RJBender said:
Why build a digital sensor for an old film camera body when you can adapt a lens to a digital camera body? 🙂
R.J.
Amen on that thought.
It would be eminently possible for say Nikon (I'm most familiar with them) to provide a digital sensor back for their F5/F6 and perhaps F100.
After all, that is all that would be needed - provided it could "couple" with the existing electronics in the current bodies.
But where is the gain for them by doing so? You become a one-time "static" purchaser. They could easily engineer the back such that you could replace the "old" sensor with a "new, improved" one every once in a while.
But its better for them that you make the switch-over to digital camera bodies. These have a short product lives - ensuring continuing sales to existing customers on a "regular" cycle of "replacement because of refinement"
Also, there are enormous economies of scale that are achieved by standardizing because they can thenmigrate down the technology from top of the line to the bottom.
Yes, F6 uses may be willing to change camera backs and upgrade sensors - but do you think Coolpix shooters will want to do so?
Broadly speaking, "image making" is in extreme flux right now with much upheaval and uncertainty driving the industry nuts.
Enjoy the ride - and don't expect (but don't rule out) digital sensor backs for high end cameras (although, if you follow the PC market's development profile - these will be 3rd party products - not something provided by the camera companies themselves).
