The DSLR is dead" EOS R and cell phone cameras taking over - so they say

I have been reading about the mirrorless cameras and also always have my smart phone with me so I often use it to snap a snapshot (the camera you have...)

But I just bought a Canon 6D Mark II. I am not against the EOS R it is just that I wanted to cameras that have virtually the same controls so in a pinch or a rush I don't have to think but can operate on istinct. If the EOS R or a similar camera had the same control layout as my 80D I might have gotten that. I did try the 5D Mark II but after a week of using both I was still having to think about what I wanted to do with the different controls. If I were to dump the 80D and buy two new cameras or an older Mark II and a new Mark IV that would have worked but out of my budget for now.
Of course now that I have been using the full-frame 6Dii dumping the 80D and 6D and getting two 5D's would be tempting. I will live with what I have for the next few years...

it will probably be a 2-5 years before the EOS R mark II is out and I will see how that is. The only thing at this time that intrigues me is the totally silent shooting, it is rare that I want to do that but I can see the advantages it in many instances.

My stable and a shot from yesterday with the 6D Mark II

They ( Who ever They are ) said the some thing about Standalone and builtin GPS for autos, well they are still selling like hotcakes. I tried to use a smartphone to navigate and they absolutely suck if you travel cross country or travel in a rural areas. I used a Samsung, LG and my granddaughter's iPhone. My Granddaughter's iPhone is glued to her like a ball and chain but if she travels, she always ask to take my Garmin to navigate with.

Now to Photography, my Granddaughter is also attending a Modeling School and she insist that I take her Images (I'm learning Fashion, Glamor and Studio because of her) for her outdoor casual shots and her Portfolio was done by a Professional. She also told me her classmates are well aware what a SLR Camera can do for them and what a cellphone cannot do for them.

Who knows were Mirrorless is going. As for me, I'm not buying into the ML craze, yet.

I think you go with what you are comfortable with, I use a 5dIII and a 7DII (no way I will dump the crop as its so good for wildlife, small birds and anything needing reach and high speed) While I love these two cameras there are times when I see the point of mirror-less, especially if I go to events where they want silence and DSLR shutter will be heard. personally think the fuji mirror-less system is amazing and having seen wedding shots with Xt2s it seems full frame is not the be all end all and the new Xt3 looks amazing. That said I will stick with what I have for some time but I can see myself getting a mirror-less interchangeable system, not instead of but as well as my DSLRs, they are not going anywhere

Chief_10Beers wrote in post #18738249
They ( Who ever They are ) said the some thing about Standalone and builtin GPS for autos, well they are still selling like hotcakes. I tried to use a smartphone to navigate and they absolutely suck if you travel cross country or travel in a rural areas. I used a Samsung, LG and my granddaughter's iPhone. My Granddaughter's iPhone is glued to her like a ball and chain but if she travels, she always ask to take my Garmin to navigate with..

I often use my smartphone, and use Google Map navigation...generally pretty good. Same can be said of Waze. I have done realtime comparisons of the two while in a car with business associate, and they are both really good. Waze seems to be better about 'warnings' and in rerouting you with somewhat faster routine around bottlenecks. But I also usually depend upon Garmin both in US and while in Europe.

But my experience with in-car navigation classify them as 'crappy' in comparison to all of the above!!!

Back on topic of mirrorless vs. dSLR, I think the two will coexist unless the mirrorless camera manages to overcome a number of critiques that impede its use in a number of different photographic situations that a DSLR handles relatively better. Which one is the dominant seller remains to be seen, or if (ever) one disappears entirely as new product offerings.

I love 'small and light'...my first highly comprehensive 'system' was on Olympus OM system, and dSLRs are big fat pigs in comparison. But mirrorless is NOT YET sufficiently a replacement for the dSLR...one day soon it might be, but it also might not. I need to try out a Sony in store, to see how it does (and does not) overcome what I disliked about the Olympus 4/3 mirrorless cameras which I evaluated years ago, for example.

"Back on topic of mirrorless vs. dSLR, I think the two will coexist unless the mirrorless camera manages to overcome a number of critiques that impede its use in a number of different photographic situations that a DSLR handles relatively better."

I think it's inevitable that mirrorless will get to this point, and probably very soon.

My fearless and perhaps worthless predictions:

• The DSLR will still be around and producing fine work when the youngest present members here are dead and fondly remembered.
  
• The pace of introducing new latest and greatest DSRLs will gradually slow to nothing.
  
• The last new DSLR will be introduced on August 21st, 2030. Opinions on that will vary. Enthusiasts will buy and some will buy big.
  
• As few as ten years from now "mirrorless" will no longer be used as a camera description.
  
• Cell phones will still be enemies of the people that produce some fine work when not otherwise demanding attention.
  

Phones are more prevalent because of the convenience and will continue to be as they get better and better.

DSLR and bigger will continue to become more niche but probably won't disappear altogether for a really long time.

Gotta remember even in film days, not everyone had an SLR. They had smaller, more convenient cameras. And the SLR was initially meant as a smaller, more convenient, and more affordable alternative to the huge boxes with an accepted loss of quality.

I agree with the camera you have with you...

Phones are convenient and I always have mine with me. I have two Olympus Tough's but hardly carry them as they are just a bit big to keep in my pants pocket, unless were to wear cargo pants. I often carry my 80D or 6D but only have them maybe 25% of the time. My son still shoots my Nikon F3 once in a while and I am "playing" with one of my Mamiya TLR's having gotten some film, but it is more for nostalgia than anything.

When I want small and convenient I leave the vertical grips off the cameras. I will watch the mirrorless cameras to see the developments as the silent shooting could be useful but I seldom actually need that option. Although if I think of it I could probably find more places to use that feature.

All my cellphone shots live in google photos so I picked out 3 to show, these are things I normally wouldn't have shot except had the phone with me and often wanted to simply send a pic to show someone something. It was a selfie, my meteorites and dinner

Cell phone cameras and mirrorless cameras have their place but in certain stiuations, DSLR's are still the go to. I can see point and shoot camera dying off though.

For shots where a lot of zooming is required or really fast focusing is needed, I'll still reach for my 7D or my 6D over my phone.

waylandcool wrote in post #18740034
Cell phone cameras and mirrorless cameras have their place but in certain stiuations, DSLR's are still the go to. I can see point and shoot camera dying off though.

For shots where a lot of zooming is required or really fast focusing is needed, I'll still reach for my 7D or my 6D over my phone.

I agree but it always comes down to the camera you have with you. As I walk out of church I see something I have to take a shot of, I don't bring my camera into church so...

There are many times I don't carry a camera, but I always have my phone. Yes if I could I would grab my 80D or 6Dii they blow a phone away

Same here. My phone camera beats having no camera at all.

waylandcool wrote in post #18740034
Cell phone cameras and mirrorless cameras have their place but in certain stiuations, DSLR's are still the go to.

Don’t conflate mirrorless cameras as a technology with specific mirrorless camera models on the market now. The situation you describe is only temporary. Yes, the EOS R has many limitations when compared to some DSLRs, but it’s just a matter of time. The 5Div and 1DXii are still st the peak of their market. Once they start showing their age and sales slow down, Canon absolutely could bring out mirrorless replacements that run rings around them. It’s marketing, not technology limitations.

Mike

With the introduction of the EOS R and its competitors from Sony and Nikon, I think it's the beginning of the end for DLSR's. Are they "Dead", not yet, and I believe they'll still be around for quite some time, just in smaller numbers with less and less innovation and fewer model available every year as they transition to mirrorless for the majority of the camera lineup. Canon actually still made and sold film cameras up until fairly recently... of course it was only the 1D-series film camera that was still available. I can see the same happening with DLSRs.

I've got my last mirrored camera up for sale at the moment, as I've gone completely mirrorless with a combination of Sony and Olympus cameras. For me, it's just a quicker and easier workflow with the Sonys, and the OM-D is so small that it's the ideal compact travel camera without sacrificing too much in terms of IQ.

IMO, there isn't much out there in the DLSR world that I can't do just as good (or better) with the A7iii and A9. They replaced the 7D Mark II and 5D Mark III combo I used to shoot, and I don't miss Canon one bit.

waylandcool wrote in post #18740034
Cell phone cameras and mirrorless cameras have their place but in certain stiuations, DSLR's are still the go to. I can see point and shoot camera dying off though.

For shots where a lot of zooming is required or really fast focusing is needed, I'll still reach for my 7D or my 6D over my phone.

I don't think so if something like Sony's $1600 Bridge camera is considered a point and shoot. That's basically what it is. I don't want one, but saw one the other day and thought it was a great tool for the man who bought it. He had a DSLR and lenses previous.

I have two mirrorless already, but there's a high probability I will buy another DSLR in the next year or two.

What has me more curious is whether DSLR production will lessen or not.