Cameras like the Fujifilm X100VI have pushed the retro look into the spotlight, but just how trendy is that old-school look? A recently revealed list of product design award winners has retro-inspired cameras outnumbering the high-end shooters.
The IF Design Award winners, announced earlier this month, is largely dominated by retro-styled cameras like the Fujifilm X100VI and Pentax 17, but also includes cameras like the Sony A9 III, Canon EOS R1, Nikon Z6 III and even the DJI Osmo Pocket 3.
The IF Design Awards is an annual contest that aims to recognize excellence in product design, among other design categories. The list of annual winners always includes a number of different cameras, and 2025 is no exception.
To be considered, the cameras need to launch within a certain time frame, which excludes older models from the earnings. Entries into the contest are paid, which often means smaller brands aren’t in the running for the awards.
Fujifilm
Fujifilm garnered eight of the sixteen awarded stills cameras on the list – a key player in the retro camera design craze and one of the key reasons that the retro design outnumbers other cameras in the awards.
Both the original Fujifilm X100VI and the 90th anniversary limited edition is on the list, along with the X-M5 and the X-T50. The instant film cameras Instax Wide 400, Mini 99 and Mini LiPlay also earned design awards, along with the 90th anniversary edition of the Instax Mini Evo (the Instax Mini Link 3 printer scooped an award as well). The medium format Fujifilm GFX 100S II also earned an IF Design Award for 2025.
But beyond actual products, Fujifilm’s Film Simulations also earned an IF Design Award for the second year in a row. These have now been around for 20 years, but 2024 brought introductions like the Reala Ace color profile and the dedicated Film Simulation dial on the X-T50.
Fujifilm’s list of winners for the 2025 awards also includes the Fujinon GF 500mm f/5.6 LM OIS WR and XF 16-55mm f/2.8 R LM WR II.
Canon
Canon’s flagship EOS R1 garnered an IF Design Award for 2025. The 2024 launch embodies Canon’s top-of-the-line action-oriented features, including a fast autofocus and 40fps burst, along with usability features like eye control and weather-sealing.
But Canon’s high-end model geared towards high resolution also earned honors. The Canon EOS R5 Mark II is also on the list of 2025 winners, with its 45MP sensor, 8K video, eye control and predictive autofocus.
For lenses, the Canon RF 10-20mm f/4 L IS STM and RF 24-105mm f/2.8 L IS USM Z also earned honors.
Canon also won an IF Gold Award – the highest honor in the competition – but for the equipment that manufactures sensors and semiconductors rather than for a camera itself. The Canon AX07 earned the gold for maximizing efficiency and reducing power and water consumption along with the "playful geometry of this design.”
Sony
For Sony, the high-end A9 III is the brand’s only stills camera on the list, with the Sony PXW-Z200 camcorder and Burano interchangeable lens cinema camera also earned design awards. The Sony A9 III’s unique feature is its global shutter, which not only helps eliminate distortion but enables flash photography beyond traditional flash sync limits.
Nikon
The sole Nikon camera on the IF Design Awards list for 2025 is the Nikon Z6 III. The third iteration in the Z6 series brings some of the high-end performance of the Z8 and Z9 into a mid-tier camera with a lower price and smaller body size. The camera’s IF Award page notes the Z6 II’s high-speed shooting and 6K 60p RAW video.
Panasonic
Both Panasonic’s high-end full-frame camera and budget-minded models have made the 2025 IF Design Award list. The newly launched Panasonic Lumix S1R II is recognized for the features crammed inside a still fairly compact body. The award also notes the battery grip with a layout that “creates a sense of unity” with the camera itself.
The Panasonic Lumix S9 also took an award, but one that looks at not just the camera. Instead, the S9’s award is based on how the camera, the kit lens, and the Lumix Lab build a new experience for everyday consumers that enjoy sharing images on social media. The award notes the camera’s compact design and the custom colors enabled in the app.
The Panasonic Lumix S 100mm f/2.8 Macro also received an IF Design Award.
Video and drones
The DJI Osmo Pocket 3 arguably has the most unusual design for a camera, but the gimbal-camera device earned an IF Design Award for its stable video setup and the ability tho easily switch from horizontal to vertical.
The Blackmagic Pyxis 6K earned the Gold Award for its mix of compact, customizable design and price. The award organizers said that the camera “has revolutionized and democratized the cinema camera market by producing a Hollywood-grade camera at a low price.”
The HooverAir X1 Pro and Pro Max drones, along with a controller designed to be used with one hand or two, also earned honors in the annual contest. (As noted above, the Sony PXW-Z200 camcorder and Burano interchangeable lens cinema camera also earned awards.)
View the full list of award winners at the IF Design Award website.
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