Camera Trends on Flickr

[Kayaker72]

I thought these were pretty interesting:

flickr-yir-2015-top-cameras by Flickr Design, on Flickr

flickr-yir-2015-combo-camera-use by Flickr Design, on Flickr

Flickr Year in Review 2015 - Camera Brands by Flickr Design, on Flickr

Flickr Year in Review 2015 - Camera Types by Flickr Design, on Flickr

Numbers are always fun.

[HDNitehawk]

When Apple releases their Full Frame version of the iPhone DSLR's as we know them will be obsolete.

[Kayaker72]

That may be the end of days.....for sure.

Ok, so my observations were delayed as my wife just walked in an talk about stuff for an hour and a half.

So, the data is obviously skewed towards whomever "Flickr" users are and I wouldn't expect it to be exactly proportional to the market. But there are a few things I find interesting:

• First Graph:
  
  • "Obsolete" cameras dominate the first graph. The first "current" camera is the 5DIII. Even in the iPhones, the iPhone 6/6plus is the first "current" (most of 2015) camera.
  • Remove the camera phones, Canon is really well represented in the first graph.
  
  
• Second Graph:
  
  • I actually fall into the "Canon" primary and Apple secondary bracket, although I do not think I've ever posted a photo taken with my iPhone on flickr. I might soon be adding a pocketable compact camera. Leaning toward the G7X but may still go Sony.
  
  
• Third Graph:
  
  • I wish they broke this down by camera type (phone, P&S, dSLR). My guess is that it actually represents P&S cameras being replaced by iPhones.
  
  
• Fourth Graph (to me, the most interesting):
  
  • I mentally divide this graph into two sections. The top that shows P&S's being replaced by phones and the bottom where the "enthusiast" market is essentially the same from 2011 to 2015 where mirrorless has only taken a sliver out of the market. So, dramatic change above (P&S to phones in that market). Almost negligible change in the "enthusiast" market.
  • So, this "mirrorless" revolution that some people keep talking about just has not happened.

[DavidEccleston]

Yes, interesting that DSLR pretty much remains unchanged, while the P&S users are using phones phenomenon is pretty much a given.

Are they skewing our perception on the rate of the P&S to phone transition by skipping 2014, or are the results really that sloppy and non-automated?

[Kayaker72]

Are they skewing our perception on the rate of the P&S to phone transition by skipping 2014, or are the results really that sloppy and non-automated?

Good catch.....I just asked about it on flickr. Will see if I get a reply.

[Sean Setters]

I saw those figured when they were posted on the Flickr Blog and considered posting something to the site's News section, but ultimately decided not to. One or two of the graphs they presented (none of the ones posted here) were not very clear in the data they were presenting and even seemed to conflict with one another (or, more likely, I just wasn't smart enough to figure them out...more coffee might have helped). My confusion led to my uneasiness in posting, but I was certainly intrigued by the info.

My takeaway: it's much easier to take pictures with an iPhone and post to Flickr vs. using a DSLR. Smartphones have the advantage because: 1) they are always with you, 2) do not require any technical knowledge of photography (for the majority of smartphone camera users, it's like having a camera locked in "P" mode), 3) have built-in social platforms and net connectivity, and 4) have a much broader user base because the mobile device's versatility.

[M_Six]

I'm surprised at the T3i being so high. I'm also a bit surprised that the 5D MkIII is higher than the 7D, which has been around a lot longer. But I guess a lot of 5D MkII/7D combo owners jumped to a single 5D MkIII when it came out.

The lack of any recent Nikons seems weird. Do Nikonians post images elsewhere?

[neuroanatomist]

I'm surprised at the T3i being so high.

The T3i has been high on Amazon's top sellers list pretty much since release. Up until around mid-2014 the T3i was still in Amazon's top 10, including several times at #1 even after the T5i came out.

[HDNitehawk]

The graphs do not make sense, when other data is put out that contradicts the charts. The third chart shows a use rate below 20%.

Flickr Year in Review 2015 by Flickr Design, on Flickr

I have to take any data put out by flickr with a grain of salt. If you read many articles on Yahoo (who owns flickr) you know that they get it wrong more than right.

[Kayaker72]

The graphs do not make sense, when other data is put out that contradicts the charts. The third chart shows a use rate below 20%.

I have to take any data put out by flickr with a grain of salt. If you read many articles on Yahoo (who owns flickr) you know that they get it wrong more than right.

To make it even more inconsistent, the figure you posted was for Canon "EOS" and Nikon "D" cameras...which are SLRs....not P&S's...where, the way I look at the 3rd figure above, it is total canon as a brand. So not only is the total different, but a subset should never be greater than the total.

But...and this is where it gets fun, how did they sort the data (even assuming they worked off the same database) by: "Photographers/users" vs "Photographs" vs "Cameras/Devices"....each may tally differently. For example, if a member posts 100 images from a 5DIII, and another user posts 5000 images from a iPhone, do you count that as 1:1 or 100:5000? How do you divided it up if the same Flickr "photographer" used 3 different devices?

To have more fun:
Flickr Year in Review 2015 by Flickr Design, on Flickr

This was side by side with your image. So, in one 42% of "photographers" (or devices) use iPhones while in the next 39% of photos or videos were captured using "camera phones." Again, iPhones should be a subset of camera phone, but in one they tallied based on "photographers" and the other on "Photos." This actually indicates to me that more members used iPhones, but those with DSLRs posted more photos.

So, would I bet the house on any of this...no, not unless I got to see details on their procedures. But I do think it paints a general picture of the "Flicker" user.

Go to 500pix, and I bet it would change very dramatically.