Can we survive without a 135 size sensor?
10/09/08 20:05 Filed in: Products
The new Sony Alpha 900 has a large 24.6 Mp sensor that sports the old (?) 135 format of film designation: the 24 x 36mm size negative. The camera has interesting specs, but this product will be classified as a Minolta 9000 and will presumably share this predecessors fate: it gets credit from the press and other reviewers for its capabilities, quality and professional profile. The old Minolta 9000 got equal praise and comments, but when you have to put your money on the table, most people will go for the safe option: Nikon or Canon. The Minolta 9000 was undoubtedly a top-class camera and certainly a mile stone product. The A900 might be categorized in the same class, but then and now the sales volume did not warrant a long term presence in the market.
Undoubtedly a new Nikon D?? will receive the same sensor, but at twice the price it will not be a direct competitor.
Let us hope the A 900 will fare better in current market conditions than the old A9000. Competition is really needed to revive the market.
The upcoming new Canon 5D II will have a 18 Mp sensor and a 135 format too. The high end market then will be populated by cameras with 135 format sensor and pixel amounts from 12 to 24 million.
The really important question is whether the current crop of lenses can handle such massive amount of pixels with pixel pitches around 5 micron. You might question the capabilities of most lenses to even resolve half of these. The cutoff limit of the sensor filters will restrict the maximum resolution in any case. The resulting RAW file sizes will be 50 to 100 Mb and then the question is who needs these sizes and who can handle them.
The Nikon option with 12 Mp is still the best proposal for the moment. Basically we have the choice between a high contrast, moderate resolution high speed sensor (Tri-X) and a lower contrast, high resolution. lower speed film like Pan-X. Looking at the Kodak site, where you can still find (with some trouble) current film types, Tri-X is still riding high ands slow speed films are gone. What will be the best bet for the camera that will be optimal for picture taking?
All magazines in the past raved about the capabilities of slow speed films, but none survived (the new microfilms occupy a niche).
It would be nice if you could have a sensor in 135 format and a choice of using 24 or 12 Mp while keeping the full dimensions. The current option of using less pixels implies a smaller format and that is not what we want.
Without a 135 sensor size no company can survive today’s rat race. We have to wait for Pentax and Leica to lay the cards on the table. Both are very reputable companies with a great tradition and a knack for solid long term solutions.
Undoubtedly a new Nikon D?? will receive the same sensor, but at twice the price it will not be a direct competitor.
Let us hope the A 900 will fare better in current market conditions than the old A9000. Competition is really needed to revive the market.
The upcoming new Canon 5D II will have a 18 Mp sensor and a 135 format too. The high end market then will be populated by cameras with 135 format sensor and pixel amounts from 12 to 24 million.
The really important question is whether the current crop of lenses can handle such massive amount of pixels with pixel pitches around 5 micron. You might question the capabilities of most lenses to even resolve half of these. The cutoff limit of the sensor filters will restrict the maximum resolution in any case. The resulting RAW file sizes will be 50 to 100 Mb and then the question is who needs these sizes and who can handle them.
The Nikon option with 12 Mp is still the best proposal for the moment. Basically we have the choice between a high contrast, moderate resolution high speed sensor (Tri-X) and a lower contrast, high resolution. lower speed film like Pan-X. Looking at the Kodak site, where you can still find (with some trouble) current film types, Tri-X is still riding high ands slow speed films are gone. What will be the best bet for the camera that will be optimal for picture taking?
All magazines in the past raved about the capabilities of slow speed films, but none survived (the new microfilms occupy a niche).
It would be nice if you could have a sensor in 135 format and a choice of using 24 or 12 Mp while keeping the full dimensions. The current option of using less pixels implies a smaller format and that is not what we want.
Without a 135 sensor size no company can survive today’s rat race. We have to wait for Pentax and Leica to lay the cards on the table. Both are very reputable companies with a great tradition and a knack for solid long term solutions.