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Matsu
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
 
2012-02-06, 05:43

Dorian, you ought to consider writing about these topics.

Looks like Nikon is going to go after the digital medium format entry level market. There was a time when all serious working photographers used medium format, even the less famous/successful journeymen. Elsewhere online Kelby and others muse that digital medium format will finally start making its way back into the hands of well heeled amateurs, wedding and event shooters, and part-time pros. Mamiya based systems have come down a fair bit, and Pentax's 645 is just kissing the edge of affordability - in relative photographic terms. You still need about 10,000 to get into these backs/bodies.

I've been looking over a few comparisons between P45 backs and the D3x. The 31MP P45 kills it under the right conditions. While we also have to consider the lenses and shooting conditions, and I would add, work flow, the larger sensor/system has a very clear resolution advantage.

Mentioned elsewhere in this thread is Kodak's vast online resource. I remember a paper once held there that suggested that 4/3rd was more than sufficient to equal or surpass the results of 35mm film. So maybe 35mm digital is sufficient to reach/surpass medium format film. A 36MP filterless 35mm DSLR that comes close enough, while costing a lot less - could be a big seller...

It might not attract folks who need their Hassleblad systems in studio, it might not replace those, or replicate the look of the larger format either. Still, lots of folks have 35mm F mount lenses kicking around for their D3/s/x/D4... $3000-4000 for a body that let's them do different sorts of work, and go out into the field vs 10000 for a body, plus a few thousand more for lenses...

Last edited by Matsu : 2012-02-06 at 05:57.
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