Amateurs reach for high-end digital cameras

joegolf68 wrote in post #2442113
Why can't our government keep secrets like Canon?

They can. You just don't know what they are. That's why they call them secrets.

belmondo wrote in post #2443461
You're stretching.

. Yeah, but don't worry about me, I'll bounce back!

MDJAK wrote in post #2440790
Five years ago Canon's 300mm F2.8 sold for $3895.

Today it STILL sells for $3895. They are obviously expert market makers, those camera guys.
mark

Much different markets. I doubt sales volumes have grown for that lens compared to the TV/monitors have grown. Plus you have many, many LCD screens with different brand names slapped on them(though most made by a couple companies and they put different names on them and make them slightly different for different brands which is why you see so many different brands with exactly the same specifications).

But only Canon sells the 30mm f2.8 Sigma may have their own version, but that's one they made themselves. Supply and demand and market forces/branding.

belmondo wrote in post #2441888
It seems to me they're going the wrong way on this. They should double their prices and cut their shipments in half. They make as much money, but do half the work.

Who's running that place?

No. No company would rather sell less and charge more for a product, especailly a camera company. You sell 1/2 of the bodies means you sell 1/2 the lenses too.

A service company could be happy with 1/2 the work for twice the pay but not when you have products as a business.

My remark was really intended as a joke. Unfortunatley, sometimes, I'm the only one who understands my sense of humor.

I was thinking of the old management vs. labor debate: Every year give them more and more for doing less and less. Pretty soon, we'll be giving them everything for doing nothing.

I'll try to be less subtle in the future.

belmondo wrote in post #2441888
It seems to me they're going the wrong way on this. They should double their prices and cut their shipments in half. They make as much money, but do half the work.

Who's running that place?

Market Share is nearly as important as profit margin. Corporate mandates drive market share to profit margin ratios as measures of success. Shareholders want market share that drives out the competition and allows secure profit margins for long term growth.

Canon literally is the model for this.

belmondo wrote in post #2446600
My remark was really intended as a joke. Unfortunatley, sometimes, I'm the only one who understands my sense of humor.

I was thinking of the old management vs. labor debate: Every year give them more and more for doing less and less. Pretty soon, we'll be giving them everything for doing nothing.

I'll try to be less subtle in the future.

No, no, NO! Be more suble! Many of us sorely need practice thinking.

zacker wrote in post #2443266
just like going to the Movies... its not the tickets where they make the big bucks... its on the soda and candy!! you only need one body but youll always want more glass....

Mmmmm... Glass! Want glass! Must have more glass!

I wonder what it would cost to buy a new EOS-1Ds Mk II and one of each lens Canon makes for it. And don't forget the EF 1200mm 5.6L.

The same as a small house, perhaps? (Except in So. California or Silicon Valley, of course.)

belmondo wrote in post #2446600
My remark was really intended as a joke. Unfortunatley, sometimes, I'm the only one who understands my sense of humor.

I was thinking of the old management vs. labor debate: Every year give them more and more for doing less and less. Pretty soon, we'll be giving them everything for doing nothing.

I'll try to be less subtle in the future.

I totally understood your joke.... This happens to me alot too.. it's so hard to make a joke on the internet... either everybody thinks you're pissed off.. or nobody gets it.....

Back to the original issue, which I take to be along the lines of: "Should rank amatures go for the high-end stuff?"

I say yes.

If they learn to love and use it, great! They expand their horizons and we all benefit. They become one of us.

If they don't, then the only loss is their money. We, as a group, do not lose, because they weren't part of out group to begin with.

A high-end camera, i.e., a DSLR over a P&S, gives them the ability to expand their horizons if they so choose.

Let me pose an analogy. A child wishes to learn violin. Should the parents buy a good violin or a cheap violin for the child?

The parents should buy a good violin for the child. Why? Because a mediocre violinist, which the child will become long before becoming a good violinist, can make good music with a good instrument. This will encourage the child and possibly, just possibly, inspire a budding Heifetz.

If the parents buy a cheap violin, the learning curve is too great. Only a good violinist can produce good music from a cheap instrument. The chances are maximized that the child will get discouraged and drop out. The dream dies in the womb.

Let the rank amateurs buy the good cameras. I encourage all who even think they may be interested in photography to join us. We cannot have too many members of our "clique."

bUT WHEN YOUR CHILD HIT 16 AND GETS HIS/HER DRIVERS LISCENSE do you buy em a brand new corvette or a 1989 toyota with 100,000 miles on it? will the Vette make them a better driver?
I am, personally against people buying the best of the best for a student, beginner, rank amature only because...first, if the person finds they dont want it, it either goes to waste or gets destroyed and thats a huge waste of $$.. but, I have seen many a rich kid get the best there is and sad to say...ruin it instantly. On the other hand, I know what youre saying... buy a great piece of equipment to start with and you might go further..Hmmmm.. So much for "Humble beginnings" eh? I guess If I had $$ to burn and my kid wanted a new cam, Id get em a 5D or someting like that..why not?

Plus after they (rank Amatures) are weeded out.. think of all that gear up for grabs on the cheap!!

If you can afford to buy the best, then I say go for it. My neice was bought a top of the range electric violin. She got bored and it ended up in the cupboard. But if she ever wants to pick it up again and start playing, it will be in better condition than a cheapy version. Same with the Toyota v Vette. In 5 or 10 years time the Vette will still be going (if looked after) while the Toyota will probably be in a wreckers somewhere.

If it were my kids, I buy them the best I could afford but I wouldn't let them play with my 1D !!!

but kids seem to wreck stuff pretty quickly, esp. if:
A. they didnt pay for it
B. They dont really love it
C. they are spoiled.

Besides, we all know its not the equipment but the person useing it..lol (thats why we all run out and buy L glass...isnt it?)
I see your point...why not learn on the best? I would if I could but coming from a not so wealthy BG, I can also respect $$ and NOT wanna see it wasted.

I seem to have spawned a misconception...

I never said get a child the BEST to learn on. Only an idiot would buy a child a Stradivarius simply because he/she wants to learn violin!

The child should be given a GOOD instrument, over a cheap and crappy one. A good instrument is a long way from the best.

In the car equivalency, if I were going to give a 16 year old a car it would not be a new Corvette! It would not be a Corvette for the same reason I wouldn't give a set of chef's knives to a 6 year old who wants to learn how to cook. A 16 year old (with extremely rare exceptions) is not mature enough for a Corvette. That makes the Corvette dangerous.

Then, on the other hand, I wouldn't give the child a clunker on its last legs. An unreliable car does no one any favors. Yes, the car I give might be a Corolla with 100,000 miles on it (Corollas are typically very reliable, even at 100,000 miles, but it wouldn't be a beat-up, rusted out Chevy with 100,000 miles (notoriously not-reliable).

Then, I believe that children give great joy twice in their lives: the day the are born; and the day the get the hell out.

I might well give a brand-new car to an 18 year old for his birthday, along with the phrase, "Happy birthday, Son. Here's the keys to your new car. It's already packed with all your stuff. Have a good life."