Canon and Sony Lock Out US Rental Market

Giant US rental house Lensrentals has put together its annual table of what products the market is shooting with, and Canon and Sony are clear leaders.

First off, if you want to read the full post and *all* the data that Lensrentals collects, head to its detailed blog dubbed simply Top Photography and Videography Rentals for 2025. It does exactly what it says on the tin and is highly recommended.

A couple of highlights though.

Most Popular Photography & Videography Gear of 2025

This is based on volume of rentals, not pricing, and is notable for the fact that in an industry where prime lenses are supposedly the be all and end all, the most rented items on the list are two Canon lenses.

"This makes sense," explains the company. "Rentals often serve as a versatile service for our customers, much like the versatility of a midrange zoom. That versatility continues through the list, with the first prime lens not appearing until the 17th position: the Canon RF 50mm f/1.2L."

Let's break that out into...

Top Camera Rentals for 2025

Canon and Sony lock this out completely, with the first other manufacturer on the list not appearing until number 10. The fact that it's GoPro's HERO13 Black and not the DJI Osmo Pocket 3 Gimbal is perhaps a bit of a surprise, but when you need an action camera, you need an action camera. It will be interesting to see if the likes of DJI and Insta360 with their own extremely capable offerings can creep in there next year.

No Fujifilm and only one Nikon, the Z8. Surprising.

Brand Market Share for 2025 by Revenue

Shifting from rental volume to revenue generated, Canon and Sony unsurprisingly retain their market share. With different criteria, brands with a more expensive catalogue get to appear in this list, hence the presence of high value but low volume manufacturers such as RED and Leica. Non-camera brands also get a look in, with Aputure (driven in the main by its amaran sub-brand) and Sachtler both making the list.

Most rented newly released kit of 2025? That would be the Manfrotto 500AH/190X3 Tripod Kit, the updated version of the popular Manfrotto 190 series.

Head here to unpack all the data and find out more.