Editing Digital camera back (section)

==History==
[[Image:Digitalback dcs420 02.jpg|thumb|Kodak DCS420 digital camera, consisting of a modified [[Nikon F90|Nikon N90s]] body (left) and a digital back (right) shown here separated.]]
The first commercial digital camera back was introduced by [[Leaf (Israeli company)|Leaf]] (now part of [[Phase One (company)|Phase One]]) in 1991.<ref group="comment">The world first Digital back is [[Nikon NASA F4]] and it's not for commercial</ref> The Leaf DCBI (Digital Camera Back I), nicknamed "The Brick", offered resolution of 4 [[megapixel]]s (MP) in a 2048&nbsp;× 2048 [[pixel]] format. The same CCD was used by [[Sinar]] in its equivalent sinarback. In 1994 Leaf introduced an improved model, the DCBII, which included a live-video view, and in 1998 they introduced the 6&nbsp;MP Volare.

A complete camera system was constructed using the Sinar view camera system with a Sinarcam 1 shutter system which provided control of the live image, and an adapter plate was made to use the backs with [[Hasselblad]] cameras. Driver software generally required the use of an [[Apple Macintosh]] to operate the cameras.

These systems were complex and expensive. They used custom controller cards (known as the "[[SCSI]] taxi"), and were 3-shot backs; a colored [[filter (photography)|filter]] wheel inside the back rotated to take red, green, and blue exposures.

=== Competition and evolution ===

Competition soon came to the new industry.

[[MegaVision]] in 1992 introduced their T2 back, which was a similar product; it also was a 3-shot unit with a 4&nbsp;MP square sensor. MegaVision had been making digital photography equipment based on video technology since 1984, and the T2 had live video preview.{{Citation needed|date=May 2013}}

[[Phase One (company)|Phase One]] was founded in 1993, and by 1994 was selling their StudioKit scanning backs.
In 1998 Phase One launched the Lightphase. which was the first one-shot back that could compete with film in terms of quality.
Resolution was 6&nbsp;MP and the physical size of the CCD was full-frame 35&nbsp;mm, however the back was designed to be used on Hasselblad 500-series cameras.

Other early industry entrants included Jenoptik who produced products in cooperation with Sinar, Dicomed (a scanning back maker which closed in 1999), Better Light (the most prominent scanning back maker), and Kigamo.

By 2003, Leaf had an 11&nbsp;MP model, the Valeo, and Jenoptik/Sinar had the 11&nbsp;MP Sinarback 43. several vendors had 16&nbsp;MP models; [[Kodak]] produced the US$15,000 16&nbsp;MP Pro Back Plus using their own CCD, Imacon made the ixpress 96, Phase One had their H20 and Sinar continued its camera back development from the 22, 23h, 43h and issued the 44H which when mounted on a macroscan unit delivered an image of over 1&nbsp;GB in size with live image focussing using the Sinarcam shutter system.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Golem.de: IT-News für Profis |url=https://www.golem.de/sonstiges/zustimmung/auswahl.html?from=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.golem.de%2Fnews%2Ff3-et-al-nikon-patentiert-digitale-kamerarueckwand-fuer-analoge-slrs-1212-96459.html |access-date=2023-04-17 |website=www.golem.de}}</ref>

As of 2014 Phase One has a large market share with their own camera manufacturing and the IQ series digital backs that offer 80, 60.5 and 40MP resolution respectively. IQ180 and IQ160 both capture in full-frame 645 format.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.digitaltransitions.com/page/phase-one |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111030012841/http://www.digitaltransitions.com/page/phase-one |archive-date=October 30, 2011 |title=Phase One Digital Backs}}</ref>

=== Mergers and partnerships ===
During the first decade of the twenty-first century the digital back market began to change and consolidate quickly. One trend was the displacement of medium-format film cameras were by [[digital single-lens reflex camera]]s based on smaller, 35&nbsp;mm film cameras, which can offer high-quality results with no more expense than medium-format film gear. At the same time digital workflow was increasingly easy. This is leading to the development of all-digital medium-format cameras which do not need separate digital backs.

[[Bronica]] and [[Contax]], formerly two of the largest medium-format camera makers, went out of business. Fuji ceased production of their 680 medium-format film cameras. [[Mamiya]] crossed the product line divide in 2004,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dpreview.com/news/0409/04092902mamiya_zd.asp|title=Mamiya ZD and digital back|website=dpreview.com}}</ref> announcing a medium-format digital camera, the [[Mamiya ZD]]. The imaging technology used in this camera is also available as a separate digital back, the ZD Back, which can be used with Mamiya's film cameras. Shortly after the product was announced, the company was sold. [[Pentax]], for whose cameras digital backs are not available, sells a medium-format digital camera.

Another trend is the release of new camera systems designed to tightly integrate with digital backs; this provides users with the ability to use film, but is easier to use for digital work than a film camera with a less-integrated accessory digital back.

Under pressure from digital camera back manufacturers, long-established medium-format SLR manufacturer [[Hasselblad]] eventually merged with back maker Imacon under the Hasselblad name. The post-merger Hasselblad worked with Fuji to develop a new line of cameras (Hasselblad's first in over 50 years) designed to closely integrate with digital backs, particularly the former Imacon models. This meant that Shriro (owner of Hasselblad/Imacon) and Fuji could squeeze out other back makers, sending those manufacturers (and the remaining medium-format manufacturers) seeking their own partnerships.

Mamiya announced a partnership with Phase One, which resulted in Phase One buying a major stake in Mamiya. Jenoptik commissioned [[Rollei]] to work with Sinar to develop their own tightly integrated platform, the Hy6. The Hy6 was also marketed by Leaf under their name and using their backs. The Sinar HY6<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.image2output.com/products/photographic/cameras/hy6-camera.html|title=Sinar HY6|website=image2output.com|access-date=January 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208124428/http://www.image2output.com/products/photographic/cameras/hy6-camera.html|archive-date=February 8, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> keeps the unique facilities of the rotating camera back and live image functionality.

During this process, several product lines of digital backs were discontinued. Kodak stopped making their own backs in 2004, shortly before purchasing Leaf. Fuji had their own line of backs, but certainly only one product line will be produced by Fuji and Hasselblad together leaving the Leica/Sinar group as the only European digital medium-format and view camera manufacturers.

Sinar is now a subsidiary of Leica and are continuing developments of high technology digitisation with more spectrally accurate systems <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.image2output.com/products/photographic/cameras/ctm-camera.html |title=CTM Camera - Cameras - Photographic - Online Store |access-date=February 8, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208124440/http://www.image2output.com/products/photographic/cameras/ctm-camera.html |archive-date=February 8, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and optional image size output from a fixed sized cameraback for increased speed

===Hardware evolution===
The early digital camera back market was dominated by scanning, rather than single-shot, models. Since it is much easier to manufacture a high-quality linear (one-dimensional) CCD array that has only a few thousand pixels than a two-dimensional CCD matrix that has millions, very high-resolution scanning CCD camera backs were available much earlier than their CCD matrix counterparts. For example, camera backs with a 7,000-pixel linear resolution—capable of scanning to relatively slowly produce pictures of about 40&nbsp;MP—were available in the mid-1990s.

Many earlier multi-shot backs could natively capture only [[grayscale]] images; color images were created by scanning three times through red, green, and blue filters which rotated into place.

Early digital camera backs created more data than could be stored on the relatively small storage devices of the time that could be built into them, and had to be connected (tethered) to a computer during capture.

Later, one-shot digital backs, which can work at all shutter speeds even on motorized medium-format cameras, were produced. Images are stored on fast high-capacity plug-in memory cards, making tethering to a computer unnecessary so that the backs could be used wherever film can be used.