Digital G

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reodds

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Hi! I am a newbie on this forum, but have been a Contax G owner from the beginning. Is there anything that we the consumer can do to pressure Zeiss into producung a Digital G camera? I own a G1 and G2 with most of their fantastic lenses, and I know that there is a huge following of Contax fanatics who would purchase a digital version if there was one available. It is a shame to allow such a wonderful camera and lens system to be abandoned. Thanks. Roger
 
I bought into the G system with the hopes, there was talk, that there would be a digital G2 body eventually. Contax was in production of the N digital SLR at the time, which was quite advanced then - full frame, 6 mgpixel chip. But it was plagued with problems and it was pulled out of the market. As you may or may not know, Contax is no longer in production, and there are no plans that I know of to resurrect the brand.
 
Keith, that is my point. Contax is no longer in production. What can we do to convince Zeiss to resurect the brand, and perhaps produce a digital body?
 
You could dress up in a tu-tu, go to Zeiss headquarters, and dance.
 
No chance, you'd have to convince Kyocera to reintroduce the G System. Only the brand name and the lens designs belong to Zeiss.
 
Probably you have better odds of some smaller independent making a compatible digital body, although it will probably be a Leica compatible body.

I'm going to guess that as sensors become better and cheaper, you're going to see small Chinese companies jump in with original designs for niche markets, the same way they are getting into the high-end audio field with beautiful tube amps and in photography with view cameras.

I doubt that the major companies are going to take a risk with such a tiny market segment. Epson got hosed with the R-D1.
 
I guarantee that Epson didn't get "hosed". They turned a profit, but perhpas not the profit they expected. As far as Kyocera, I am certain that they too turned a profit on the Contax line. Their bean counters can't help but notice that the same people who bought the G line of cameras would gladly buy a digital body to hang the great glass on. Limited production? perhaps, but profitable none the less. Roger
 
reodds said:
Keith, that is my point. Contax is no longer in production. What can we do to convince Zeiss to resurect the brand, and perhaps produce a digital body?
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The bottom line, it won't happen. It's about money and Contax felt that market is not there to warrant production, re-production. The point and shoot market is extremely lucrative. These cameras are so advanced with features, that manufacturers are looking to produced that "bridge" camera. And they are comimg closer each season. A camera like the digital G is just not feasible anymore. Look at the difficulty and success Leica is having with the M8 and Epson had with the RD-1. There are lots of RD-1s for sale now in the used market. My suspicions are that many people thought it was the way to go for them, but a digital rangefinder is not the same as a DSLR. Most people want the convenience of zooms.

Maybe time will prove me wrong, but the market isn't there and if it is, it is way too small for any kind of profit. There were many traditional camera makers that were around just 10 years ago, and look now. Many have fallen by the wayside because they couldn't change with the times or had the money and forethought to do so.
 
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Edward Felcher said:
You could dress up in a tu-tu, go to Zeiss headquarters, and dance.
Click to expand...

Actually consider the odds it's probably one of the better ideas...
 
I think some kind of adaptable universal digital back would be the best bet.

Surely somebody will make some kind of digital sensor kit that can be added to old cameras?
I know someone on RFF is working on one for the M3
 
I would say if anything

Sony would be the one who would resurrect the G Series as a digital

Lets see when the Nikon D3x is announced (supposed to be next week or by the NY show mid july), that will have the new sony chip

Maybe if Sony gets enough demand for a rangefinder body, with zeiss lenses ... they might pick it up?

You never know... it could happen
 
I disagree. I think they took a big loss. Consider the R&D expense, the small sales, the budget needed to promote it, and the enormous return and replacement problem they had with the cameras.

You need a HUGE number of sales to have a profitable product for a company like Seiko-Epson.

I have two of them and I love them, but there is no way they made money on these.

reodds said:
I guarantee that Epson didn't get "hosed". They turned a profit, but perhpas not the profit they expected. As far as Kyocera, I am certain that they too turned a profit on the Contax line. Their bean counters can't help but notice that the same people who bought the G line of cameras would gladly buy a digital body to hang the great glass on. Limited production? perhaps, but profitable none the less. Roger
Click to expand...
 
Bobfrance said:
I think some kind of adaptable universal digital back would be the best bet.

Surely somebody will make some kind of digital sensor kit that can be added to old cameras?
I know someone on RFF is working on one for the M3
Click to expand...


Someone introduced this 10 years ago. I forgot their name. They had a website too, but they are no longer in business.
 
A legit manufacturer would probably have too many problems with dust, exposed sensor surface, compatibility with thousands of cameras and countless other problems.

Having said that, probably someone will come up with something one of these days, and get lambasted out of business on camera forums for having the audacity to do so.
 
We must be aware that current digital sensors like their light to fall straight onto them (90 degrees). That is the crux of specially designed "digital lenses" that avoid color fringing.

So, however good the Zeiss lenses are on film, which catches slanted light very well, the Contax lenses might not be all that great on a standard sensor. That is why DSLRs are so well suited for the old retrofocus lenses of Canon, Nikon etc. These lenses are far removed from the sensor by design (retrofocus) and the light through them hits the sensor mostly right on. With the recessed, close to the film backs of most of the wide Contax G lenses, this would be very counterproductive and just create color fringing ... on a digital sensor.

So, film has to be it!
 
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