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As digital cameras continue to evolve rapidly a key player in the development of digital imaging technology, since the beginning of the digital imaging age and the launch of the Nikon D1 digital-SLR camera, discusses the enormous advances achieved from a developer's standpoint.
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SHIBAZAKI, Kiyoshige |
The Nikon D1 camera transformed the standard wisdom of digital imaging.
The path to supreme image quality was paved with hardship
We've looked forward to this opportunity to speak with you, Mr. Shibazaki, because you have been developing image sensors and imaging technologies for digital cameras since the birth of the electronic camera. First, we would like to know a little about the development of the Nikon D1, considered at its release a revolutionary product.
SHIBAZAKI, Kiyoshige :
Development of the Nikon D1 began in 1996, based on our goal to create a camera capable of the highest performance by any standard, whether film or digital. At that time, only the military and aerospace industries used image sensors that met the strictest performance standards possible. We wanted to use such devices in products to be sold for just a few thousand dollars. Can you imagine how difficult that was?
Do you mean it was difficult to settle on a price?
No. We were unable to find a manufacturer. None of them believed that a product using such high-performance sensors would sell in volumes of thousands of units per month. Even when we did find a manufacturer that agreed to produce our image sensors, problems presented themselves even with the initial trial products.
What kind of problems?
For example, the trial product was a sensor requiring several watts of electricity. Initially, we were sure that it would be impossible to power the sensor with a battery. However, unable to wait until high-speed continuous shooting performance could be achieved with those specifications, we began developing circuitry for the sensor ourselves. At first, we couldn't even drive the sensor, but by applying transmission line and distributed constant approaches to the drive circuitry, and with elaborate wiring patterns, we finally succeeded. I accumulated the technological know-how needed to achieve this while overseeing development of industrial analog high-definition cameras in the early 1990s.
Weren't the technologies used in industrial high-definition cameras useful for digital still cameras?
Of course. In fact, the D1 employed the same circuitry used in industrial high-definition cameras. Actually, I think that it was these technologies that made it possible for us to release the first truly professional-class digital-SLR camera a full one-and-a-half years before our competitors.
I see.
Nikon image sensors continue to make history in the field of digital photography.
This was just one example of the sort of difficulties we faced. You can imagine, then, how excited I was when I saw the first beautiful image produced by our image sensor. I was so very proud of our success in developing that first image sensor.
Did it take long to finally succeed in powering the image sensor?
Yes, it took about two years. After that, we worked to ensure stability and high quality with mass production. Our primary concern was with the size of our image sensor. It was so big that we really began to doubt ourselves. “We've never produced such a big sensor…”, “Will we be able to power this sensor?” and “I don't think Nikon has this kind of drive technology” were the reservations running through our minds until all those cooperating in the development of the sensor saw the images it produced. Everyone concerned was so enthusiastic that our doubts quickly disappeared.
So, the D1 had the power to move people even before its release!
It would seem so. After its release, things definitely took a turn for the better. Those in the market had the faith in Nikon to believe that we could sell the image sensors themselves. This certainly made development of our next large image sensor much easier because suppliers became more willing to satisfy our specific requests. This was a huge step forward for us because at that time, the biggest problem in digital-SLR camera development was the lack of sensors that met the necessary demands. Looking back, I now remember what at the time seemed like a path of hardship as a great learning experience.
I guess that it's now safe to reveal that the D1 image sensor, with specifications noting a pixel count of 2.7-million pixels, actually had a pixel count of 10.8-million pixels. The technical reason for an actual pixel count four times greater than that indicated publicly lies in the need to achieve high sensitivity and a good signal-to-noise ratio. Unlike current cameras, for which final pixel counts account for individual pixels, we had to include multiple pixels in each pixel unit with the D1. In short, our development of an image sensor with so many pixels at such an early stage in the history of digital cameras indicates the importance placed on SLR camera development at Nikon. Keeping all of this in mind, our ability to offer high-speed drive technology that made five frame-per-second shooting of 10.8-million pixel images possible is something I am truly proud of.
