New Foveon chip cameras… what do you think

JG
Posted By
Julio_Guerra
Jun 22, 2004
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I noticed on dpreview that there is another new Foveon chip camera coming out.

<http://www.dpreview.com/news/0406/04062102foveonf19.asp>

What do you guys and gals think. Is this really going to be the next best thing in digital cameras for most of us. Will there be problems with PSE and PS processing these images? I am sure we are still a few years away from this being in the mainstream of consumer affordable ($1000 – down) cameras, right?

Julio
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Grant_Dixon
Jun 22, 2004
Julio

By all the laws of physics the Foveon chip should produce excellent results. Unfortunately the chip has not lived up to the expectations. While it produces good results you are still better off to go with the more tried and true technologies.

Grant
LK
Leen_Koper
Jun 22, 2004
If the Foveon chip proves to be better, that doesnot implicate it ill be the new standard. It will be just like with VCR systems, the Philips System 2000 was the best, Sonty Betamax second, but the worst system of all, VHS took the market.

As soon as Nikon, Canon or Minolta will adapt this system – if proven better-, it might become a new standard. Else, it will go the same way as these video systems.

Creating a new standard is usually not about producing the best quality, but about marketing power.

Leen
JG
Julio_Guerra
Jun 22, 2004
I am one of those people that bought the Betamax video recorder. It became a great anchor and door stop. I know the drill.
The Foveon chip does sound promising however I hear that it is "noisy". I just wonder if it is a breakthrough that will be a major improvement over what we have now.
BB
Bert_Bigelow
Jun 23, 2004
To answer the other part of the question about compatibility with Photoshop, I wouldn’t think that would be a problem. It’s still a digital image with R, G and B channels.
Bert
JB
John_Burnett_(JNB)
Jun 24, 2004
Had Foveon hooked up with one of the ‘heavyweights’ in photography, it could have been a different story. While Sigma does have some good lenses, I don’t think you’d find many pros willing to give up their investment in Canon or Nikon equipment (for example) for an ‘all Sigma’ solution.

The ‘heavyweights’ however, are not likely to abandon all their R&D, manufacturing plans and supplier deals to gamble on a technology from a small company like Foveon. Had one of them done so (gambled, that is) and pumped even more investment and energy into the technology… who knows? Imagine a full-frame, Foveon sensor (tweaked/perfected), professional ‘system’ camera!
JH
Jim_Hess
Jun 24, 2004
I seem to sense a little bit of "I have invested a lot of money in my equipment, and nobody can come up with anything better." Let’s not kid ourselves. It may not be this Foveon chip that revolutionizes digital photography, but we all know that it is only a matter of time until something comes along that will completely blow away everything we are using now. It is just the nature of the digital world.
LK
Leen_Koper
Jun 24, 2004
Of course it is pretty sour to replace all your lenses for a different make. Nevertheless many pro photographers have made this step, just like me. I have been a Minolta user for over 25 years and 11 years ago I had to switch to autofocus and recently I had to switch to Nikon mount lenses.

If something is reallly much better, most pros will take their loss and subsequently the non professionals will follow. Foveon isn’t up to that level now, but I am eagerly waiting for further new things to come.

Leen
BB
Bert_Bigelow
Jun 24, 2004
The ‘heavyweights’ however, are not likely to abandon all their R&D, manufacturing plans and supplier deals to gamble on a technology from a small company like Foveon

Yeah, but smart companies (like Canon and Nikon) keep up with things like this by hedging their bets…tasking a small reearch group to work with a new gadget and evaluate it. If they’ve done their homework, they already know that it’s not that great, at least not yet yet. That’s my theory…but I could be wrong.
Bert
OT
One Tequila
Jun 25, 2004
I agree with Grant that the chip has disappointed. Apperantly Foveon can produce density but not size, which explains the noisy properties. Don’t be quick to draw the Betamax/VHS analogy. Pro photographers are not a bunch of consumers easily swayed by marketing broo-ha-ha. They are savvy, rational, open to criticism in both directions, and highly opportunistic. As Foveon matures you should see a lot of debate open up among the people that really make the decisions.
What will be the deciding factor? Capitalization. Will Foveon die before the engineers can overcome their hurdles. There exists within Foveon a talented group with vision and skill. But they cannot work miracles. Formidable challenges are ahead on a purely engineering level. True, many challanges are past. But the future demands time and money. There is little doubt in my mind that given adequate resources and times Foveon can overcome these obstacles.
What will the future bring? Keep your eye on the process patents. If Foveon makes substantial progress in processes that enlarge the physical size of their sensors with current resolution then they may be onto something. Who will buy Foveon? With the right technology the company is priceless. But even with the right technology they can easily be caught in a pickle: sell or die.
Hey bidder bidder! HEY BIDDER BIDDER! Do I hear 12?
……………………….

wrote in message
I noticed on dpreview that there is another new Foveon chip camera coming
out.
<http://www.dpreview.com/news/0406/04062102foveonf19.asp>
What do you guys and gals think. Is this really going to be the next best
thing in digital cameras for most of us. Will there be problems with PSE and PS processing these images? I am sure we are still a few years away from this being in the mainstream of consumer affordable ($1000 – down) cameras, right?
Julio
RH
Ron Hunter
Jun 25, 2004
wrote:

I seem to sense a little bit of "I have invested a lot of money in my equipment, and nobody can come up with anything better." Let’s not kid ourselves. It may not be this Foveon chip that revolutionizes digital photography, but we all know that it is only a matter of time until something comes along that will completely blow away everything we are using now. It is just the nature of the digital world.

Sometimes a technology is just too far ahead of its time. In the early 1990’s Atari made handheld game machines that used 64bit processors, but the market ignored them. Too soon. Remember the 1949 ‘Tucker’? Too soon.

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