Japan’s Fujifilm expects mirrorless cameras to overtake DSLRs

NEW DELHI:  Imaging technology company Fujifilm expects the demand from mirrorless cameras to overtake that of DSLRs in the coming years. Fujifilm, being a relatively new player as against Nikon and Canon in this segment in India, expects to benefit majorly from the worldwide change in customer preference as it is present only in the booming mirrorless category.

“In global markets such as Europe and the United States, mirrorless has already overtaken DSLRs. Its share in India had gone up from 9 per cent to 21 per cent in just one financial year.

By end of FY22, we expect this to grow over 40 per cent and in future it will replicate global phenomenon,” said Arun Babu, General Manager, Electronic Imaging and Optical Device, Fujifilm India.

Currently, India’s digital camera market is dominated by DSLRs (digital single-lens reflex camera) and the share of mirrorless is pegged at little over 20 per cent. The digital camera market is pegged at about Rs 2,700-2,800 crore.

“Unlike other players, we sell only mirrorless here and we will definitely benefit from the change. Our head office sees India as a very potential market,” Babu added. According to estimates, more than four lakh units of cameras were sold last year.

The entry-level cameras face stiff competition from smart phones as imaging quality in these devices has improved drastically in the last 4-5 years.

Since 2015-16, camera sales have seen a 5-6 per cent decline year-on-year. Cameras, however, are irreplaceable in multiple areas, be it weddings, professional shoots or making a large canvas.

"In recent times, emergence of Vloggers and Youtubers are also aiding sales,” he added.

The company has recently launched X-S10 (X-S10) in its flagship X series range of mirrorless digital cameras at a starting price of Rs 99,999, and that goes up to Rs 1.49 lakh.

The camera is equipped with a 26.1 megapixel X-Trans CMOS 4 sensor, a high-speed image processing engine and in-body image stabilization.