Can we just make our own digital RF ?

clear2000

clear2000

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Sorry if this has been covered before or maybe it's a silly question but, in this age of crowd-sourcing and kick starter, is it possible to build an affordable, high quality digital rangefinder ?
 
Hi,

It been done with SLR's; Minolta had a digital back for the 7000 but I only saw a couple of photo's of it and never saw anything else beyond vagueness. And the Leica R8 has a digital back available for a sum. Another firm announced the start of a programme to make one but then it fizzled out and I never heard of it again but the idea was a digital film substitute.

I think the problem is mainly that digitals for the mass market can be made cheaply and in bulk and a CRF needs to be made carefully and - as it's a small niche -market in small quantities. So the cost of R&D would be high per unit.

OTOH, sillier things have happened.

Regards, David
 
I could always understand film and digital lovers. I cannot say the same for people that would like some digital thing in their analog cameras. What for? If one likes jpgs and raws, can go for a digital camera, while somebody who likes film can go for a film camera. Most of us have both.
 
Nikos72 said:
I could always understand film and digital lovers. I cannot say the same for people that would like some digital thing in their analog cameras. What for? If one likes jpgs and raws, can go for a digital camera, while somebody who likes film can go for a film camera. Most of us have both.
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Because some prefer the handling of their film cameras, but want the convenience of digital?
 
Nikos72 said:
I could always understand film and digital lovers. I cannot say the same for people that would like some digital thing in their analog cameras. What for? If one likes jpgs and raws, can go for a digital camera, while somebody who likes film can go for a film camera. Most of us have both.
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Dear Nikos,

You can't understand them because they subscribe to not one, but several fantasies. First, they imagine that the market is much bigger than it is. Second, they have no understanding of how expensive both R+D and manufacturing are. Third, they are equally naive about firmware. Fourth, they imagine it's quite easy to fit a load of electronics into a small, full-frame camera body. If it were, would DSLRs be the tubs of lard they are?

Cheers,

R.
 
Simply certifying the camera's electronics is compatible with FCC and CE regulations would be a major expense. This assumes the camera would be sold in the US and EU.

Of course, home-made, one-off conversions are completely unregulated.
 
Who does? Do you? How much?
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If you look around the web you'll build up a picture of how much it costs to bring a digital camera to market. The main costs are...

  • Market research and basic product design
  • Detailed system design
  • Prototype construction and testing.
  • Body and other non-standard item tooling.
  • Standards conformity for those markets requiring it.
  • Production line setup
  • Packaging design and production
  • Promotion and marketing
  • Warranty service arrangements

There are wide variations between countries and individual companies, of course. However, from my limited experience of hardware design and manufacturing, I imagine that the cost for a completely new product, as opposed to a revamp of a product that the company is already marketing successfully, will be well over $1,000,000, even for a company with expertise in that type of product.

:angel:
 
on a budget...

on a budget...

If you look at how much it took to launch the MM for example, which was basically an altered M9:

The black and white project devoured tens of millions of euros and tied one and a half years, a large part of the development team - a daring undertaking for the small company. - source
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then it's easy to see that developing a digital rangefinder from scratch will not be possible 'on a budget'. It nearly tanked the Epson photo division before. Leica is just lucky that this niche product fits the scale of their operation, and that the price points are, although very high, considered fitting the reputation of their products.

The good news these days is that digital rangefinders are available on a budget: I'm seeing M8's locally for around €1000 now, and M9's for just under €3000, not all that different from new aps-c and full-frame dslr's.
 
Your best possibility would be to get something like a Sony NEX dismantle it and fit it into a rangefinder body yourself. Start with an old FED 3 being rather large. Try to just remove the outer shell of the NEX with lots of effort you may just get it working.
 
Nikos72 said:
I could always understand film and digital lovers. I cannot say the same for people that would like some digital thing in their analog cameras. What for? If one likes jpgs and raws, can go for a digital camera, while somebody who likes film can go for a film camera. Most of us have both.
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It's not that hard to understand, really. Not many digital cameras handle in a similar way to film cameras and many people who prefer the handling of the latter would welcome the convenience of the former. The niche of photographers who is interested in this concept is not insignificant, though too small for ever warranting a product built to suit. See the hype created by the Df and the cult following of the R-D1.
 
Give me a ring, when your ready for prototyping!
I'm sure I could cook up some necessary parts :D

I think alot of people would be surprised what some are capable of, provided even with the most basic of tools. Sure, it may be a pipe dream, but saying "never" doesn't get you very far!
 
David Hughes said:
Another firm announced the start of a programme to make one but then it fizzled out and I never heard of it again but the idea was a digital film substitute.
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Who knows what happened to them - technical issues met financial shortage or someone just bought them not to allow reusing tons and tons of old cameras and lenses?
 
B-9 said:
Give me a ring, when your ready for prototyping!
I'm sure I could cook up some necessary parts :D

I think alot of people would be surprised what some are capable of, provided even with the most basic of tools. Sure, it may be a pipe dream, but saying "never" doesn't get you very far!
Click to expand...

Indeed, never say never. But equally, try not to be too unreal/fantasist about the possibilities. My understanding was that the Epson was based on a LOT of free work by enthusiasts, and a "crippled" (small format, low resolution) compromise.

Cheers,

R.
 
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