I have the feeling it’s been years that we have been talking about the paradigm change in serious photography, with the change from the good old pentaprism and its reflex mirror to fully electronic mirrorless systems. World’s two biggest camera makers (apart from Apple of course), Canon and Nikon, for years tried to avoid the unavoidable. Meanwhile both companies are working on new camera systems. Nikon has already officially confirmed this.

When talking to Canon and Nikon employees in recent years, they never tired of highlighting the benefits of their SLR cameras. If you met the same employees after work or after they had changed companies again, they usually had at least one or the other good word for cameras from Sony, Fuji, Panasonic, Olympus or Leica – all companies that have moved away from SLR cameras to so-called mirrorless cameras and are relying on this newer technology.

Of course, Nikon also offered such mirrorless cameras with the recently discontinued Nikon 1 series, a system with modest ambitions, demand and successes. There have also been mirrorless cameras from Canon for some time, but these are also aimed at the entry-level and hobby segment. For higher expectations, both companies prefer larger SLR cameras.

But that should change soon. There are growing signs that both leading camera makers will bring mirrorless cameras with full-frame sensors onto the market before the end of this year.

Full-frame sensors, as everyone knows, are also called 35mm sensors, and were only for expensive professional cameras until the launch of the Sony A7. The sensors are almost exactly the same size as the previous 35mm photo film, and thereby significantly larger than sensors in mobile phone cameras or compact cameras.

Large sensors have the advantage that they capture more light and thus deliver better images even in the dark. It is also easier to blur the background of a photo. In addition, old lenses from the film era function exactly as they did then, since the sensor is the same size as the film of that time. On the other hand, such sensors are not the fastest, require more space and are usually more expensive than smaller sensors.

Professionals and ambitious photographers usually agree that full-frame sensors are great. Only some complain that one hardly sees the difference to smaller sensors, and that the surcharge does not justify the advantages. Especially since software can also tickle astonishing things out of smaller sensors.

So the debate about sensor size seems clear. What about mirror or mirrorless?

Photographers are less in agreement when it comes to the mirrors or rather the mirror box — the name-giving component of every SLR camera. The mirror and its box allow you to look through the lens with the viewfinder and see exactly what is happening. On the other hand, it takes up a lot of space and prevents you from seeing what happens in front of the camera when the photo is taken and the mirror folds up to let light onto the sensor. Oh, and folding up and down in fractions of a second is not quiet either, as one hears again and again at press conferences. Plus the mirror lockup causes vibrations.

With mirrorless cameras without a mirror box, you can only look through the lens indirectly. The viewfinder is a screen. It shows what the sensor sees. This way you can see what the photo will look like before you press the shutter button. Such cameras are usually easier to handle and cheaper. In the past, however, mirrorless cameras were also slow, not very durable and not particularly reliable. In recent years, these gaps have closed to classic SLR cameras. In some areas, mirrorless cameras even surpass their counterparts with mirrors.

Nevertheless, the traditional brands Canon and Nikon have remained loyal to SLR in recent years.

Now, however, is the time for a change.

It looks as if Canon and Nikon will also jump on this mirrorless train. Gone are the days when it looked as if the two companies were holding back on the new technology in order not to compete with their existing offerings themselves.

It has been rumored for years that Canon and Nikon are experimenting with mirrorless full-frame cameras. But recently the rumors became confirmed news. Nikon has made the plans public in a press release and a teaser video:

“Nikon is pleased to announce the development of a Nikon FX full-frame mirrorless camera and Nikkor lenses with a new bayonet,” the company said. Thanks to over 100 years of experience, “a new dimension of optical performance is to be opened up”.

Neither the video nor the press release reveal any concrete details. However, a look into the rumor mill shows possible functions of the new camera(s), first photos, and we are also talking about a release date on August 23, 2018.

The most striking feature of the first photos is the large mount, used to attach interchangeable lenses to the camera. Some observers have already speculated that Nikon could use even larger photo sensors with the same bayonet in the future.

Canon too?

The facts are much more sparse at Canon. However, rumors also suggest that a mirrorless full-frame camera could be introduced before the end of this year. We are currently talking about the second week of September.

The timing would definitely fit. The important photo fair Photokina will open on September 26. Manufacturers are happy to show off their recently announced gear.

Howsoever, this development is no coincidence. Sony and Leica were simply faster while the development away from full-frame cameras with mirror boxes has been clearly evident for years. The practical advantages increasingly speak in favor of mirrorless cameras.

It can also be assumed that Canon and Nikon will soon be launching mirrorless system cameras that are not just a further development, but have been developed from scratch and take into account the latest state of the art technology – especially with regard to sensor performance and image algorithms, as well as the development of new lenses with new connections and shorter back focal distances due to the elimination of the mirror box.

Technically, one doesn’t see many advantages of a SLR camera these days. It is larger, heavier and more unwieldy than the mirrorless brothers and sisters, and has the disadvantage of the mirror lockup which can lead to blurring at longer exposure times. Sure, no image is shown in the viewfinder at the moment of shutter release. The same way I see no image when blinking the eyes…

Last but not least, the mirror case is a mechanically very complex and expensive part that can be substituted without disadvantages, not least in order to save production costs.

Still, for me it will he hard to say goodbye to the clear, crisp view through the pentaprism viewfinder. And gonna miss that “clack, clack” mirror lockup sound.

But as with mobile phones and ringtones, we’ll sure get uploadable retro lockup sounds…