People have been claiming MFT is dead or dying for a while now, but it’s been adopted widely enough by different camera and lens manufacturers that it’s not yet its time to go gentle into the night.
In fact, MFT’s use in video by BMD and Panasonic with the original Pocket, Pocket 4K, GH5, BGH1, and now the upcoming GH6 has revitalized it – it’s become the more widely accessible digital equivalent to Super 16.
Which is why if MFT is jettisoned by BMD then that may mark a turning point in its lifecycle.
Along those lines, I’d give the L-mount more time before being certain of its death – it’s new enough, and its full-frame coverage, along with its 2-cm flange distance, make it suitable for video.
Though its baffling that it’s being targeted for advertisement only towards photographers and lens makers, and not for the video world.
If it’s not widely adopted within this decade, then the L-mount might just peter out. Unless maybe Panasonic solely buttress it by using it in their full-frame camera line.
But I’d like to see the L-mount, or something similar, becoming the Super 35/full-frame equivalent of MFT as far as low-budget/independent cinema and videography are concerned, as a counterweight to EF and PL.
Arri seem intent on standardizing the LPL mount – they even quietly swapped the Alexa 65’s XPL mount with LPL along with that of their newer 65 and large-format lenses; their upcoming Super 35 4K camera will also have native LPL mount, and it appears set to become the dominant standard for high-end cinema.
Edit:
robert Hart wrote:ARRI has apparently allowed their LPL-Mount to be duplicated at no charge with the intention that it becomes a future standard.
To my knowledge, that’s only for lens makers. Camera manufacturers will still have to license it from Arri, just like they’d have to do it for RF and E mounts from Canon and Sony.
Full-frame coverage, with a 2- or maximum 4-cm flange distance, seems to be increasingly solidifying as a standard for camera and lens mounts, even if the actual sensor is smaller than full frame.
So if BMD design a similar proprietary, native mount for their newer or near-future cameras which is interchangeable with EF and PL/LPL, that might just keep a lot of people content.
What’s more, a new proprietary mount will also give BMD an opportunity to design and develop their own line of full-frame, mid-end cine lenses.
They already have the software ecosystem – imagine an accompanying hardware ecosystem including lenses. That’d be a great competition for everyone from DJI to Arri.