This is the time of year that all the Japanese manufacturers release both their previous year production numbers as well as estimated shipments for the coming year. Here are the DSLR production numbers (note that these are for fiscal years, and Canon's ends three months earlier than Nikon and Olympus).
| Company | 2003 | 2004 est. |
| Canon | 580k | 1400k |
| Nikon | 300k | 1000k |
| Olympus | ? | 150k |
| Total Market | ~1200k | ~3000k |
Nikon appears to have lost the top position it apparently held as late as 2002, though the D70 sales appear to be tightening the gap. Slowing down the D100 plant and transitioning it to D70 production in the third and fourth quarter seems to have hurt Nikon's 2003 production numbers considerably. Also note that these are production numbers and don't necessarily reflect sell-through. For example, the D100, D1x, and D70 are all pretty much out of stock through much of the US right now, while only the Canon 1D Mark II is out of stock at most shops. The Olympus estimates include their upcoming low cost DSLR, by the way. Once again SLRs are a two-horse race between Canon and Nikon, and with both growing at over 140% a year and controlling over two-thirds of the market, they'll be nearly impossible to dethrone.