1In the 1940s and 1950s, with the appearance of television, people needed a device that could record transmitted TV programs. Then came the electronic imaging technology.
195 1 year, Binkroeber Laboratories invented the Video Recorder (VTR), which is a new machine that can record the current pulses in TV broadcasting on magnetic tape. 1956, mass production of video recorders began. At the same time, it is regarded as the emergence of electronic imaging technology.
1969 10 6 17, Bauer and Smith of Bell Institute in the United States announced the invention of "CCD" (charge coupled device), and the latest improvements such as four-color CCD and super CCD emerged constantly, with the number of pixels already exceeding 10 million pixels and the imaging effect reaching perfection.
In June, 1973, 1 1, Sony officially started the research of "electronic eye" CCD. On the basis of continuous technical accumulation, the world's first electronic camera-still image "Mapika" was launched in June of 438+098 1. The camera uses 10mm* 12mm CCD chip, and the resolution is only 570*490(27.9) pixels, which is the first time to convert optical signals into electrical signals for transmission. This is the prototype of today's digital camera. Since then, digital cameras have become the focus of attention of major manufacturers.
1984- 1986, Panasonic, Copa, Fuji, Canon, Nikon and other companies also started the research and development of electronic cameras, and successively launched their own prototype electronic cameras, and digital life broke out.
1988, Fuji and Toshiba exhibited the Pujixs digital still camera "DS- 1P" developed by * * at the Cologne Expo in Germany. Around this time, Fuji, Toshiba, Olympus, Konica, Canon, etc. The trial products of digital cameras have been published one after another, such as Canon RC-70 1, Casio VS- 10 1, Fuji DS-X, Toshiba MC2000, etc. The introduction of these products greatly stimulated the public's curiosity, and the camera can record images without photosensitive film, which became one of the hottest topics at that time. However, due to the high cost and large volume of these samples, it is not conducive to their popularization. At that time, most consumers still regarded digital image as a high-tech product.
1990, Kodak introduced the DCS 100 electronic camera, and established the general model of digital camera for the first time in the world. Since then, this model has become the industry standard. For professional photographers, if the new machine has a familiar fuselage and control mode, it will undoubtedly become easier to use. In order to cater to this consumer psychology, Kodak applied DCS 100 to the famous Nikon F3 fuselage at that time. Except for the focusing screen and film winding motor, its internal functions have changed greatly, all functions are the same as F3, and it is compatible with most Nikon lenses.
By 1994, digital imaging technology has made unprecedented development at the speed of thousands of miles a day. Kodak is a pioneer in the development and promotion of digital cameras. This year Kodak introduced the world's first commercial digital camera DC40. Compared with various digital camera prototypes developed by major companies before, Kodak DC40 is smaller, more convenient to operate and more reasonable in price, which can be accepted by some consumers. It has become a very important symbol in the history of digital cameras.
1February 1995, Casio released a digital camera QV- 10, which caused a sensation in the global digital camera field at that time. This camera has 250,000 pixels and a resolution of 320*240 pixels, and there is no built-in flash. This configuration was already very mainstream at that time, but its price hit a record low at that time, with only 65,000 yen listed. Its appearance made many consumers realize that digital cameras can be so popular, which also triggered the first hot-selling storm in the digital camera market. Therefore, many people think that Casio QV- 10 is the first commercial digital camera in the world.
In the same year, Canon launched the first digital SLR cameras EOS DCS3C and EOS DCS 1C, which turned a new page for Canon SLR digital cameras.
As a pioneer representative manufacturer of digital cameras, Kodak naturally strongly supports the digital development of cameras. 1995, Kodak's board of directors made a decision to develop digital science in an all-round way, and in 1996, it jointly launched DCS-460 and DCS-620X digital cameras with Nikon and DCS-420 digital cameras (professional version) with Canon. These digital cameras used a 6-megapixel image sensor, which was the highest-end digital camera at that time, and also made Kodak the highest-end digital camera.
Since then, the development of digital cameras can be said to be incredible. 1995 The number of pixels of digital cameras listed is only 4 1000. Last year alone, by 1996, the number of pixels in digital cameras reached 8 10000, almost twice that of 1995. The shipment of 1996 digital cameras also set a historical record, reaching 500,000 units. Since the beginning of this year, digital cameras have entered the eyes of consumers in an all-round way and become one of the spokesmen of popular fashion in people's lives.
During the period of 1996, both Canon and Olympus launched their own digital cameras. Subsequently, nearly 20 companies including Fuji, Konica, Minolta, Nikon, Ricoh, Kangtai, Sony, Toshiba, JVC and Sanyo joined in the research and development and production of digital cameras, and launched their own brands of digital cameras this year. So this year has become a very important year in the history of digital cameras. Some people also call this year the year of popularization of digital cameras.
According to the current standards, most of the digital cameras launched this year are simple in function and huge in size, and usually use fixed-focus lenses, but it was already a very big leap at that time. Although the PowerShot 600 launched by Canon is only 500,000 pixels, with a fixed-focus lens and a thick appearance, it was also called a fashionable model at that time, which was loved by many consumers and achieved very good sales performance that year.
1996 became a very important milestone in the history of digital cameras. Since then, digital cameras have entered a new era of order of magnitude development.
1September, 997, Sony released the MVC FD7 digital camera, which is the first digital camera in the world that uses a conventional 3.5-inch floppy disk as the storage medium. Sony has also begun to vigorously enter the digital camera industry.
In June/KOOC-0/65438+/KOOC-0/October of the same year, Kodak Company released DC2/KOOC-0/0 digital camera. This digital camera uses a/kloc-0.09 million square pixel CCD image sensor, and also begins to use zoom lens in digital cameras, making a new breakthrough in the development of digital cameras.
If 1996 is the era when digital cameras began to contend, then 1997 is a year of comprehensive technological innovation. Also in 1997, Olympus, a veteran optical manufacturer, took the lead in introducing the CA-MEDIAC- 1400L SLR digital camera with over one million pixels, which caused a great sensation in the industry. Therefore, at 1997 PMA International Photographic Equipment Expo, as a new thing, a large number of digital cameras appeared in this exhibition, which was originally dominated by traditional photographic equipment, which brought great impact to the traditional photographic equipment market.
The combination of camera and computer, the input and output of digital images, etc. Has become a topic of concern to everyone. Many IT vendors have also begun to set foot in the production of digital cameras. Major companies have launched mass digital cameras with high pixels and low prices. The price of many digital cameras remains below $65,438+$0,000, and the cheapest camera is only $200. This creates excellent conditions for ordinary families to buy digital cameras, and also opens a new chapter in the popularization and development of digital cameras.
In the digital camera market of 1998, digital cameras are not only regarded as fresh toys. 1998 is a year of great development of consumer digital cameras, and a large number of low-priced "megapixel" digital cameras have become a major attraction of the whole market. At the same time, "Megapixel" digital camera has become the mainstream product in the market. The digital camera launched this year not only greatly improves the pixel and quality, but also has rich functions, and is developing towards miniaturization and functional integration. Of course, the most important thing is that its price is further reduced and can be accepted by more ordinary people.
This year alone, there are more than 60 kinds of digital cameras released or listed, and more than 20 manufacturers have joined in, making it a year for digital camera manufacturers to blossom. Among them, Casio, fujifilm, Kodak, Minolta, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Sanyo, Sony and Seiko Epson have all launched more than three digital cameras, and manufacturers such as Agfa, Hewlett-Packard, Konica, Philips and Ricoh have also launched two digital cameras this year, Toshiba, Panasonic, Hitachi, JVC, Kyocera, Leica and Samsung. When consumers have more choices, the competition among digital camera manufacturers is greatly intensified. Judging from our current situation, it is a pity that a large number of manufacturers have gradually withdrawn from the production of digital cameras.
1998 Canon introduced the digital camera PowerShot Pro70 with the highest pixel at that time, which became a masterpiece of the industry at that time. This camera has 2.5 times optical zoom and 2 times digital zoom, TTL autofocus function, automatic exposure, 2-inch color TPY LCD screen, and can shoot 4 frames per second for up to 5 seconds. This camera is a very classic and historic model, not only then, but now.
Also in 1998, waterproof and dustproof digital cameras emerged one after another. At the same time, major manufacturers have also seen the great potential of the waterproof digital camera market, and many manufacturers have introduced various waterproof covers. The appearance of Fuji BigJobDS-25OHD, the first megapixel waterproof and dustproof digital camera, gives people a refreshing feeling. It is based on Fuji 65438+500,000-pixel digital camera FinePix700, and consists of a special sheath with Japanese industrial standard level 7 protection capability, high-definition back and GN24 flash. Although huge, it has made a qualitative leap for underwater photography.
Konica DG- 1 digital camera also went on sale in September, 1998. It also has a 7-level waterproof and dustproof design with a total pixel1080,000. The fuselage and important parts are protected by hard rubber materials. It is suitable for on-site monitoring of civil engineering, and images can be transmitted and printed in engineering records and operation report files immediately.
Canon also introduced a waterproof casing for its two new digital cameras, PowerShot A5/A5zoom. Since then, it seems to be a routine. Waterproof cases are usually released together with digital cameras as a very important accessory.
Of course, the brilliant development of digital cameras in 1998 has also greatly reduced their prices. At the end of 1998, a digital camera with a general function of about 350,000 pixels costs only $499. In 1997, the price of this digital camera was around 1300 USD. At the same time, the launch of a large number of "megapixel" digital cameras has greatly stimulated the development of technology and the consumption power of the market, and the overall pricing of the market has dropped significantly.
The DS-330 launched by Fuji1998 in June has higher performance and is more convenient to use than the DS-300 launched by Fuji1997 in April, but the price has dropped by 5,000 yen. Nikon 1998 10 launched the triple zoom coolpix 9 10 in10, which is basically similar in function and appearance to the C00LPIX900 launched in April of the same year, but the price has dropped by about 10000 yen.
1999, digital cameras made a breakthrough in pixels again, and entered the year of 2 million pixels in an all-round way. 1In March, 999, Olympus released the C-2500L digital camera, which is the first digital camera equipped with a 2.5-megapixel CCD in the world.
The world's major optical manufacturers, photosensitive equipment manufacturers, computer peripherals manufacturers and imaging equipment manufacturers have invested heavily to seize the commanding heights of this technology research and development. In the year of 1999 alone, more than 20 kinds of digital cameras with more than 2 million pixels were put on the market. Kodak, Canon, Nikon, Minolta, Fuji, Olympus, Ricoh, Agfa, Casio, Sony, Epson, Sanyo, Samsung and other companies have all released their own new products, Canon PowerShot S 10. Kodak DC280, DC290Zoom, Fuji MX-2700, MX-2900Zoom, Nikon Coolpix700, Coolpix800, Coo 1pix950, Olympus C2 1, C-2000Zoom, C-2020Zoom, C- Sony Cybershot DSC-F55E, CyberShot DSC-F505, Epson PhotoPC800, PhotoPC850, Konica Q-M200, etc. They were all popular figures in the 2 megapixel models at that time.
The MX-2700 launched by Fuji is said to be the world's first lightest 2.3 megapixel digital camera at that time, with a body of only 230 grams. Its highest resolution reaches 1800× 1200 pixels. This also marks the development trend of digital cameras towards lightweight and miniaturization.
In July of the same year, Kodak successfully launched the first 3-megapixel digital camera DCS330, which laid a solid foundation for the great development of 3-megapixel digital cameras in 2000. In June+10, 5438, Casio released a wrist-watch digital camera with GPS function, which became a pioneer in the diversified development of digital cameras.
In the field of SLR digital cameras, 1999 also has a new look. Nikon released the first self-developed SLR digital camera D 1. The appearance of this camera gave consumers a new understanding of SLR digital cameras, which triggered the earliest competition of SLR digital cameras.
Nikon D 1 is designed on the basis of the traditional camera F5, equipped with a 2.74 million pixel CCD, and the sensitivity comes from ISO200- 1600. It uses CF I/II memory card as storage medium and is compatible with micro hard disk. Support JPEG, TIFF and RAW file formats. At that time, the price was $5,580, which was much lower than that of Kodak DCS camera, creating a precedent for the commercialization of SLR. But at $5,580, it's still quite expensive. From this point, it is enough to see the rapid development and technological innovation of SLR digital cameras.
In 2000, not only in terms of computers, but also in terms of storage equipment, there was a great improvement. Therefore, the pixel of digital camera is also on the basis of 2 million, no matter how high the building is. 3 million pixels has become a hot spot in market development. Zoom lens has become another object that manufacturers pay attention to. Digital cameras with optical zoom 10 times began to appear in people's sight.
June 5438+October 2000 10, Nikon CoolPix 990 and Olympus CAMEMIA C-3030Z went on sale almost at the same time, which indicated that the 3-megapixel digital camera gradually became the market leader in Hua Dan.
In February 2000, Seagull released the first generation domestic digital camera DSC- 1 100 in China.
In May 2000, Canon introduced a brand-new digital SLR camera EOS D30, replacing CCD with CMOS, which made great progress in image quality and imaging.
In June 2000, Sony released the first digital camera Mavica MVC-CD 1000 using CD-R as storage device.
In July 2000, Olympus released a digital camera C-2 1 1 with a built-in printer. It has injected brand-new elements into the diversified development of digital cameras.
In August 2000, Olympus released the first digital camera CAMDEIA E- 10 with an actual pixel of 4 million.
In September 2000, Leica introduced a 4.3 megapixel digital camera, Digilux 4.3.
In September 2000, at the Photokina exhibition in Germany, Kodak officially announced the CCD with an actual pixel of 6.5438+0.6 million, which is called the milestone of CCD manufacturing technology.
In the digital camera market in 2000, digital cameras were closer to 35mm cameras in appearance and developed into small portable cameras. Consumer digital cameras mostly use very small image sensors (such as11.8 and 1/2.7), which also provides favorable conditions for miniaturization of digital cameras. Pocket and fashion became the main development direction of consumer digital cameras in 2000. The new term "pocket machine" has gradually appeared in people's lives.
Manufacturers also spare no effort to develop waterproof and dustproof digital cameras. In 2000, Ricoh RDC-200G, with 2 million pixels and 7-level waterproof capability, came out and was recognized by professionals in the industry. Compared with the previous Fuji waterproof camera Big Jobs-25 OHD, the volume and function have been qualitatively improved. It is more convenient to carry and easier to operate. This also provides more development direction and basis for digital camera manufacturers in the future.
Of course, in order to further reduce manufacturing costs and seize the field of low-cost civil digital cameras, digital camera manufacturers have begun to use their mature assembly lines and manufacturing processes to segment the market. The same fuselage adopts different levels of internal configuration to meet the needs of consumers at different levels. This change has now become an important way for digital camera manufacturers to reduce costs and has been adopted by major manufacturers. But at that time, it was definitely an epoch-making change.
With the reduction of price and the improvement of technology, digital cameras have finally come into people's lives from high temples, and have changed from high-tech military products to ordinary civilian products. After entering 2000, the development of digital cameras is getting faster and faster, and people feel the charm of digital images more and more deeply through digital cameras.
In March of 200 1 year, Olympus announced the launch of CAMEDIA C-700 UltraZoom digital camera, which was the smallest 10x optical zoom digital camera in the world at that time. Its appearance has also attracted people's attention to telephoto digital cameras. Further reducing the size of digital cameras has become the next difficulty that major camera manufacturers need to overcome.
In the same year, Canon introduced IXUS 300, which has 3 times optical zoom and adopts AIAF artificial intelligence multi-point autofocus technology, making it easier to focus. The continuous shooting speed can reach 1.3fps, almost one per second. This provides a stronger competitiveness for other manufacturers' fashion digital cameras. Since then, almost all small digital cameras have developed in the direction of compactness, fashion, rich functions, simple operation and quick response.
It should be said that at this time, Canon IXUS series has represented the trend of fashion digital cameras, and also laid the unique position of Canon IXUS series digital cameras in this field. Until today, Canon IXUS series fashion digital cameras are still sought after by many consumers.
In the field of SLR digital cameras, the competition is as fierce as consumer digital cameras. In order to completely surpass the high-performance myth created by Nikon D 1, Canon launched EOS 1D in September 2006, which completely surpassed Nikon D 1 in speed and technical indicators, and made a new generation of legend in the field of SLR digital cameras.
Canon EOS 1D is equipped with 4 megapixel CMOS, and the sensitivity is ISO 100- 1600. Like Nikon D 1, it also uses CFI/II memory card as storage medium, which supports micro hard disk. At that time, the price was 7000 dollars.
At that time, the seemingly fantastic models made consumers further realize the charm of SLR digital cameras, and also provided excellent conditions for Canon to become a special photographic equipment support for many professional competitions. This also laid a strong technical foundation for future Canon professional SLR digital cameras.
In 2002, Olympus introduced the C-40 Zoom, the world's first smallest 4-megapixel digital camera. It was not only the smallest model in the digital camera market at that time, but also the most technologically advanced. It has taken a solid step for the miniaturization development of fashion digital cameras.
In 2002, digital cameras broke out. From 2 million pixels to 4 million pixels, rich products and choices of different price points make more and more consumers understand and become interested in digital cameras. Fashion white-collar workers, home users and students have gradually become the main consumer groups of digital cameras.
In 2003, Sony introduced DSC-F7175.24 million pixels, 5x optical zoom and 2x digital zoom. The total zoom factor is 10 times, and the pixel of 1.8 inch LCD screen is 12.3 thousand. The best night vision infrared function of this model has become a classic function of Sony. Compared with F707, F7 17 has been greatly improved in many aspects, such as color and image quality, and it is the most popular digital product for consumers in 2003. Today, many people still praise it, which shows that F7 17 has great influence on the market.
In 2003, the digital camera market has been quite complete, ranging from low-end household, entry-level manual and telephoto models to high-end flagship models, which can meet the needs of different consumers. But it is only convenient for SLR digital cameras. Although its price has dropped significantly compared with previous years, it is still difficult for ordinary consumers to enjoy the fun of SLR, which has turned many consumers away. In 2003, this situation changed a lot. Canon has become a pioneer in this process when manufacturers are constantly looking for shortcuts to reduce the cost of SLR digital cameras.
In August 2003, Canon introduced a brand-new digital SLR camera EOS 300D, which cost less than $65,438+0,000 for the first time, causing a sensation in the whole digital camera field. It also successfully promoted the civilian development process of SLR digital cameras.
This EOS 300D adopts plastic body and integrates APS-C CMOS image sensor commonly used in EOS 10D. The maximum pixel is 6 million, the sensitivity is ISO 100- 1600, and the storage medium is CF card. The silver fuselage gives people a sense of fashion, but many consumers feel that the silver fuselage is very unprofessional. So although the sales volume of 300D was very good at first, it was still different from all parties. So a few months later, Canon launched the black version of 300D, and sales soared. It set a record high for the sales of SLR digital cameras, and also increased a considerable achievement for Canon's digital camera department in that year.
However, Canon's optical system can't be compatible with Nikon (except through the adapter ring, but it can't achieve autofocus), and Pentax and Minolta also have their own lens groups, so it has become a common practice that the lenses of SLR digital cameras are not compatible. But in 2003, Olympus broke this long-standing pattern.
Olympus, together with Kodak and Fuji, jointly launched a new concept of "4/3 system" SLR digital camera E- 1, which was specially built for digital images.
The 4/3 system specifies the area and size of CCD image sensor, the distance between CCD and lens bayonet and the diameter of lens bayonet. So as long as the SLR digital cameras using this system can easily achieve lens compatibility, which is absolutely unimaginable in previous products.
As a professional SLR digital camera launched by Olympus, E- 1 not only uses a 5 megapixel CCD, but also has the sensitivity of ISO 100-800. Use CF card as storage medium, and support JPEG, RAW and TIFF file formats. At the same time, the fuselage of E- 1 is waterproof and dustproof, and can continue to work normally under extremely harsh conditions. It has been highly praised by many outdoor photographers. However, compared with Canon EOS 300D, the price of E- 1 at the beginning of its release was also very expensive, reaching 16000 RMB. Nevertheless, the sales volume of E- 1 is very gratifying, and more and more consumers are beginning to realize and join the 4/3 system.
In 2004, it can be said that it entered the hegemonic era. Whether in the field of consumer digital cameras or SLR digital cameras, there are more and more new things worthy of our comment.
In 2004, consumer digital cameras entered the era of 8 million pixels. In this year, major digital camera manufacturers have launched high-end flagship products with 8 million pixels. Canon PowerShot Pro 1, Nikon COOLPIX 8700, Olympus C-8080, Minolta A 1 and Sony F828 are all excellent representative works. Although SLR digital cameras have entered the era of popularization at that time, the price of 10,000 yuan still lags far behind high-end consumer machines. So this period, we can also call it the heyday of high-end consumer machines. These models all use 8 million pixel CCD, with professional and comprehensive manual functions and diverse functions. The operation similar to SLR meets the needs of a large number of photographers and becomes a hot spot in the market. Among them, Fuji introduced S20pro, which was sought after by many printing industries and photo studios because of its maximum output of12 million pixels, and became the digital camera with the largest output pixel at that time.
This year, Konica and Minolta merged, and the launch of a brand new brand "Konica Minolta" became an important event in the industry.
As for the SLR digital camera, Nikon launched the first civil SLR digital camera D70 in 2004, becoming the biggest competitor of Canon 300D in the market. Since the D70 went on the market in March, 2004, these two products have launched a fierce price war. In addition, the situation is worrying. Many times, the promotion and price reduction of the two models let consumers taste the feeling of "playing is the heartbeat". However, due to the high light overflow and moire fringe of Nikon D70, D70 was replaced by the follow-up model D70s and continued to compete with Canon 300D.
By 2005, the competition between the two is still intensifying. It can be said that by the beginning of 2005, Canon 300D had reached the lowest point in the history of SLR. You can buy a set of 300D for only about 6000 yuan, which is unprecedented. At the beginning of 2005, the price of D70s remained at around 8000 yuan, and the price was also very attractive.
After the daily limit of Canon 300D appeared, Canon launched the follow-up model of 350D in March 2005. This model uses the same 8-megapixel CMOS image sensor as EOS 20D launched at the end of 2004 and the same Canon II image processor as 20D, and the continuous shooting speed reaches 3 frames per second. In all aspects, it has made a qualitative leap over the 300D d. At the same time, the smaller size and lighter body have caused controversy among consumers. Many people think that the 350D is a SLR digital camera specially designed for female users, so many men choose another home because of the uncomfortable feel of the 350D.
In 2004-2005, SLR broke out. Due to the emergence of a large number of civil SLR, the market space of high-end consumer machines has been greatly compressed, so the 8-megapixel follow-up high-end consumer models such as Minolta, Nikon and Sony launched in 2005 are not as concerned as the first generation models. In 2005, Sony introduced the world's first non-SLR digital camera DSC-R 1 equipped with APS-C format image sensor. Although it has realized the long-cherished wish of many photographers for many years, its cost is too high, and the price even exceeds an entry-level SLR digital camera, so its performance is average.
In addition to Canon and Nikon's continuous introduction of civil SLR, the appearance of Pentax *ist D series SLR digital cameras has also injected new impetus into this field. *istD series digital cameras are famous for their compactness, and then *ist DS, *ist DL and other entry-level SLR digital cameras are also loved by many consumers.
Olympus has introduced a new E-300 suitable for entry-level users of SLR. CCD electrostatic precipitator has become a unique skill of Olympus SLR digital camera. Konica Minolta released the α-7 digital quasi-professional SLR digital camera based on the film machine. Since then, the civil SLR α-5 digital has been introduced, which is smaller in size and more functional, and is aimed at entry-level consumers. Give full play to CCD image stabilization. The lenses loaded on the α-7D and α-5D fuselage all become anti-shake lenses.
Of course, there is another important event worth mentioning in 2004, which is also an important symbol that profoundly affects the digital camera market today. The first CCD anti-shake digital camera-Konica Minolta X 1 was born! This camera uses an 8-megapixel CCD with 3 times optical zoom and a 2.5-inch LCD screen on the back of the fuselage. It became the benchmark of fashion digital cameras at that time. Today, high pixel, large screen and anti-shake have become an important measure of mainstream fashion digital cameras.
Now Canon anti-shake, Nikon VR anti-shake, Panasonic MAGE O.I.S anti-shake technology, plus Konica Minolta CCD anti-shake technology, Ricoh, Pentax and other self-developed CCD anti-shake technologies are widely used in all kinds of digital cameras, which provides great convenience for our shooting. At the same time, higher sensitivity has attracted consumers' attention, and high sensitivity anti-shake has also become a hot spot. By 2006, the sensitivity of consumer digital cameras can also reach ISO3200, which is a great challenge for SLR digital cameras.