Can you believe 2019 is already in the rear view mirror? We can't. Seems like we made a pit stop in March and now it's almost 2020... weird. 2019 brought some pretty great new gear and hopefully brought you some pretty killer images.
Just below we've outlined our most popular products categorized by highest number of overall rentals. It's more of a "huh...that's interesting" kind of thing instead of a necessarily scientific cross section of the entire photo industry. Still, it is kind of fun to look at what the trends are in our neck of the woods.
So..without further ado... here is a list of our most rented items in 2019:
Our Most Rented Gear of 2019
Ah, yes. The legendary Matthews Heavy Duty Sandbag reigns supreme. Clearly our most technically sophisticated item, the Heavy Duty Sandbag is known for...being heavy. Jokes aside, a sandbag does make a lot of sense to rent. Considering they're often all that stand in the way of talent getting hit in the head by a falling light due to a stray gust of wind, it's a good thing to have two or ten extra of these on set.
Something that is a bit surprising is that it's not a lens, not a light, but a full-on DSLR body comes in at number two. Think about that for a second... Sandbags are ubiquitous on photo and video sets, utilizing several at a time with several left over. Our second most rented piece of equipment in the ENTIRE YEAR of 2019 is a DSLR body. Maybe I'm the only one that finds that fact interesting. Canon is also very well represented in this list with the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 8th most rented items of the year. The only other camera manufacturer represented is Sony with two lenses bringing up numbers 9 and 10.
Next, let's look at the most rented camera bodies of 2019. We already know that the Canon EOS 5D Mk IV sits comfortably at the top.
Most Rented Camera Bodies of 2019
| 1) Canon EOS 5D Mk IV | 6) Canon EOS 7D Mk II |
| 2) Sony Alpha a7S II | 7) Nikon D750 |
| 3) Sony AX100 Camcorder | 8) Canon EOS 70D |
| 4) Sony Alpha a7R III | 9) GoPro Hero 7 Black |
| 5) Nikon D850 | 10) Sony Alpha a7R IV |
Judging by manufacturer, Sony is the winner here with four camera bodies coming in the top 10. 6 full frame camera bodies made the top 10 most rented. Of the top 10, 5 are DSLRs and 3 are mirrorless bodies. It's also no small feat for the Sony Alpha a7R IV to be on this list, considering how late in the year it was released and put into circulation. Next, let's look at the most rented lenses.
Most Rented Lenses of 2019
It's no surprise that this list is comprised mostly of 24-70mm and 70-200mm zooms, considering these are easily the most popular focal lengths for weddings, portraits, street photography, and everything in between. Canon and Sony split the most contributions at 4 each with Nikon adding two to the list. Of particular note, and you can't make this stuff up, is that both 16-35mm lenses represented from Canon and Sony were rented the EXACT same number of times, year to date. Go figure.
Most Rented Grip of 2019
Nothing too surprising here. Sandbags, C-stands, and appleboxes sit at the top while tripods and gimbals show up in the bottom half. We thought throwing in all the C-stands together would be cheating. Otherwise they would have ruled over literally everything else, taking home the "overall most popular" crown.
Most Rented Lights of 2019
Continuous lighting makes up the majority in this category, taking 5 of the top 10 spots (all LEDs, by the way). It perhaps should not come as a surprise that a Canon 600EX flash comes in second, considering the second most overall rented item this past year was a Canon DSLR. Still, looking at this list it's easy to draw the conclusion that continuous light has found a strong foothold, likely for both video and still shooters.
Most Rented Audio of 2019
Lavalier and shotgun mics take up nearly all of the top 10 most rented pieces of audio equipment of 2019. The Sennheiser G3 is a staple in the world of lavalier mics, with its update, the G4, also making the list. Can you hear me now? Yeah. I could the first time, thanks.
2020 will be an interesting year in the world of photography. It's clear the industry is shifting. We expect the trend of more capable equipment coming in smaller and lighter packages will continue. We wouldn't be surprised to see the most rented camera body become a mirrorless body next year with a manufacturer's name that starts with S and ends with ONY. Only time will tell, but we'll be here for the ride.
By the way, have you looked at all of the sweet, sweet gear we have for sale? You should look at it. Do it now.