Why Samsung Should Have Stuck it Out In Photography

Image Credit: Samsung

A decade ago, in the hallowed halls of the now defunct Photokina show in Cologne, Germany, photographers, journalists, editors, and all sorts of other industry movers and shakers were elbowing each other out of the way to get closer to a trade booth where a brand’s newly launched flagship models were being admired. But the most popular booth of 2014 didn’t belong to Sony, Nikon, or even Canon… it belonged to Samsung.

The buzz and hype were mainly down to the NX1, an APS-C mirrorless that was set to lead the charge for Samsung, but in truth the momentum had been building for a while, with a succession of innovative and impressive cameras that weren’t afraid to pioneer new technology. With a future looking so bright, it seems such a shame that, as we all know, Samsung stepped back from the photo industry and the fairytale came to an abrupt end. Here’s why I think Samsung could have (and should have) stuck it out in the photography game.

Image Credit: Matty Graham

Let’s start with that flagship camera, the NX1. Now, despite this camera being launched a decade ago, the specs list would still put some of today’s cameras to shame. Built around that 28.2-megapixel APS-C sensor, the NX1 achieved a very clever trick of marrying together features that appealed to a great number of photographers. Landscapers were reassured by that resolution, enabling large prints, while sports and wildlife photographers could take advantage of a Hybrid AF system that made use of 205 Phase Detection points and a 15 frames per second burst rate.

Built around a quality magnesium alloy chassis, the NX1 could even capture 4K video and offered a 3-inch LCD with a tilting design to make short work of awkward compositions. Backed up by the fan-favorite 50-150mm f/2.8 lens, this camera proved that Samsung could mix it with the best, and if they had continued in the industry, they would likely have followed up with an even better model. Used versions of the NX1 still hold their value and are sought after on used camera retailer platforms.

But there’s more to the story than just the NX1, as Samsung was a brave brand that pushed the envelope with cameras like the Galaxy NX; a mirrorless camera that used an Android interface. With the LCD looking more like a smartphone than a camera, the Wi-Fi, 3G, and GPS features enabled photographers to accurately geotag image locations and share and upload photos quickly and easily. This was at a time when Canon and Nikon were lagging in the mirrorless race and hadn’t even released their first mirrorless full-frame camera.

Samsung had a lot of strings to its bow that created synergy with the camera market. Along with bodies and lenses, the brand made its own memory cards and also sold hard drives to store imagery — in a sense, they had a more connected ecosystem than brands who focused solely on the cameras, and this ecosystem would likely have grown further had Samsung stayed the course.

Image credit: Samsung

Another reason I believe Samsung should have stayed in the fight is because of precisely that — the industry is in a constant battle to win over each other’s fan base, custom, and loyalty. Having more brands in that fight encourages competition and pushes innovation. Having fewer brands in the battle encourages higher pricing and potentially a slower rollout of updated camera models. Competition in any field always benefits the consumer, and photography is no different.

If you’ll allow me some self-indulgence, probably my personal favorite Samsung was the NX11. Built around a 14.6-megapixel APS-C sensor and offering a shrunken down body that had the feel of a DSLR but far lighter and more portable, its intuitive handling, easy-to-navigate Menu system, and decent EVF made it my weapon of choice for throwing in my camera bag and hitting the city in search of photos.

Captured with the NX11. Image Credit: Matty Graham

If there’s an award for the best, last camera a brand has ever made, then the NX1 surely wins hands down, and if you’ve never used the NX1, I encourage you to seek one out and see what the fuss was about. I think the photo world is still poorer because of the absence of Samsung cameras, and I can only wonder how good Samsung bodies would have been today if they had stayed in the game. While I’d like to be positive and point to newer names taking Samsung’s place, such as DJI collaborating with Hasselblad, unfortunately, I fear other big names may eventually fall away and focus on other non-photography core areas of their business. Let’s hope I’m proved wrong.