I have found no report on market share of each digital camera manufacturer. I am sure that data exists somewhere. When I read camera advertising in the Los Angeles Times the clear winner is Canon in terms of amount of space used for that brand. Most of the advertising is for Canon and Nikon. I am enrolled in a digital photography class and of 15 people but only two do not own Canon cameras. Clearly Canon has done a better marketing job.
That is sad because there are many other brands that produce excellent products. Consumer Reports July 2009 issue lists four brands of point and shoot cameras that are “standouts: Canon, Casio, Panasonic, and Samsung.”
There may be perfectly reasonable reasons for Panasonic and Casio poor marketing through camera shops. One might be that by direct sales they cut out distributors and retailers and can earn more on every sale.
Perhaps auto manufacturers could sell directly to consumers. That would certainly be one way of increasing profits. Maybe not.
My Panasonic Lumix FZ28 is referred to as a Superzoom. It is a point and shoot camera that looks like an SLR. The difference is that there are no interchangeable lenses and it weighs less than 15 ounces with the battery installed.
The results I have obtained from this camera have met all of my expectations. The super zoom goes out 428mm. That means an object 700 feet away looks like it was right in front of me when I shoot the picture. The high ISO rating of 6400 (In [HIGH SENS.] in scene mode, the ISO sensitivity automatically switches to between [ISO1600] and [ISO6400] and the available flash range also differs.) enable me photograph without a flash in many instances.
Coast Contact 