The 16 largest photography companies in the world have just been revealed and some of the top contenders are a complete surprise. From Shutterstock to Sony and Leica to Lifetouch (don’t worry, we hadn’t heard of them either), the list covers everything from manufacturers of some of the best professional cameras (opens in a new tab) to some of best photo sites (opens in a new tab).
According to Zion Market Research via Yahoo (opens in a new tab)the value of the photography market is expected to reach $149.4 billion by the end of 2028, reflecting 4.4% growth from 2021. Topping the list are the usual suspects… Sony takes first place with huge revenue of $8.44 billion in 2021, Canon comes in second place with revenue of $5.11 billion and Fujifilm, which monopolizes the medium format digital camera (opens in a new tab) market, came in third with $1.71 billion (a pretty huge difference between the top three spots).
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Nestled in fourth place is a company I had never heard of before today called Lifetouch. The Minnesota-based company provides professional photography services to schools and families (essentially the equivalent of H. Tempest if you live in the UK), but it made $1.5 billion in 2021 – not bad for a company that sells a service!
| Rank | camera company | 2021 turnover |
| 1. | Sony group company | $8.44 billion |
| 2. | Canon Inc. | $5.11 billion |
| 3. | Fuji film | $1.71 billion |
| 4. | touch of life | $1.5 billion |
| 5. | Nikon | $1.16 billion |
| 6. | Eastman Kodak Co. | $1.15 billion |
| 7. | panasonic | $1 billion |
| 8. | Getty Images | $0.91 billion |
| 9. | Shutterstock Inc. | $0.77 billion |
| ten. | B&H Photography | $460 million |
| 11. | Leica camera | $432.4 million |
| 12. | Polaroid | $300 million |
| 13. | Ricoh Co Ltd | $116.9 million |
| 14. | Adorama Camera, Inc. | $100 million |
| 15. | OM digital solutions | $43.7 million |
| 16. | Hasselblad | $38.6 million |
In fifth place, Nikon came in just behind Lifetouch with total revenue of $1.16 billion and is best known for its impressive DSLR lineup. (opens in a new tab) and F-mount lenses and more recently its mirrorless cameras such as the flagship Nikon Z9 (opens in a new tab) and the best Nikon Z lenses (opens in a new tab).
Despite a few difficult years, Eastman Kodak Co and Panasonic Holding Corp entered the top 16 with revenues of $1.16 billion and $1 billion respectively, while Getty Images slipped to 8th place with revenue of 0 $.91 billion, posting a 12.67% increase over 2020 earnings.
The New York-based Shutterstock image library with $0.77 billion in revenue. New York retailer B&H Photo reported sales of $460 million, while Leica (opens in a new tab) just missed out on a top 10 spot with $432.4 million in revenue.
Finally, in the bottom five (though that doesn’t make them mediocre by any means, hundreds haven’t been ranked at all) are Polaroid, makers of some of the best instant cameras, Ricoh, which makes everything from compact cameras to binoculars and 360° cameras (opens in a new tab), famous American retailer of Adorama cameras, OM Digital Solutions (formerly Olympus) is located at no. 15, while Swedish high-end medium format camera maker Hasselblad made the list with revenue of $38.6 million.
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