Luminous Landscape Forum
Equipment & Techniques => Digital Cameras & Shooting Techniques => Topic started by: chrisso on April 13, 2003, 11:00:35 am
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The answer to your question lies in the answers to your question. Zero.
It's a great shame in my opinion, but there seems to be a distinct lack of interest in a digital rangefinder.
Incidentally, all 3 of my cameras are rangefinder so I'm pretty peeved.
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I have also for some time waited for a digital rangefinder to be launched, and are a little pussled none are. The reason is probably that the users wouldn't be satisfied with anything less than fullframe. That is as difficult and expensive on a 35mm rangefinder as on a 35mm slr. Perhaps even more difficult due to problems with the angle that light hits the edges of the chip at with wide angle lenses (with slrs the mirror box limits the possible angle).
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Thanks to Michael for the confirmation of the Leica rumour I had heard, albeit it somewhat bad news. (I have also heard it reported that Contax has said similar things, in less detail.)
Perhaps the best we can hope for in compact digital cameras is an evolution upwards from the current high end one piece digicam's, towards something like a "Contax G3 digital" [half Contax G2, half Canon G3, half new technology].
The sensor has to be smaller than 35mm format, but could be considerably larger and better than the current 2/3" format and still fit a quite compact body. The lens would probably have to be a permanently attached zoom because no-one seems ready to invest in a new series of interchangeable lenses for such a niche format, but the best zooms now can more or less keep up with digital sensor resolution. An LCD significantly larger than current options, with good sun shading and G3 style magnification of the focal area to assist manual focusing could add a usable option of LCD viewfinder operation, along side a Contax G2 style zoom optical rangefinder mechanism.
With the new low power consumption organic LCD's, there is a good chance that even an LCD covering most of the camera back could have battery changes distinctly less frequent and cheaper than film changes, so big, live viewfinder LCD's could have a bright future along side the non-TTL optical viewfinders needed to avoid the mirror and keep the camera small.
P. S. Michael, does your examination of the Canon PowerShot S50 mean that you are looking for a "go anywhere" digital camera for when the 1Ds kit is inconvenient?
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Looking at the price difference between a regular Canon SLR vs the Leica M7 and noting the price of the Canon 1DS, I don't think there is any way I could have afforded a Leica digital rangefinder. ???
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After reading some of the posts here I thought to myself, why are there not any digital range finder cameras on the market? Does anyone know?
If one came out with the ability to do interchangeable lenses it could be a great camera. You would be able to use some telephoto and macro lenses by using the lcd to focus. A great feature would be to have the lcd zoom in to help in focusing. Imagine being able to get the lcd to zoom in on what you want to focus on, manually focus, then shot, as the lens truly sees the image you are shooting.
With a digital rangefinder you could have a small quick camera with interchangeable lenses. The best would be if those lenses could be a leica screw mount (come on Voigtlander). Because then there would already be a plethora of lenses to choose from.
I know this idea is not all thought out but how would other people here think of a digital rangefinder?
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I absolutely agree--where's the digital M6? I would really dig a small, M6-sized digital with interchangable lenses, rangefinder focusing, etc. Can't be any harder than doing the DSLR's.
mix
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Rokkitan,
You've likely hit the nail on the head.
I read a comment by a senior Leica engineer written some time last year in which he said that they had given up in trying to design a digital body that would take M series lenses. The closeness of the rear element of the lenses to the sensor made the angle too steep.
In Canon's 1Ds full frame chip Canon has added microlenses to the chip that bend the light at the perifiery of the chip so that it is focused into the photosite wells. Whether this is a propritary Canon design, or simply too expensive to mass produce is unclear.
I'd say that a digital RF camera is not on the immediate horizon.
Michael
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I liked the D50 so much (though it's far from perfect), that I bought one after returning the loaner to Canon. My review will be online next week.
Michael