This is how you re-invent a tripod design: Peak Design launched their new Travel Tripod…preorders open!

It’s rare to see real revolution in tripo design. Well today we got one: Peak design has just launched a compltely new kind of Tripod on Kickstarter (Click here – preorders open). Here is just a small part of what this tripod can do:

Traditional travel tripods have a critical flaw: tons of wasted space. The result is a tool that is inherently difficult to carry with you into the field. We fixed that, and more.

We spent 4 years redesigning the tripod from the ground up to eliminate dead space and minimize packed-down size.

But we didn’t stop at space savings.

We made a tool that deploys and packs down rapidly—nearly twice as fast as a traditional tripod. We made it intuitive and delightful to use. We engineered professional-quality stability and performance. And we added thoughtful features to help you get the shotwith any gear, in any environment, from any point of view.

Some more reviews:

But there is really MUCH MORE to ssee if you jump over on their Kickstarter page (Click here).

Sony now has 24% of the overall worldwide camera market share. Up 4% over the previous year!

Today Sony had a 5-hour meeting with analysts and investors:
Sony IR Day 2019 (IR = Investor Relations). Sony.net…
The portion of the presentation dedicated inter alia to cameras and lenses: Sony.net…
The same document from last year’s meeting (22 May 2018): Sony.net…

In both cases the most interesting slide is the last one, dedicated to market shares and market ranks:

Between FY2017 (April 2017 – March 2018) and FY2018 (April 2018 – March 2019):

  • The still camera market went down from ¥1,400bn to ¥1,300bn i.e. a decrease of 7.1%. This is coherent with CIPA shipment figures (cameras + lenses), which lead to a 8.3% decrease.
  • Sony’s share in the still camera market went up, from 20% to 24%.
  • Sony’s share in the ILC + interchangeable lens market went up, from 19% to 23%.
  • Sony is now #2 on this market (#3 in FY2017), behind Canon but ahead of Nikon.
  • Sony’s share in the compact camera market went up, from 26% to 29%.
  • Sony is now #1 on this market (#2 in FY2017).
  • (it could be a typo, the data is surprising) the video camera market went down from ¥390bn to ¥300bn i.e. a decrease of 23%.
  • Sony’s share in this market remained stable: 29%.

Time to sound the bugle!


Thanks Mistral for finding the links.

New BCN report: Sony slowly losing market share in Japan: About time to announce new cameras!

BCNretail published the April Japanese Full Frame market share data. There is little change from the previous March report. Sony did loose around 8% share to Nikon. While the Canon share remained steady.

The top 3 camera sales are:

1) Sony A7III 38,9%
2) EOS-RP 16,5%
3) EOS-R 12,3%

Overall the FF mirrorless sales increased by 62,7% compared to last year!

It is expected that Sony shares drop slightly. Afterall Sony had last FF camera announcement happened 15 months ago (Sony A7III). It’s about time Sony you release your new A9II and A7sIII. And I wouldn’t mind to get a new A7rIV (or A9r) too :)

Japanese press awards the Sony 24mm GM as best lens of the year

Today the Japanese Camera Press Club announced the Camera GP 2019 Award winners.

Grand Prize:
1st place and winner: Panasonic S1R
2nd place: Nikon Z7
3rd place: Olympus E-M1X

Lens Award:
1st place and winner: Sony 24mm GM
2nd place: Tamron 28-75mm FE
3rd place: Canon 28-70mm f/2.0 R

Best camera selected by the press readers:
Winner: Olympus E-M1X

Best camera and lens selected by the press club member readers:
Camera: Ricoh GRIII
Lens: Tamron 28-75mm FE

 

 

This week SAR readers photos selection


Panos Zoulakis‎
Greece,Crete.
A favourite place of mine that I often visit.
Sony A7III & Sigma 14mm f1.8 Art
#sonyalphagallery

1) You can submit one single picture per week only.
2) To submit your picture for the weekly readers roundup post you can choose one of the following three options:
Instagram: Follow @sonyalphagallery and tag us on your picture to give us the permission to repost your image on the instagram gallery and on SAR (we will credit you)
Facebook: Submit your picture on our group: facebook.com/groups/sonyalphacamera. Please add the hashtag “#sonyalphagallery ” to grant the permission for reposting on SAR. Without the hashtag we will not add your picture!
Forum: Submit your picture on the SonyAlphaForum image section and add the hashtag “#sonyalphagallery
3) Like and comment the pictures from other readers here: instagram.com/sonyalphagallery, facebook.com/groups/sonyalphacamera and on SonyAlphaForum.
4) A selection of most liked pictures by the community and by me SAR admin will be posted weekly on SAR.

Note: When sending a pic feel free to also add a link to your site to promote yourself! And please do share one single picture per week only. Do not spam :)

 

Read more

Robbery at The Camera Store in Canada – staff attacked with bear spray

TheCameraStore reports:

This one hurts. A few of our staff were attacked when they tried to recover a camera as it dashed out the door in the hands of a thief.

On Thursday, May 16th, 2019 at approximately 5PM, a Sony A7R III and Sony 16-35mm F2.8 G Master lens was stolen from The Camera Store in Calgary, Alberta. A middle-aged man in a grey jacket, dark pants, light runners, and sunglasses perched on his head. We knew there was something “off” about him since the moment he walked in, and our team was on high-alert.

Sure enough, he reached down to check his phone for a moment, then dashed for the door with our camera in hand. One staff member attempted to intercept him and was shoved out of the way. Two other employees chased him out foot down the street. The man paused and sprayed a can of bear spray towards our staff, then hopped into a black pick-up truck. Our camera was gone, and our staff’s eyes burned as they came back to the store where we called the Calgary police who were fast to respond to the scene.

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

If you saw anything related to this crime, please contact us at 403-234-9935. Or, if you spot Sony A7R III with a Sony 16-35mm lens on any shopping site, please email the link to evelyn@thecamerastore.com

Hope they will find back their gear!