Camera sales figures at the end of the year offer insight into key trends – but what do the 2024 sales figures for used gear say about the industry? On Thursday, December 19, the US-based rental company LensRentals shared statistics for its most purchased gear of the year, a list that suggests photographers don’t mind buying tech that’s a few years old.
As the name suggests, LensRentals is probably most known for its gear rental program. But the company also has a “try before you buy” program that allows creatives to rent gear, then apply the rental fee towards the total cost if they decide they want to keep it for good. Or, creatives that know what they want can skip the rental and go straight to browsing used gear for sale. Like with its rentals, LensRentals says it carefully inspects its used gear for sale, a sign of a more trustworthy place to buy used cameras.
LensRentals’ list of the most rented gear for 2024 shared last week contained some surprises like a DSLR that still outrented most other mirrorless brands. But the company’s list of most sold used gear also contains a few surprises. Gimbals dominate the list of most purchased gear overall, while the list also contains a number of cameras that are several years old, including the 2020 GoPro Hero9 Black (3rd), the 2015 Sony A7S II (8th), and the 2018 DJI Mavic 2 Pro (10th).
LensRentals take? The age of the most purchased gear could suggest that imaging tech has slowed down. “Does this and the statistics showing that people are using and buying cameras that are a few years old prove that technological development has slowed down in recent years? Yeah, I think that’s probably safe to say at this point,” the blog post reads.
Separating the lists by category reveals additional insight, with the most purchased camera being the 2017 Canon EOS C200 cinema camera, followed by the GoPro Hero9 Black, GoPro Hero10 Black, and Sony A7S II.
Cinema cameras and camcorders take up eight of the top 20 spots on the list of most purchased cameras. Excluding the cinema models, that same top 20 list has five mirrorless cameras and yet DSLRs aren’t far behind with three models on the list, including the Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 6D Mark II and the Nikon D850.
The list of the most-purchased used lenses offers some similar insight. While the prevalence of the well-loved but high-priced focal lengths like 24-70mm f/2.8 optics on the list is hardly surprising, the number of DSLR lenses still on the list could be. The list includes seven Canon EF mount lenses, as well as two Nikon DSLR lenses.
The list of the most purchased used accessories also contains some older gear, despite the Oculus Quest VR headsets taking the top two spots. The 2021 MacBook Pro with the M1 chip also made the list.
But does the data really show that the development of camera technology has slowed? That’s one possible take, but for the most insight, the used camera sales data would need to be compared to that of new-in-box camera sales. I would be much more surprised if DSLR lenses were outselling mirrorless in the new market. Photographers browsing used gear are more likely to be looking for a bargain and buying into a DSLR kit is one of the most affordable ways to get a full-frame sensor and pro-grade features on a tight budget right now.
Camera technology seems to grow in spurts, with more minor growth in between key technical feats, so 2024 could very well be sitting at a slow point in the industry. Resolution has reached the point where it’s not hard to find a 50MP camera that has pore-level texture. I don’t think we really need cameras with more resolution than that pore level detail outside of a few specific use case scenarios, and photographers would need faster computers for such a jump in file sizes. The biggest advancement in recent years is arguably Sony’s global shutter allowing for flash at any shutter speed, or perhaps Canon's ability to move the focal point to wherever your eye is looking through the viewfinder. But, both features are reserved for the priciest cameras that few can afford.
I don’t think it’s terribly surprising to find gear that’s five years old on a list of the most sold used cameras; after all, many of those buying the latest cameras want a brand new model. But what I find more surprising is that the list didn’t include any compact cameras. Thanks to social media and Gen Z trends, compact cameras are making a comeback so steep that it’s easier to find them used rather than new. While LensRentals used store includes popular options like the Canon G7 X series and the Ricoh GR III, those didn’t make the list. Perhaps that’s because demand has pushed the cost of these used compacts higher than the original list price.
What I think photographers should take away from the 2024 statistics is that the pressure to have the latest, greatest gear is unfounded. Sure, the newest cameras have some great features if you can afford them. But are your Instagram followers or the people viewing your prints going to know that you used an older camera or even a DSLR? Probably not. That makes me feel a bit better about the Fujifilm X-T4 and DJI Mini 2 in my current gear kit.
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