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The D1H made its debut in 2001. The D2H digital SLR for professional use was launched last November. We spoke to a designer who devoted his career at Nikon to developing this camera's innovative AF system.
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UCHIYAMA, Shigeyuki |
The debut of the D2H camera introduces Nikon’s new Multi-CAM 2000 AF Sensor Module AF sensor system, with unique functions for professional-level use.
Like the D1H which preceded it, the D2H is a digital SLR camera that is preferred by many professional photojournalists and other photographers. Please explain what is perhaps its greatest feature: a new AF system that allows a photographer never to miss the best shooting opportunity.
The D2H: a supremely reliable, high-performance, professional-caliber digital SLR camera.
UCHIYAMA, Shigeyuki :
We developed a new AF sensor called Multi-CAM 2000 AF Sensor Module exclusively for the D2H. Basically, it is superior in three ways: First, it has an 11-area sensor. Earlier Nikon AF systems featured nothing more than a five-area sensor, so the new AF sensor marks a radical improvement, covering a wider image area. Second, nine of the sensor's 11 areas, that is, the ones between the sensors at either end are cross-type sensors, ensuring razor-sharp focus even in shots featuring vertical or horizontal stripes. Third, it features a wider area of defocusing detection, so the lens can detect appropriate focus points without delay.
Which of those three points is most important?
The second point, involving cross-type sensors. Naturally, sensors that could detect horizontals as well as verticals offer better results, so cross-type sensors have been introduced in cameras made by Nikon as well as other manufacturers, much to users' satisfaction. But, technologically, it is not easy to feature a cross-type sensor, so most manufacturers use it only around the center of the image area. The Nikon F5 camera launched in 1996 features three cross-type sensors on the center and two other points horizontally adjacent to the center. Now, with the D2H, we succeeded in positioning cross-type sensors on more points, for vertical and diagonal directions.
I see. What kind of technology was required to feature cross-type sensors?
Advanced high-speed, high-precision 11-area AF system featuring 9 cross-type AF sensors delivers quick response and sharp focus under all shooting conditions.
In shooting, images from the lens are detected by CCD, a kind of image sensor. A conventional camera has only one CCD, which leads ultimately to the equivalent of optical overload. So we decided to install in the D2H three CCD sensors to make cross-type sensors work properly.
