dougpeterson
Workshop Member
If you only read the forums the following cameras were destined to end Phase One's dominance in high-end photography:
- Canon 1D
- Canon 1Ds III
- Canon 5D II
- Nikon D800/E
- Mamiya ZD
- Red Epic
- Red's roadmapped-but-never-shipped 6x17 camera
- Pentax 645D (first gen)
None of this is a slight against the 645Z. Just a reminder that, according to forums the sky is constantly falling, whereas according to public balance sheets Phase One's sales volume and profitability have increased every year since the financial crises.
There is definitely room for more than one successful 50mp camera. In fact, the availability of more than one is almost surely a net-positive for all of them. That is to say, every time Phase, Hassy, or Pentax advertise their medium format offerings it raises interest and awareness that there is something above/beyond the commodity Canon/Nikon offerings.
Remember, medium format is not fighting for 50% of the total market, or even 5% of the total market. They are fighting for a sliver at the top of the top, so growth/success is less about beating out the other medium format players and much more about reaching the 95%+ of serious photographers who assume they don't want/need/desire medium format because they've never used it or the last time they used it was many years ago.
Look at Ken R: it was the Pentax 645D, at their attractive cost of entry, that brought him into medium format, but he ended up selling it and getting a Phase One. Would he have tried the (more expensive) Phase One system if he hadn't waded into the waters more gently with the Pentax first? I guess you'd have to ask him, but my bet is no. Many of our customers are like this. They end up with an IQ180 or similar as a result of a "gateway" system (D800, Pentax 645, entry-level p1 back) which whets their pallets for better image quality.
Dante's inferno indeed.
- Canon 1D
- Canon 1Ds III
- Canon 5D II
- Nikon D800/E
- Mamiya ZD
- Red Epic
- Red's roadmapped-but-never-shipped 6x17 camera
- Pentax 645D (first gen)
None of this is a slight against the 645Z. Just a reminder that, according to forums the sky is constantly falling, whereas according to public balance sheets Phase One's sales volume and profitability have increased every year since the financial crises.
There is definitely room for more than one successful 50mp camera. In fact, the availability of more than one is almost surely a net-positive for all of them. That is to say, every time Phase, Hassy, or Pentax advertise their medium format offerings it raises interest and awareness that there is something above/beyond the commodity Canon/Nikon offerings.
Remember, medium format is not fighting for 50% of the total market, or even 5% of the total market. They are fighting for a sliver at the top of the top, so growth/success is less about beating out the other medium format players and much more about reaching the 95%+ of serious photographers who assume they don't want/need/desire medium format because they've never used it or the last time they used it was many years ago.
Look at Ken R: it was the Pentax 645D, at their attractive cost of entry, that brought him into medium format, but he ended up selling it and getting a Phase One. Would he have tried the (more expensive) Phase One system if he hadn't waded into the waters more gently with the Pentax first? I guess you'd have to ask him, but my bet is no. Many of our customers are like this. They end up with an IQ180 or similar as a result of a "gateway" system (D800, Pentax 645, entry-level p1 back) which whets their pallets for better image quality.
Dante's inferno indeed.