Getting a little bit Fed Up...

[hhelmbold]

Is it just me or does it feel like Canon is dragging their heels in getting back as the market leader in the Pro SLR market? Maybe I should wait till September to point fingers, but I am really getting disillusioned with Canon. I am doing a lot of pro golf events for magazines and studio work. After a lot of saving and hard work I got enough money together in December last year to move to the 1Ds range and I knew buying one then would be a mistake - so I waited. There were times I thought I should just get a 1D, but there's no stock... So I am still waiting.

Now reading things like "However, we’re told Canon is more interested in getting production up to 100% before announcing new EOS products" is not really the type of news I want to read...

Am I the only one who feels this way? Is Nikon the new leader? (I know swearing is not allowed - but hey, sometimes you need to get things of your chest) 

Maybe I just need some feedback from fellow Canon users before I decide to switch to the yellow brand...

[EYEONE]

I feel like it's December 24th and people and giving up on Christmas and declaring that it will never come.

I understand the frustration. Especially people waiting for the 1Ds Mark IV. But, it's coming guys. It's coming. And it's soon. Heck, I'm not even shopping for a pro camera this year and I can't wait for the announcement.  But I have to remember everything Canon, Nikon, and Japan have been through this year.

[YoukY63]

Maybe I just need some feedback from fellow Canon users before I decide to switch to the yellow brand...

Are you interested in a D3x?
Because, I agree with Canon taking huge time to announce new professional DSLR, but that is also true for Nikon and Sony. And today, the situation is just exactly the same than last year. Canon was and still is leader.

So now we just have to be patient, until one of these major companies decides to make a move. The other ones will follow within weeks. 

[UncleFester]

A 1Ds for golf? What lens are you using?

[hhelmbold]

@EYEONE - The ironic thing is that part of this whole "upgrade" is that it was also a Christmas gift to me last year So yes it is feeling like Christmas never came LOL.

@YoukY63 - A D3x?? You must be kidding, it will be unfair to look at anything but a D4  I want to see what the whole Nikon launch on the 24th is about. Joe Mcnally was involved with the D3 launch and maybe he is again on the 24th...

I think my overall confidence in Canon has just taken a knock... I am in South Africa and the Canon support here is terrible... well... actually more like "Doesn't exist". I usually take my gear to the US to have it serviced etc and therethe support is FANTASTIC. In South Africa Canon is just a name on a building - inside the building it is a lot of 3rd party companies operating under that name. But my blood is still red and I just cannot go away from Canon.

@UncleFester - I have several bodies and depends on what I am shooting. Golf is 50% of my income and Studio work the other 50%. I want to go 1Ds for studio work. I don't have a 1Ds at the moment and use a 1D mkIII or 5D mkI for golf. Lenses depends on what I shoot, it can range from 18mm to 400mm or even sometimes longer with a 1.4x converter.

I suppose I just wanted to know that I wasn't the only one who can't wait for Christmas! 

[aj1575]

Cool down. We all are always waiting for something new and better. But it always takes some time for something new to appear.
I think there are two things to keep in mind with this topic.

First: It does not really matter if you work with brand X or brand Y. The difference is not so big. And you can be sure, that if you do switch, the brand you left, will come up with something newer and better, than the one you switched to. This is partly due to Murphy, partly because the grass is always greener on the other side, and partly, because this is the way technological development works; no one stayes ahead forever.

Second: If you work as a pro, none of your competitors can buy better equipment. They all go to the same companies, and work with the same tools. And even more imporant, you customer does not care about your equipment, he only care about the pictures you are taking.

[koolman]

Is it just me or does it feel like Canon is dragging their heels in getting back as the market leader in the Pro SLR market? Maybe I should wait till September to point fingers, but I am really getting disillusioned with Canon. I am doing a lot of pro golf events for magazines and studio work. After a lot of saving and hard work I got enough money together in December last year to move to the 1Ds range and I knew buying one then would be a mistake - so I waited. There were times I thought I should just get a 1D, but there's no stock... So I am still waiting.

Now reading things like "However, we’re told Canon is more interested in getting production up to 100% before announcing new EOS products" is not really the type of news I want to read...

Am I the only one who feels this way? Is Nikon the new leader? (I know swearing is not allowed - but hey, sometimes you need to get things of your chest) 

Maybe I just need some feedback from fellow Canon users before I decide to switch to the yellow brand...

Nikon waited a long time before coming out with the D7000 - as it seems to be a real leap foward.

Canon is probably cooking its response - as the D7000 took the market away from the 60d and 7d.

Lets see what they pull out - as things are now - all the sites recommend the D7000 over canon products.

[Flake]

I sometimes read posts like this & slowly shake my head.  Have you not heard of the Japanese earthquake which devastated parts of Japan?  Canons facilities were damaged in this and as a corporate policy it is their decision not to announce a new body until they have production facilities to actually deliver it.

(It does beg the question as to the state of Canons current production facilities, especially as the EOS body plant is miles away from the earthquake zone)

From the start Nikon has had a different corporate policy, which was to announce new lenses, and bodies, without neccessarily having the production volume to satisfy demand.

So which way would you rather have it?  Announcement of a camera which you cannot get your hands on, or a company which says we're not going to announce the camera until we can ship it?  With either policy you don't get your hands on a new camera.

As for Nikon stealing a lead on Canon, how is this?  The cameras they have are still the same, the D3 & the D3x and the D700, in my opinion none of them can beat the image quality of the 5D MkII which is still probably the best DSLR available for outright image quality.

You say that you would like a 1D but there's no stock - doesn't that just illustrate the points I made above, that Canon are still having production problems?

[Flake]

Is it just me or does it feel like Canon is dragging their heels in getting back as the market leader in the Pro SLR market? Maybe I should wait till September to point fingers, but I am really getting disillusioned with Canon. I am doing a lot of pro golf events for magazines and studio work. After a lot of saving and hard work I got enough money together in December last year to move to the 1Ds range and I knew buying one then would be a mistake - so I waited. There were times I thought I should just get a 1D, but there's no stock... So I am still waiting.

Now reading things like "However, we’re told Canon is more interested in getting production up to 100% before announcing new EOS products" is not really the type of news I want to read...

Am I the only one who feels this way? Is Nikon the new leader? (I know swearing is not allowed - but hey, sometimes you need to get things of your chest) 

Maybe I just need some feedback from fellow Canon users before I decide to switch to the yellow brand...

Nikon waited a long time before coming out with the D7000 - as it seems to be a real leap foward.

Canon is probably cooking its response - as the D7000 took the market away from the 60d and 7d.

Lets see what they pull out - as things are now - all the sites recommend the D7000 over canon products.

Not very long ago I posted a thread on biased reviewing with the D7000, and the number of problems users were having with the camera, which seems to have a number of faults, the focus and image sharpness, which will not reach commercial standards.  This is not to say that all models are faulty, but with so many reports it should certainly be taken seriously.  Buying one at the moment is like a lucky dip!

[pedro]

I sometimes read posts like this & slowly shake my head.  Have you not heard of the Japanese earthquake which devastated parts of Japan?  Canons facilities were damaged in this and as a corporate policy it is their decision not to announce a new body until they have production facilities to actually deliver it.

@Flake: You are absolutely right. +1 then. And there is another component, western-biased thinking often ignores about communication: japanese culture is shame-based. That means, if someone makes an announcement and cannot fulfill it, they put themselves to shame, or as we say: they're loosing face. So, with all my own expectations about a 5Diii and with all my own wanting it to be announced: I do not want, that anyone of the japanese folk at Canon has to loose face due to us westerners who are eager to burn their money by purchasing a new body. So according to other comments and refering to a north american folk song: it will be coming 'round the mountain, when it comes  Cheers from Switzerland, Pedro

[hhelmbold]

I sometimes read posts like this & slowly shake my head.  Have you not heard of the Japanese earthquake which devastated parts of Japan?  Canons facilities were damaged in this and as a corporate policy it is their decision not to announce a new body until they have production facilities to actually deliver it.

It does beg the question as to the state of Canons current production facilities, especially as the EOS body plant is miles away from the earthquake zone

I fully understand this and Canon made announcements on their websites saying that their facilities are fully operational again, but the problem is that there are massive power restrictions put in place and Canon is fully complying with these restrictions.

I also understand what is said about Japanese culture, but you asked

Announcement of a camera which you cannot get your hands on, or a company which says we're not going to announce the camera until we can ship it?

I want neither 

Don't you think a company that is bold enough to step forward and say "We are working on a camera that will blow our competitors out of the water, with a dynamic range like never before... etc etc" - is better than a rumor page where everything is a guess. I don't expect them to say it will be a camera with features A, B and C and it will be available on XX Date.

I am just wondering how much of this cloak and dagger stuff is real between competitors and how much is from watching too many spy movies

[hhelmbold]

You say that you would like a 1D but there's no stock - doesn't that just illustrate the points I made above, that Canon are still having production problems?

Actually I don't want the 1D - I want something better

I was very much in 2 minds between the 1D and the 5D mkII and I was going to buy the 1D out of desperation. I have been holding out to buy a new camera since a year after the 5D mkII was released (The fps was just too low for some of the golf action shots I do). The 1D mk Iv was released and the ISO noise war started - so I decided to wait for Canon's next BIG camera hoping it would be by December 2010.

The stock issue does confirm that Canon is battling with production, but at the time it was also a small sign (in my head) that something new might be coming, seeing that the 5D stock was also depleted. I did get to my senses and put 2 and 2 together regarding production - but having your hopes up and then down and then up is quite a roller coaster ride!

My current equipment is old and it works hard - so I have to service it regularly which costs extra money. I think this whole thing is just about KNOWING... Yes - I need to know what's in a wrapped box under the tree! I am impatient... :-) Knowing something great is coming will help me plan services on equipment etc. I think it is the IF, MAYBE and NOT KNOWING that is driving me crazy LOL

[Enrico]

Looking at the time lines of how long it has been since the last release of new bodies, comparing that to the flow of rumors, stock depletion and tone of voice among us in the forums...

... there will be things happening, and they will happen soon.

For each day that pass without an announcement, we are actually one day closer to the announcement and I think it will be quite soon. The earthquake most likely delayed things alot, but companies still need plans and they need to sell products.

We know things will be communicated tomorrow and then by Nikon the day after - finally they are communicating new products! After that we will have alot more knowledge and be able to even more qualified guesstimates, but they are still guesstimates...

Reading this forum and having monies saved is frustrating. But in the bigger picture a month or five... will they really matter once the new bodies are released.

(Imagine IF they would have their whole roadmap public regarding bodies and lenses I think it would even harder... how to save, when to spend and what lenses to get...)

[neuroanatomist]

I sometimes read posts like this & slowly shake my head.  Have you not heard of the Japanese earthquake which devastated parts of Japan?  Canons facilities were damaged in this and as a corporate policy it is their decision not to announce a new body until they have production facilities to actually deliver it.

It does beg the question as to the state of Canons current production facilities, especially as the EOS body plant is miles away from the earthquake zone

I fully understand this and Canon made announcements on their websites saying that their facilities are fully operational again, but the problem is that there are massive power restrictions put in place and Canon is fully complying with these restrictions.

Masaya Maeda, the head of Canon's camera division, stated that, "Canon's production of cameras finally returned to pre-quake levels at the end of June."  Here's the link to the Reuters interview.

[pedro]

Well there is one good thing about all that is going on: today is August 22  So, you never can tell what lies beyond that date...Maybe we'll find a golden treasure on one of the rainbow's ends... Cheers.