3 reasons why stopping the production of DSLRs is a mistake
With Canon announcing that it will no longer produce DSLRs in the future (the line will end with the EOS-1D X Mark III) we move on to the future but are we so sure that this is good?
I never thought I should ever write an article like this. Because I was one of the first photographers to abandon DSLRs in favor of mirrorless. I did it in 2010. In all these years I have worked with many cameras: Nikon, Panasonic, Olympus, Samsung, Sony, Ricoh, Leica, Fujifilm, Pentax, Canon, virtually i worked with all the camera brands. I have used and promoted mirrorless cameras.
In the last 2 years I back to use also DSLRs cameras because of my commercial work, especially my portrait services but also for photojournalism. In the latter part of last year I went back to using dslrs for my street photography as well, and despite the camera is an old Canon Rebel released in 2011 I am very satisfied with the work I am able to achieve.
Let me share with you my ideas why, in my opinion, stopping producing dslrs is a mistake.
The optical viewfinder is still better option
I rediscovered the pleasure of observing the world through a DSLR viewfinder and boy there is no comparison. While in mirrorless cameras many times it bothers me, in the DSLR it is a real pleasure. Even the best EVF cannot outperform an optical viewfinder.
Battery Life
When it comes to battery life, guys there is no match. I have to charge my mirrorless cameras anytime I decide to pick up that for a street photography day. This is not happening with my Canon Rebel. Despite we talk about a camera released 10 years ago my DSLR is still more reliable and dependable.
The way I work with a DSLR
I am using the camera for street photography in a very simple way: manual exposure and autofocus. For the settings it is very easy and on the LCD I constantly check, in a simple way, to decide even in a few moments. There isn't much to change if you know what to do. With my mirrorless I have see how is better for street photography to go full manual, but using also manual focus. This is the reason why I switched completely to manual lenses. I would say that with mirrorless it works better zone focusing, but if I need a camera where I don’t want to worry about the focus all the time I will take the DSLR with me.
Conclusions
I enjoy to photograph with both camera platforms. There are pros and cons that speak to us as individuals and for the way we are used to photograph. In my opinion mirrorless cameras and Digital Single-Lens Reflex cameras can co-exist. If you took me just two years ago I would have told you that I would not have regretted the cancellation of reflex cameras from the market, today I have another opinion, gained above all from the most recent experience.
The last photos you see shared by me are almost all taken with the reflex. I was able to calibrate the camera to achieve the aesthetic I prefer. The result is very organic, referring to a lot of photography, even film, which I have come to love. With the 24mm the Rebel becomes very light and even not that noticeable, or at least I know how to work with a good portion of invisibility on the street. So, if you ask me I say that DSLR has still a place, at least for my approach and how I enjoy to make photography. DSLRs are not inferior to mirrorless cameras: they are just different.
Anyway this decision to discontinue the DSLR market also has its positive aspect: DSLR cameras that already have lower costs than mirrorless cameras will drop even further and we photographers who think differently will look to the second-hand market, avoiding thinking in terms of what marketing dictates.
