Dream Digital Cameras

[StreetShooter]

Thinking about this today.

Imagine a digital camera that can take 30fps, say 3 megapixel images. Best autofocus available today. Unlimited storage. Or a digital videocam which captures 2-3 MP frames.

You would not need sports photographers anymore. Just keep the camera trained on the action. The autofocus would keep the point of interest on the action, and you could select the exact frame you wanted at leisure a bit later.

The idea is not new, of course. It's what I was doing way before the first digital still camera was born. Capturing video on a computer and selecting the exact frame I wanted, the one with the "Oomph!". "The Decisive Moment", selected from a series of frames. Missed it? Just rewind and try again.

Problem was artifacts from interlacing, and the poor 320x200 resolution of captured analog video (OK, can interpolate to 640x400, but still quite lousy).

But I would say that, easily, within the next 5-10 years, it would be possible (and affordable, at that). Then you would just have to find enough time to go through the Gigabytes or Terabytes of stored memories to pick the ones you want to preserve.

For B&W street photographers, I'm sure the ideal digital camera can already be built with available technology. I'm talking about a digital B&W camera. Think about it. No need for colour processing, mosaic or otherwise. The CCD or CMOS just detects light, and the intensity of light. I'm sure ISO 3200 or even 6400 is easily achievable if the camera only recorded grayscale. Problem is - who would buy it, except people like me? So, nobody makes one. *sigh*

[Jed]

Quote: Originally posted by StreetShooter Imagine a digital camera that can take 30fps, say 3 megapixel images. Best autofocus available today. Unlimited storage. Or a digital videocam which captures 2-3 MP frames. You would not need sports photographers anymore. Just keep the camera trained on the action.

I was having this conversation with another sports photographer just the other day. It's certainly somewhere in the future, so I'm thankful I'm not the least bit interested in sports work as a long term proposition since there's no money in it anyway.

Taking 30fps is essentially the same as a digital videocam...

The problem is that we're not quite near enough to the technology just yet. A 3mp image is about 8Mb of information that the camera has to process. That's 30x8Mb or 240Mb a second.

You need to find a device that can write 240Mb per second, and not only that, store 1296 Gb for a 90 minute game. So thankfully for me in the immediate present anyway, we're not quite there yet.

And the other thing is that AF technology is not quite up to scratch yet. So that will need to evolve as well!

[mpenza]

just hope that it's not too heavy

[Lennier]

on the wallet and on the arm

[StreetShooter]

Well, ok maybe not just sports photographers.

Imagine mum wants to cover a birthday party. She does not want to miss a single important moment. Or wedding photography, for instance.

[Kho King]

Still...you need someone to point the "camera" to the point of interest. Different people see differently...it is the imagination in the mind of a photographer that value...and they convert their thoughts into photograph. Not everyone can have this "mind"...

[Ian]

Quote: Originally posted by Kho King Still...you need someone to point the "camera" to the point of interest. Different people see differently...it is the imagination in the mind of a photographer that value...and they convert their thoughts into photograph. Not everyone can have this "mind"...

Yeah, I can think of a couple of wannabee's who don't have the 'eye' to take good photos.

einstein. there is hope.

[StreetShooter]

*ahem*

Forward 5 years later....

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0708/07...asio300fps.asp

[ExplorerZ]

Originally Posted by Jed I was having this conversation with another sports photographer just the other day. It's certainly somewhere in the future, so I'm thankful I'm not the least bit interested in sports work as a long term proposition since there's no money in it anyway. Taking 30fps is essentially the same as a digital videocam... The problem is that we're not quite near enough to the technology just yet. A 3mp image is about 8Mb of information that the camera has to process. That's 30x8Mb or 240Mb a second. You need to find a device that can write 240Mb per second, and not only that, store 1296 Gb for a 90 minute game. So thankfully for me in the immediate present anyway, we're not quite there yet. And the other thing is that AF technology is not quite up to scratch yet. So that will need to evolve as well!

actually not quite, 1DMk3 got the capability to process 10x 10MP, 30x 3MP is close to that number of pixel (not the FPS tho). as for 8MB per pic, there is always compression... a 3MP JPG can easily be compressed to to about 2MB under most camera "fine" mode.

Having said that true HD video is already 1920x1080 which is about 2MP. (I dono if that include interpolation or watever , nv study video camera before)

[vector1]

LOL, and you have to dig this thread out...

Your prayers have been heard!

[StreetShooter]

Originally Posted by ExplorerZ actually not quite, 1DMk3 got the capability to process 10x 10MP, 30x 3MP is close to that number of pixel (not the FPS tho). as for 8MB per pic, there is always compression... a 3MP JPG can easily be compressed to to about 2MB under most camera "fine" mode. Having said that true HD video is already 1920x1080 which is about 2MP. (I dono if that include interpolation or watever , nv study video camera before)

Erm... 1DMk3 was not around in 2002...

[noob117]

maybe it gets so big u might need to mount it like an antitank rocket

[CYRN]

Originally Posted by StreetShooter *ahem* Forward 5 years later.... http://www.dpreview.com/news/0708/07...asio300fps.asp

AF would be a problem for sports.