digital back for retro fitting to slr camera

[shootforgoal]

Hello - can you help

I recently heard about a company in the US that sells a digital back that can be used on an existing SLR camera to convert this to a digital camera.
Any ideas where I can get more information/advice on this subject?
Thanks

[Sebastian]

No such thing exists, nor has ever existed. There was one company that was going to make one, but they never got off the ground.

[shootforgoal]

I was listening to a tech program on Radio 4 by the BBC who stated there was a website that does this... anyone know it?

[Sebastian]

I'm telling you, we all know of it, the company has been vaporware for years.

http://www.siliconfilm.com/default.htm

http://www.acecam.com/photography/1547.html

http://www.wired.com/news/technology...,49326,00.html

Go see for yourself. Whoever reported that it's around on BBS should have done some basic research first.

[Outdoorsman]

I have heard others talk about a similar thing. I do not know the name of the company(ies) who do it, but I'm sure you can find them somwhere in the world. I have never heard of a digital back for anything 35mm. But about four years ago I saw a video in a college class I was taking that showed a press photographer using a 35mm-to-digital conversion. I was not so simple as a changeable back; it required practically rebuilding the whole camera. And the cost, I have heard from others, is pretty high. It also meant that there was a huge block hanging below the body- heavier and harder to use. This video was obviously made before there were affordable DSLRs available, when a conversion still cost less.
My advice would be to forget a conversion or changeable back and just go for a DSLR. Unless you are determined to not have to learn the control layout of a new camera, this is the best option. You will pay a fairly large chunk for it, but you will be getting a new camera. Good luck!

[kamboura]

Shootforgoal, just out of pure curiosity, which camera would you be looking to convert ?

[shootforgoal]

Hi
It's an old(ish) Minolta 7000 series... pretty good for someone of my photographic skills!
I've already got a basic digital camera... although it wasn't basic when I bought it 4-5 years ago...hmmm.
Thanks for the advice all.
SFG

[Sebastian]

I have heard others talk about a similar thing. I do not know the name of the company(ies) who do it, but I'm sure you can find them somwhere in the world. I have never heard of a digital back for anything 35mm. But about four years ago I saw a video in a college class I was taking that showed a press photographer using a 35mm-to-digital conversion. I was not so simple as a changeable back; it required practically rebuilding the whole camera. And the cost, I have heard from others, is pretty high. It also meant that there was a huge block hanging below the body- heavier and harder to use. This video was obviously made before there were affordable DSLRs available, when a conversion still cost less.
My advice would be to forget a conversion or changeable back and just go for a DSLR. Unless you are determined to not have to learn the control layout of a new camera, this is the best option. You will pay a fairly large chunk for it, but you will be getting a new camera. Good luck!

You're talking about one of the EARLY Kodak DCS systems. They would take a 35mm camera, retrofit a huge digital back onto it that was tethered to a HD/processing case which was rather large and heavy.

A universal digital back has NOT been produced, ever. And the logisitics of it are simply not going to let it happen. Leica is working on a 10 megapizel back for it's R series of SLRs. The SLRs are huge to begin with, and the size of the unit allows for the addition of a bulky digital back without much trouble. However that can not be said about pretty mucvh any other camera on the market.

If a new SLR is designed with filmand digital backs, that's another story, but you can effectively forget about being able to retrofit any camera that has been out for years. Just go take a look at the links I posted and see for yourself.

[Outdoorsman]

You're talking about one of the EARLY Kodak DCS systems. They would take a 35mm camera, retrofit a huge digital back onto it that was tethered to a HD/processing case which was rather large and heavy.

A universal digital back has NOT been produced, ever. And the logisitics of it are simply not going to let it happen. Leica is working on a 10 megapizel back for it's R series of SLRs. The SLRs are huge to begin with, and the size of the unit allows for the addition of a bulky digital back without much trouble. However that can not be said about pretty mucvh any other camera on the market.

If a new SLR is designed with filmand digital backs, that's another story, but you can effectively forget about being able to retrofit any camera that has been out for years. Just go take a look at the links I posted and see for yourself.

No, this wasn't a digital back. It was a large block that was attached on the bottom of the camera. The back, of course, had to be removed, but there was no extra bulk sticking out of the back. The "block" I'm referring to was the same size as the camera, black and featureless. The guy has a very stylish notebook PC next to him. They showed him shooting some baseball, then donwloading the pics onto the PC and then straight to the newsroom. There was nothing else attached to the camera other than a huge lens and a strap and a photographer. the camera was a Nikon, if that makes any difference. But the one I saw does not match your description, sorry to say. Maybe it was a custom job the newspaper had done for their photogs... not that any of this help the original poster, other than to reinforce: don't bother; get a DSLR.

[Phil_USN]

It's the Leica R9. Convertible film to digital.

[Sebastian]

No, this wasn't a digital back. It was a large block that was attached on the bottom of the camera. The back, of course, had to be removed, but there was no extra bulk sticking out of the back. The "block" I'm referring to was the same size as the camera, black and featureless. The guy has a very stylish notebook PC next to him. They showed him shooting some baseball, then donwloading the pics onto the PC and then straight to the newsroom. There was nothing else attached to the camera other than a huge lens and a strap and a photographer. the camera was a Nikon, if that makes any difference. But the one I saw does not match your description, sorry to say. Maybe it was a custom job the newspaper had done for their photogs... not that any of this help the original poster, other than to reinforce: don't bother; get a DSLR.

No, you're thinking of the first untethered Kodaks. I am reffering to a system made before that. They would take a film SLR, replace the back with a sensor setup which was tethered to a black box with a built-in hard drive. The one you're talking about was also a converted film camera, but it was self-sustaining.

A picture of what I'm reffering to can be found in the AP Guide to Photojournalism if I remember correctly.

I love going back in time and seeing what used to be the state of the art, it's just so humbling.

[Gerry Widen]

Leica, probably with Panasonics help, is coming out with a digital back for their R9 SLR camera. It is supposed to be ready by the end of this year or early next. I'm sure it will be expensive in addition to the R9 (body) which in itself is around $2500. Problem is it has taken so long that it's expected 6MP size is outdated for the price and not full sensor size will make it not a practical alternative for most people. Leica is also supposedly making a digital back for their M cameras I think in cooperation with Kodak which is not as far along.

[Sebastian]

Leica, probably with Panasonics help, is coming out with a digital back for their R9 SLR camera. It is supposed to be ready by the end of this year or early next. I'm sure it will be expensive in addition to the R9 (body) which in itself is around $2500. Problem is it has taken so long that it's expected 6MP size is outdated for the price and not full sensor size will make it not a practical alternative for most people. Leica is also supposedly making a digital back for their M cameras I think in cooperation with Kodak which is not as far along.

Gerry,

The r module is 10 megapixel with a 1.37x crop.

http://www.leica-camera.com/produkte...l/index_e.html