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First digital camera - stuff that was slapped together to work tethered with special card for russian version of Apple ][c+, back in 1990, i was on team developing software for it. Cant even remember resolution for it exactly, but i think it was like 640x480 colour, and 1024x768 b&w.. something like that.
First personal photo digital camera - 1998, Kodak DC 210+
First personal photo digital camera - 1998, Kodak DC 210+
weinschela
Subscriber Member
I swore to myself that I would not go digital 'cause it wasn't as good as film and wouldn't be until they got to about 10Mp. I did get a Nikon 880, just to get my feet wet. Then a Nikon D1; Then went to Canon for 20D (hated the tunnel look of the viewfinder), then 5D; eventually 5Dmkii. Always had Leica film so went to M8 when it came out and now with M9. It has been a very rapid transformation for me from film, and while I sometimes get nostalgic, I'm also realistic enough to know I'm never going back.
The mindless DSLR Trek begins: 
Being an idiotic early adopter with far more money than brains ... Nikon D1 in 1999, then went to PhotoPlus in Oct. 2000 and got sucked into a Canon D30 because of the faster L primes. Both cameras served me well at the time. Don't even want to remember how much that swap out cost me ... I think the 3 meg cropped frame Canon was "cheap" at $3K, which was actually a lot considering the top Nikon Pro film camera was like $900. It'd be interesting to go back to some of those images and reprocess because the software and the software user has improved so much. I still use D1X and D30 shots as wedding samples.
The best early 35mm DSLR I had was a Contax N Digital secured around 2004 or 2005 (Crikey! that was only 5 or 6 years ago!) ... only 6 meg, but the first full frame Pro spec camera. Horrible software until a bunch of us owners banded together and convinced Adobe to support it. Even more horrible battery consumption... but God, I loved that camera and the photos it produced (see attached). If Kyrocera had kept at it, that is what I'd be shooting today. Same for the Contax 645. I used an Epson RD1 along with the Contax ND ... the Epson shot better pics than an M8 IMO (see China Doll pic attached).
The first step onto the "slippery slope" leading directly to Dante's gates of Hell: :ROTFL:
Biggest step was going MFD the minute Kodak introduced the original DCS ProBack in 2000 for my 555 ELD. Something like $15K if I recall correctly.... which was a price revolution at the time. Had to lug around a big assed Quantum battery, and any ISO was okay as long as it was 100 ... but it cut the umbilical cord to the computer and shot to a $500. one gig IBM Microdrive ... which I immediately dropped 12" to a table and had to replace : -( I still have $2K in worthless Microdrives.
That evolved into a DCS ProBack 645 which I used on a Contax 645 for many years ... it eliminated the Quantum battery.
I always thought Kodak made the wrong move leaving MFD in favor of just making sensors. The ProBack was so innovative for its time. The LCD tilted up for low level photography and the square images could be cropped in the camera to save storage space. Had they continued with the highly practical innovations, I think the MFD landscape would look differently today.
After hundreds of thousands of $$$$ trying to keep up in the digital domain, I'm not really sure the improvements have made THAT big of a difference in a real world use sort of way. Software improvements and improved skill using software has had far more impact IMHO.
-Marc
Being an idiotic early adopter with far more money than brains ... Nikon D1 in 1999, then went to PhotoPlus in Oct. 2000 and got sucked into a Canon D30 because of the faster L primes. Both cameras served me well at the time. Don't even want to remember how much that swap out cost me ... I think the 3 meg cropped frame Canon was "cheap" at $3K, which was actually a lot considering the top Nikon Pro film camera was like $900. It'd be interesting to go back to some of those images and reprocess because the software and the software user has improved so much. I still use D1X and D30 shots as wedding samples.
The best early 35mm DSLR I had was a Contax N Digital secured around 2004 or 2005 (Crikey! that was only 5 or 6 years ago!) ... only 6 meg, but the first full frame Pro spec camera. Horrible software until a bunch of us owners banded together and convinced Adobe to support it. Even more horrible battery consumption... but God, I loved that camera and the photos it produced (see attached). If Kyrocera had kept at it, that is what I'd be shooting today. Same for the Contax 645. I used an Epson RD1 along with the Contax ND ... the Epson shot better pics than an M8 IMO (see China Doll pic attached).
The first step onto the "slippery slope" leading directly to Dante's gates of Hell: :ROTFL:
Biggest step was going MFD the minute Kodak introduced the original DCS ProBack in 2000 for my 555 ELD. Something like $15K if I recall correctly.... which was a price revolution at the time. Had to lug around a big assed Quantum battery, and any ISO was okay as long as it was 100 ... but it cut the umbilical cord to the computer and shot to a $500. one gig IBM Microdrive ... which I immediately dropped 12" to a table and had to replace : -( I still have $2K in worthless Microdrives.
That evolved into a DCS ProBack 645 which I used on a Contax 645 for many years ... it eliminated the Quantum battery.
I always thought Kodak made the wrong move leaving MFD in favor of just making sensors. The ProBack was so innovative for its time. The LCD tilted up for low level photography and the square images could be cropped in the camera to save storage space. Had they continued with the highly practical innovations, I think the MFD landscape would look differently today.
After hundreds of thousands of $$$$ trying to keep up in the digital domain, I'm not really sure the improvements have made THAT big of a difference in a real world use sort of way. Software improvements and improved skill using software has had far more impact IMHO.
-Marc
Steen
Senior Subscriber Member
My first digital camera, a little 'compact' Hewlett-Packard hp850 (released 2002), was purchased in 2003.
It was a surprisingly good little 4 Mp camera with electronic color viewfinder providing 'through the lens' ease when framing.
Here's a couple of pictures taken with the hp850, isn't it about time the industry shows us some real progress ...
hp850 • 1/595 sec. at f/3.7 ISO 200
hp850 • 1/552 sec. at f/6 ISO 100
and here's a portrait of the beast itself
click for larger size
Nikon D300 • Nikkor AF-S 1.4/85mm G • 1/50 sec. at f/2.8 ISO 200 • Capture NX
Nikon D300 • Nikkor AF-S 1.4/85mm G • 1/50 sec. at f/2.8 ISO 200 • Capture NX
Not counting Quicktake, and Canon Zapshot (early 90s) I got a Casio, probably 1996? Something like 0.3mp.
Olympus D600L, 1997, 1.3mp. A plastic beast, $1000, with serial uploads (extremely slow.) Very nice colors...
Nikon Coolpix 900, 1998ish, very nice little camera, with an oddball but useful form factor.
Nikon D1, 2000...used it with a 1Gb (how huge!) Microdrive when I shot the Formula 1 US Grand Prix that fall...
Too many to list after that.
Olympus D600L, 1997, 1.3mp. A plastic beast, $1000, with serial uploads (extremely slow.) Very nice colors...
Nikon Coolpix 900, 1998ish, very nice little camera, with an oddball but useful form factor.
Nikon D1, 2000...used it with a 1Gb (how huge!) Microdrive when I shot the Formula 1 US Grand Prix that fall...
Too many to list after that.
bradhusick
Active member
Apple QuickTake 100: 640x480 PICT files. 1MB internal memory could hold 8 pictures!
1994
$750
1994
$750
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PeterSchlicht
Member
After 22 years with Nikon F3 and Pentax 67 I took the plunge into digital in 2008 with Nikon D700. I still used my favorite AI 1.4/85mm with it.
However, in 2010 I finally changed completely to Leica M9... and am extremely happy with it.
However, in 2010 I finally changed completely to Leica M9... and am extremely happy with it.