Photographic Industry

[Photofarmer]

Will Chinese mass production take over Japanese quality and innovation and German precision/quality?

 

[Archibald]

Those sound like outmoded stereotypes to me that might be affecting your view.

 

[JoeTheSnowPlowGuy]

Maybe, maybe not. I think the question is does the market support that? The majority of people are totally fine using a camera phone because people rarely print photos, everything is digital consumption.

That being said, Chinese consumer grade cameras that cost less than $500 for a camera/lens kit would probably hit pretty hard, especially if they used small bodies and integrated them into Android/ iOS that allowed people to quickly or seamlessly transfer the photos to their phone. Or better yet connect to their socials on the camera via hotspot or 5G connection and upload directly SOOC. That might smack for people and content creators. An MFT sensor in a tiny body with a 10-50 would be about perfect.

If Chinese companies were able to make prograde lenses for Canon, Nikon, Sony they’d surely start stealing market share. I highly doubt any of those companies would license AF lenses to be produced. That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t be produced anyways. A $2,500 lens that’s duped by a Chinese company with similar quality for half the price would probably sell.

 

[Photofarmer]

Those sound like outmoded stereotypes to me that might be affecting your view.

Nah should have reworded it.
Will japanese industry fade away when china ramps up production of cameras ,matter of when it will happen not if.

As a farmer not sure % wise but maybe 80% of consumables we use on farm now chinese. Bearings steel tyres chemicals tools you name it. 20 yrs ago 20% maybe. Bearings for example not the quality last half as long but half the cost

 

[Archibald]

Many years ago, after the war, Japanese products were considered to be junk. In those days, a lot of it was. Cheap but junk. Nikon of course was an exception. As their economy matured, quality improved and then became topnotch.

Today China's economy is still maturing. They seem to be following a similar trajectory. I wouldn't call their stuff junk. Agreed that some of it is not as good as it could be. On the other hand, companies like Sirui and Venus Optics are innovative and make top-level stuff.

Unfortunately negative feelings about China are common and long-standing. The country has big problems. So do we in the West. We should not let these things cloud our judgement. We get to choose the ball bearings that are suitable for our use. Same thing with camera batteries. Clearly China does not have all the technology yet. It will come.

And then they will compete head-to-head with all the other advanced economies in the world.

The post-war period with cheap Japanese goods helped to keep inflation down. Similarly, low wages in China (and other places too) are reducing inflation. So once China matures, watch out for steeper inflation. That is, unless India and Africa then start to manufacture massive amounts of cheap goods!

 

[Photofarmer]

Don’t disagree. Yeah India will become a big player.

 

[Dwardski]

Yes, China and India are "emerging" in all senses of the word. I've bought a lot of Chinese photo gear over the years; a lot of the early purchases were quite poor but, as they were nought from Amazon, were easily returned. As the years have passed, the kit has definitely improved and the returns have reduced. I expect this trend to continue, especially if / when India enter the market. After all, a wider choice is good news for us consumers!