Ricoh executives think mirrorless users will return to DSLR cameras soon

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Despite what you may have heard about mirrorless cameras being the future of photography, there's one camera brand that isn't so convinced: Ricoh, manufacturer of Pentax.

Released in 2018, the Pentax K-1 Mark II is Ricoh Pentax's most recent DSLR.
2018's Pentax K-1 Mark II.

In a recent interview with Dave Etchells from Imaging Resource, Hiroki Sugahara, General Manager of the Marketing Communication Department, Global Sales and Marketing Center, Smart Vision Business Unit at Ricoh, shared his view on the trend towards mirrorless cameras, and his views on the relevance of DSLRs.

You can see an excerpt from the interview below:

Hiroki Sugahara: Currently, mirrorless is a newcomer, so of course many users are very interested in the new systems, they want to use [them]. But after one or two years, some users who changed their system from DSLR to mirrorless come back to the DSLR again.

Dave Etchells: Really?

Hiroki Sugahara: I believe. Because as I said before, each system has its own benefits or appealing points. The mirrorless camera is very convenient to shoot, because users can [preview the final] image before shooting. But I believe the DSLR has its own appealing point, because users can create their own image from the optical viewfinder. People can see the beautiful image through the optical viewfinder, and then think how they can create their pictures -- for example, exposure level setting or white balance or ISO [sensitivity] -- and then imagine how they can get [the result they're seeking].

Dave Etchells: Mmm, mmm.

Hiroki Sugahara: That is one of the big [advantages] of shooting [DSLR] cameras, so some users will come back to the DSLR system. But it might be they use both systems, DSLR and mirrorless. Because each system has its own benefits.

Dave Etchells: Yeah, yeah.

Hiroki Sugahara: So the DSLR market is currently decreasing a little bit, but one year or two years or three years later, it will [begin] getting higher.

Dave Etchells: You think it will return, will start growing again.

Hiroki Sugahara: Yeah. Yes, yes.

We imagine there's a number of camera company executives who probably don't share Sugahara's views, especially so with the flurry of excellent mirrorless cameras we've seen from almost every major manufacturer in the last 18 months. But what do you think? Is mirrorless just a trend or is it here to stay?

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