Re: [photo-3d] Megapixels

[Brian Reynolds <reynolds@xxxxxxxxx>]

Mark wrote:
> Well....it's here already. I predicted digital cameras to peak at 4
> megapixels ( consumer models) and Fuji just introduced a 4.3
> megapixel camera/ MP3 player......audio and photo combined! I
> figured this would not happen for at least 1 year. Now I'll be
> interested to see if a higher pixel camera is introduced...that is
> without interpolation, but true pixels.

Which Fuji camera?  I believe that their newest cameras have about 3
million sensor sites in a hexagonal grid that are then interpolated
into a rectangular grid of around 4 million pixels.  Personally I
think there is a lot to be gained from a non-rectangular grid, but I
want to wait to see the results.  Even if there are 4 million sensor
sites, unless it is a three chip camera there is still color
interpolation going on.  All of the one chip cameras use a color
filter mask of RGBG filters and interpolate colors at each pixel.

> Yikes.......looks like film sales is predicted to drop 7-10% this
> year according to some industry gurus.

According to whose numbers?  Having seen so many of these predictions
(and not just film vs. digital) change depending on who the audience
is, I don't place much faith in various industry "gurus".  About the
only thing you can put any faith in are the stockholder reports, which
at least have legal penalties if they deliberately try to lie.

> Has anyone heard of a digital consumer model to exceed 4.3
> megapixels? I believe Fuji is the only company to offer this
> technology in a small package.
> 

I'm pretty sure I've heard rumblings of things to come from other
manufacturers.  Photo Plus Expo East (or whatever they're calling it
now) is the beginning of next month.  Although I'm only going there
because of my interest in large format (John Sexton will be giving a
seminar on B&W photography), I expect to see all the newest digital
stuff.  I used to go to this expo to get away from computers.  Sigh.

By the way, smaller is not better.  The digicam industry has been
hyping pixel count and going for smaller and smaller sensor sites in
order to get more pixels in the final image, but what you really want
are larger sensor sites.  This will give you a more sensitive chip,
and a better signal to noise ratio, but will cost more.  I'm afraid
that the digital market is going to be driven by the low end of the
consumer expectations.

-- 
Brian Reynolds                  | "Dee Dee!  Don't touch that button!"
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