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How much longer will EF be around?

chahath
Apprentice

I know photography is more than just gear, and a lens that was great 5 years ago didn't get worse just because newer better ones are out, but I fear that if I don't sell my EF lenses soon they'll become worthless when everyone and their dog have moved on to the RF mount. I don't shoot professionally and I'm not made of money, so I'd rather not have to write off all the money I spent on EF lenses if I can avoid some of the loss by selling them while they're still worth something.

91 REPLIES 91

"WIth all due respect I think you are a bit pessimistic there... "

 

I said "giver or take"!  Smiley Very Happy

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

"WIth all due respect I think you are a bit pessimistic there... "

 

I said "giver or take"!  Smiley Very Happy


Fair enough then! Smiley Very Happy

 

I hope that the EF, EF-M, lenses along with the XXD, XD, and M5 Mkxx series bodies continue for a while yet.  I just bought the 5DMkIV and like it a lot.  Santa also brought me the EF 70-200 L IS USM f4 MkII - not to mention that 70-300 MkII I reviewed recently...


cheers, TREVOR

"All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow", Leo Tolstoy;
"Skill in photography is acquired by practice and not by purchase" Percy W. Harris

Mine will never be obsolete coz i will continue to use them 🙂


@royd63uk wrote:

Mine will never be obsolete coz i will continue to use them 🙂



I still use my canon 400D (Rebel XTi in North America?).  It's a good camera with a very small form factor, and the low MP count can actually be an advantage.  Going back to that "obsolete" gear reminds me to work on technique rather than tech.


cheers, TREVOR

"All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow", Leo Tolstoy;
"Skill in photography is acquired by practice and not by purchase" Percy W. Harris

"Mine will never be obsolete coz i will continue to use them"

 

Hmmm, what a concept!  Smiley Happy

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

2 years give or take!


I think that's about right. DSLRs aren't going to die outright in the next few years, as there is such an established base of users and gear. But Canon's EOS R and Ni*on's Z6 and Z7 offerings are basically version 1 in a new line of mirrorless cameras and lenses. They have a ways to go to catch up to S*ny. But the trend is clear and everyone knows that the future is mirrorless, and both companies seem to be off to a decent start with their new mirrorless gear. 

 

My advice to the OP is hang on to the EF lenes he uses the most, start selling off the ones he doesn't really use, and don't invest any more money in new ones. Make use of what you have and plan to move into Canon or N*kon's mirrorless systems in due course. 

 

And speaking of DSLR price drops, I see that the Canon online store is offering NEW 6D Mark 2 bodies for $1299. That's $700 off of what it was just a little over a year ago. I wonder how much of that drop is due to the shift into mirrorless. 

 

 

" DSLRs aren't going to die outright in the next few years, as there is such an established base ..."

 

Did not make any difference to Canon when they stopped the FD and went to EF. I had one big, I mean huge, argument with our Canon rep in the middle of C&J Photography as the FD was abandoned.  I probably didn't win that argument, FD is history, but he knew where I stood on it. Plus agreement from the crowd we drew! Yeah, it was 'heated'! 

 

But in the end it was for the better and I suspect the new mount will be also.

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

" DSLRs aren't going to die outright in the next few years, as there is such an established base ..."

 

Did not make any difference to Canon when they stopped the FD and went to EF. I had one big, I mean huge, argument with our Canon rep in the middle of C&J Photography as the FD was abandoned.  I probably didn't win that argument, FD is history, but he knew where I stood on it. Plus agreement from the crowd we drew! Yeah, it was 'heated'! 

 

But in the end it was for the better and I suspect the new mount will be also.


The situations aren't all that comparable, are they? Canon has seemingly gone out of their way to make EF (and even EF-S) lenses usable on the R.

Bob
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA

Bob said, "The situations aren't all that comparable, are they?"

 

Perhaps not but there is more to that story. Canon did make a small concession to the owners of the more expensive "L" series lenses, by making a 4-element optical adapter which acted as a low power multiplier (1.26x). Also worked on a few non "L" lenses. This was intended to ease the transition from FD to EF. The price at the time was around $250, but they didn't make them for long. Canon didn't make many either and today they sell used for prices as high as $1000 if you can find one.

You can bet and rest assured the days of EF has been set. BTW, not only EF lenses but the cameras that use them. Things and times change.  Go with it or get left behind.

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!

I think the discussion about moving across to MILC is not only impacted by the tech, but by one's circumstances.   If I was younger and not already heavily invested in DSLR gear I would certainly be eyeing the emerging MILC market with interest and looking to get the R lenses and bodies to go with them as their performance reaches my requirements and expectations.  But I am not young and personally I have about $35kNZ invested in Canon glass - most of it EF or EF-S and of course I have about another $28kNZ worth of bodies to match.   So I am not rushing over to the new FF mirrorless right away.  As Canon have said there is much development ahead for that platform, and in the meantime there will likely be some new and excellent DSLR bodies out this year, which I shall consider carefully on their merits.

 

I look at the celebrated images taken back over the years that have stood the test of time and, to me, what they share in common is subject, timing, and  technqiue - certainly the tech makes some difference and it MUCH easier today to get amazing images than in times gone by.  As to the outcome: I am not a pixel peeper.  I take images that I like to look at from a reasonable distance and being retired I am not seeing the value of divesting myself of the gear I have got and know so well - with bodies, the return on investment is the use you make of them rather than the resale value.   So if I don't sell my current gear en masse, what is the ROI in getting even more right now (remember I'm retired on a pension).   The mirrorless market is in its adolescence, if not its infancy, so there is time for me to save up for the one or two great MILC bodies I might want in the future when things reach maturity - if I'm still around that is... Smiley Wink

 

 


cheers, TREVOR

"All the variety, all the charm, all the beauty of life is made up of light and shadow", Leo Tolstoy;
"Skill in photography is acquired by practice and not by purchase" Percy W. Harris
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