We all know the vast majority of people take photos with a cell phone. It’s been this way for a long time. However, if you enjoy photography as a hobby, if you shoot genres that cell phones cannot do, or if you are a professional photographer, shooting with a cell phone will never compare to shooting with a dedicated camera. It has nothing to do with how good computational photography is becoming. It has to do with the process, the feel, and how the added capabilities of a camera transform the entire experience. As long as there are enough people who fall into these categories as we do, the industry will continue.
But, we also all know that the photography industry will never be comparable to the cell phone industry. Not only is the demand side of the market many times smaller, people don’t replace their photography gear every few years, like they do with smart phones. But no one is saying that the camera industry has to be as large as the cell phone industry. Yes, it’s pretty apparent that the camera industry as it is now is too large, and will probably shed a few players. So, a camera company has to distinguish itself to stay in the business.
This is why OMDS’ strategy is already very good. Instead of suicidally moving to the oversaturated full frame segment, they are sticking with the smaller format of M4/3. The format still has plenty of advantages, especially for the genres OMDS is focusing on, and its so-called disadvantages are negligible. Yes, there are some well-known things that the OMDS needs to do better with than Olympus had; and yes, the brand will need to continue to evolve. But if we look at the history of photography, Olympus has always been right there at the front of the pack when it comes to pushing photography forward. It only really changed when Olympus corporate leadership stopped supporting it.