Who will rescue Nikon?

[jarski]

DPR opinion describes Nikons current problems eloquently:

The Nikon 1 series got stuck in traffic on the way to the mirrorless party, and finally arrived only to realize it totally misread the dress code.

As for the KeyMission series, it's way past fashionably late to the action camera party, and brought a twelve-pack of what everyone's already sick of drinking.

And the DL series, well, it seems to have just pre-funked too heavily and didn't make it out at all.

 

[brennanphotoguy]

It doesn't even need to be improved. A reintroduction of the 5000 with software that works with current operating systems would be a popular product.

People have been asking the new people behind the Kodak films for just a new software that works with modern OS for the Pakon. I'd love to see Nikon release new versions of their old scanners.

 

[larmarv916]

Well hot off the wire....the first step in the amazing rescue of the SS NIKON !! Yes secret master stroke....sell overpriced limited edition 100 anniversary D500's. WOW! Maybe selling "red" Nikons to commemorate all the red ink !! This is like watching British car company die!

 

[HHPhoto]

I'd love to see Nikon release new versions of their old scanners.

You are not alone. Lots of photographers would buy a new Nikon film scanner. The extremely high prices for used Nikon scanners are a very clear indicator.

The best what all these photographers wanting a new Nikon scanner can do is:
Get in direct contact with Nikon! Tell them what you want and need.
Nikon is not looking in threads like this.
But they are realising what emails and phone calls they get.

Cheers, Jan

 

[lynnb]

In the beginning were plate cameras.

Then there were roll film cameras. Kodak rode that wave of convenience and popularity with the Brownie. "You press the button and let us do the rest". Photography for the masses was born.

Then Leica started the "miniature" 35mm film camera revolution. Another wave. Roll film quality in a coat pocket. Cheap per-exposure cost. Fast lenses enabled candid available-light photography. Nikon created the F and rode the crest of the wave for decades, creating quality 35mm cameras at affordable price for professionals and amateurs, pushing out Leica. Only the enthusiasts and well heeled bought Leica, everyone else bought a Japanese SLR. Kodak got smart and introduced the instamatic for the mums and dads.

Digital arrived and Nikon was an early entrant and rode that wave, Canon soon jumped on it too. Professionals and keen amateurs dumped their SLRs for DSLRs and the mums and dads dumped their instamatics for Coolpix and Digital Pixmas.

Camera phones arrived and pushed digicams off the wave, now everyone can take digicam pictures and videos and have their address book and phone in one device in their pocket or handbag. Now everyone buys an upgraded iPhone every few years, no-one needs a separate digicam or videocam.

The iPhone is the Brownie and the Instamatic of this age, and also the Super-8 and video camcorder. It connects with social media and families love that. No waiting or card readers or computer necessary. Instant share.

What is left now is the enthusiast and professional markets. This is where Nikon is headed. No point in being nostalgic for magic ballooning market for cameras achieved in the bubble when the only way to get digital photography for the masses was to buy a digicam.

I see no reason why Nikon can't have a bright future as a small, profitable company catering to the only market left, where the margins are higher. Leica showed that was quite possible, thank you.

I see the only threat to be computational photography, which might, perhaps, have the potential to produce professional quality images from something resembling an iPhone with a lens array and high computational power.

Nikon doesn't need a buyout, they are adjusting to the new market reality. Their only mistakes that I can see are the ones outlined by Thom Hogan, principally that they failed to capitalise on DX by limiting the lens choices and the upgrade from D300.

 

[lynnb]

PS and I hope they continue to make the F6 and a quality scanner. Film seems to be finding its new level of stability as a niche enthusiast market, and Nikon is well placed to be the biggest player in that space. They could even design a quality camera to take Instax film

 

[NIKON KIU]

It's not who but what!

And it's right here, right now:

AA-17 Head-Mounted Display
Product 25934
*****Reviews are coming soon******
This product is currently unavailable for individual sale.

Borrowed from Nikonusa. com page

Kiu

 

[Ronald M]

Toy cameras are mostly not bought any more. Cell phone is the auto that replaced the buggy.

I refuse to buy consumer grade and so will any real photographer.

Offer a pro DSLR and pro build APS C like D500/ D200/ D300. I do not want mirrorless, but it seems others do. Maybe have a high grade FX in there like D750

A DX lens line might sell. 18 2.8 24 2.0 60 2.8 . These could be small primes built to high standards so we do not have to use the bigger FX lenses thus negating a big advantage of DX.

Totally give up sub $1500 / $2000 bodies.

 

[BillBingham2]

So here it is, my approach that Nikon should take. I would work also for Sony very well too.

Way back when the Intel 486 came out life was way cool. It had an integrated Math Co-Processor in the chip. Prior to that Math Co-Processors were add-ons you purchased separately and had to plug into a socket on the motherboard (wearing your anti-static strap). Intel found that they had a significant number of chips that had problems in the Math Co-Processor area of the chip and were failing QC testing. My guess is that some number of failures were expected as a natural part of chip making.

Well someone who loves making Lemon Aide must have been thinking a bit later and came up with the idea to create and market the 486SX. My guess is there were some minor changes they put into the 486 chip that allowed Intel to turn off the Math Co-Processor part after initial manufacturing (my guess is before it was bonded into the carrier that had all the wire connectors/feet). As the price of PCs back then was 25% the cost of the CPU, this allowed Intel to market a lower power (though still much faster than any 386 chip) chip that was previously going to be trash as a product!

How does Nikon do this, be a bit creative. Take their three digit (DXXX) bodies and get ride of lots of features. Cut out those parts of the chips, slice and dice the software, cut cut where ever you can but keep the exterior the same. Keep the flash, AF, stuff, cut down the dozens of different exposure options and features.

By reusing tooling, testing and such that is already paid for you should be able to drop the total cost of the product by 40% and still make a pretty profit. The goal is to make a new FF SLR at a reasonable price point ($1000 for the new body). Use what they have to answer the call of the folks who can't afford the current FF DSLR bodies.

For right now do this to the D500, if this approach works, perhaps follow with the D800 two years after that (assuming the MP increase in sensors continues at the same rate).

There is a niche that Nikon can create if they do it right. One that Cosina found in rangefinders a few years back and leveraged the heck out of. It's older folks like me who don't have a lot of extra cash, got some old glass and will buy some new glass, but can't afford a reasonable FF camera.

Making a FF Mirroless body is a good target but they need a faster to market solution that will generate a reasonable amount of sales. The D502 (numbered in reverence to the F2, as we all know there was never a F1 from Nikon) is what they need to do.

Lots of great glass, sell the bodies and get folks to buy new great AF glass!

Thoughts?

B2 (;->

 

[ptpdprinter]

I am not currently in the market for a new digital camera, but if I were interested in buying a Nikon, they currently list 18 DSLR bodies on their website, which is pretty ridiculous for just two sensor sizes. Who has the time and energy to sort though that mess to pick one out. I can see consumers just throwing up their hands and sticking with what they have. Nikon could cut the selection in half and no one would notice. Choice is a good thing; too much choice is a bad thing. I don't even want to look at their lens lineup. I think they need to rationalize their offerings, whittle down their SKUs. Cleaning up the clutter might be cathartic for them, allowing them to focus on a goal and map out a strategy to get there. No wonder they are floundering.

Addendum: It looks like Canon has nearly as many DSLR bodies on their website. They could use a good housecleaning too.

 

[jsrockit]

I am not currently in the market for a new digital camera, but if I were interested in buying a Nikon, they currently list 18 DSLR bodies on their website, which is pretty ridiculous for just two sensor sizes. Who has the time and energy to sort though that mess to pick one out. I can see consumers just throwing up their hands and sticking with what they have. Nikon could cut the selection in half and no one would notice. Choice is a good thing; too much choice is a bad thing. I don't even want to look at their lens lineup. I think they need to rationalize their offerings, whittle down their SKUs. Cleaning up the clutter might be cathartic for them, allowing them to focus on a goal and map out a strategy to get there. No wonder they are floundering.

I think it is only in major markets that we see all of their different models at once. For instance, in Chile, the Nikon stores don't carry all of the redundant models and mostly have the low end stuff.

 

[Bill Clark]

Nikon is more than cameras.

If they need help they have the talent to pull themselves up from their bootstraps.

 

[gavinlg]

+1 .

They have problems and have to do their "homework", that is obvoius. But the same is valid for almost all other digital camera manufacturers, too. Almost all have big problems because of the significantly declining demand for digital cameras.
I am convinced Nikon is strong enough to resolve their problems by themselves.

What do they have to do:
1. "Mainstream" strategy:
a) Better R&D work: Finish the test procedures before a camera is introduced to the market, to avoid those bugs we've seen with the early D800, D600 and D750 units.
Trust in the brand is a huge capital. Nikon must not risk that by bad work in the design and testing process.

b) Strong focus on the DSLR market. It is the biggest market by far, the most profitable and the least competitive with only one real competitor: Canon (Sony and Pentax together have less than 10% market share). The DSLM market is much much smaller and has nine competitors. Very brutal competition.

c) Make two record-small DSLRs: One for beginners, one for advanced photographers. Like the former Canon SL-1, but with better quality. Make them an attractive alternative for DSLM users.

d) Introduce more DX prime lenses for APS-C. Add a very compact "pancake" design series of lenses to the current lens line-up (like the former Nikorr 2,8/45 P).

e) In the past Nikon was very successful with the parallelity of two (similar) bodies with two different sensors for different applications: One lower resolving sensor with better dynamic range, higher ISO and higher speed (fps), and one "slower" sensor optimised for high resolution.
Make that again:
A 24 MP high-dynamic range, high ISO + high speed sensor (fps)
in both "D810" like and a "D5 like" camera.
And
a 50 MP high resolution sensor in both a "D810" like and a "D5 like" camera.
So a "S" and "X" line.

f) Introduce a mirrorless APS-C camera line (like the Canon EF-M, that is the right path). Position it (and advertize it) also for upgraders from smartphones. This system will replace the Nikon 1 system in the long run.
Higher-end smartphones will probably have 1" sensors in the future. To get "smartphoners" interested in upgrading to real cameras these cameras have to be significantly better than smartphones. The difference must be clearly visible. Therefore APS-C.

2. Thinking "out of the box":
The whole digital camera market will continue to decline for some further years.
But the film demand is increasing. Nikon should prepare for that development:
a) Nikon's legendary scanners Coolscan V, 5000 and 9000 are on very high demand on the used market. For units in good condition often more (!) than the former new price is given. A clear indication for a very strong demand.
Also scanner manufacturers like Pacific Image / Reflecta and Epson are reporting increasing demand for years.
It would be a smart move from Nikon to introduce an improved line of scanners (with real 5000ppi resolution).

b) The most successful photo product on the market is currently Fuji Instax: Last year alone 6.5 million Instax cameras were sold. That is more than double (!!) the volume of the whole DSLM market.
The Instax film is very good, the Instax cameras not so.
Why not a (very) good camera with a good lens for Instax mini and Instax wide film? I would buy them at once. I need it for my professional work at weddings.

c) It has been clever to keep the FM-10 and F6 in production. Nikon should prepare for extended film camera production in 3-5 years from now:
F7, F200, FM4A.

Bang on. Couldn't agree more. The film scanner bit is genius. Their is a definite market for small boutique photo labs and also for home users. Best would be to release a commercial grade machine that's sturdy, efficient and fast, and an affordable home unit that's affordable and outputs good quality scans.

 

[Godfrey]

Is there a useful link to an article delineating the current crisis at Nikon? I haven't seen anything about it, of course I've not been looking.

 

[infrequent]

Nikon needs the clarity of thinking and simplified product line that Steve Jobs employed upon his return to Apple. He drew a matrix that had 4 boxes: pro desktop and laptop, consumer desktop and laptop. Now photography is a far more personal/instinctive thing and so that sort of product line shrinking is likely not viable. But they need to move in that direction. Its amazing how so many tech companies (just look at Samsung in phones and even Fujifilm with their X cameras to a degree now) forget that 20 choices is no more a choice but confusing and harder to make a purchase decision. Effectively a loss of sale.

 

[Huss]

.. Its amazing how so many tech companies (just look at Samsung in phones and even Fujifilm with their X cameras to a degree now) forget that 20 choices is no more a choice but confusing and harder to make a purchase decision. Effectively a loss of sale.

This is why I like Neopolitan ice cream. All my favourite flavours in one scoop.

Who is going to step up and make the Neopolitan camera?

 

[infrequent]

Who is going to step up and make the Neopolitan camera?

Sony?? Hahaha!

 

[Huss]

Sony?? Hahaha!

They make a digital camera that can also shoot film?

 

[infrequent]

They make a digital camera that can also shoot film?

Careful now...don't tempt their marketing team!

 

[gavinlg]

They make a digital camera that can also shoot film?

Fujifilm already has that covered with the instax square camera!