That gap between GoPro’s reputation and its ambitions is something the company is working to overcome. I recently sat down with GoPro’s Abraham Kislevitz, Senior Creative Director, and Chris Prado, Director of Communications, Brand & Product, to discuss how the ILS came to be, why photography has become a bigger priority and what it takes to be seen as more than an action camera company.

More than an action camera

Mitchell Clark

For the unfamiliar, the Mission 1 Pro ILS is GoPro’s take on a compact, interchangeable-lens camera, featuring a Micro Four Thirds mount (though without any lens contacts) and a Type 1 (128 mm²) sensor. Although it uses a Micro Four Thirds lens mount, its Type 1 sensor is substantially smaller than a conventional Four Thirds sensor, so the same lens captures a narrower view on the ILS than on a typical Micro Four Thirds camera.

But the camera’s design isn’t the only thing shaping how people understand it. The brand name on the front brings expectations of its own. As Kislevitz put it, the assumption is: “GoPro is an action camera company, therefore ILS is an action camera.”

For Kislevitz, though, that’s an oversimplification of both the camera and the company. “Yes, we are traditionally known as an action camera company, but we are a capture company,” he said. For the ILS specifically, Kislevitz draws a distinction between it and a typical action camera. “The ILS is a small, mountable, let’s call it cinema camera that can take photos, but it might not necessarily be an action camera,” he said. “It’s not the camera that can go underwater, it’s not the camera that you are likely gonna throw in the sand.”

Kislevitz instead emphasizes the Pro ILS’s compact size and ability to go where other cinema cameras might not. But getting people to separate those qualities from GoPro’s action-camera identity remains a challenge. “GoPro is known for being GoPro, so I think trying to communicate anything but action camera, action camera, this thing goes on top of mountains and on people’s helmets, is a tough marketing battle.”

Rethinking the photo experience

Abraham Kislevitz

Broadening what people expect from GoPro also means rethinking how its cameras work for still photography. For the ILS, that wasn’t the original focus. “It definitely started as this little pocket cinema camera,” said Kislevitz.

However, that single purpose began to shift slightly during product development. “Throughout the development process, we started putting cages and the grip that we have on it, and as you hold it in that form factor, and you’re using it as a cinema camera, it’s kind of like, oh, wow, this would make a lot of sense to be able to snap really great photos with this thing,” Kislevitz told me. 

When it came to the push for a better photography experience on GoPro cameras, it wasn’t the result of consumer feedback. Instead, the call came from inside the house. “Honestly, a lot of it was internal. Myself, our resident photographer, Jensen, we both were kind of like, this could be much, much better,” he told me. “We would both like to use this, and these are areas of opportunity that we see that this product should have developments on.” 

Mitchell Clark

Kislevitz was aware from the beginning that the form factor could make the ILS useful as a stills camera. But before the recent photo update, the shooting experience didn’t live up to that potential. “There’s a loud GoPro beep when you take a photo, there’s a delay, it says processing on the back, it goes black, you don’t see the photo that you’re taking,” he said. 

“I mean, just down to the sound, the first time I ever used ILS, I was in Tokyo, and I was on the train taking a photo, and it would do the beep,” Kislevitz recounted. He explained that he would mute the beeps for photos, but he wants that audio cue for recording videos, which resulted in constantly switching settings back and forth. While it may seem like a small detail, he realized even the shutter sound needed reconsideration: “We need sounds for the little snap that’s not super obnoxious when you’re inside a room, because now you’re taking photos and you have a camera that can take photos indoors.”

That time spent using the camera out in the real world is what sparked the push for a new photo experience. “As we were using these cameras out in the field, it became very clear that we should go rewrite the photo experience with this product so that it became more like an actual point-and-shoot photo camera experience,” Kislevitz said. 

An unexpected audience

Mitchell Clark

The ILS is also finding users outside the audience people might associate with GoPro. “The other group that it’s been really fun to see using this camera and seeking it out are people who love to shoot vintage glass, and who are coming from a more film world,” Prado told me.  

Prado said that part of that audience is the direct result of the Micro Four Thirds mount, because it’s a highly adaptable system. “We’ve had these users coming up to us being like, I haven’t been able to shoot this crazy piece of glass that I’ve had on my shelf for so long, and finally now I can get this really easy adapter, adapted to ILS, and now I’m shooting digital,” he said. 

Kislevitz added that he’s also been seeing lots of creative uses for the ILS via his social media algorithms, and he’s experimented with his own as well. For example, he told me he adapted the ILS to his telescope, and has been able to get photos of the moon with it. 

In all, the team has been enjoying seeing how people are using the new camera, and how far it’s reaching. “I think those niche groups are definitely finding it, and there’s a lot of different niche-y groups that are adding up into this fun, experimental corner of photography that’s really embracing it,” said Kislevitz. “I don’t think I’ve seen this many positive experiences with GoPro in a long time.”

Still a work in progress

Mitchell Clark

While Kislevitz is enjoying the response to the ILS, he is under no illusions about the camera’s limitations. He’s upfront about the main limitation: “I think the number one thing that we see with ILS, obviously, is autofocus.”

“You hear both sides, where it’s kind of like, hey, actually, I’m using this vintage piece of glass, and I’m really slowing my process down, and I’m shooting with intention,” Kislevitz said. On the other hand, for photographers who want to work quickly, manual focus remains an obstacle to the point-and-shoot experience. “As a super-fast point-and-shoot photographer, autofocus is kind of table stakes for a lot of that,” he told me.  

GoPro’s reputation for durability also raises questions about the lenses people pair with ILS. Kislevitz sees potential in that realm, too. “I think there’s an opportunity to make really tiny lenses, make pancake lenses, make weather-resistant lenses, that kind of thing, so there’s opportunity, for sure,” he said. Of course, many such lenses do already exist for the Micro Four Thirds mount, but the lack of lens contacts on the GoPro ILS limits that pool of options.

Who is the ILS for? 

Kislevitz is quick to say that this camera isn’t for everyone. However, he still sees an audience for it. “I don’t recommend [the ILS] if you’re just looking for a stills camera. You’re gonna want a camera that has autofocus, you’re gonna want something that is made for that experience,” he explained. “But if you want this amazing video camera, where you can just flip it into 4K 240fps, or shoot 960 fps… plus you want to be able to have that photo experience at the same time without having to bring another device, that’s where I think that this kind of slots in.”

Abraham Kislevitz

For him, it largely comes down to size: “If you are in a situation where size matters, that’s where I see it being a differentiator on the market.” He has seen that impact in his own life as he decides which cameras to use. After all, he’s someone who spends a lot of time adventuring, but he told me that he’s never brought a mirrorless camera with him while mountain biking or skiing. Now, though, he told me that he can bring the ILS in a fanny pack while doing those activities and get images that aren’t just ultrawide-angle action camera photos. 

That may be the more useful way to understand the ILS: not as an action camera with interchangeable lenses, or a replacement for a dedicated stills camera, but as an option for outings where a larger camera would stay home. GoPro’s challenge is getting people to consider that possibility before dismissing it as an action camera with a lens mount.