Can someone still buy a new camera with all the mobile hype?

As a professional photographer, I stick to my Canon. I know the iPhone is being used by many shooters, but I’m just not into the latest   hype. However, my daughter, who is also a photographer, prefers her iPhone to her Canon. She does fabulous work. I say, more power to her! 

I like owning many cameras. I'm a professional Nikon wedding, event and portrait photographer, but I enjoy my compact Sony, my mirrorless Fuji, and my pocket super-zoom Panasonic. Photography is about having fun, whether or not you do it professionally. And most every cell phone takes great pictures. So get out there and have fun, be creative, and preserve those memories and special moments.

While camera phones are convenient and take great pictures under normal lighting conditions, they cannot compete with a quality camera/lens combination under low light, particularly when photographing the night sky. A camera is much better when trying to get a certain look with depth of field or motion in the image. 

I am a professional photographer so I have have a real camera always. But for someone who just wants pretty decent pictures to capture memories I don’t think they need an actual camera 

 Lots of good answers here. It is true that a big part of what matters is the photographer, more than the camera, up to a point. Cameras have limits. When you are taking a photo in a situation the camera can deal with, it's all about the photographer. In good natural lighting with a slow moving subject, up close, you can take a great photo with your phone. It's when you step outside the capability of your phone that it becomes important which camera you are using. You can't use an iphone to take a portrait photo of someone 20 feet away, at sunset, with backlighting. Or the example someone else provided of the owl in the tree. For a long time my subject was amateur combat sports. Mixed Martial Arts, fast action, in bad lighting, in a cage. There are always people around the cage trying to get photos with their cell phones, and yes, they get a picture, but the limitations of the camera in their phone is apparent. 

  If you want to take snapshots of your kids, and pictures of a pretty flower you notice while you are out walking, use your phone. If it's ok that the shot just didn't work out, use your phone. It's handy. I use mine all the time. When your phone can't get the shot, a real camera can. The more challenging the conditions, the more specialized the camera you will need. For fights, and weddings, I use a canon 1dXmk2. It's very big, heavy, and expensive. I use big heavy expensive lenses too. I carry a bag full of fancy lighting gear when I think I will need that. With the gear I bring I can handle almost any situation. 

  This photo was shot with just the light of that one spotlight you see at the top of the frame. The room was dark. I don't know what this website will do to the image quality, but I know it is a high quality image in terms of technical quality, because I have it printed on my wall at 30x40. I can shoot this image at every event I go to, and I have seen people trying to capture the same shot with their phones. This is a photo your cell phone can't do. 

Cameras are tools and whether you're a professional, hobbyist, or just the average Joe, it's worthwhile to consider your needs and/or situation. I shoot using everything from cinema cameras and DSLRs, to photos on my iPhone, and even $10 disposable film cameras – and each of them serves a vital purpose. Disposable film cameras are light, easy to travel with, and I can pass it to anyone else in my group or even a stranger to use without confusion. My DSLRs have a ton of features/controls, can be rigged up with flashes/monitors, and much more to provide for my needs in a studio. My iPhone is always with me for whenever the thought comes to mind – "I should take a photo of this." At the end of the day, if the goal is to take photos, the type of camera and its specs don't matter, if it doesn't FIRST serve your creative needs.

Yes try adorama out of New York or BNH camera also out of New York or even Amazon I got a lens next day

Keeping on topic of the questions you posed, let's see where this goes... 

Q: *Can you still buy a new camera with all the mobile hype*

A: Absolutely! There are varying styles of cameras though, so it's very dependent on what the buyer is looking for in a camera, compact point and shoot, Mirrorless interchangeable lens camera (MILC) Digital Single Lens Reflex camera (DSLR), super zoom bridge camera? Within some of those are different formats, Crop Sensor (APS-C), Full Frame (Traditional sensor size that is equal to 35 mm film), Micro Four Thirds (M 4/3 which uses a small sensor that allows the camera to be smaller as well). You can buy cameras at plenty of places, in person or online. Bestbuy, Amazon, BH Photo, Adorama, Henry's, Camera Canada, Walmart and the list goes on and on. 

As for the technology portion of your question, well, yes phones do a decent job and have come a long way thanks to computational photography from the use of AI. However, in Mirrorless cameras, they're now doing the same thing, eye focus tracking, automatic layering and alignment of multiple photos to enhance detail and capture more colour. But it really comes down to 2 important elements, one being physics. A phones physical sensor is tiny and just doesn't have the pixel size to capture as much light as a larger camera. The second aspect is the photographer. Smartphones have basically replaced the point and shoot Camera, but are not even close to a Mirrorless or DSLR regarding image quality and versatility. A photographer creates an image which starts before the camera takes the picture and ends well after that picture is taken through post processing (digital dark room). Most people snap a photo and don't want to deal with changing lenses and processing the photos after they get home and for those people a point and shoot Camera or even better, a smartphone will do the trick since you can upload your image immediately from your phone to share with friends and family. That's generally what people care about now days. 

A phone will never be a match for a proper camera though. 

A dedicated camera, especially a dslr, is much more versatile and powerful than the cameras on mobile devices. So if it's a serious hobby or profession, I highly recommend using one.

That said, if it's just for more casual photography, then many mobile devices have been getting better and better with their cameras. 

At the end of the day, equipment can make things easier or give versatility but its all about the photographer's ability more than the camera itself.

My viewpoint:
1) The best camera you can have is the one you have with you.
-People can't always afford high-end cameras or phones, but in today's society, they normally have something to record an image. Use this device with care to the light and shadow, and use the 12 inches behind it to compose the story and actually make a photograph.

I agree with the general sentiment in the thread that the camera doesn't make the image any more than a hammer makes a house.