A Look at the Top Cameras, Lenses, and Settings on Photo Sharing Sites

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Between Flickr, 500px, and other major photo sharing sites that post EXIF data alongside photos, there’s a wealth of information online about the cameras, lenses, and settings photographers are using. Explorecams puts that information in an interactive, easy to digest infographic.

The Explorecams infographic is based on meta-data collected from over 7 million photos uploaded to services like Flickr, 500px, and Pixbay. Using ExifTool, the site pulls information about the cameras, lenses, and settings used to capture each shot and then arranges that info into an infographic chock full of useful data if you’re hunting for your next camera … or maybe just a bit of photographic trivia to use at parties.

Data compiled in the Explorecams infographic includes top cameras:

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Top lenses:

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What settings are used for most photos:

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And even the most used focal lengths, broken down by camera:

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Adding to the data-driven fun is the ability to further refine the infographic. The camera and lens info in the charts above is “global,” but you can look at data by brand too. So if you want to find out what the most-used Sony camera is (the a6000) or the most used Fuji lens (the XF 18-55mm f/2.8-4) or which iPhone is the most popular for photography (the iPhone 6) you can find those things out.

The info is probably not infallible, and some inconsistencies have been pointed out by a user on Reddit. For instance, the top Sony camera is the APS-C a6000, but the top two lenses are actually FE lenses for Sony’s full frame system. But quirks like this can be explained away (more people total use Sony full-frame cameras, even if the APS-C a6000 is the most popular) and the infographic promises to only get better with time. As more photos are uploaded, more information is collected, and the sample size gets bigger.

Updated weekly, Explorecams could become a great resource for spotting trends in the photo industry… or just figuring out what gear to buy if you want to avoid being like everybody else. Check out the infographic for yourself here.


Image credits: All charts by Explorecams and used with permission.

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