Digicams With Character Gems From The Not-Too-Distant Past Compared to film cameras, digital cameras have been here for a relatively short time. We still give most of our attention to specifications and performance. How good is the resolution? How sharp are the images? How long do the batteries last? But as soon as the technical playing field levels out and most cameras make decent images, it will be time to look for cameras with special traits or character. This is very much like what happened to film cameras. More than 100 years ago, makers labored simply to get them to work properly. Once that was done, we began to separate a few special cameras from the flood of models that hit the shelves.

Toshiba PDR M1 with fold-out PCM/CIA (left), Kodak DCS3400 (center), Mitsubishi DJ-1000 (right). With Leicas, it was the feel as well as the quality of the lenses. On the lower priced side, marketers are still mystified about the character of the humble Argus C3 rangefinder camera that outsold all other cameras for years. When asked, buyers said they thought the brick looked scientific and was built to take it. Some lenses had character, too. Ask the person who loves their old 105mm Nikkor or Canon super-wide angle lens. The topic was hotly debated. Then there were film emulsions, paper, developer and which method produced the right results. Again, the perception of what we call character is subjective. As a friend of mine once replied to my comment on the character of an Argus C3 lens, Yeah...blurry! Digital Character? Even with only a few years of history, some digital cameras have already developed character and may be worth seeking out. But at this stage of development, some of these cameras fall short in the resolution area compared to current models. Just remember that in the film world there are those who like the character of cameras with pinhole lenses and toy cameras such as the Diana or Holga! Others loved half-frame 35mm even though full-frame was clearly superior for larger prints. The good news is that digital cameras with character are largely undiscovered, so you can build a small collection without spending a fortune. And if you like the images the cameras make, thats all that really counts.

This is exploitation of the character of that camera. Café is a bit more tweaked. Which Cameras? While most current debates on character seems centered on papers, printers and inks, cameras do differ. For example, when I shoot stylized images (architectural details or old WPA projects are favorites), the slightly processed look of some CMOS sensors seem to work better for me than many CCDs. Im not after technologically perfect digital shots. An aberrant algorithm or two can sometimes be fun! Until recently, CMOS sensors were the bad boys of the digital scene. The sensor was hard to tame and few companies took the trouble to see what could be done. Today, CMOS is quickly coming into its own, as reported in an earlier issue. So, depending on the camera, CMOS images can either be wretched blurs or images of unique quality. The ViviCam 3100 (also sold as the SV Mini 209) used an onboard CMOS correction system that was augmented by specialized PC software. This, plus proprietary interpolation of the 3/4 megapixel image produced some of the most satisfying images I have ever taken with any camera from the late 1990s. Some of the most interesting images were ones taken in far too low light and then autobalanced with the Photo Editor found in Microsoft Word. The resulting images looked unreal, alien and original! Are these cameras considered obsolete today? Yes. Do they have character? Absolutely. Oddly, I have not found many 640x480 (VGA resolution) cameras from past years that really hit my character button. Some new models in budget price ranges not only have more character, but beat out most of the old 640x480 models in per formance. More on that in a bit. One exception is the 1998 Toshiba PDR2, which is another CMOS camera. Although the images are not remarkable, it has some fascinating features packed into a very small size. The camera is crafted from metal, has a sturdy fold out PCMCIA adapter and a SmartMedia slot that loads with the precision of an ammo clip. In fact, despite modest specifications such as no flash, no electronic finder and no exposure controls, the whole camera feels like it was made to military specifications. It should be, as the 1998 MSRP was $450. Today it is about $40-$70 used. Hardware fans will enjoy the character. Street shooters will enjoy the size. And it is still fine for screen resolution shots. Dropping below 640x480 gets pretty dismal with the cheap plastic cameras all sporting the same highly suspect innards. However, swimming in that murky pool of cheapos is one shining example of over-engineering the Mitsubishi DJ-1000. Made about five years ago, this virtually unknown camera keeps showing up on auction sites new in a box for $20-$60, depending on whether the TV viewing interface is included. At less than 4 ounces even when filled with two AAA batteries and a 2MB CompactFlash card, the camera has only two buttonsan on/off switch and the shutter release. Its high resolution of 504x378 is interpolated from the original 320x240 resolution. The DJ-1000 stores images on a CompactFlash card and comes bundled with a PC Card adapter. There is no cable connection from the camera to the computer. Two LEDs provide all information: A red one acts as a battery gauge and processing indicator, and a red/green combo LED provides status feedback on free memory. So, wheres the character? The thing looks like alien architecture from The X-Files. Its also made of metal and is barely larger than a credit card and thinner on one side than many magazines. The thick side houses the two AAA cells (which last a surprisingly long time) and the CCD/lens assembly. The DJ-1000 stores images in a proprietary dat format. Images are viewed, interpolated and converted to other file types with the included software. The software can do batch conversions or open on one file. In practice, the camera does a good job of making small, web-sized shots. It is completely silent and works best in bright light. Using it requires composition techniques similar to those used with subminiature film cameras, For best results, fill the frame and dont anticipate distant detail. Like a subminiature, slip it effortlessly into any pocket. Even your typical 20MB CompactFlash card will hold a LOT of these tiny snaps. Its the perfect oddball camera for the photographer who enjoyed trying to max-out the negatives from a Minox or Minolta 16 spy camera. An arresting design and outstanding performance for the resolution could give the DJ-1000 cult status. Even people at the Mitsubishi booth at a recent photo show had never seen it! Maybe it will become the first digital Diana!

This is a highly enlarged portion of a shot in a student café shot with a CMOS camera (SoundVision SV Mini 209). It was in low light, and the gain was boosted to create this graphic effect that (to me) looks like an old French painting of a bistro. New Character? Is there character in newer cameras? Of course. The Kodak 3400 has a classy retro-modern look and even an attractive font for the menu messages. It makes you believe somebody is starting to think about style, not just performance. The rubber lens cap and jelly bean type buttons all give the camera a decidedly friendly character without going goofy. This is opposed to some cameras that seem to go out of their way to look like Darth Vaders digicam. Olympus is working hard refining their line of built-in lenses. They say they are made to work specifically with the optical and electronic nuances of electronic sensors in-stead of film. An example of their effort is the new Olympus D-100 Brio. This small 1.3 megapixel camera has an f/2.8 4.5mm lens with startling clarity and an almost three-dimensional feel. Its apparently the result of overall sharpness, contrast and perhaps a little Olympus magic thrown in. Newcomers to digital such as Concord have startling new designs with Microdisplays inside the viewfinder. Opcom and Cool i-Cam compete to offer pen-like designs that exemplify thinking outside of the box (camera) design. These cameras are no longer just totable, they are becoming wearable. And weve even seen tiny lens/sensor assemblies that clip on one side of a pair of sunglasses. Perhaps this will come the closest yet to the dream of capturing what your eye sees. Character is always elusive and subjective. Some might say that, like pornography, they cant define it, but they know it when they see it! The world of digital camera design is wide open, so expect more character as the industry rapidly matures. What digital cameras do you find that have character? You can drop me a note at info@acpress.com. Contacts Agfa Corp 100 Challenger Rd Ridgefield Park, NJ 07660 (201) 440-2500 www.agfaphoto.com America OPCOM Inc. 717 Brea Canyon Rd., Ste. 11 Walnut, CA 91789 (866) 868-8881 www.opcom.com.tw Canon USA Inc One Canon Plz Lake Success, NY 11042 (516) 328-5000 www.usa.canon.com Concord Camera Corp 4000 Hollywood Blvd. Hollywood, FL 33021 (954) 331-4200 www.concam.com Eastman Kodak 343 State St. Rochester, NY 14650 (716) 724-4373 www.kodak.com Leica Camera Inc. 156 Ludlow Ave. Northvale, NJ 07647 (201) 767-7500 www.leica-camera.com Minolta Corp 101 Williams Dr. Ramsey, NJ 07446 (201) 825-4000 www.minoltausa.com Minox Inc 156 Ludlow Ave. Northvale, NJ 07647 (201) 767-7500 www.minox.com Mitsubishi Imaging 555 Theodore Fremd Ave Rye, NY 10580 (914) 925-3200 www.mitsubishiimaging.com Nikon Inc. 1300 Walt Whitman Rd. Melville, NY 11747 (631) 547-8500 www.nikonusa.com Olympus America Inc. (Brio) Two Corporate Center Dr. Melville, NY 11747 (631) 844-5321 www.olympus.com Sound Vision Inc. (ViviCam) 432 Boston Post Rd. Wayland, MA 01778 (503) 358-9000 www.soundvisioninc.com Toshiba 35 Parker Irvine, CA 92618 (949) 461-4997 www.toshiba.com